The 39 Steps Play Guide For AQA GCSE Drama

COMPONENT 1 UNDERSTANDING DRAMA 46 Characterisation You need to understand how different roles in the play could be performed. The playwright has given indications about the characters and their backgrounds, feelings and desires. Actors and directors must use their skills to convey these ideas. Areas to consider when developing a performance include: 4 The character’s importance to the play 4 Whether the character changes and develops during the play 4 How an actor could use vocal and physical skills to portray the character 4 In what ways an actor could use the stage space and interact with others 4 How the play’s context and style might influence acting choices 4 What the character’s thoughts, feelings and motivations are and how these could be put across to the audience or influence acting choices 4 How the subtext of the character’s lines could be expressed 4 What impact the actor’s choices would have on the audience’s understanding. KEY TERMS Motivations: The feelings behind what a character wants or needs. Subtext: The unspoken meaning, feelings and thoughts ‘beneath’ the lines, which might be shown in the characters’ body language, tone of voice and facial expressions. Three big-screen interpretations of Hannay: Kenneth Moore, Robert Powell and Robert Donat 64