Volume 1 Number 16


Hi Folks,

Thanks to everyone who's dropped me a quick word of thanks about this newsletter.  I suspect I have mild obsession to please my colleagues.  Realistically though I think I just enjoy playing with ideas.  Some weeks coming up with a topic is torturous and other times it just seems so obvious.   This weeks focus was suggested by the workshops being run by Josey through her WordPlay program.   Theatre History.  Where, when and how we have been is always useful to know.  I have an extensive range of links in the Links Directory on the Drama Education website.  Check out Theatre History or Significant Practitioners to begin with.

I am still running my online survey.  A few people have queried the meaning of "digital environments" - really this just refers to any computer-mediated communication system.   PLEASE: refer any colleagues to the survey, especially those who might not normally be browsing the web.    I would like to ask for your assistance in completing a short survey I am conducting.  It relates to my return to studies at university.  It has 12 questions and should take less than 2 minutes of your time.  Essentially it is a quick look at attitudes towards Drama and Technology.

Please participate in the 
DIGITAL DRAMA
survey.

LESSON/ACTIVITY IDEA

One of the real challenges I face when trying to teach Theatre History is that the points of reference are are very limited.  Identification of acting styles, staging conventions, costumes and play types is exacerbated by the fact that many students do not have a broad general knowledge.  This is compounded by the staple diet of commercial television and Hollywood film.   OK, I realise that sounds cynical but just how do you find ways to broaden student knowledge of various performance practices.  It's possible to start compiling a collection of video and DVD of films that show examples, but they are by their nature different from their theatrical counterparts.  Sometimes there are archival videos of stage performances - but these are extremely rare and difficult to source.  The process of identifying and purchasing appropriate materials is fraught with challenges especially in schools that are operating with limited resources and very tight budgets.  $100+ for a video that might be used for 20 minutes once a year is out of the question for many schools.   It strikes me that there is a market out there for an enterprising body to create an affordable CDROM with examples of a range of theatrical styles.   Until that happens we need to find creative and interesting ways to develop student practice and understanding.   I don't know about you but I get very tired trying to demonstrate an entire repertoire of performance styles and staging conventions in my tiny classroom.  SO how do we do it effectively?

I try to get students to engage in research and speculation.   I endeavour to get them to think about the times they are looking at, what attitudes and values were dominant, what technologies were available, the social construction, the people and their lives; and then to apply some speculative thought about how that might affect the type and style of performance that was offered.

Of course this cannot happen totally in isolation.  Students must have some exposure to general historical research, general knowledge and specialised theatrical research.  And I see it as my job to facilitate and initiate these investigations.   

The first thing I do is offer the students a very broad overview of theatre history, marking out significant and obvious distinctions. Of course, it is probably not necessary to point out that all these activities are interspersed with reflection, evaluation, discussion and clarification.  Something along these lines (abbreviated for the sake of brevity in this context):

YEAR 11
PRE-HISTORY --> GREEK -->  ROMAN -->  MEDIEVAL (Mystery and Morality) --> ELIZABETHAN/SHAKESPEAREAN --> RESTORATION  -->  ETC

(Also allowing room for non-Western theatre forms)

YEAR 12
NATURALISM -->  EXPRESSIONISM  -->  SURREALISM  -->  ABSURDISM  -->  EPIC/POLITICAL/DIDACTIC --> REALISM --> ECLECTIC/POST-MODERN

In Year 11 I give students an overview and set them a research task - this is to ease the collective research burden and to ensure that a good range of material is covered.  It also ensures that students are accountable to the class and have a responsibility to contribute to the learning process.  (YES, I operate a very student-centred classroom).  The Research project requires students working in pairs or small groups (depending on class size) to research a particular period or style and provide the following to the class:

I always take the PRE-HISTORY section and offer what has become a near iconic delivery of my famous UGG story.  The purpose is to demonstrate the qualities I want to see demonstrated in the student sessions - practical, engaging and drawing on enactment and performance qualities.  I use a highly stylised and interactive clown performance of the fictional UGG character to illustrate and demonstrate the following theories of the origins of theatre

I also provide the class with basic information sheets about the major theories of the Origins of Theatre and engage in a range of activities to explore the idea of PLAY and ROLEPLAY,  NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION, and the idea of RITUAL.  Some of these activities include:

NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

Relate a life event in detail but using only gibberish and mime.

RITUAL

Think about your morning routine.  Choose a couple of significant features - eg brushing your teeth, flossing, etc.   Think about the significance of these activities - lose your teeth, you can't eat, you die...  now create a stylised sequence that emphasises the importance of the activity. Take the stylisation to extremes of abstraction.   Now show your final "ritual" to the class - teach them the ritual...  now explain what it means.  This activity looks at how ritual forms become hollow expressions when the significance of the activity is lost.

RELIGIOUS/SHAMANISTIC

Students are members of UGG's village and they are threatened by an angry volcano - they must devise actions that will appease the volcano.

RECOMMENDED WEBSITE

The Wordplay Program is built around well-researched developmental learning models that enable young people to improve their communication, literacy and thinking skills. The program is built around three learning principles. Wordplay is based on the time-honoured belief that children's literacy skills are best developed when they are imaginatively engaged in purposeful learning. As young people engage creatively in what they do, they understand techniques, rules, forms and genres of oral and written language in dynamic ways. The program is structured around highly original activities designed by Dr Josephine Fantasia arising out of twenty-five years of teaching and researching in drama education. These activities assist children to use language in effective ways. 

PROFESSIONAL NEWS

 

http://www.idea2004.ca/

Download the necessary paperwork at the website.

The next world congress will take place 2-8 July, 2004 in Ottawa, Canada.   Hosted by Theatre Canada, this congress will follow a theme of:  "The Universal Mosaic of Drama: walking diverse pathways together; finding new directions".

For further information about this event, please contact the organizing committee at the following address.
Wayne Fairhead wfairhead@oise.utoronto.ca

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES

History of the Theatre
by Oscar G. Brockett

An amazing text. If not definitive, certainly very close to it. At over 700 pages, this text covers the development of theatre from its origins to the 1990's.

Kim Flintoff

Copyright © September, 2004