John R. Lewis Library: IB Theatre: Solo Theatre Piece

IB Theatre: The Solo Theatre Piece

Introduction Students at HL will: research a theatre theorist they have not previously studied, identify an aspect (or aspects) of their theory, create and present a solo theatre piece (4–8 minutes) based on an aspect(s) of this theory. submit a report (maximum 3,000 words) which includes research into and understandings of the theorist the theory and the context of the theorist’s work. record your practical explorations of the selected aspect(s) of theory the development of the solo theatre piece analysis and evaluation of the theatre piece. *Perspective—Candidates should approach this task from the four perspectives of creator, director, designer and performer.* *Aim—The aim of this task is for students to:* Explore the practical implications of theatre theory Put theory into practice by creating and presenting a solo piece of theatre based on theatre theory. *Understandings—Through this exploration students will understand:* The various contexts of at least one theatre theorist The relationship between theatre theory and practice The ways in which theatre theory informs and influences the creation and presentation of theatre. It is important to note that this is not a performance-only task, but rather brings together the skills of creating, designing, directing and performing through the lens of a theatre theorist. It is fundamentally a task which asks students to consider: How to make a piece of theatre based on an aspect(s) of theory The most appropriate theatre form and performance material required to contain these theoretical considerations How to communicate and present this aspect(s) of theory practically and through their body The most appropriate scenic and technical design elements needed to support the presentation of this theory. This task does not assess performance skills, but rather the extent to which students can learn, embody and communicate understanding through action.		Definitions
		A solo theatre piece is a piece of theatre created, designed, directed and performed by an individual.
		Theatre theory relates to ideas that inform the creation, performance and presentation of theatre. It encompasses ideas about theatre as an art form, genre, style, theatre processes and theatre practices.
		A theatre theorist is a theatre practitioner who has contributed to the shaping and development of theatre through his or her published work and ideas (primary sources). In addition, there are published works by others (secondary sources) regarding the theatre theorist’s contributions, ideas and the impact they have had on theatre practice, signifying that the theatre theorist’s work has had implications beyond his or her own practice and an impact on theatre in general. Theatre theorists will often present frameworks, approaches, techniques and models of practice. They will often develop existing theatre practice or shed a new light on it, as well as innovating new forms and approaches.
		An aspect of theatre theory refers to one particular strand of a theatre theorist’s work. It may be an idea, a process, a series of exercises, a stylistic element, a convention, a technique or an approach.

Suggestions of theorists that can be used for the Solo Theatre Piece.

Antonin Artaud
Eugenio Barba
Samuel Beckett
Steven Berkoff
Augusto Boal
Bertolt Brecht
Andre Breton

Peter Brook
Tim Etchells
Dario Fo
Edward Gordon Craig
Jerry Grotowski
Robert Lepage

Vsevold Meyerhold
Konstanin Stanislavsky
Twyla Tharp
Robert Wilson
Mary Zimmerman

Watch two or more of the videos, which show the same performer presenting five different versions of the same piece of text (Ophelia from Shakespeare’s Hamlet), informed by different theorists (Antonin Artaud, Bertolt Brecht, Peter Brook, Jerzy Grotowski and Constantin Stanislavski).

Ask yourself:

How has theory informed practice to create these five very different theatre experiences?
How have design, direction, and performance been used?

Five Truths brings new clarity to Ophelia's demise

An article about Katie Mitchell's video installation at the V&A (Victoria and Albert) Museum in London, where she refracted Ophelia's death scene into five 20th-century dramatic styles.

Source: “National Theatre: Five Truths - Theatre Practitioners”. 14 February 2012.

Database Passwords

Gale eBooks This link opens in a new window
GVRL is a database of encyclopedias and specialized reference sources for multidisciplinary research. Also includes professional literature for teachers and staff.
News (Gale OneFile) This link opens in a new window
The database offers a one-stop source for full-text current news and searchable archives.

TheatreLinks.com - Practitioners

Antonin Artaud

Websites

Video: Antonin Artaud: Practical Approaches to a Theatre of Cruelty (Preview)

This video preview is for an educational two-disc box set available from Pumpkin Interactive, which contains a 25-minute documentary about the life of Artaud, and an interactive DVD ROM containing over 100 clips from Artaud-influenced performances.

