LESSON 1

EXPLORING VARIOUS STAGING MODALITIES IN RELATION WITH THE DRAMA SCRIPT

Activity 1
Directions: Read each item carefully and then choose the letter of the correct answer.
1. What do you call a raised floor or platform, typically in a theater, on which actors, entertainers, or speakers
perform?
A. Elevation B. Juncture C. Podium D. Stage
2. Into how any parts or sections is the acting area divided?
A. six B. eight C. seven D. nine
3. In a conventional stage setup, what do call the section nearest to the audience?
A. upstage B. center stage C. downstage D. forward stage
4. What do you call the position of the acting area in relation to the audience?
A. staging B. center stage C. acting setup D. forward stage
5. What do you call the very exact middle of the acting area?
A. upstage B. center stage C. downstage D. forward stage
6. Which among the three conventional stage styles has an architectural frame, hence the call “picture frame stage”?
A. thrust B. proscenium C. arena D. end stage
7. Which among the three conventional stage styles has an area that protrudes forward and the audience is on the
three sides?
A. thrust B. proscenium C. arena D. end stage
8. What do you call the process of selecting, designing, adapting to, or modifying the performance space for a play or
film?
A. acting B. production C. staging D. rehearsal
9. What do you call the non-conventional stage model wherein the audience sits on two sides of the acting area?
A. avenue B. proscenium C. arena D. end stage
10. What term is used to refer to the decisions about where actors enter, exit and stand on the stage?
A. acting B. blocking C. staging D. rehearsal

DIRECTIONS: Read and analyze the following text:

STAGING MODALITIES
The drama script comes to life in the performance phase. This is now a critical phase since all elements of
drama are now intertwined: literary elements, technical elements and the performance elements. The success of the
drama depends on these interconnections.
Choices which are made by concerned people on particular scenes in the drama is called interpretation.
Such process may sound simple yet it becomes tedious when it is put into the stage. Considerable time and efforts
are put into the interpretation in order to come up with a successful staging.
Staging refers to the position of the acting area in relation to the audience. But more than this, staging
covers everything that performers do on stage (and even technical crew and production staff at the backstage) to
bring the drama to life and give justice to the story. Staging then becomes a process of designing, adapting,
selecting, or even modifying the performance space for the play.
As part of the staging, directors (because there are several of them working together: acting, lights, sound,
effects, props, stage, stunt, etc.) usually brainstorm regarding the acting area. This area refers to the available
spaces to be occupied by the set and to be used by the actors and actresses when performing. With this, the stage
becomes a battle ground to all the people of the drama production but most especially to the performers.
THE STAGE
The stage, in simple definition, is the area designated for a performance. It serves as space for the
actresses and actors for the audience to watch them perform. Taking the stage into consideration is very important.
The stage spells out the relationship to be made between the actors and actresses and the audiences. Always
remember that the inclusion of the audience is fundamental to the success of a drama performance. Going back to
basics: no audience, no drama.
Relative to the stage, the acting area is divided into nine sections: upstage right (USR), upstage center
(USC), upstage left (USL), center stage right (CSR), center stage or the exact middle (CS), center stage left (CSL),
downstage right (DSR), downstage center (DSC), and the downstage left (DSL).
An illustration on the next page gives a more detailed explanation for you to understand where these sections are
located in relation to the position of the audience.
The downstage sections are the nearest to the audience while the upstage sections are the farthest.
These sections in the acting area help the performers and other production staff identify the different parts of
the acting space. With it, they are able to place with appropriateness the set and the props as well as the lights.
The blocking decisions for the actors and actresses also become clearer through the use of these acting areas. The
performers are able to identify where to enter, to exit and where to stand while on the stage. In addition, the space on
stage can be used well and the director could give the best space for the performer and best viewing experience for
the audience.

TYPES OF STAGE FOR DRAMA PRODUCTIONS

The choice of staging modality of a drama depends on what kind of experience you want your audience to
experience. From the point of view of a writer and as a part of the drama production team, do you want the audience
to get a feel of the drama and in the midst of the action or you simply want them settled from a distance and
observing the actions unfolding on stage? Wherever the audience may be placed or seated, it is important that
performers and the audiences keep an eye contact with one another. This creates a sense of shared experience all
throughout the play.
This brings you to the selection of appropriate staging modality. Below are the common staging modalities in drama
production.

