Drama
Examination Board: Pearson Edexcel
Exact Course Title: BTEC Level1/2 First Award in Performing Arts (Acting)
Why should I choose to study drama?
You will love the subject and enjoy performing or want to pursue a career in the Performing Arts Industry. Equally you may want to develop the social and communication skills needed in everyday life. Drama develops the individual, teaches you a wide range of transferable skills giving you the confidence to succeed in all you do.
What will I learn?
There are 3 units - Individual Showcase; Performance, Preparation and Production; and Acting Skills. During the course you will study a variety of drama techniques and learn about performance skills and qualities. You will develop your own personal management skills such as motivation, but you will also learn how to work as a team. From a subject specific point of view you will focus on use of voice and movement, drama techniques and strategies, the rehearsal and performance process. You will be able to work as a solo performer as well as a member of an ensemble and you will understand how a performance is created from the initial ideas to the final curtain.
What will be expected of me?
Marks for your controlled assessment components will come from video evidence, working as a team and rehearsing and refining your work. You will need to be able to work with a wide variety of people – not just your friends. Furthermore, you will need to be able to take criticism, direction, recognise your own strengths and weaknesses as a performer, be prepared to set targets and work towards achieving them. The individual showcase requires you to perform two monologues, so you also need to be able to work independently with focus and control.
What skills will I develop?
Confidence, communication, self-motivation, social skills, team work and collaboration are central to the course as well. You will develop and learn technical skills and techniques, such as voice and movement, performance skills and awareness of audience, review and evaluation skills, as well as learning about the performing arts industry and how actors prepare for a performance and their role in a production.
How will I be assessed?
Controlled Assessment – 75% (2 units) and External Assessment – 25% (1 unit).
Unit 1 – Individual Showcase you must perform two contrasting monologues and write a letter of application in response to an examination brief set by Pearson/Edexcel. Some students may choose the presentation pathway for this unit and produce costumes or make-up designs which are realised in a performance instead.
Unit 2 – Preparation, Performance and Production is internally assessed and externally moderated. For this you must take part in the entire process of putting on a production. You will need video evidence of practical sessions and rehearsals, plus a detailed log of each lesson, in addition to a final performance to a live audience.
Unit 3 – Acting Skills is also internally assessed and externally moderated. For this unit you will produce a skills audit and then develop your own performance skills accordingly. You must create, produce and maintain a lesson-by-lesson record of your learning and progress.
Where will this qualification lead me?
Students who have taken BTEC Performing Arts at this level often go on to study a level 3 course at college/sixth form, others just take away the life skills they have learnt and developed and follow other courses.
