Once everyone has mastered that, the next step is that instead of saying “three”, that person should bend their knees. You should still clap your hands for the number “one”. This is a bit like trying to pat your head and rub your stomach at the same time – in fact, you could try that afterwards!

A: “One” (Claps hands)
 B: “Two”
 A: “Three” (Bends knees)
 B: “One” (Claps hands)
 A: “Two”
 B: “Three” (Bends knees)

Tip: Make sure you allow time to encourage pairs to show everybody else how they are doing after each step. It’s fun watching people trying to concentrate, especially if it goes a bit wrong!

If you have extra time, pairs can make up their own movement and/or sound for the number “two”.

Once everyone has mastered that, the next step is that instead of saying “three”, that person should bend their knees. You should still clap your hands for the number “one”. This is a bit like trying to pat your head and rub your stomach at the same time – in fact, you could try that afterwards!

A: “One” (Claps hands)
 B: “Two”
 A: “Three” (Bends knees)
 B: “One” (Claps hands)
 A: “Two”
 B: “Three” (Bends knees)

Tip: Make sure you allow time to encourage pairs to show everybody else how they are doing after each step. It’s fun watching people trying to concentrate, especially if it goes a bit wrong!

If you have extra time, pairs can make up their own movement and/or sound for the number “two”.

Now, introduce yourself as you throw or bounce the ball across the circle – ‘Hi, I’m Robert’. Once everybody has had a go at that, continue the game but this time say the name of the person that you are throwing to – ‘Jessica to Kelvin’. The group should ensure that everybody receives the ball. One way of doing this is for everybody to hold one hand up until they have caught the ball, or each person folds their arms when they have thrown it.

Variation

·         The catcher can call out the name of the thrower

·         Ask everybody to call out the name of the thrower

·         More balls can be added in so that it develops into a group juggle..

Develop the Activity

Encourage groups to think about using different levels with their body shapes, eg high, medium and low.

You could choose objects from a play you are rehearsing or a theme you are exploring (see the drama lesson on Evacuees).

Groups can also be given a couple of minutes to devise an object of their own which the rest of the class try to guess.

You could make it a rule that after 10 seconds they must be completely frozen in position.

On the other hand it can be fun if they are able to make objects that use movement.

Drama from a Story/Narrative Poem

Select a story or narrative poem, such as ‘The Pied Piper of Hamelin’ or ‘The Highwayman’.

 

Explain that you would like the group to bring the scene alive for a few moments with speech and movement. Initiate this by saying “Action!” or clapping your hands to start the scene. Let the improvisation run for a short time – ideally before the performers run out of steam – and then end it with another signal such as “Cut!”, “Freeze!” or by clapping your hands a second time. The improvisation will usually last for just a few seconds and certainly no longer than one minute.

 
Thought Tracking

To develop the story behind the picture we can start with what the characters are thinking through thought tracking. All you do is tap each student on the shoulder or point at them. The student should speak as the character, voicing their thoughts or feelings. If the student is portraying an animal or object, they may choose to make a sound instead of words. I usually encourage them by saying something like ‘if the helicopter/seagull could talk, what would it say?’

 

As more characters or objects are introduced, pick players from all around the circle so that everybody takes part at some point. This means that different members of the group may get to play the same character at various times and everyone gets a chance at trying different roles regardless of gender. The story continues to be told with more players stepping in as required so that a scene is quickly built up. Characters can interact with one another and speak improvised dialogue or lines from a play. This can be done with you reading the line and the character repeating it. 

 

Any time that the activity inside the circle becomes too lively, congested or confused, simply wave your arms, say “Whoosh!” and everyone returns to their original places to become members of the audience again. It’s like wiping the slate clean. The story continues to be told with characters and objects stepping into the space as required. You can say “Whoosh!” as many times as necessary during the story – it’s a very useful secret weapon! 

A character is questioned by the group about his or her background, behaviour and motivation. The method may be used for developing a role in the drama lesson or rehearsals, or analysing a play post-performance. Even done without preparation, it is an excellent way of fleshing out a character. Characters may be hot-seated individually, in pairs or small groups. The technique is additionally useful for developing questioning skills with the rest of the group. 

Hot-Spotting

This is a version of hot-seating to use with freeze-frames. After thought-tracking in a freeze-frame, ask the audience if they have questions for any of the characters. The performers should stay in position in the freeze frame, but answer the questions in character. The advantages of this method are: 

•        Students are already in character

•        They feel supported by the other actors in the freeze frame

•        Questions are likely to be linked to a character’s actions and motivations rather than ‘in a void’

 

In pairs, one person (Tim) starts telling a story about something imaginary that happened to him, using the first-person narrative – for example ‘I was walking along the beach last week when I saw something strange lying on the sand...’

 

After a short time he touches his partner on the shoulder and says, “...and I can’t remember what happened next...” Tim’s partner Suzy now continues the story in as exciting a way as possible as though she and Tim are the same person – for example ‘As I got closer I saw it was something big and grey and it was alive... and I can’t remember what happened next.’ Suzy taps Tim on the shoulder and he continues the narrative.

 

This exercise works well for stories with an element of tension such as a ghost story or a tale of suspense. It is crucial that both players accept each other’s ideas. If they do this they will discover that they can soon make up stories that they would never have thought of on their own.