DRAMA VOCAB

• Vocal Skills


  • Intonation: rise and fall of voice
  • Tempo: fast or slow
  • Dynamics: loud or quiet volume
  • Pitch: high and low
  • Articulation: clear and distinct sounds
  • Emphasis: zooming in on key words
  • Crescendo: low to high
• Intonation


  Rise and fall of voice e.g. at the end of a sentence denotes a question
• Tempo


  How fast or slow
• Dynamics


  How fast or slow
• Pitch


  High and low
• Articulation


  Clear and distinct sounds
• Emphasis


  Zooming in on key words
• Crescendo


  Low to high
• Performance Skills


  • Focus: does the character care
  • Timing: precision of delivery
  • Energy: how fast or slow
  • Actor-audience relationship: self-explanatory
• Focus


  Shows the character's involvement
• Timing


  Displays a character's personality
• Energy


  Shows how the character reacts to dialogue
• Actor-audience relationship


  Engages and involves the audience
• Physical/Non-Verbal Skills


  • Eye contact: looking directly
  • Gesturing: using hand or body movement
  • Facial expression: face used to convey emotion
  • Pace: quick or slow
  • Proximity: how close or far
  • Stillness: staying still
  • Posture: staying upright
• Eye contact


  Shows desperation
• Gesturing


  Shows seriousness
• Facial expression


  Shows emotion physically
• Pace


  Shows frantic emotion
• Proximity


  Shows relationship
• Stillness


  Shows status
• Posture


  Shows status
• Costuming


  • Colour: symbolic or reveals something about character
  • Condition: conveys info about circumstance
  • Cut: shape of fabric can change appearance
  • Fabric: appropriate to character, setting and style
  • Hair/Makeup: simple, excessive or sexy
  • Adornments: accessories if relevant should be visible
  • Fit: tight, oversized, perfect
• Colour


  Symbolic or reveals something about character
• Condition


  Conveys info about circumstance
• Cut


  Shape of fabric can change appearance
• Fabric


  Appropriate to character, setting and style
• Hair/Makeup


  Simple, excessive or sexy
• Adornments


  Accessories if relevant should be visible
• Fit


  Tight, oversized, perfect
• Set and Staging


  • Colour: symbolises various ideas
  • Condition: reveals info about setting or characters
  • Practicalities: minimal set to provide quick changes
  • Scale: different effects on stage
  • Forced perspective
• End-on


  Audience on one side, not highly involved
• In the round


  Audience surrounds, no backdrop, several locations at once
• Composite set


  Closer actor-audience relationship
• Sounds


  • Diegetic: called for in text
  • Non-diegetic: musical effect to enhance
  • Soundscape: soundtrack running constantly
  • Empathetic: music that matches mood
  • Anempathetic: exhibit indifference to current events
  • Direction: important for diegetic
  • Volume: loud or soft, a basic effect
  • Live or recorded
• Diegetic


  Called for in text e.g. phone ring
• Non-diegetic


  Musical effect to enhance
• Soundscape


  Soundtrack running constantly
• Empathetic


  Music that matches mood
• Anempathetic


  Exhibit indifference to current events
• Direction


  Important for diegetic