A. PROSCENIUM STAGE
This type of stage has a built-in architectural frame called “proscenium arch” (although it does not look
curved in shape and does not even serve the purpose of curved structural support). This proscenium arch makes the
stage look like a ‘picture frame’ hence the other call picture-frame stage.
This type of stage is deep and sometimes raked (gently sloped and rising away from the audience). Modern
proscenium stages nowadays have extended portion outside the proscenium arch leading to the auditorium area.
This part is called apron or forestage. What makes proscenium stage fascinating is the availability of areas for the
live orchestra called orchestra pit and also fly towers for movements of lights and sceneries. The illustration below
gives you a better picture on how the proscenium stage looks like.

B. THRUST STAGE
This type of stage has its stage protruding to the auditorium giving the audience sitting areas on three sides.
The thrust stage area itself is not always square or rectangular. The stage may semi-circular or half a polygon with
any number of sides. The purpose of the thrust stage is to increase level of closeness between the performers and
the audience.

C. THEATERS IN THE ROUND

 In this style, the stage is an area enclosed by the audience on all sides. Though it is called ‘round’, the
seating arrangement of audience is rarely round. Common seating arrangements usually come in a square or
polygonal formation.
Since there are no wing sides which serve as entrance and exit of performers like in the proscenium and the
thrust styles, performers enter through the aisles or vomitories between the seating. Also, there is minimal use of
sceneries and these are usually positioned in a manner that does not hinder the view of the audience.

D. BLACK-BOX or STUDIO THEATER

This is a non-conventional stage style. It is a flexible performance space usually a single room painted in
black. The floor of the stage is at the same level as the first audience row. The rest of the rows at the back are
gradually elevated in a tiered position.

E. PROMENADE THEATER
There is no fixed stage setting. The performers move from place to place and the audience follow. The
‘promenade’ could be made inside the different parts of the theater itself or even outside in the streets (so long as
there is permit and enough security to handle the crowd).
The Filipino Cenakulo, when played on the streets, is an example of this type. The Cenakulo performers
move from one block of the street to another performing different scenes. The audience follow the performers until
they reach the crucifixion part and the death of Christ scene.

F. AVENUE STAGE
In this type of stage, the audience is made to sit on two sides of the acting area. This makes it look like
watching a fashion show but instead of models, you have drama performers on stage.

THE SCRIPT
A drama is written in a format called a script. It is the text version of the dialogues in the drama. When you look at a
script, it is not written in the manner like novels and short stories do. Though it is not written in paragraph from, the
content of the script still follows the standards of storytelling, that is, the parts of the plot are still observed.
The script consists of two main parts: the dialogues or the lines that characters say and the stage directions or the
instructions given to the actors and actresses (as well as prompts on lights and sounds, special effects and others).
Aside from the two main parts, there are also other elements of significant importance like title of the drama, the cast
of characters and the scenery which gives a description of the setting in every act. In the case of a one-act play, the
scenery will be written only once.
Here are some technical pointers to remember when writing the script.
1. The title is written at the topmost center of the paper (though other writers write this flushed to the left).
2. The cast of characters follow right after the title. The names of the characters are written then followed by a
short description of their physical attributes and their role in the drama.
3. The scene follows after the cast of characters. In this part, the setting is described. The playwright has to
use the acting area and place the set and props where they are supposed to be before the act starts. It also
indicates points of entrance and who are the characters on-stage already even before the curtain opens. It
also indicates special effects (if needed) like smoke effect, lights or even the sounds.
4. The dialogues of characters will then follow. This indicates that the story has officially started. The name of
the character is written first then followed by a colon to separate it from the dialogue. When another
character is to tell his or her lines, you start another line in the script.
5. Embedded into the dialogues are stage directions. These lines are usually written in italics and are set-off by
parentheses. This makes it easy to separate the dialogues with the directions.
6. At the end of the script playwrights write “Close Curtains” which signifies the end of the drama.
Activity 2
Directions: Fill in the blanks to complete the idea in every statement. Look for your answers in the Word Pool
provided below.
Stage Script Acting Area Audience
Interpretation Staging Apron Stage Direction
Orchestra Pit Blocking Thrust Picture Frame Stage

1. The _________________________ serves as space for the actresses and actors for the audience to watch them
perform.
2. Choices which are made by concerned people on particular scenes in the drama is called
_________________________.
3. What makes proscenium stage fascinating is the availability of areas for a live orchestra called
_________________________.
4. A drama is written in a format called _________________________.
5. The process of designing, adapting, selecting, or even modifying the performance space for the play is called
_________________________.
6. The process of identifying where performers enter, exit, and stand on the stage is called _________________________.
7. The _________________________ refers to the available spaces to be occupied by the set and the performers when
performing on stage.
8. The proscenium stage is also called _________________________.
9. The extended portion of a proscenium stage is called _________________________.
10. In an avenue stage, the _________________________ is made to sit on two sides of the acting area.
 LESSON 2
WRITING A CRAFT ESSAY

ACTIVITY 1
Listen to the song TATSULOK and use the following questions to express your ideas about the song.
1. How can you relate the song Tatsulok to the present situation of our country?
2. Does the song take sides to present the root of the problem? Justify your answer.
3. Does it mean anything special hidden between the lines to you?

