5th and 6th grade Drama Elective
This elective meets once weekly for 45 minutes in the small Aula. The main focus is on building a group atmosphere by using the Ensemble Technique. The students work on overcoming their inhibitions through games and vocal activities, work on short skits in ever-changing groups and improvise as much as possible. The students also work on body and facial expression and develop short skits of their own.
7th and 8th grade Drama Activity
This extracurricular drama class is open to any 7th or 8th graders interested in performing before a live audience. The activity meets twice a week to develop theatre skills and build an ensemble. Over the course of the school year, the ensemble will plan and devise a one-act performance to present to a live audience in late spring.
8th grade Drama Elective
In the 8th Grade students can chose Drama as an Elective. This 8th grade Drama class focuses on basic acting skills (using your voice and your body to effectively communicate a character’s thoughts and emotions), developing creativity and self-confidence, and general knowledge of how a stage production is put together. Units of study include monologues, duet acting, improvisation, and stage make-up. Students must attend a live-theatre production each semester and write a review of the performance.
9th and 10th grade Drama Elective
The 9th grade elective drama class focuses on basic acting skills (using your voice and your body to effectively communicate a character’s thoughts and emotions), developing creativity and self-confidence, and general knowledge of how a stage production is put together. Units of study include improvisation, duet acting, oral interpretation and storytelling, costuming, and stage combat. Students must attend a live-theatre production each semester and write a review of the performance.
The 10th grade Drama focuses more intensively on acting skills and character development. Units of study include improvisation, duet acting, monologues, and stage lighting. Students must attend a live-theatre production each semester and write a review of the performance.
AP/LK/GK
Darstellendes Spiel (DS, upper-level) Drama is offered for 11th and 12th graders. This class counts as an elective for the diploma program and as a GK class for the Abitur. Students may take this class for both 11th and 12th grade years. The course follows the Berlin Rahmenplan for Darstellendes Spiel and focuses on both theoretical and practical aspects of acting. The course focuses on basic acting techniques, rehearsal, and performance. The instructor chooses an area of focus for the class each year and the students create/prepare/rehearse a play that is performed at the end of the spring semester. Working together as a team is an essential part for the success of this course.
Students who take this course must be prepared to attend extra rehearsals outside of the scheduled class time. Most of these rehearsals will be on Saturdays or Sundays. In some cases, every student is required to participate in an extra technical rehearsal the Saturday before the week of the performances as well as rehearsals every afternoon the week of the performances.
Klausuren/Tests for this course include both performance and written aspects and count 1/3 of the final grade. Active participation in the final performances is part of the Allgemeine Teil (AT) evaluation and can be counted up to 1/3 of the grade for the spring semester.
High School Musical
The musical gives students the opportunity to act, sing, and dance, sometimes in a world-famous musical, such as Legally Blonde, Into the Woods, Beauty and the Beast or The Wizard of Oz, or in a smaller or original piece, such as The Fantastiks or Stimmen durch die Mauer/Voices Through the Wall. Auditions are usually held in the first two weeks of the school year with the performances in November.
High School Play
The high school play offers students in grades 9 through 12 the opportunity to collaborate on a full-length play (usually in the spring semester). Sometimes English, sometimes German, and sometimes both, the high school play is presented to a live audience, typically in April. Cast and crew roles are available. In order to be a part of the cast, students must audition. A teacher recommendation is required for anyone wishing to join the crew.
ISTA
A middle school (6th, 7th, and 8th) as well as a high school group (9th,10th, 11th, and 12th) are participating in an ISTA (International Schools Theatre Association Festival) each year. At the festival, students work in ensemble groups with theatre professionals to create an original theatre presentation. Students must audition to participate in this group. The auditions are in September and the group does fundraising activities throughout the year.
