The importance of drama: from stage to page
We've worked with Shakespeare's Globe to produce a series of short films on the importance of drama.
This film shows how a qualification in drama can provide relevant transferable skills for use in working life.
In the process of making the films, we spoke to professional theatre-makers and journalists to hear their thoughts on how studying drama can improve key skills in analysis, communication and evaluation.
Contributors
Georghia Ellinas is Head of Learning at Shakespeare’s Globe. She suggests that drama students need high levels of inferential skills when making meaning from the texts they read.
Iain Reekie, Programme Director at Rose Bruford College, proposes that students taking the sciences, medicine, or mathematics can benefit from simultaneously studying creative subjects, particularly drama, because it encourages the student to actively analyse, to work with other people, and actively challenge one's own ideas.
Jessica Swale is a theatre playwright and director. Jessica suggests that a drama qualification can give you transferrable skills that can be used in politics, writing and publishing.
Katie Evans, economist at CEBR, states that drama is known to improve reading ability and boost confidence, vital for when are giving a presentation, or doing a bit of filming
Philip Cumbus, actor and educational practitioner, has noticed how students can unlock potential they didn't know they had when they put a text on its feet, and how this can help them express themselves in other subjects.
Susan Elkin, journalist, author and former English teacher, suggests that a drama student is going to learn much more about the characters in a play by reading and studying the play both by their actions and their words.
Giles Broadbent, journalist and Editor of The Wharf, considers journalism and drama as using the same tools (the English language) and the same raw materials (human drama and human stories).
Katherine Ronayne, a drama student, says her A level in Drama and Theatre Studies helped support her A level in English by giving her the tools to discuss and critically evaluate text effectively.
Giles Block, author and Head of Text at Shakespeare’s Globe, knows the importance of using a detailed study of a play text to bring a play to life for performance.
I hope you find this film useful. If you have any feedback or comments, please email me.
Thanks,
Paul
