Articulate Performance Choices for William Shakespeare’s Hamlet

There are few to no descriptive words used to refer to Hamlet’s performance.

Language is generalized and may depend upon adverbs such as “very,” “quite,” “extremely,” or “kind of” to make the point.

Though both physical and verbal attributes are referred to, one is depended on much more than the other.

Both physical and verbal attributes are referred to equally. Words are used from the word list provided and are generated by the student as well.

There is little to no connection made between the actor’s actions and his overall intent to portray a unique character.

One loose connection is made referring to the actor’s intention or interpretation of the character.

Two loose connections are made concerning the actor’s choices and his intended portrayal of Hamlet.

There is a strong and definite connection made between carefully selected character attributes and the thoughts that the actor may have intended to portray about Hamlet’s character.

The student does not refer to his or her specific expectations but instead jumps right into qualitative generalizations about the performance.

The student may write about his or her expectations and generally about how the actor did or did not meet those expectations. There is no specific description about how the actor did or did not meet these expectations.

The student acknowledges his or her previous ideas and new information, although he or she never attempts to reevaluate his or her previous opinion, instead only showing how the performance reinforces his or her previous summary. The student may spend time reflecting upon the value of a performance in terms of “good” or “bad”

The student reflects upon his or her previous ideas, and then reevaluates these ideas within the context of the new information. Expectations and reality may be referred to fluidly throughout the piece as opposed to being given its own section.