Brefny returned a week after we viewed "Frozen River" to conclude with a post-show drama workshop. Students created tableaux to represent themes from the play.
"Frozen River" Synopsis: Brefny came to our school to conduct a workshop on the themes found in "Frozen River", an upcoming play our class will see at Young People's Theatre.
"Instant" Synopsis: After viewing the play "Instant" at Young People's Theatre, we had our post-show workshop at YPT with Mark again. We first discussed the characters and themes in this affecting play. Mark then facilitated a variety of activities, based on the play, which allowed students' to better understand the characters' perspectives and behaviours in an online environment. To break tension, Mark ended on a lighter note, starting with"silly walks"!
In preparation for viewing YPT's stage play, Instant, Mark, from YPT, came to our school to facilitate a pre-show workshop on the themes from the play, in particular the implications of social media as it relates to cyber-bullying and how social media affects the ways in which we communicate with one another and portray ourselves to others online. In groups, students first practiced creating tableaux of eating. Next, students created tableaux of a scene from a holiday or trip they might take. Mark then asked students to recreate the scene but to pretend they were taking a selfie of the event to post online. The difference in how the scene was portrayed changed dramatically as people constructed their "online identities". In the next activity, students were asked to imagine their own product or online platform, and to create a short scene to advertise how it works and its benefits, with hilarious results! For the final activity, students were asked to have a conversation with another person without facing them to simulate the type of conversations held in an online environment. The importance of tone in conversations became evident.
Amy returned to facilitate a thought-provoking post-show workshop on "Hana's Suitcase", the play we saw last week at YPT. We had the privilege of watching, at Young People's Theatre, the heart-wrenching "Hana's Suitcase", the true story of an Auschwitz Holocaust victim Hana Brady (1931-1944), and the Japanese educator, Fumiko Ishioka, who obtained Hana's suitcase and sought to uncover and tell Hana's story at the urging of her students. Learn more about Hana's story: http://www.hanassuitcase.ca/ Amy, from YPT, conducted an engaging workshop for "Hana's Suitcase", the play we will be viewing at Young People's Theatre later this week.
Lois returned to conduct our Post-Show Workshop for "Tagged", the play we saw at Young People's Theatre last week. With Lois's guidance, we were able to explore the themes in "Tagged" and issues related to online privacy. Lois asked the students to participate in the Atom activity again in which students, in various sized groups, created tableaux of... We then observed the feet, hands, and voice of two brave volunteers, Chelsea and George, as they recounted a story in order to understand how characters are created. Chelsea told her tale of being "stuck" in New York for longer than anticipated at the start of the school year. George, disenchanted with the Raptors, humorously relayed their loss in Game 4 to the Washington Wizards during the NBA Playoff Bracket... For the final drama activity, Lois provided each group of students with a scenario related to "Tagged" and asked them to create a tableau. After freezing in their tableaux, students were also asked to participate in a thought tracking activity: when Lois tapped each participant in the tableau, that person spoke a line his or her character might have said in the situation.
We had the opportunity to see "Tagged" at Young People's Theatre, a thought-provoking play which examines our relationship to social media and the consequences of our choices made in an online environment. Tagged Synopsis In preparation for viewing the play "Tagged" at Young People's Theatre (YPT) tomorrow, Lois Adamson, from YPT, conducted a Pre-Show Workshop with the students to explore the themes and dramatic techniques used in the play. Students then participated in a drama activity titled "Atom". In a variety of different-numbered small groups, students improvised to create tableaux on a variety of topics such as... Lois then provided students with quotes from the play "Tagged". They were asked to create two tableaux: the first interpreting the quote positively and the second provided a negative interpretation. “How many followers is she going to end up with playing the pity card? It’s an easy way to get them, but that's not how you earn them.” “If these things were said to her face or written down on paper we could arrest all of you...don’t think this makes you less guilty, just less punishable.” “It didn't mean anything. That just what people do. You tape things. Make Vines. Instagram. Everything’s funny. And you comment on stuff. You like stuff. You repost it. You don’t even think about it.” “You’re all so brave online...”
We went on our first class field trip to Young People's Theatre to see "Jabber" - a play which challenged our assumptions about making judgments based on one's appearances. In the next few weeks, we will be exploring how to address stereotypes and prejudice as well as recognize the role of the media in their creation.
|
Categories
All
Archives
June 2023
|