TWO TYPES OF LITERARY WORKS

• CREATIVE WRITING is a creative work that values man as a creator and raises his existence above the world of
subsistence
• THE STUDY OF WHAT IS WRITTEN is the way (by which) another literate person sees and analyses the work in
question.
• The literary work is written into two different ways depending on the use of language.
1. Prose a piece of creative writing. Its language is not a verse form, but has similar value especially when words are used
in a highly levelled technique.
2. Poetry is a piece of “prose” writing in an elevated style. It is characterized as written in a verse form to express deep
feeling or noble thought in beautiful language compose with the desire to communicate an experience.

SOCIOPOLITICAL is something involved both social and political factors.

SOCIOPOLITICAL CONTEXT consists of the overlapping of social and political arena in their influence over literary text.
THREE KINDS OF SOCIOPOLITICAL CONTEXT
a. Social Issues concerning the national aspects of human life have long been the heart of innumerable works of literature.
b. Politics is a prolific theme on topic in literature.
c. Religion is deeply-rooted concept and belief on humanity. It stems from the facts that humans are naturally helpless, the
greatness of nature whose creation might have been done by far greater entity.
ELEMENTS OF CRAFT
NARRATIVE TECHNIQUE: How the writer keeps the story or poem moving; the strategy that shapes it so it is as
interesting to the reader as it is to the writer.
PERSONA: The distance between the writer and the story or poems narrator; the personality of the first, second- or third-
person narrator and its narrative distance from the characters. Also, the guise or stance that distance creates; the intimacy
of focus it demands of the writer. Perspective and freedom of emotion the persona narrator gives both the writer and the
reader.
POINT OF VIEW: Who tells the story or poem, and why? Why one persona narrator is chosen over another (how would
The Great Gatsby be different if Gatsby told his own story?). In third person, should the point of view be limited to one or
more characters, or omniscient? In first person, why is the story or poem most effectively told from one particular point of
view? Has the writer used letters, diary form, multiple points of view and why? Who is the story ostensibly being told to?
What is the difference between what the persona narrator says or reveals and what is really being said by the writer (such
as with an unreliable narrator)?
DESCRIPTION: How the writer sets the scene and introduces characters: how it is used to establish tone and mood and
suggest the narrator’s personality; lyrical, decorative, narrative, metaphorical, imagistic, etc.
MOOD/TONE: The emotional atmosphere of the story or poem: the primary emotion or purpose of narrative (fear, love,
sadness, hate, jealousy, etc.) and the real subject of the story or poem is the mood. Tone is the tone of voice of the
persona narrator (not the writer). How do description, time and place, action and dialogue, rhythm and music
ACTION: How it is used by the persona narrator to reveal character, define persona, move the story along, seduce the
readers interest, develop narrative flow.
DIALOGUE: How it is used to reveal character and the persona narrator.
SENSE OF TIME/PLACE: How they support narrative flow and reveal character, etc.; become characters themselves.
LINE & STANZA FORMAT: Line breaks, structure of stanza units; how they are developed and used to convey idea and
narrative, image and music; controlling logic of poem and how it determines length and mood, etc.
MUSIC: Lyrical, litany, formal or natural rhythm of speech.

ACTIVITY 2: The Q and A

Choose one (1) of the following questions then answer. Write your answer in a separate sheet of paper.
1. If you were to dine with a politician, who would that be, and what would you like to talk about?
2. If you could change one thing in Philippine history what would that be?
 LESSON 3
CREATING ONLINE PORTFOLIO

