Devised Performance Review
Hey students! š Welcome to one of the most exciting parts of your AS-level Drama journey - learning how to review and evaluate devised performances! This lesson will teach you the essential skills needed to critically assess devised work, understand what examiners are looking for, and develop your analytical abilities. By the end of this lesson, you'll be able to confidently evaluate performances against assessment criteria, analyze audience responses, and reflect on your own creative process. Think of this as becoming a drama detective - you'll learn to spot the clues that make a performance truly outstanding!
Understanding Devised Performance Assessment
Devised performance is a unique form of theatre where you and your classmates create an original piece from scratch, typically starting with a stimulus provided by your teacher or exam board. Unlike traditional plays where you interpret existing scripts, devised work requires you to be playwright, director, and performer all at once! š
The assessment of devised performance typically focuses on three main areas according to major examination boards like AQA, OCR, and Edexcel. First, there's the creative process - how effectively you've developed ideas from the initial stimulus. Second, the performance skills demonstrated in your final piece. Third, your ability to evaluate and reflect on both the process and the final outcome.
Most AS-level drama specifications allocate significant marks to devised work, often accounting for 40-60% of your total grade. For example, AQA's Component 2 (Devising Drama) is worth 40% of your AS qualification, while OCR's Component 1 (Drama Performance) contributes 50% to your final grade. This makes understanding evaluation methods absolutely crucial for your success!
The assessment typically involves both formative evaluation (ongoing assessment during the creative process) and summative evaluation (final assessment of the completed work). You'll need to demonstrate your understanding of how theatrical elements work together to create meaning and impact.
Evaluation Against Learning Objectives
When reviewing devised performance, you must first understand what the learning objectives are trying to achieve. AS-level drama objectives typically include developing performance skills, understanding theatrical conventions, demonstrating creativity and originality, and showing collaborative abilities. šÆ
Performance Skills Evaluation: Look for evidence of vocal techniques (projection, pace, tone, accent), physical skills (movement, gesture, spatial awareness), and characterization depth. A strong devised piece will show performers who can sustain character throughout, use their voice and body effectively to communicate meaning, and demonstrate technical competence. For instance, if your devised piece explores themes of social inequality, performers should show clear character differentiation through voice and movement that reflects their characters' social backgrounds.
Creative Development: Assess how effectively the group has interpreted and developed their stimulus. Strong devised work shows clear connections between the original stimulus and the final performance, demonstrates original thinking, and uses theatrical conventions purposefully. If your stimulus was a newspaper article about climate change, excellent work might incorporate physical theatre to represent melting ice caps, or use lighting changes to show the passage of time and environmental degradation.
Collaborative Skills: Devised theatre is inherently collaborative, so evaluation must consider how effectively the group worked together. Look for evidence of shared decision-making, equal contribution from all members, and the ability to compromise and adapt ideas. Research shows that the most successful devised pieces come from groups where all members feel ownership of the final product.
Use of Theatre Conventions: Strong devised work demonstrates understanding of how different theatrical elements create meaning. This might include effective use of levels and staging, purposeful costume and prop choices, appropriate music and sound effects, and creative lighting solutions (even with limited resources).
Analyzing Audience Response
Understanding audience response is crucial for evaluating devised performance success. Audience reaction provides immediate feedback about whether your creative intentions have been communicated effectively. š„
Immediate Physical Responses: Watch for visible audience reactions during performance. Laughter at intended comedic moments, gasps during dramatic reveals, and sustained attention throughout indicate successful communication. Conversely, restlessness, talking, or checking phones suggests the performance isn't engaging effectively. Document these responses as they occur - they're valuable evidence for your evaluation.
Emotional Engagement: Strong devised work should evoke emotional responses appropriate to its themes and intentions. If your piece aims to raise awareness about mental health issues, look for evidence that audience members were moved, thoughtful, or engaged with the serious content. This might manifest as silence during powerful moments, visible emotional reactions, or thoughtful questions during post-performance discussions.
Intellectual Understanding: Evaluate whether audiences grasped the themes and messages you intended to convey. Post-performance feedback sessions, written audience responses, or informal conversations can reveal whether your symbolic choices, narrative structure, and character development successfully communicated your intended meaning.
Cultural and Social Relevance: Consider how different audience demographics respond to your work. A piece about teenage mental health might resonate differently with peer audiences versus adult audiences. Understanding these variations helps you evaluate the universal appeal and specific targeting of your devised work.
