GCSE Drama Written Exam Rubric Make sure you know this - every year someone misses a question

or part of a question!
Time allowed 1 hour 30 minutes Answer two questions. You MUST answer Question 1 in Section A and one further question, to be chosen from either Section B1 or Section C. (we prepare for Section C) Question 1 in Section A will be split into 4 parts. YOU MUST ANSWER EVERY PART. Section C will have two questions - you must choose ONE to answer. But, remember, the question you choose will be split into two parts and you must answer both. You may support your answers with sketches or diagrams if you wish.

Section A - Practical work completed during the course Section B - Study and performance of a scripted play (We dont prepare for this section) Section C - Study of a live theatre production seen You may NOT take any notes into the exam room with you. The questions will always be quite general because pupils all around the country will have studied or seen different plays or productions.

If you choose to answer Section B you must not write about the same play or performance used to answer Section A.
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Lessons from the Mocks

REMEMBER THAT THE EXAMINER HASNT SEEN THE PLAY Introduce the play in your opening paragraph. The more well-known a play is, the less you will have to say in your introduction. Practise writing this introduction so you can get lots of information across in a few lines. Dont spend more than 5 or 6 lines on this introduction YOUR DESCRIPTIONS MUST BE DETAILED AND PRECISE The more detail you include, the more clearly the examiner will be able to imagine the production. Practise describing your chosen moments - the more you practise, the easier you will nd it to include lots of information in a few sentences. PREPARE 3 TO 4 MOMENTS TO TALK ABOUT Think of a moment being up to 30 seconds of stage time. Your description should bring this moment to life for the examiner. They should be able to see it happening in their minds. Practise describing the action of these moments (or describing the technical and design elements) and show your writing to someone who hasnt seen the production. If they can see it, you are doing a good job. If they have questions or they dont understand, you need to add some more detail. YOU WILL ONLY GET GOOD AT THIS IF YOU PRACTISE!!! USE QUOTATIONS, PARTICULARLY WHEN WRITING ABOUT ACTING This should be easy in Section A because you will have learnt the lines! For Section C, once you have decided on the production(s) you are likely to discuss, get hold of a copy of the script. Learning 3 or 4 quotations (one from each moment) will help you enormously.

Sample Questions
Have a look at these sample questions so you have a good idea of what to expect in the exam.

Section A
Practical work completed during the course This section is compulsory. Answer all four parts of the question. At the beginning of your answer, state the title of your piece of practical work.

Question 1 Choose a piece of practical work in which you have made a contribution as an actor, or a designer or a technician as part of your course. 01 State the style, period and genre of the piece, your target audience, the chosen performance space, the use of technical and design elements and what you did as your contribution. (10 marks) 02 Explain what the first ideas for the piece were and give details of how you and your group developed them. (10 marks) 03 Explain what improvements you made to the piece during the rehearsals and your reasons for making them. (10 marks) 04 Explain what you felt were the strengths and weaknesses of your own practical skills in the final performance. (10 marks)

Section C
Study of a live theatre production seen Answer one question either from this section or from Section B. Answer both parts of your chosen question. At the beginning of your answer, state the name of the live theatre production and where you saw it. EITHER Question 4 Choose one live theatre production you have seen during your course. 09 Choose two design or technical elements used in this live theatre production, from the following list: costume set design lighting sound special effects. Choose one scene or section and explain how these elements were used. (20 marks) AND 10 How effective do you think the use of the design and technical elements was in your chosen scene or section? (20 marks)

OR Question 5 Choose one live theatre production you have seen during your course. 11 Choose one scene or section from this live theatre production and explain what impact it had on you. You should refer to how it was staged, the acting, design and technical skills. (20 marks) AND 12 Explain how successful you thought the opening section of this production was in making an impact on the audience. (20 marks)