3/30/2011

The best part of my day:

Today, at the Highlands Juvenile Detention Center, I watched one young man in an orange jump suit feed (imaginary) chocolate covered cherries to another young man in an orange jump suit while both of them were contorting their faces.  We were playing "Freaks on a Bus."  The other students and I laughed with delight.

We then talked about the power of "saying yes" to the oddest situations within games - the unplanned event is always better than the one we've planned ahead of time.

3/26/2011

Just finished the first classes of "Creative Dramatics" for ages 4-7 and "Movement for Actors" for ages 11-16.

The highlight:

Going on a water break with a group of very small children disguised as aliens.

Here's the scoop:

I'm sitting in a circle with six 4- and 5-year-olds and Ezra.  One 4-year-old girl sees a alien in the hallway!  I ask everyone what it looks like.

"Green skin!"
"3 tentacles for hair!"
"One eye!"

I ask, Where's the one eye?

Another 4-year-old girl points to her nose.

Our water break becomes a spy mission - to find the alien.  He might be at the water fountain!  We disguise ourselves by placing three fingers above our head and holding a fist to our nose (like the alien's one eye).

We find the alien at the water fountain.  His name is Squid.  He fits in the palm of my hand.  We take him back to the room and place him on his very own table.

I LOVE what I do.

3/19/2011

Teaching an Acting II intensive this afternoon:

Five hours
A yet-to-be-determined # of students
Scenes from William Inge plays
A sure-to-be fierce round of "Bippity Bippity Bop"

It shall be an adventure!

3/13/2011

For the third year in a row, I drove out to Johnson City Public Library for a Barter Player production.  In 2009, I performed Tuck Everlasting.  Last year, I saw The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.  Yesterday, I attended Red Badge of Courage.  

Red Badge is geared toward high schoolers, but the elementary school kids in the front row were captivated.  Every scene was scenically sparse, active, and important.  The music and sound adhered to 1860s Virginia except for the battle scenes - Nick, the director, chose speed metal.  I felt it was a perfect choice.  Battle is unlike anything else in life - vicious, out-of-body, heightened - and the music reflected that.

I loved the production.  I was allowed to use my imagination to create the hills and roads of Virginia, the thousands of uniformed soldiers, the smoke and noise.  Isn't that why we go to the theatre?  To allow our imaginations to fill in the blanks?  If we wanted complete realism, we would watch TV or a film.

I find myself drawn, over and over again, to productions that embrace non-realistic theatricality to effectively tell the story.

3/2/2011

Back at Highlands Juvenile Detention Center today - the first time in 2011!!

It is a powerful experience to be in the gymnasium with the six boys in orange jumpsuits and see them, one by one, let down some of their "tough guy" walls, some of the boundaries they have built up because they are in jail. Their imaginations start to release creative sparks and suddenly, we are giggling because the biggest guy in class has run across the room, screaming, "I need to buy some coconuts!!"

We compete to see who can do Stomp-style rhythm on the styrofoam cups the fastest.

And I get a fist bump at the end of class.