Students will be able to access and apply the Suzuki Method to their acting by using this method to perform their regional competition pieces. (This unit was created for an International Baccalaureate Theatre Course with plans to use it while students were working on their Regional Competition pieces. It can be applied to any performances that students are working on though.)
Class Level:
Advanced
Main Concepts:
Suzuki method, presence, center of gravity
1994 National Standards:
Content Standard 2: Acting by developing, communicating, and sustaining characters in improvisations and informal or formal productions. Content Standard 6: Comparing and integrating art forms by analyzing traditional theatre, dance, music, and visual arts, and new art forms. Content Standard 8: Understanding context by analyzing the role of theatre, film, television, and electronic media in the past and present.
Description:
Students learn various aspects of the Suzuki Acting Method and how to apply them to their acting.
Lesson Plans
Lesson 1: Accessing Suzuki and Building Ensemble Unity Students will be able to analyze Suzuki compared to other acting methods and apply his method to building ensemble unity by creating comparison charts and writing a reflection on his ideas of ensemble unity.
Lesson 2: Centering the Body and Stamping Part 1 Students will be able to understand and apply Suzuki’s ideas of centering the body by completing a cycle of Suzuki exercises in groups and participating in a class discussion.
Lesson 3: Centering the Body and Stamping Part 2 Students will be able to demonstrate their knowledge of the Suzuki idea of centering the body by creating their own body-centering Suzuki exercise in groups.
Lesson 4: Presence Students will be able to understand and apply Suzuki’s idea of presence by performing one of their lines from their competition pieces with presence and then the same line without in front of the class.
Lesson 5: Standing and Sitting Statues Students will be able to apply their knowledge of Suzuki principles to the body and voice by completing the Suzuki sitting statue exercise as individuals with one line from their competition piece and by evaluating each other through group discussion.
Lesson 6: Walking Students will demonstrate their understanding of the Suzuki ten ways of walking exercises by creating a “walking blueprint” of their competition pieces.
Lesson 7: Suzuki Conclusion Students will be able to apply all the concepts they have learned about the Suzuki method to their regional competition pieces by rehearsing their competition pieces and evaluating each other’s rehearsals.
Lesson 8: Final Performances Students will be able to access and apply the Suzuki Method to their acting by using this method to perform their regional competition pieces.
Author’s Notes:
There are some informational videos online for Suzuki Method; one helpful link is: http://prezi.com/edqccdhhrtnm/tadashi-suzukis-actor-training-technique/ (Videos are accessed by locating the bubbles on bottom of the video screen and then clicking on them.)
