Acting Company Activity #1

For the first acting company activity, complete the following activity dealing with Act I:

1.     Spend five minutes sharing ideas and comments on the play so far, now that we are at the conclusion of Act I.  This is a good opportunity for members to bring up anything that is puzzling or confusing them.  Also, note any interesting constructions or ideas that Shakespeare includes in his play.  The director should be taking notes.

2.     What are the group’s general impression of each of the characters so far? Focus ideas on the four lovers, Egeus, and the more overt mechanicals, such as Bottom.  The director should take notes.

3.     In most acting companies, you will be approaching the text for the second time, the first time as a group.  Complete the following sequence of events for the assigned scene.  This will be the general sequence of events when asked to do the text reading sequence (see Cheat Sheet):

a.     Complete a round robin reading. Sit in a circle and have every student read, stopping at punctuation.  There are no characters. The goal is to absorb the language.

b.     Circle any words or phrases that you do not understand as the round robin reading occurs.  At the conclusion of the reading come to consensus about definitions and meaning (I can be used as a resource if you are truly stuck!).

c.      Paraphrase long, difficult speeches into modern English for easier comprehension.

d.     Make sense of the overall scene and plot action.

4.     Complete the above sequence of events for I.i.230-257. The director should take notes on company ideas and questions.