My Children! My Africa! Lesson Plan

Staging a Killing

Kind of Activity:

Creative Writing

Objective:

To think critically about the best way to depict the climax of the play on stage.

Common Core Standards:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.9-10.1.A; CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.WHST.9-10.4; CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.WHST.9-10.10; CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.1

Structure:

Set-Up (10 min)

At the end of scene 3, Fugard writes the stage direction: "Mr. M breaks away from Thami. Ringing his bell furiously he goes outside and confronts the mob. They kill him." Since there are no actors actually cast as "the mob," this direction cannot be depicted entirely realistically on stage; the director must make a decision about how to depict this moment, the...