Teacher: Julie Garner, Eleanor Roosevelt High School
Discipline: Drama
Grade Level: 9-12
Topic: Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night

Objective:

Students will persuasively present an idea for an interpretation of Twelfth Night, including concept and cast, justifying their creative choices with evidence from the text.

Prior Material Covered:

• Roles and responsibilities in the theatre industry
• Twelfth Night - in whole or part (enough to understand the main characters of the play)

Necessary Materials:

• LCD projector, laptop computer, screen or white board.
• Text of at least 100 lines (for all students)
• Multiple computers for student use (day 2)

DAY 1

Warm Up:

Option #1: Journal entry - What are the qualities of a talented actor or actress? Who do you think is a talented actor or actress? What qualities do they possess?

Option #2: Brainstorm names of actors that may potentially appear in their projects by playing “Star Crossed.” This can be done in a large class circle or in small groups. Student A states the name of an actor [Susan Sarandon]. Student B states a movie that actor was in [Thelma and Louise]. C states another actor in that movie [Geena Davis]. D states another movie that actor was in [A League of Their Own]. E states another actor in that movie [Tom Hanks]. F states Cast Away. G states Helen Hunt… etc.

Objective Stated and Introductory Activity:

• Example: “When we think about getting ready to put on a show, most of us probably think about rehearsals, building a set, making costumes, etc. However, there are many steps between coming up with a creative idea and the first rehearsal that most people don’t think of when watching a play or a movie. There are lots of great ideas out there, but why aren’t they all made into plays or movies? … MONEY. Before a great idea can make it to stage or screen, someone needs to convince a person or company with money that the idea is worthy of investment. There’s a reason why it’s called the entertainment industry.”

• Introduce project:
  You will be using a power point slide presentation to pitch your idea for Twelfth Night to one of the following:
  a. the faculty director of a high school or college production
  b. the artistic director of a metropolitan professional theatre (e.g., Arena Stage, The Folger, Signature Theatre)
  c. a Hollywood studio executive (e.g., MGM, Universal, Disney)

  Keep in mind that the style of your presentation will vary depending upon your selected audience.

  Your pitch should include:

  • a brief description of your concept which you will justify using textual evidence from the script.
  • a proposed cast (at least seven characters)

  Here are some ideas and the questions you might need to ask yourself in order to justify your choices:

  • Twelfth Night as a musical: will you add music to the songs in the text? Turn the dialogue into song lyrics? Add new songs in place of the originals?
  • Twelfth Night set in another time period: are there any similarities (in politics, social structure or history) between Elizabethan England and your selected time period?
  • Modernizing the language: Why would you change it? Who is your audience?
  • Would you focus on a minor theme in the play, instead of the more obvious ones?

  Guided Practice:

  Walk students through the steps of creating the power point slide show.

  • Open Power point and select a slide layout.
  • Open internet and go to www.google.com (or search engine of choice)
  • Click on the images tab. (the images found in this search will be available for legal use.)
  • “If I didn’t know where to start, I might look for websites with celebrity pictures, but I already know who might make a great Viola.”
  • Type in [Cameron Diaz]- the teacher can determine the example.
  • “Wow, there’s a lot of pictures here. I need to convince the producer that she can play Viola AND a convincing Cesario, so which image do I choose…probably not this one. She looks too glamorous; her hair is too big and she’s wearing too much makeup. Viola is more modest than that…. Oooh, this one is good. She’s cute and friendly, as opposed to that sultry one. She looks a little shy, but her expression hints that she might be hiding something…perhaps a secret love?”
  • Copy and paste the image into the blank Power Point slide.
  • Add three reasons why the actor is a good choice to the slide. (Students may need to do a little research on the actor’s experience—e.g., Cameron Diaz proved that she could play a convincing male character in Charlie’s Angels).
  • Create a new slide for the next actor.
  • Ask students, “Who would make a good Orsino?”
  • When students make a suggestion, ask them to justify it.
  • Have student(s) volunteer to do the image search, copy and paste, and add text.
  • Students may use remainder of period to discuss/ think of possible casting options

DAY 2 and 3

Independent Practice:

• Students work in groups or independently in computer lab.

DAY 4 and 5

Assessment:

• Students present their pitches.
• Classmates role play as the producers.
• When presentations are finished, students write a BCR (or ECR).

  You are an assistant producer and you have just heard multiple pitches for potential plays or movies of Twelfth Night. You can select only two--one play and one movie--for production. (Your own pitch is not an option.) Write to the executive producer giving him/her reasons why your company should produce the movie and play you have selected. Your explanation might include: creativity of concept, selection of cast, persuasiveness of the presenter, etc.

Closure:

• Discuss the challenges the students faced while preparing their pitch and the qualities of a good pitch.
• Announce the play and movie that the assistant producers selected the most (BCR/ECR).

Rationale:

Theatre is the ultimate cross-curricular discipline. In order to produce a complete piece of theatre, the following disciplines must be addressed: Art (set design), Music (orchestra, chorus), Physics/Engineering (set design), Industrial Arts (drafting and constructing set), English (script analysis), Physical Education (the actor’s body), Science (mixing materials and special effects), Speech (vocal projection), Psychology (understanding character), History (historical background of play), Math (measuring for set construction), Business (box office, pre-production aspects), etc….

This lesson focuses on three main disciplines:

• Public Speaking. Students must be confident, organized and persuasive.
• Technology. Students use power point and the Internet to enhance their presentation.
• Art. Students are designing a creative product. Selection of appropriate design elements, graphics and proper placement can entice the eye or turn it away.

Outcomes/Expectations/Indicators (Maryland State Department of Education)*

• The student will identify a wide variety of characters presented in dramatic literature and describe ways they reflect a range of human feelings and experiences. (I.A.1)
• The student will compare the relationship between cultural values, freedom of artistic expression, ethics, and artistic choices in various cultures and historical periods. (I.A.2)
• The student will explain the roles of various collaborators in the theatrical production process, including playwrights, directors, actors, designers, technicians, and managers. (I.B.2)
• The student will demonstrate knowledge of diversity of theatrical expression, including contemporary styles, and the creative processes from which these endeavors emerge. (II.A.3)
• The student will identify and discuss social and political events that have affected the writing style(s) of a variety of Western and non-Western playwrights and theatrical styles. (II.B.2)
• The student will distinguish between the roles of a director and other personnel in developing and orchestrating a production’s point of view. (II.B.3)
• The student will experiment with various kinds of theatrical presentations (comedy, drama, cabaret, vaudeville, musical comedy, performance art, and multimedia). (III.A.1)
• The student will develop multiple interpretations for scripts and visual and oral production ideas for presentations. (III.A.3)
• The student will analyze dramatic texts from a variety of cultural and historical perspectives to determine production requirements for formal and informal presentations. (III.B.1)
• The student will describe historical theatrical production design, techniques, and performances from various cultures to assist in making appropriate artistic choices for formal and informal presentations. (III.B.2)
• The student will use prescribed and self-constructed criteria to evaluate and describe verbally the characteristics of successful ensemble performances and productions (IV.A.1)
• The student will develop and apply standards for evaluating personal contributions and the contributions of others in collaborative experiences in the theatre classroom setting.
• The student will write critical reviews of selected theatre performances, using established criteria and appropriate language for the art form. (IV.C.2)
• The student will evaluate performances and productions by comparing them to similar or exemplary models. (IV.C.4)

* Some of these outcomes may not be applicable, depending upon the students’ created and justified concepts of Twelfth Night.