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Dramatic text; written assignment · Individual performance choices and analysis

International Baccalaureate · IB Diploma · Literature and Performance · SL · Topic 2

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Scope and prerequisites

IB literature and performance first assessment 2024; English focus; SL only. This supplemental reference covers only the listed preparation outcomes. School selections, full-guide procedures and required live or recorded performance are separate.

  • Explore a dramatic extract through rehearsal 排练
  • Analyse how personal performance choices communicate its dramatic features

Prerequisites: Close reading 细读; voice, gesture 姿态动作, pace and space; observation versus intention.

Explain and choose the method

Explore voice, gesture, pace and space in relation to the dramatic text.

Analyse a specific choice, its reason and its observed effect 观察效果, connecting text and practical experience.

Rehearsal tests how a practical choice communicates a dramatic feature 戏剧特征. Change one choice at a time and keep a dated record of what actually happened. Intended effect 预期效果 is what you hoped; observed effect is what a viewer or recording can support. A written assignment needs your personal performance evidence 证据, not an invented report of success.

Original diagram of the worked relationship; read the full wording and qualifications.
Original diagram of the worked relationship; read the full wording and qualifications.

Existing worked example: Rehearse two versions of an approved extract with one spatial choice changed. Record the trials with consent and evaluate how the relation between characters changes. Use the stronger version as evidence for a focused analytical paragraph.

Complete original context

Original dramatic extract: LEILA (beside the door): You asked for the keeper. VISITOR (looking at the brass plate): Is he here? LEILA: I keep the shop now. (A pause. LEILA places a card below the plate.) VISITOR: Then may I ask you about this hinge?

Two rehearsal proposals, not reports of completed performance: A: Leila speaks softly toward the plate and leaves a long pause before placing the card. B: Leila turns toward the visitor, speaks clearly, and places the card during “now”.

Independent practice and checked reasoning

Transfer 1

Explain how A and B could communicate different relationships. Link voice, gaze or timing to specific words rather than declaring one universally better.

Reasoning: A's gaze toward the inherited name and pause may make hesitation or continuing dependence visible. B's turn, clearer voice and card on “now” may assert present authority. Both can be defensible interpretations of the exchange; actual reception must be tested, not assumed.

Transfer 2

Design a fair rehearsal comparison and a record template. What would count as personal performance evidence?

Reasoning: Perform the same extract with the same partner, space and text, varying the chosen gaze/timing package or one element at a time. Record date, exact choice, textual reason, observer response and revision, with consent for recordings. Actual participation and specific observed effects count; a plan or invented positive reaction does not.

Transfer 3

Write an analytical paragraph in conditional language using a proposed choice, and explain what must replace that language after actual rehearsal.

Reasoning: “Placing the card during ‘now’ could align visible action with Leila's assertion of present authority. Turning toward the visitor may make the address more direct, but could reduce the hesitation implied by the pause. I would compare whether viewers notice both assertion and uncertainty.” After rehearsal, add what was actually done, observed evidence, limitations and a justified revision. Do not report unperformed choices as completed work.

Limits and next use

The assignment concerns a dramatic work explored through performance, not a purely literary essay. School supervises actual rehearsal and authorship; commentary on an imagined performance is insufficient.

All tasks here are public original practice with authored guidance. They are not official questions or fresh diagnostics. Existing protected tests and mocks remain separate.

Vocabulary
English
dramatic feature/drəˈmætɪk ˈfiːtʃə/
intended effect
observed effect
close reading/kləʊs ˈriːdɪŋ/
rehearsal/rɪˈhɜːsl/
evidence/ˈevɪdəns/
gesture/ˈdʒestʃə/

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