KSB246 The Actor and the Audience

Unit Outline: Semester 2 2025, Kelvin Grove, Internal

Overview

This unit develops your skills in performing to live audiences, enabling you to embody an understanding of the application of dramaturgical, cultural and staging codes and conventions to pleasurably convey meaning and social commentary. This unit further develops your acting, voice, movement and characterisation skills by applying them to the demands associated with performing roles from complex texts of different genres.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:

1. Demonstrate complex problem-solving abilities in the process of preparing and realising dramatic texts for stage.
2. Demonstrate an embodied understanding of the dramaturgical, cultural and staging codes and conventions in the presentation of performances for audiences.
3. Identify and demonstrate industry-level standards, expectations and codes of practice associated with acting practice.

Content

Learning Approaches

In this unit you will engage in a series of workshops and performance projects in theatre, studio or other settings designed to challenge your developing abilities as a screen and stage actor, and to help you extend and integrate your acting, voice and movement skills and artistry. The expectation is that you will learn by setting your own goals and by systematically and autonomously mastering all skills introduced to you, and by testing their application in rehearsals and performances under the guidance of directors and teachers.

Feedback on Learning and Assessment

Throughout the progress of workshops and rehearsals, teaching staff will provide feedback to you which will inform all assessments items. You are required to keep a journal as a record of your discoveries and feedback through the course of your study and as a resource for the Reflective Journal written assessment task in this unit.

Feedback in this unit is also provided to you in the following ways:

• comments on summative assessment work in addition to criteria sheets, both for group work and individual endeavour
• generic comments back to the cohort via QUT Canvas and email
• criteria sheet grading.

Assessment

Overview

There are two performance exercises, designed to enable you to maximise your opportunities to apply and develop your skills in acting in specific and limited contexts. These are authentic assessments as they reflect the requirements needed for professional acting practice within the Australian context. You will also be required to keep a written reflective record of your progress and personal discoveries, related to acting.

Unit Grading Scheme

7- point scale

Assessment Tasks

Assessment: Reflective Journal

You will create weekly reflections throughout the semester. Each reflection will make clear how you are addressing each of your goals. You will highlight the research, textual analysis and character development you have been addressing for each performance outcome. You will be assessed on the final summary reflection.

This is an assignment for the purposes of an extension.

Assessment: Performance

A performance of a character/s in a play or theatrical event, that broadens your capacity to connect with different cultural codes and issues, to engage an audience.

Assessment: Performance

A performance of a character/s in a dramaturgically complete play, addressing complex or unfamiliar cultural codes and issues, with staging informed by simple aesthetic codes.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a commitment to undertaking academic work and assessment in a manner that is ethical, fair, honest, respectful and accountable.

The Academic Integrity Policy sets out the range of conduct that can be a failure to maintain the standards of academic integrity. This includes, cheating in exams, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion and contract cheating. It also includes providing fraudulent or altered documentation in support of an academic concession application, for example an assignment extension or a deferred exam.

You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.

Breaching QUT’s Academic Integrity Policy or engaging in conduct that may defeat or compromise the purpose of assessment can lead to a finding of student misconduct (Code of Conduct – Student) and result in the imposition of penalties under the Management of Student Misconduct Policy, ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.

Requirements to Study

Requirements

All students and staff who access campus buildings and facilities are required to complete the Tier 1 General Health and Safety Induction. This must be completed online.

This unit also requires a Tier 2 Health and Safety Induction which is provided by the technician on site in the theatre, workshop or studio.

Resources

Resource Materials

Safety and protective equipment

Proper clothing appropriate for active studio work is required, including closed-in shoes.

Risk Assessment Statement

For risks associated with using campus buildings or facilities, refer to the Tier 1 General Health and Safety Induction.

As all performance-makers understand, creating a performance potentially carries with it certain physical and/or emotional risks, both in the rehearsal room and in the theatre. Indeed taking risks is an integral component of the art form’s processes. Some rehearsal warm ups and exercises, and some performance events may include physically or emotionally strenuous activities. Managing this risk to ensure working conditions are safe, is always a high priority in the production process. It is therefore extremely important that if you are aware of personal physical or emotional vulnerabilities that make you feel unsafe or at risk in any way, you should immediately inform teaching staff, the director or stage manager, so that your situation can be evaluated and appropriate rectifying action can be taken.

Theatres and other performance spaces are also potentially dangerous places, particularly backstage during performances when low light conditions prevail. You will be warned by the stage manager, the production manager or the director of any specific risks that you will need to be aware of, when your project team first moves in to the theatre. Whenever moving into a new performance space, you should always conduct your own risk assessment, and notify your team or director of any hazards you have personally identified.

Every effort is made by QUT staff to ensure that you work in a safe environment. Conversely you are absolutely expected to follow all safety rules, procedures and directions, and to ensure that you do not put at risk the safety of others, or yourself, or of the highest artistic fulfilment of the project in any way.

Course Learning Outcomes

KK34 Bachelor of Fine Arts

1. Identify and demonstrate knowledge of the techniques and concepts underpinning your field of creative practice.
   Relates to: ULO3
2. Demonstrate technical proficiency in at least one area of your field of creative practice.
   Relates to: ULO3
3. Communicate independent learning clearly and coherently in diverse modes relevant to your field of creative practice.
   Relates to: ULO1
4. Represent and promote your work in ways relevant to your creative field.
   Relates to: ULO2
5. Discern, critically analyse and synthesise knowledge in complex creative practice settings.
   Relates to: ULO1, ULO3
6. Formulate and apply an independent perspective through reflection and by acting on the informed critique of others.
   Relates to: ULO3
7. Demonstrate respect for cultural and social differences, and work with integrity across creative practice networks.
   Relates to: ULO2
8. Operate with initiative, ethical judgement and professionalism in creative practice, both alone and in groups.
   Relates to: ULO3