Structuring Your Devising Portfolio
Once you have devised your piece, you record how you made it. Learn the three portfolio formats, their word and time limits, and what your portfolio has to show to score well.
Justify the choices, the way you are assessed
Free interactive practice on the decisions the assessment actually asks you to justify.
Start revising freeWhat you'll cover
Show how you made it
In Component 1 you do not just perform a devised piece. You also hand in a PORTFOLIO that records how you devised it. This module covers the three portfolio formats, their word and time limits, and what your portfolio has to show.
Portfolio words
Four terms run through this topic. Learn them first.
Three formats
You may hand in your portfolio in one of three formats. Each has its own limit.
Stay within the limit
Choose the format that shows your process best, then stay WITHIN its word or time limit. Going well over or well under the limit wastes time and loses marks, so plan the length before you start.
Match the format
- Written format
- Recorded format
- Mixed format
- The portfolio overall
- 1500 to 2000 words
- 8 to 10 minutes
- 750 to 1000 words plus a short recording
- A record of your devising, worth 45 marks
Which format?
Which portfolio format lasts 8 to 10 minutes?
- The recorded format
- The written format
- The mixed format
- The final performance
Match the term
- Process
- Analysis
- Evaluation
- AO1
- How you created and shaped the piece
- Explaining the choices you made and why
- Judging how well the piece worked
- The objective the portfolio mainly rewards
What must it show?
Which TWO of these must a devising portfolio show? Choose all that apply.
- Your devising process
- Analysis and evaluation of your choices
- The plot of a published play
- A review of a live theatre show
The devising journey
Put the stages your portfolio records in order, earliest first.
- Choose a stimulus
- Devise and develop the piece
- Analyse the choices you made
- Evaluate the finished piece
What the portfolio must contain
The devising _____ records how you made your piece. The written format allows 1500 to 2000 _____. The recorded format lasts 8 to 10 _____. The portfolio is worth 45 _____ in total. Going over the limit will _____ you marks.
Count the words
The written portfolio allows 1500 to 2000 words. What is the difference between the maximum and the minimum word count?
Spot the portfolio content
Tap the TWO things a devising portfolio must include.
- An account of your devising process.
- Analysis and evaluation of your choices.
- A full copy of a published play script.
- A review of a professional theatre show.
Within the limits?
For each submission, decide whether it is within the limit, too long, or too short.
- A written portfolio of 1800 words. Is this within the limit, too long, or too short?
- A written portfolio of 2500 words. Is this within the limit, too long, or too short?
- A recorded portfolio of 5 minutes. Is this within the limit, too long, or too short?
Structure a portfolio
Explain how to structure a strong devising portfolio. Include the formats, the limits, and what the portfolio must show.
- Name the three formats and their limits
- Explain what the portfolio must show
- Explain why staying within the limits matters