Drama & Theatre Arts (A Level)  

What Will You Learn?

As a Drama student, you’ll become familiar with the process of performance and the impact live theatre can
have on an audience, in fact you will become skilled in pulling a performance apart in order to examine and
appreciate all the elements contributing to its success. You will develop your own skills as a performer, and work both individually and as an ensemble to explore and refine a variety of performance styles and conventions. In studying the work of contemporary and traditional playwrights you’ll examine practically and theoretically how a text is lifted from the page and brought to life. You will have the opportunity to see a number of live performances to enhance your understanding.

You may also recognise a number of our former students from their recent successes, including Olivia Cooke (House of the Dragon, Ready Player One), Oliver Wellington (Brassic), Jack Monaghan (Black Mirror) or Thomas Flynn (Bridgerton) to name-drop but a few. Come and make a name for yourself!

Modules

Component 1: Devising (20% of the overall qualification)

Working in the style of an influential theatre practitioner, you will participate in the creation, development and performance of a piece of theatre based on a reinterpretation of an extract from a text, chosen by the exam board. This will be a collaborative project, working with a group of other students and will allow you to create and devise around the text, themes and ideas of the play chosen. For this assessment, you will create and perform your piece to an audience and submit a creative portfolio.

Component 2: Text in Action (40% of the overall qualification)

Learners participate in the creation, development and performance of two pieces of theatre, based on a stimulus given by the exam board. Two scripted pieces, from different genres or styles, will be performed. One piece is a group performance and the other a monologue/duologue. Both pieces will be performed to an audience and a visiting examiner. You will also produce a process and evaluation report for this project.

Component 3: Text in Performance (40% of the overall qualification)

This is your written exam, two plays are studied from the perspective of the actor, designer and director. One play is a modern text, the other is a classic text. In addition, you will be asked to evaluate the effectiveness of a live theatre event you have seen whilst studying the course, from the audience's point of view. 

This course is part of the Live and Recorded Arts Specialist Programme pathway option.

Special Features

• As a future expert in the artform, you'll have lots of opportunities to perform in front of an audience, culminating in our annual production!
• Our fully functional theatre spaces feature a professional sound and lighting desk and black box studio space, making your work and experience as realistic as possible.
• Bring your studies to life, join us on our residential trip to London and the West End, our numerous trips to live performances, and with our guest visiting speakers from all aspects of the industry.

• Each year, OSFC hosts a special showcase of the arts. An opportunity for students to highlight their pieces that they have been working on, ahead of examination. The aim of the event is to celebrate the work of students across creative subjects and enrichment activities. This is a multimedia showcase of all our art subjects, including paintings, digital works, sculpture, dance & musical performance, visual art pieces, creative writing, spoken word and more.  It is a great opportunity for students to understand how a gallery is arranged and curated, as well as an opportunity for parents to see what their children have been working on. This is a free event to ensure that all in our community can enjoy the arts.

Where Will This Lead?

Many of our students have gone on to prestigious universities and stage school to study a diverse range of creative courses. Recent examples include:

• Central School of Speech and Drama - Acting/Physical Theatre/Education
• Royal Academy for Dramatic Arts (RADA) - Acting
• ALRA (Academy of Live and Recorded Arts) - Acting and Performance
• Manchester Metropolitan University – Drama and Creative Writing
• The University of Salford – Broadcast Journalism/Television and Radio
• The University of Sunderland – Drama
• Newcastle University – English Language and Drama
• University College Oldham- Performance