Objective: Students will be able to demonstrate their initial understanding of monologues by selecting a dramatic monologue to work with throughout the unit.
Informal. Show understanding of elements of a monologue.
Formal. Appropriate selection of a dramatic monologue.
10 pts possible
Points will be given for choosing a dramatic monologue that is suitable for them. This will be chosen from the monologue collection that we will provide for our students in class that day.
Adaptations:
If we have students who are unable to memorize a full monologue, we will help them cut their selected monologue down to a manageable length.
Facets: Explanation, Application, Self Knowledge
Standards: TH.CR.3.HSI c. Explore physical, vocal and psychological choices to develop a performance that is believable, authentic, and relevant to a theatrical work. TH.RE.7.HSI a. Respond to what is seen, felt, and heard in a theatrical work to develop criteria for artistic choices.
Ask students to turn to a partner and share anything that they know about monologues.
When they are done with this, ask each group/partnership to share one thing they discussed. Teacher will write these down on the board.
Step 1:Monologue Videos, 20 Minutes
Tell students that we are going to be learning about and working on monologues this unit. To start us off, we are going to watch a couple of monologues and make a list of the elements that we see in the monologue. Write: “Elements of a monologue” on the board.
After the first video, ask students what elements they saw. Write down what elements they bring up on the board. Help them define any elements suggested to ensure all students are on the same understanding.
Some ideas/possible answers include:
Audience, setting, tactics, objectives, emotions, etc.
After each remaining video, ask again what elements they saw. New elements? Different representations of previously mentioned elements?
Step 2:Monologue Performance, 5 Minutes
Tell students that now we are going to see a performance of a live monologue. We would like you to still look for similarities/differences in the elements we have listed on the board.
Tell students that you are going to step out into the hall to bring in the “guest performer”. When you re-enter the room (alone), perform a monologue as though you were doing an audition.
Step 3: Discussion, 10 Minutes
Write down observations and answers to these questions on the board.
What elements did you see?
What was different in this performance compared to in a movie?
What elements did you observe in this monologue?
How is this performance different in person?
What makes a monologue successful?
Step 4: Rubric Review, 10 minutes
Explain to students the goal for this unit and the basic details about the final performance.
Goal/Final: perform a mock audition consisting of a slate, dramatic & comedic monologues.
Assure them not to be overwhelmed. We will cover everything they need to know throughout the course of the unit.
Give everyone a copy of the final rubric that they will be graded on.
Explain that we will go through parts of the rubric each day based off what we have been learning in our class. You do not need to know the whole rubric right now. We will be teaching you throughout the course of the unit and we will introduce parts of these rubrics everyday, after we have learned what they are a part of.
Read through the categories of the rubric with students.
Ask: what questions do you have?
Step 5: Monologue Selection, 20 Minutes
Explain features to be looking for in a monologue: character, story you want to tell, a monologue you feel you would be successful at, something that challenges you but you enjoy working on.
Tell students that they now have time to go through and select a dramatic monologue to perform.
Provide one copy of 25 different dramatic monologues, for male and female. Students will select one. They will keep this copy and work with it throughout the unit.
Encourage students to read through as many as they can and choose one that they would enjoy and they think they would be good at performing.
Step 6:Conclusion
Can I have at least three students share with me what we learned today?
Next time: we will be digging deeper, looking into what a monologue is made of.
Important! Start work on memorizing your monologues now! The final will sneak up on you faster than you think.
