Download INTRODUCTORY AREA ROOM 103 Genre is another word for style

INTRODUCTORY AREA
ROOM 103
Genre is another word for style.
Comedy is a genre, as is Ballet.
They are different to each other
though they have things in common.
Each needs rehearsal time, for
example, but different activities
will happen in those rehearsals.
This area introduces students to the
scale and range of performance
genres in the Theatre & Performance
collections.
What do you think might be the
differences between the style of
performance in each genre? Are
characters trying to be ‘real’ or
not? Are performances meant to be
funny or serious?
— What kind of performance space you
would expect to see each genre
performed in? Would it be a big
indoor arena, a small studio theatre
space or a London West End theatre?
— How might the audience react to
each style?
Would they react with wild applause,
silent concentration or would the
audience join in?
— What are the similarities between
each genre?
What are the basic elements that
make up a live performance?
The main display case contains
objects that represent, among other
things, stand-up comedy, ballet and
puppetry.
— What other genres can you see?
Theatre & Performance Teachers’ Resource
Victoria and Albert Museum
In this area, students can learn
about the steps that go towards
putting on productions. A display
on producing looks at ways of
financing, casting and choosing a
CREATING AND PRODUCING
ROOM 106
venue for a production and
explores the history and practice
of censorship.
— Find the Censorship section.
What might be the reasons for
censoring performances?
— What reasons might there be to
challenge censorship?
REHEARSING AND
PROMOTING ROOM 106B
—
Find the Casting section and read
about the process. Think of a
play or film that you are
familiar with and re-cast it.
— What affects your decisions? Is
it the suitability of the
performer, their looks or
physical appearance, 0r are they
a ‘star’ name?
Theatre & Performance Teachers’ Resource
Victoria and Albert Museum
On display in this area are
highlights from the Theatre &
Performance poster collection
spanning the last 250 years.
MAKE-UP
ROOM 106
This section looks at the process
and history of stage make-up. It
leads into the performance
costume displays.
— Look at the posters. How has
their ‘look’ changed over the
years? Think about the number of
words used compared to the number
of images in the early and the
contemporary posters.
— Choose two 0r three posters to
look at in detail.
What do they tell you about the
genre of the performance?
— What do they tell you about the
kind of audience the show is
aimed at (rich or poor, old or
young)?
— How does the main image grab
your attention?
Are the colours important?
— Do the posters tell you
anything else about the period
they were made, for example the
manners of the day or what people
wore?
Theatre & Performance Teachers’ Resource
Victoria and Albert Museum
— Choose one costume from the
gallery and draw a suitable make-
up design that complements the
costume.
— Think of a performance you have
seen where the make-up was
important. What did the make-up
design add to your experience of
the show? What did the make-up
tell you about the age and status
of the character?
Choose a costume to study in
detail.
— What type of performance is
this costume designed for? Is the
design naturalistic or nonnaturalistic? What tells you
this?
COSTUME
ROOM 105
This section features costumes
worn on stage by leading
performers.
— What clues does the costume
give you about the importance of
the character or performer
wearing it?
— What clues does it give you
about their gender and age?
— How would the peformer’s
movement onstage be affected by
the costume?
Theatre & Performance Teachers’ Resource
Victoria and Albert Museum
— What effect would the stage
lighting have on the costume?
Think of colours in particular
Choose two or three set model
boxes to look at and consider the
following questions.
— What type of performance space
would the model appear to fit?
Would it be a proscenium arch,
like in a cinema? Or would it be
SCENERY DESIGN
ROOM 104 B
Stage models, sketches and
paintings explain the role of
design and its processes.
one that puts the audience inthe-round, surrounding the
action?
— Does it look like a realistic
or non-realistic piece of
performance?
— Do you think this setting would
need a large or small amount of
money spent on it and why?
— How would you feel as a
performer on this stage?
— What does the set model box
indicate about the time the piece
is set in and the status of the
characters? Are they rich or
poor, young or old? What does it
say about the general mood of the
performance?
Theatre & Performance Teachers’ Resource
Victoria and Albert Museum
— Look at the photographs and
prints of various audiences. What
do they tell you about the
audiences of the time? Are they
old or young, rich or poor, or a
THE AUDIENCE AND THE
PERFORMER
ROOM 104 A
This room explores the role of
the audience. Students can also
watch clips from the National
Video Archive of Performance
(NVAP).
Theatre & Performance Teachers’ Resource
Victoria and Albert Museum
mixture?
— In what ways do you think an
audience can affect the success
of a performance?