1 Were the audiences attention is directed.(Element)

2 Not breaking charater, not laughing or smiling staying focused. (Skill)

I think ‘focus’ can be defined as both a dramatic element and as a performance skill (These are my definitions only and do not represent the VCAA’s definitions):

focus n. (dramatic element)
The place in the acting space where the audience’s attention is directed.
ie. Where is the ‘focus’? Who has the ‘focus’?

focus n. (performance skill)
The actor’s ability to establish and maintain mental and physical control during performance.
Was the actor ‘focussed’? She lost her ‘focus’.

I would define an expressive skill as the skills associated with the actor’s physical instrument (voice, gesture, posture, facial expression). Performance skills are non-physical skills that the actor uses to define the quality (not in an evaluative sense) of the expression – energy, confidence, etc.

By this definition ‘focus’ is closer to a performance skill than an expressive skill.

There are several other definitions that I find odd from the VCAA:

* why is posture not an expressive skill?
* why does the VCAA Drama SD define expressive skills using the term ‘performance skills’?
* How is ‘pathos’ a theatrical convention and not a dramatic element (if ‘mood’ is a dramatic element)?
* Why is direction considered ‘stagecraft’ and not ‘play-making technique’?????