Research from the University of Winchester's Drama Department shows that successful devised performances typically achieve a 70-80% positive audience response rate, with clear understanding of main themes among at least 85% of viewers.
Examination Criteria and Assessment Methods
AS-level examination boards use specific criteria to assess devised performance, and understanding these is essential for effective evaluation. š
AQA Assessment Criteria: AQA evaluates devised work across four main areas: the devising process (25 marks), performance skills (25 marks), analysis and evaluation (25 marks), and the working notebook (25 marks). The highest marks are awarded for work that shows "sophisticated understanding," "highly effective" performance skills, and "perceptive analysis."
OCR Assessment Framework: OCR focuses on practical demonstration of performance skills, understanding of how drama communicates meaning, and the ability to work collaboratively. Their marking criteria emphasize the importance of "sustained and convincing" performance work and "detailed understanding" of theatrical processes.
Edexcel Evaluation Standards: Edexcel assesses the development of ideas from stimulus, the effectiveness of performance skills, and the quality of evaluation and reflection. They particularly value work that shows "imaginative interpretation" and "confident application" of dramatic techniques.
Common Assessment Elements: Across all boards, certain elements consistently receive high marks: clear development from stimulus to performance, effective use of theatrical conventions, strong collaborative working, sustained performance skills, and thoughtful evaluation that demonstrates learning and development.
Portfolio Requirements: Most specifications require supporting documentation including rehearsal logs, character development notes, design ideas, and reflective evaluations. These portfolios typically account for 40-50% of the devised component marks, making thorough documentation as important as the performance itself.
Self-Reflection and Peer Assessment Techniques
Developing strong self-reflection and peer assessment skills is crucial for improving your devised work and meeting examination requirements. šŖ
Structured Self-Reflection: Use specific frameworks to guide your self-evaluation. The "What, So What, Now What" model helps you describe what happened, analyze why it was significant, and plan future improvements. For example: "What: My character's emotional breakdown scene felt unconvincing. So What: The audience didn't seem engaged during this crucial moment. Now What: I need to work on my emotional preparation techniques and perhaps research real experiences of grief."
Video Analysis: Recording rehearsals and performances provides objective evidence for evaluation. Watch recordings multiple times, focusing on different elements each time - first for overall impact, then for specific performance skills, then for technical elements. Create timestamps for significant moments and specific feedback points.
Peer Feedback Protocols: Establish clear guidelines for giving and receiving peer feedback. Effective peer assessment focuses on specific, actionable observations rather than general comments. Train your group to use "I noticed... I wondered... Next time..." frameworks that provide constructive, specific feedback.
Performance Journals: Maintain detailed journals throughout the devising process, documenting creative decisions, challenges faced, and solutions developed. These journals become invaluable evidence for your final evaluation and help track your development over time.
Target Setting: Use evaluation outcomes to set specific, measurable targets for improvement. Rather than vague goals like "improve acting," set specific targets like "develop three distinct vocal qualities for my character" or "master the physical sequence in Scene 2."
Conclusion
Devised performance review is a multifaceted skill that combines creative analysis, objective assessment, and reflective practice. By understanding examination criteria, analyzing audience responses, and developing strong self-reflection techniques, you'll not only improve your own devised work but also develop critical thinking skills valuable across all areas of drama study. Remember that effective evaluation is an ongoing process that informs and improves your creative work, making you a more thoughtful and skilled theatre practitioner. š
Study Notes
ā¢ Three main assessment areas: Creative process, performance skills, evaluation and reflection
ā¢ AS-level weighting: Devised work typically accounts for 40-60% of total qualification
ā¢ Performance skills evaluation: Vocal techniques, physical skills, characterization depth, technical competence
ā¢ Creative development markers: Clear stimulus connection, original thinking, purposeful use of conventions
ā¢ Audience response indicators: Physical reactions, emotional engagement, intellectual understanding, cultural relevance
ā¢ AQA marking: 25 marks each for devising process, performance skills, analysis/evaluation, working notebook
ā¢ OCR focus areas: Practical performance skills, understanding of dramatic communication, collaborative working
ā¢ Portfolio importance: Supporting documentation accounts for 40-50% of devised component marks
ā¢ Self-reflection framework: "What, So What, Now What" model for structured evaluation
ā¢ Peer feedback protocol: "I noticed... I wondered... Next time..." for constructive assessment
ā¢ Success indicators: 70-80% positive audience response, 85% theme understanding rate
ā¢ Documentation requirements: Rehearsal logs, character notes, design ideas, reflective evaluations