Description
Engage the student actors in a conversation regarding "Status." What does it mean in life (at school, at home or in the wider community)? What does it mean on stage (between characters or between actors and the audience). We discuss how status can effect the body language, the voice, the dialogue...the overall truthful portrayal of a character.
Materials
1. A deck of cards
2. 8-10 chairs
3. double sided tape
4. drama journal
Space Required
medium to large open spaceInstructions
Engage the student actors in a conversation regarding "Status." What does it mean in life (at school, at home or in the wider community)? What does it mean on stage (between characters or between actors and the audience). We discuss how status can effect the body language, the voice, the dialogue...the overall truthful portrayal of a character.
1. Split the class in half. One set of student actors becomes the audience and the other half sit in chairs that are set up in a line SL to SR across the stage or teaching area. The facilitator places a playing card on the forehead of each participant (with a small piece of double sided tape) without the participant seeing what card it is.
2. Instruct the actors that an Ace is the highest status in the room and TWO is the lowest. When the facilitator claps his/her hands, the actors are to mill around the room as if they are at a social engagement, meeting new people for the first time. They are to treat the other people at the party according to the status (card ranking) on their forehead. They are to quickly adapt their character by responding to the cues given to them by their fellow actors.
3. The first round is silent and entirely delivered through body language and facial expression. Freeze
4. Clap again and the second round introduces improvised dialogue. Freeze
5. The third round the actors are given a card to hold in their pocket. The card they can look at, but show no one else. It represents their "internal" status. Clap again, and the third round then begins with improvised dialogue as the actors struggle to justify their internal and external identities. Freeze
6. The actors sit back down in their seats and are asked to sit SL to SR from low to high status, having to guess what external status they have been given. One at a time actors remove their cards and discuss if their predictions were correct, how they guessed their status, how they were treated and how it felt.
7. Large class discussion and the groups switch. The entire activity is repeated for this new group
8. Assessment in the form of reflection in drama journal