Groups of students 2016

Anabelle, Tess and Sofia / Act 1, scene 5
Maélice, Nina and Amandine / Act 1 scene 1
Alexandria, Louis and Emma / Act 2 scenes 5 and 5
Lucas, Rayan and Damien / Act 3 scene1
Axelle, Luce and Maëva / Act 3 scene 3
Jessica / tessa : Act 3 scene 3
Sarah, Maya and Lisa, Act 3, scene 5

Tasks, Process and Evaluation

FINAL TASK

The last outcome of this project consists in creating a complex audio document about the adaptation of a scene of Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare.
It will be your job, over the next weeks, to adapt the scene, write the script of your scene, record and edit it. 
You will also have to prepare an oral presentation of your work.

PROCESS

STEP ONE

LEARN how to write and adapt a scene through the study of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and the American film adaptation, West Side Story.

Task 1

Read and understand the plot summary of the play.


Task 2 
Study a scene and compare it with the corresponding  scene in West Side Story.


 

 




Task 3
Read and understand another scene from Romeo and Juliet and prepare an PP presentation (evaluated).

Task 4
Adapt another scene for another time period.
 

1. You will have to choose from five different time periods:   

• The Wild West
• 1860's Southern United States
• 1920's Chicago
• 1940's and World War II in Europe
• 1970's Northern Ireland 

2. Your work will be centred around a Theatrical Portfolio which you will create in conjunction with the research you do.

3. You will have to provide a digital portfolio that will be published on this blog. It will have to include several documents:

A. Group work: The script of your rewrite. 

Please, remember that you have to respect the format of a script: font, font size, margins and page layout.  
The extract from the script of West Side Story is a good example. You can find other examples on the Internet.

B. Individual work: 

1. Teams of three students

STUDENT 1: as the linguist of your team, you will have to provide a Word file including:

• a dictionary of tough Shakespearean terms you found in your original scene, 
• + a dictionary of difficult / slang words you used in your own script, 
• + a phonetic transcription of the difficult words you used in your script.

STUDENT 2: as the artistic designer of your team you will have to provide a pdf.file including:

• Drawings and well-researched descriptions of costumes, sets, and props that could be used in performing your scene, 
•  A cultural and/or historical overview of the time period within which your scene takes place.

STUDENT 3: as the scenarist of your team, you will have to provide a Word file including:

• A detailed synopsis / summary of your own story (characters, places, plot, tone ...)

2. Teams of two students

STUDENT 1: as the linguist and the scenarist of your team, you will have to provide a Word file including :

• a dictionary of difficult / slang words you used in your own script 
• + a phonetic transcription of the difficult words you used in your script.
• + A brief synopsis / summary of your own story (characters, places, plot, tone ...)

STUDENT 2: as the artistic designer of your team you will have to provide a pdf file including :

• Drawings and well-researched descriptions of costumes, sets, and props that could be used in performing your scene 
•  A cultural and/or historical overview of the time period within which your scene takes place.

STEP TWO (Final Tasks)

Task 1

This time, your work will be centred around the making of a sophisticated audio document. To achieve this task, you will need to:

- Check the pronunciation and the stress of all the words of your lines
- Rehearse your reading with your classmates
- Record a dramatic reading of a script
- Edit it and add some sound effects and music


Task 2

'Pitch' your idea to the class and convince them that your version is the best one.

You will have to explain what you have done, report on your findings about the period, account for your choice of costumes, sets and props, sum up your story, etc.

EVALUATION

In addition to final tasks 1 and 2 (step two), tasks 3 and 4 (step one) will be evaluated.
You will be given different evaluation grids.

Essential Skills for Team Work

1. Listening: The students listen to one another's ideas. 

2. Interacting: The students question one another and use persuasion. 

3. Respecting: The students respect the opinions of others.

4. Helping: The students help one another.

5. Participating: The students participate and contribute to the project actively.


All other teamwork skills are useless without a commitment to the teamwork.

With this commitment to the team, members should be willing to take on any role necessary to accomplish the required tasks.

In other words, everyone should work for the good of the team!

Good luck and work hard!

How to Perform Dramatic Reading

Step 1

Before preparing your dramatic reading, you must focus on phonology:

1. Make sure you know the correct pronunciation and the stress of all the words of your lines. If you are not sure, check in a dictionary or on the Internet.

2. Mind the intonation of the questions and exclamations.

Step 2

Not get ready for rehearsing your dramatic reading!

Here is a link to help you: Dramatic Reading

Good luck and work hard!

Dramatic Reading Tips and Examples

You have been asked to perform a dramatic reading of your work. There is a lot more involved than just opening the book and reading aloud. A little preparation can ensure that your reading of the story is as memorable as the story itself.

Instructions 

1. Make sure your script  is one that your audience can appreciate with a structure that will be easy to understand.

2. In order to convey the story to your audience, you must thoroughly know it. Read it several times.

3. Act each part. Each character with dialogue has a different way of speaking. The narrator also has a speaking style. Practice reading your story, acting the part of each character. Be excited when the character is excited, pause when the character would pause. Remember that it is a dramatic reading--it is your job to be dramatic!

4. Build toward the climax. Begin and end the story with low energy and make sure that your biggest gestures and loudest volume occur at the climax of the story.

5. Rehearse. You should know the story well enough that you can look up from the book without getting lost. Practice your gestures until they seem natural. You may want to record your rehearsal several times to see how you sound.

Here are some examples to help you:

1. Professional actor Chris Kipiniak (Law and Order, The Good Wife) puts the full weight of his dynamic gifts behind this interpretation of an online restaurant review. (Music is Erik Satie's Gnossienne #4)

2. Peter Sellers’s Shakespearian version of the classic Beatles pop song A Hard Day’s Night, first released in 1965.

3. Speak the Speech (Shakespeare Universal Broadcasting) 

Click HERE to listen to a dramatic reading of Romeo and Juliet.

Scenes to adapt

Click the links below the find the scenes you have to adapt (original version and in modern English).

• Act 1, scene 1
• Act 1, scene 5
• Act 2, scenes 5 & 6
• Act 3, scene 1
• Act 3, scene 3
• Act 5, scenes 1 & 2
• Act 5, scene 3

How to Create and Edit an Audio File

Here are some links to help you:

Comment faire un montage audio avec Audacity

How to Edit an Mp3 File (1)

How to edit an MP3 audio file (2)