Storyboarding:Sketching the Stage for Dramatic Activities

Lindsey Rucker

Associate Instructor

Department of Germanic Studies

Still Images

Tableaux

Thought Tracking

Improvisation

Images can be powerful prompts for a wide variety of drama techniques.

But where do we find images?

Benefits of Creating a Storyboard:

Student-produced images

Unexpected Outcomes

Diagnostic Potential

Opportunity to Show Off

What do we need to make a storyboard?

A box! At least one.

A single box emphasizes the composition of the scene and the location of the characters. Multiple boxes emphasize the transitions between scenes.

Something to go in the box!

Content can be teacher selected (a quote from a text, lyric from a song, original description, etc) or student selected (students choose an interesting passage, invent original story or character, etc.)

Transitions

Student-drawn storyboards can be used as the image prompt for other drama techniques.

Before transitioning to another activity, I recommend giving students time to reflect on their drawings and see what the others have done.

Looking at other student’s drawings can trigger a conversation about their different choices.