Peter Brook

Vsevold Meyerhold

Eugenio Barba

Samuel Beckett

Tim Etchells

Websites

Tim Etchells official website
Site with information on Tim Etchell's projects and events. Go to the 'Resources' tab to find links to online resources related to his work: Interviews, conversations, and articles; videos; reviews; and Forced Entertainment programme notes (by Tim Etchells.)
Forced Entertainment
Website of Forced Entertainment, a group of six artists (including Tim Etchells, Artistic Director), who have collaborated to make original theatre and performances together since 1984. They develop their plans and rehearse at their base in Sheffield and tour to audiences across the UK and around the world. They typically develop projects through improvisation and discussion; collaboration – as agreement and as disagreement – is at the heart of everything they do.

Konstanin Stanislavsky

Websites

Konstantin Stanislavski
An extensive biography of Konstantin Stanislavski, with detailed descriptions of his methods for training actors. Authors: Bradley W. Bishop and Trevor Jones (October 1999). Presented by Krying Sky and its publisher Velocicolor as an online resource for information on Konstantin Stanislavski and other pillars of modern "Method Acting".
About Konstantin Stanislavski
A brief biography of Konstantin Stanislavski, relating his work to that of modern day actors today. Presented by Stella Adler Academy of Acting and Theatre (Los Angeles).

Steven Berkoff

Steven Berkoff's website
Information, images, and links from Steven Berkoff: biography, plays, films, news, unpublished work, and other resources. contact ]
Amber Lane Press
The publisher's web page for Steven Berkoff, with a brief biography and detailed descriptions of several of his works.

Dario Fo

Twyla Tharp

Website

Twyla Tharp Dance Foundation
The website has a list of Tharp's works, 1965 to present, with descriptions, dates, and photos for each. Also on the website is a brief biography of the artist.

Augusto Boal

Interview

“Famed Brazilian Artist Augusto Boal on the ‘Theater of the Oppressed’” (interview)
Audio recording and transcript of an interview of Augusto Boal in 2005 by Democracy Now journalist Juan Gonzalez. Boal explains his approach of seeing theater as a dialogue and an opportunity to act out social change.

Websites

Augusto Boal, animation and education
The author makes the case of Boal's work around forum theatre, invisible theatre and the theatre of the oppressed as being expressions of socio-cultural animation., and comparable to the informal educational work done at infed.org as informal and community educators. Presented by infed.org, a not-for-profit site provided by the YMCA George Williams College in London.
Finding the Marxist in Boal: A Counter-Argument for the Sceptics
An essay from Raymond Teodo that makes the argument that the works of Augusto Boal are Marxist, and that Boal's concept of Marxism is one of the many different conceptions of Marxism that have developed during this past century.

Edward Gordon Craig

Websites

Edward Gordon Craig: British Actor and Director
A biography of Edward Gordon Craig, in full Edward Henry Gordon Craig, (1872-1966), English actor, theatre director-designer, producer, and theorist who influenced the development of the theatre in the 20th century. Authors: Denis Bablet, and the Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica.
Edward Gordon Craig Presentation
A twelve-slide presentation on the life, career, ideas and practices, influences, and contemporary and modern impact of Edward Gordon Craig. The slides are accompanied by a detailed script. Published November 12, 2007 on SlideShare.

Robert Wilson

Website

Robert Wilson official website
Official website of Robert Wilson, offering information on Wilson's achievements in both the performing arts - in theatre and opera - and the visual arts, as well as a biography.

Bertolt Brecht

Jerry Grotowski

Mary Zimmerman

Websites

Mary Zimmerman
An artist biography of Mary Zimmerman from Goodman Theatre in Chicago, where she is the Manilow Resident Director. The page lists Zimmerman's many directorial and production credits in theatre and opera, both in the United States and abroad.
Mary Zimmerman
A brief biography of Mary Zimmerman, who has been an ensemble member of Lookingglass Theatre Company in Chicago since 1993. The article chronicles Zimmerman's directorial and production career in theatre and opera, and lists some of the awards she has received.