ACTIVITY 1
Read and answer each item carefully.
1. It is a specific mode of fiction represented through a performance or recital.
A. recital
B. short story
C. drama
D. short paragraph
2. The narrator tells the story and is a character in the story.
A. first person POV
B. second person POV
C. third person POV
D. fourth person POV
3. It is an intensification of the conflict in a story or play.
A. exposition
B. rising action
C. complication
D. falling action
4. It is a sequence or order of events in a story.
A. Setting
B. point of view
C. plot
D. theme
5. A kind of staging modality with only two sides of seats. This style of staging is almost like a catwalk and commonly used
for fashion shows.
A. arena stage
B. theater-in-rounds
C. traverse stage
D. thrust stage
6. The audience sits on all four sides of the acting area.
A. arena stage
B. end on stage
C. promenade stage
D. thrust stage
7. A type of drama in which the protagonist meets a calamitous end.
A. tragedy
B. comedy
C. melodrama
D. fantasy
8. It is a struggle between opposing forces in a story or play usually resolved by the end of the work.
A. exposition
B. conflict
C. rising action
D. resolution
9. This term is used to describe websites that maintain an ongoing chronicle of information.
A. blog
B. search engine
C. URL
D. website
10. It is the act of writing a post for a blog.
A. blogging
B. influencing
C. uploading
D. vlogging
11. This refers to the person who writes a content for a blog.
A. blogger
B. content influencer
C. director
D. vlogger
12. It is an informational website published on the World Wide Web typically run by an individual or small group that writes
and put content on it.
A. blog
B. face book
C. hypertext
D. vlog
13. It is composed of multiple texts which are joined through hyperlinks.
A. blog
B. blogger
C. hypertext
D. vlog
14. It is the main location of web pages that are linked and accessed by visiting home page of the website using a browser.
A. hyperlink
B. link
C. search engine
D. website
15. A cloud-based service provided by certain companies, and these services allow users to access their e-mail over the
internet without the need of software installation, unlike Microsoft Outlook or Thunderbird.
A. Blog
B. search engine
C. webmail
D. website

WHAT IS A BLOG?
A blog (a shortened version of “weblog”) is a regularly updated website or web page, typically one that is run by an
individual or a small group, that which is written in an informal or conversational style. It is a platform or an avenue where a
writer or a group of writers share their views on an individual subject. Similarly, it is a term used to describe websites that
maintain an ongoing chronicle of information. A blog features a diary-type commentary or notes and links to articles on
other websites, usually presented as a list of entries in reverse chronological order. Blogs usually focus on one narrow or
specific subject or a whole range of subjects.
The following are common features that a typical blog will include:
• Header that contains the navigation bar or menu.
• Main content area containing highlighted or latest blog posts.
• Sidebar containing social profiles, favorite content, or call-to-action.
• Footer with relevant and appropriate links like a disclaimer, privacy policy, contact page, etc.
What is the purpose of a blog?
There are a number of reasons to start a blog for personal use and only a handful of strong ones for business blogging.
With the absence of blogging, your website would remain invisible, whereas running a blog makes you searchable and
competitive. So, the main purpose of a blog is to connect you to the relevant and appropriate audience. Another one is to
boost your circulation and send quality leads to your website.
The more frequent and better your blog posts are, the higher the chances for your website to be seen and discovered by
your target audience. This describes that a blog is an effective lead generation tool.
Facebook and other social media networking sites are not considered blogs. According to Menga (n.d) the main difference
between Facebook and a blog is that the blog content is in your control while Facebook content is out of your control.
Blog and vlog are two powerful communication tools that always challenge each other. A blog is a website where the
content is presented in the form of text or images. Whereas vlog contains video content instead of textual content. A blog is
an informational website published on the World Wide Web typically run by an individual or small group that writes and put
content on it.
A blogger is someone who writes content for a blog & blogging is the act of writing a post for a blog. However, if you are
not so good at writing then you can hire a freelance content writer.
Once a blog is created and an article is posted, hypertext could be done. Hypertext refers to texts that are produced and
read on computers and which require the reader to click on hyperlinks in order to read through the text. In other words,
each hypertext is composed of multiple texts, called lexia, which are joined through hyperlinks. Often the reader has more
than one choice of hyperlink within a given lexia, and with each choice, a new and different lexia appears (Trimarco, 2016).
What is a website?
A site or website is a main location of a web pages that are linked and accessed by vising home page of the website using
a browser. For example, the Computer Hope website address URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is
https://www.computerhope.com. From this home page, you could get access to ay of the web pages contained on its
website.
What differentiates blogs from websites?
Blogs need frequent updates. One good example of this includes a food blog sharing meal recipes or a company writing
about their industry innovations. Blogs also promote reader engagement. Readers have a chance to comment based on
their observation and voice their different concerns and thoughts to the community. Static website owners rarely update
their pages. Blog owners update their site with new blog posts on a frequent and regular basis.

ACTIVITY 2
Directions: Read the statement below carefully. Choose from the terms below the correct answer to what is being asked in
each item.
Website
Webmail
Search engine
Blog
Forum
Chat

1. A website that is often created by an individual to keep a list of entries that interests them.
2. An area where users share thought, ideas or help by posting text messages.
3. A cloud-based service provided by certain companies, and these services allow users to access their e-mail over
the internet without the need of software installation, unlike Microsoft Outlook or thunderbird.
4. A software accessed on the internet that searches a database of information according to the user’s query.
5. It is a page or a collection of pages in the World Wide Web that covers specific information which was all provided
by one person