Blood Brothers Play Guide for AQA GCSE Drama

KEY TERMS Musical: A type of play in which music, singing and dancing play a significant part. Naturalistic: Lifelike, believable, realistic. Stylised: Non-realistic, heightened, exaggerated. Multi-rolling: When an actor plays more than one character (multiple roles). Chronological: Events presented in the order in which they occurred. Bookended: A structural device where the story ends at a similar point to where it began. TIP As you study the play, make a note of the design challenges, particularly scene changes and the passing of time. Decide on practical design choices you could make to convey the plot and meaning of the play in order to make them clear and entertaining to the audience. SECTION B STUDY OF A SET PLAY: BLOOD BROTHERS 23 Terms Relevance to Blood Brothers It is set in Liverpool in the mid-to-late 20th century. The play presents a number of design challenges, including the frequent changes of setting. It combines aspects of naturalistic theatre with more stylised elements, such as multi-rolling , use of song and exaggerated characters. The play mainly follows, in chronological order, the lives of Mrs Johnstone and her sons, Mickey and Edward. It is bookended with the Narrator’s comments relating the death of the twins. Smaller roles include the two teachers, the Policeman and Donna Marie. It is an example of a musical . GENRE STYLE CHARACTERS PLOT PRACTICAL UNDERSTANDING CONTEXT TEST YOURSELF B1 Match the theatrical term with its correct application to Blood Brothers .