Performing Keywords

Question 1

Acting style

Answer 1

The style in which the actor is performing e.g. naturalistic, comedic, melodramatic.

Question 2

Accent

Answer 2

The distinctive way of pronunciation, especially one associated with a particular nation, locality, or social: E.g. Liverpudlian, Yorkshire, American, Received Pronunciation (RP) (to use instead of posh).

Question 3

Body language

Answer 3

Your views or attitude can be communicated through the way you hold your body e.g. looking away and body facing away would suggest that you’re disinterested.

Question 4

Naturalistic

Answer 4

A form of theatre designed to create the illusion of reality for an audience.

Question 5

Non-naturalistic

Answer 5

Non-naturalism is a broad term for all performance styles that are not dependent on the life-like representation of everyday life.

Question 6

Articulation

Answer 6

The clarity or distinction of speech.

Question 7

Characterisation

Answer 7

How an actor uses body, voice and thought to develop and portray a character.

Question 8

Chorus

Answer 8

A group of performers who sing, dance, recite in unison. In Greek theatre they often narrated off stage action to help audiences to understand the story.

Question 9

Genre

Answer 9

Example: Satire - the use of humour, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticise people’s stupidity/vices. Comedy - entertainment consisting of jokes and sketches, intended to make an audience laugh. Tragedy - deals with tragic events and has an unhappy ending, especially one concerning the plite of the protagonist. Historical drama - refers to a work set in an earlier time period.

Question 10

Dialogue

Answer 10

A conversation between two or more people.

Question 11

Emphasis

Answer 11

Stressing a word in a sentence to make a particular point e.g. ‘I trusted you!’ ‘You’ve won one million pounds!’.

Question 12

Facial expression

Answer 12

The way you express your emotions as a character through your face e.g. smiling, shock, surprise, frowning.

Question 13

Intonation

Answer 13

The natural rise and fall of a voice.

Question 14

Monotone

Answer 14

Speaking in the same tone of voice.

Question 15

Pause

Answer 15

Imagine you just informed someone their mother just died. ‘ I am sorry to have to tell you that your mother has (pause) passed away’
You would not keep talking. You would give a moment to let the news sink in.

Question 16

Flashback

Answer 16

To go back to a previous event in the story.

Question 17

Pace

Answer 17

The rate of movement or speed of action or voice.

Question 18

Gesture

Answer 18

Any movement of the actor’s head, shoulder, arm, hand, etc. to convey meaning.

Question 19

Improvisation

Answer 19

The spontaneous use of movement and speech to create a character, acting done without a script.

Question 20

Interaction

Answer 20

The action or relationship between two or more characters.

Question 21

Language

Answer 21

The language used in performance, the diction or style of writing. Formal or informal language for a character.

Question 22

Monologue

Answer 22

A speech made by one actor; a monologue can be delivered alone or in the the presence of others.

Question 23

Mannerism

Answer 23

A habitual (something you do as habit) gesture or way of speaking or behaving e.g. occasional cough, hands circling when speaking, touching of hair.

Question 24

Performance elements

Answer 24

This includes acting, speaking (vocal expression, diction, projection), nonverbal expression (gesture, body alignment, facial expressions, movement).

Question 25

Pitch

Answer 25

A particular level of voice: e.g. high pitched.

Question 26

Tone

Answer 26

The tone of an actor’s voice e.g. a harsh tone, a sarcastic tone.

Question 27

Posture

Answer 27

Physical stance taken by a performer that conveys something about the character.

Question 28

Eye contact

Answer 28

Avoiding eye contact with another character might suggest embarrassment or fear. Keeping eye contact might suggest intensity, power or confidence.

Question 29

Stance

Answer 29

How an actor stands. Standing tall, feet apart, hands behind your back would suggest a serious state of mind whereas a more relaxed stance would be shown through shoulders relaxed, arms by side.

Question 30

Stage space

Answer 30

This is a term which can be used to describe where actors stand at given moments in the play. Should the actor sit/stand in a particular part of the stage, centre-stage, downstage? Should the actor move closer/further apart to another character? Should the character take up a lot of space? Elevated? Low to the floor?

Question 31

Role

Answer 31

The character portrayed by an actor.

Question 32

Vocal expression/ vocal projection

Answer 32

How an actor uses their voice to convey character/ the volume of the voice to be heard by an audience.

Question 33

Linear plot/ non-linear

Answer 33

When the story is in chronological order/disjointed narrative or disrupted narrative.