Andre Breton

Robert Lepage

On Directing and Dramaturgy by Eugenio Barba
ISBN: 9780415549219
Publication Date: 2009-12-04
The Stanislavski System by Sonia Moore; Joshua Logan (Foreword by); John Gielgud (Preface by)
ISBN: 9780140466607
Publication Date: 1984-10-02
The Open Door by Peter Brook
ISBN: 9781400077878
Publication Date: 2005-01-04
Robert Wilson and His Collaborators by Laurence Shyer
ISBN: 0930452976
Publication Date: 1989-02-01
Free Association by Steven Berkoff
ISBN: 9780571192694
Publication Date: 1997-11-01
Robert Lepage by Robert Lepage; Remy Charest (Translator); Wanda Romer Taylor (Translator); John Ralston Saul (Foreword by)
ISBN: 9781559361651
Publication Date: 1999-04-01
Index to the Story of My Days by Edward Gordon Craig
Publication Date: 1957
Brecht on Theatre by Bertolt Brecht; John Willett (Translator); Marc Silberman (Editor); Steve Giles (Editor); Tom Kuhn (Editor)
Call Number: 792 BRE
ISBN: 9780809005420
Publication Date: 1964-01-01
The Way of Acting by J. Thomas Rimer (Translator); Tadashi Suzuki
Call Number: 792.095 SUZ
ISBN: 0930452569
Publication Date: 1993-01-01
An Actor Prepares by Constantin Stanislavski; Elizabeth Reynolds Hapgood (Translator)
Call Number: 792.028 STA
ISBN: 9780878309832
Publication Date: 1989-04-28
Theater and Its Double by Antonin Artaud; Mary C. Richard (Translator); Antonin Artaud
Call Number: 792.04 ART
ISBN: 9780802150301
Publication Date: 1994-01-07
Stella Adler by Howard Kissel; Marlon Brando (Preface by); Stella Adler
Call Number: 792.028 ADL
ISBN: 9781557833730
Publication Date: 2000-11-01
Challenge for the Actor by Uta Hagen
Call Number: 792.028 HAG
ISBN: 9780684190402
Publication Date: 1991-08-21

IB Theatre, External Assessment - Task 1: Solo Theatre Piece

Excerpt from IB Theatre guide (First assessment 2017), pp. 33-44, related to the solo theatre piece, with an introduction to the topic, task details, and the external assessment criteria.
Command terms for IB theatre

List of key terms and phrases used in the IB theatre assessment objectives and assessment criteria.
Theory in Context

This worksheet guides students in looking at a theorist and the theory in the context of history (relationship of the theory to other theories of the time and theories that came before it) and its relevance (the importance of the theory to subsequent development of the theatre).
Aspect in Context

Use this handout to organize research on the different aspects of the theatre theorist’s theory. How do they relate to each other?
Recording Ideas

Use this graphic organizer to record your ideas for the solo piece and to show the process of how these ideas are developed and/or refined.
Recording Processes

Use this handout to guide your own practical process of exploration and to record your process.
Intention and Impact

Use this worksheet to help you identify the intention and impact of your solo theatre piece from the perspective of creator, designer and director. What would be an appropriate intention regarding this aspect of theory? Who is the target audience? What impact should this piece of theatre have on an audience? How will this be achieved?
Choosing Material

This graphic organizer will help you consider some of your options for choosing material for your solo piece. The material you choose should allow you to fulfill your directorial intentions and the intended impact on the audience, as well as demonstrate the aspect of theory you have selected in action.
Developing Material

This graphic organization illustrates a possible process for the development of your solo piece once it has been created, and a way to record your development process and interactions with your mentor. You'll need to think about design, use of space, set, lights, sound, props and costume if appropriate.
Student Process Checklist: Creating Theatre Based on Theory

A checklist of the eleven different tasks involved for the student completing Task 1, Solo Theatre Piece, for IB Theatre.

Evaluating the Presentation

This graphic organizer illustrates a possible model for evaluating your solo piece, by considering design, direction, performance, and application of aspect(s) of theory.

Weighing It Up

A worksheet to help with evaluating the presentation of your solo performance piece.