DEVISING AND CREATING THEATRE
DEVISING THEATRE CAN BE A TRICKY MODULE FOR ANY DRAMA CLASS. OUR TOP TIPS ARE TO HELP WITH THE BASICS OF CREATING THEATRE AND TO FIND NEW WAYS OF EXPLORATION.
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NO CHAIRS... STAY ON YOUR FEET!
RESTRICTING THE USE OF CHAIRS WILL ENCOURAGE CREATIVITY. YOU NEED TO BE UP ON YOUR FEET WHEN DEVISING YOUR PIECE, BEING CONFINED TO A CHAIR WILL ONLY HINDER THIS. BE PRACTICAL , TRY THINGS OUT. YOU CANNOT TRULY DECIDE WHETHER AN IDEA DOESN'T WORK BY SITTING DOWN.
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IF YOUR PIECE CALLS FOR A CHAIR, WHY NOT USE A BLOCK INSTEAD? A CHAIR WILL ALWAYS BE A CHAIR, HOWEVER A BLOCK HAS NO LIMITS.
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NEVER SAY NO!
THE ONE RULE OF DEVISING IS 'NEVER SAY NO!'. BY DISMISSING AN IDEA WITHOUT EXPERIMENTING YOU WILL NEVER TRULY KNOW IT'S POTENTIAL. NOT ALL IDEAS WILL WORK, BUT ALWAYS GIVE THAT IDEA 5 MINUTES OF YOUR TIME TO TRY IT OUT AND SEE FOR YOURSELF.
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TOP TIP: WHEN SOMEONE PROPOSES AN IDEA, ALWAYS BEGIN YOUR RESPONSE WITH "YES AND..." TO DRIVE THAT IDEA/STORY FORWARD!
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IMPROVISATION IS YOUR BEST FRIEND!
IN THOSE 5 MINUTES, PLAY WITH YOUR IDEA! IMPROV CAN BE A GREAT WAY OF DISCOVERING NEW WAYS TO EXPLORE YOUR STORY AND CHARACTERS. ALONGSIDE EXPLORATION OF NEW IDEAS, IMPROVISATION IS ALSO A POWERFUL TOOL TO USE TO CREATE AUTHENTIC DIALOGUE.
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TOP TIP: TRY PUTTING SOME MUSIC ON AND WORK WITHOUT A SCRIPT... DOES IT ADD ANYTHING TO YOUR PIECE?
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HOW TO USE STIMULI!
DEVISING FROM STIMULI IS THE MOST COMMON PRACTICE WHEN CREATING A NEW PIECE OF THEATRE. HOWEVER, WE HAVE FOUND THAT SOME PEOPLE TAKE THEIR STIMULI TOO SERIOUSLY. STIMULI IS USED TO PROVOKE AND INSPIRE AND SHOULD NOT ALWAYS BE TREATED AS THE HOLY BIBLE OF YOUR PIECE. USE IT TO GET THAT HEADSTART, THEN WHEN APPROPRIATE, LEAVE IT BEHIND AND START CREATING!
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RECORD EVERYTHING!
REMEMBER WHAT YOU HAD FOR LUNCH LAST WEEK? NO, NEITHER DO WE! SO HOW ARE YOU SUPPOSED TO REMEMBER EVERYTHING FROM YOUR PREVIOUS DEVISING SESSION? RECORDING YOUR SESSIONS WILL GIVE YOU SOMETHING TO REFER BACK TO AS WELL AS GIVING YOU A VISUAL ON WHAT YOU ARE CREATING.
RECORDINGS ARE ALSO A GREAT TOOL TO REFER BACK TO WHEN WRITING YOUR LOGBOOKS!
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CHARACTERS DRIVE STORY!
A STORY WITHOUT INTERESTING CHARACTERS BECOME A STRING OF BORING EVENTS. HAVING CHARACTERS WITH INTERESTING STORY ARCS AND MOTIVES CAN SOMETIMES BE ALL YOU NEED TO DRIVE YOUR STORY FORWARD. IMAGINE HOGWARTS WITHOUT HARRY POTTER... CREATING A STORY WITH A RANGE OF DIFFERENT CHARACTERS WITH CONFLICTING MOTIVES IS THE EASIEST WAY TO PRODUCE DIALOGUE AND AN ENGAGING PIECE.
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SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU HAVE TWO CHARACTERS FIGHTING TO OBTAIN THE SAME GOAL BUT APPROACH IT WITH OPPOSING MINDSETS?
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MIX UP YOUR STYLES!
YOU MAY HAVE BIG IDEAS FOR A PARTICULAR SCENE YOU WANT TO CREATE BUT NO BUDGET TO ACHIEVE IT. THERE IS NOTHING WRONG IN HAVING MULTIPLE STYLES WITHIN YOUR PIECE. IF YOU'RE STRUGGLING TO GET THE DESIRED OUTCOME OF A SCENE, WHY NOT EXPLORE A NEW WAY TO PERFORM THAT SCENE THROUGH PHYSICAL THEATRE, DANCE, ABSTRACT MOVEMENT, OR SONG? SOMETIMES, INCLUDING ABSTRACT ELEMENTS WITHIN A NATURALISTIC PIECE CAN BETTER PORTRAY YOUR VISION AND UNLOCK A VARIED DYNAMIC FOR THE AUDIENCE TO EXPERIENCE.
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PLAY TO YOUR GROUPS STRENGTHS!
UTILIZE THE PEOPLE WITHIN YOUR GROUP. DANCERS? PHYSICAL ACTORS? TALL PEOPLE? SMALL PEOPLE? DO NOT SHY AWAY FROM PLAYING TO YOUR GROUPS STRENGTHS AND PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES. UNDERSTAND WHAT SKILLS YOUR GROUP POSESSES AND WHO IS BEST SUITED TO EACH PART OF CREATING AND CONTRIBUTING TO YOUR PIECE.
SOMETHING YOU'RE NOT CONFIDENT WITH? TAKE A BACK SEAT AND LISTEN TO THE "EXPERTS" IN YOUR GROUP AND ALLOW THEIR KNOWLEDGE OF THE SUBJECT TO BETTER THE PIECE. YOU WILL HAVE YOU'RE TIME TO SHINE!
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