Questions on script:

Short Answers:

Describe the set design for the whole play. [5]}

Explain what you would want to convey to the audience through the use of props in the extract
(changes made to furniture and props between Scene 1 and Scene 2). [5]
Give examples of how you could make effective use of the most important props. [2]
Select two moments where the use of props would be particularly effective in the extract, and
say why. [4]

Suggest a facial expression for the actor playing the role of… (in a particular scene and
dialogue). Why would your suggestion be appropriate? [2]

Suggest a costume for the character of … and give a reason to support your suggestion. [2]

Describe how you would light the start of Scene 2 and identify one point in the scene where you
would change this. Give reasons for your choices. [4] 


What advice would you give to the actor playing the role of … Why would this advice be
appropriate? [2]
You are the director, watching the actors. Give one piece of advice to each of them and in each
case say why this would help make their delivery effective. [4] 


You are advising the actor playing … on how to pace her lines in Scene 1. Explain why she
should follow it. [2] 


How would you advise the actor playing … to deliver the speech between line [5]

Explain where you would advise the actor to vary his pitch of voice, and give a reason for your
choice. [2]

Give advice on how the actor playing … might use breath control in delivering this speech, and
say why this would be effective. [2] 


Suggest three ways in which the actors seated at the table could use body language to show
their reaction to Felix (a character).
Suggest three ways in which the actors could vary their body language to create dramatic
impact.
Suggest three ways in which the actors could vary the physical distance between them to create
dramatic impact. [3] 


As an actor playing the role of … how would you deliver the speech between line… [4]

You have been given the role of … How would you control your vocal delivery between line… [4]

As the actor playing …, what impression would you want to give to the audience, and how would
you do it? [5]
How would you direct Scene …—…, and what would you want the actor playing … to emphasise?
[5]

Suggest two aspects of his character that you would want to bring out and, for each aspect, say
how you would do it. [4] 


Identify two examples of misunderstandings between the characters from line… For each
example suggest how the actors could convey the misunderstanding to the audience. [4] 


{ Look at JEAN TATLOCK’s speech from line 66 (‘For too long the White House ...’) to line 76
(‘Thank you’). Suggest three ways in which you would add physical emphasis to what is spoken.
[3]}

{ Look at lines 589 (‘At the start of any enterprise, between two comparative...’) to 633 (‘The
form was good’). Suggest three ways in which the actors could show how CLIVE and ROBBIE
relate to each other. [3]}

Suggest two things that motivate … between lines…. Give a reason from the text for each of your
suggestions. [4]

What aspects of the relationship between … and … would you want to emphasise in
performance? [3] 


Look at the …’s speech in lines… What acting techniques would you use in this speech to bring
the character to life? [5]

Long Answers:

You have been asked to prepare notes on how to play the roles of… What aspects of the roles do
you see as being most important, and how would you emphasise them in performance? [25] 


You have been cast in the role of… How would your performance communicate his character to
an audience? [25] 


You are preparing to audition for the role of …. Which aspects of his character would you seek to
bring out in your interpretation? [25] 


As an actor, what impression would you want the audience to gain of …’s character in this
extract, and how would you communicate this? Make specific references to the extract to
support your discussion. [25]

You are the costume designer for a performance of this extract. Discuss how your design
concept will reflect the mood and nature of the drama, and outline the distinctive aspects of one
of the costumes. [25] 


You have been asked to design the sound for a performance of this extract. Discuss how your
design ideas will enhance the drama. [25] 

What challenges would this extract present to the design team responsible for a production, and
what solutions could you offer?

As a director, how would you bring out tensions in the relationships between leading
characters? [25] 


What are the main difficulties you would anticipate in directing the extract, and how might you
address them? [25]

{ You have been cast in the role of COOKIE and have been asked to prepare notes for the
director about how you will play it. What aspects of the part do you see as being most
important, and how would you bring them out? [25]}

{A theatre critic has written that a recent performance of Rumours ‘didn’t understand how Neil
Simon’s play celebrates the funny side of life’. As a director of the extract, how will you ensure
your production brings out the humour of the play? [25]}

{In a newspaper review, you read that ‘The Odd Couple makes fun of the sort of squabbling and
bickering that messes up all human relationships.’ As a director, how would you bring this out in
your production of the extract? [25]}

{‘A powerful series of one-liners, guaranteed to keep the show moving...’. You are preparing to
direct the extract. How would you ensure that these one-liners make maximum impact? [25]}

{‘Talk of the City explores the tension between the glamorous world of entertainment and the
more serious issues of the time.’ As a director, how would you bring out this tension in a
performance of the extract? [25]}

{‘City Sugar explores the theme of the frustrated ambitions of its characters.’ As a director, how
would you bring this out in a performance of the extract? [25]}

{‘American Days explores the challenges facing those seeking fame and fortune in the music
industry.’ As a director, how would you bring this out in a performance of the extract? [25]}

{ As a director, how would you bring out the dramatic potential of any two of these lecture
scenes? [25]}

{Gogol describes the meeting room in the Governor’s house in Scene 1 as ‘business-like’. Discuss
the set you would create for this scene and how you would ensure an easy transition to a ‘small
room at the top of the inn’ for Scene 2. [25]}

{The Government Inspector has been described as ‘a classic satire on human vanity’. As a
director, identify three moments with comic potential in the extract, and say how you would
want them to be performed for maximum effect. [25]}