Summer 2012: Eeks! What play are we going to do next?!?!

When I'm up to my eyeballs in a play, there is always a moment of panic. Are there any more ideas out there?! I become so attached to the play we're doing, the idea of coming up with a new play for next year seems impossible. but somehow, once the adrenaline has died down and the performance is behind us..... a new idea always does pop up.

Obviously, you need a theme that will capture the interest of the kids taking part. So far we've done monsters (Where The Wild Things Are), dragons and pirates (Puff The Magic Dragon) and ghosts (The Blood-Chilling Curse of the Old House on the Hill). And this year..... it's going to be aliens!

This theme lends itself to a children's theatre workshop on lots of levels. It is instantly appealing (especially to rowdy boys) and it has great dramatic potential:

• you can have fun with the costumes and props (lots of potential for kitsch comedy)
• there is an abundance of sources for inspiration: Star Trek, Star Wars, Dr Who, Flash Gordon... to name but a few
• there is a lot of great (themed) music out there: films like Apollo 13, Star Wars, Star Trek, the Alien series
• and (our pet theme!) outer space is ideal for black light! All those glow-in-the-dark planets!

 
As soon as we fix on this theme, my mind is buzzing with ideas. We can do a parody of the 1969 moon landing (and get Armstrong's famous "smallstep/giant leap" phrase all mixed up perhaps?)... we can have hula-hooping kids as blacklight saturns (hula hooping being the lastest craze with my daughters)... what the heck, we can do an alien version of Romeo and Juliet!

As usual, one play is hardly behind us, there are eleven months to go before our next workshop and I'm already looking for inspiration!

Soap operas V: Taking it further...

The sky is really the limit when it comes to taking this activity further. The students themselves will no doubt have lots of ideas by this stage in the activity for continuing the plotline -  but here are some pointers just in case.

• Introduce an external event:
• have characters react to an earthquake, a flood, a fire (can be developed slowly to explore the idea of before, during and after the event, or the group can focus on the aftermath and its implications for the street/characters)
• organise a celebration (eg. a wedding, funeral, street party): develop the action. Who is getting married? How and when was this decided? (don't rule out murkier motivations like blackmail! :) ) Who is invited (and who is not? Possibilities to introduce hidden tensions (an old flame previously unknown to the rest of the group, perhaps?) and furious reactions); Do things go as planned? Is there an unexpected guest? Does the ceremony run smoothly? (the marriage gets interrupted because the groom is already married.... the coffin gets dropped.... and is empty... the father discovers he is not the father of the newly-baptised son etc)
• Bring crime onto their doorsteps! Plan a rear-window style murder; a robbery; some shady goings on "next door".... get the characters sleuthing; the nosey old lady jumping to conclusions etc. Consider giving out clues and snippets of information gradually and get the group to develop the scenario accordingly.
• Introduce a new character:This has endless possibilities. 
• A new, mysterious neighbour moves in... with his/her dog, son, mother, collection of exotic reptiles, three wives, small sect of devotees......
• Don't forget the idea of the strange, gloomy house on the hill. Is it haunted? Is the new owner aloof and serious? Are they planning to turn it into a nudist hotel? A drug rehabilitation centre?
• Long lost lovers, brothers, fathers, husbands... can turn up out-of-the-blue (and wreak suitable amounts of havoc in the lives of our characters)
• Explore the comic possibilities of a sexy single actress moving in for a few weeks while she works on a film (action and reactions of the men... and the women); a group of gangster-like men; a family with 7 kids, the arrival of the catalogue bride etc etc
•  Introduce unexpected interaction between characters: At any time, you can introduce a new (or previously unknown) relationship between two (or more) characters. An affair... past shady dealings best forgotten... blackmail.... a sudden sexual spark....

Information can be introduced at group level or just to the individuals concerned (and discovered slowly by the rest of the group). Use clue cards to develop situations slowly. Elicit possible scenarios for developing the action or give them a desired result and get them to "work towards" that.... The possibilities are truly endless.

Got any ideas for ways of taking the soap opera further? I'd love to hear your comments? Tried the activity out? Let me know how it went and what you got up to!

Soap operas. Episode 4: the plot thickens!

Recently, we have been looking at an extended activity for groups of teenagers or adults, designed to practise character development and improvisation skills. The nest phase of the activity is called "Hot gossip!", favourite passtime of any closeknit neighbourhood, our street being no exception.

As always, each student is assigned the role of one of the characters - this can be either a role new to them or one they have been developing over time, depending on the emphasis the teacher wants to give the activity. To begin the activity, each student pulls two names out of a hat and keeps these secret. Then, without consulting anyone, they have to imagine some kind of link or bond between them. Are they having an affair? Or involved in some kind of shady deal? Or are they twins, separated at birth by a mistake made by hospital staff? Whatever they like (the more imaginative the link the better).

 The students get into pairs and improvise a gossipy chat between neighbours. They need to find a realistic context for their chat and need to keep "in character" at all times. The group keeps changing partner and continue to exchange/spread the gossip they have heard. This will, of course, become more and more exaggerated and "colourful" as time goes on. The only thing they must remember throughout the whole exercise is that the protagonists of each piece of gossip must not hear the rumour!

No character in the group must find out the scandoulos rumours that are circulating about them. The group comes together, out of character once more, to share all the information learnt  - and it find out about their secret lives. They can share their sensations, thoughts and feelings - and try to come to a "collective understanding" of the new facts about the characters. Future activities will need to take into account recent new developments - and the latest twists and turns of fate.