Last night, we went to watch Eleanor in a play she was performing in with her drama class at school. It was being staged as part of the local Arts Festival which is held annually celebrating local, national and international arts activities. I knew that the class had written the play themselves, and Eleanor had told me that it was different from the usual school plays we're invited to watch, but beyond that I didn't know what to expect.
When we arrived, we were given a sheet of paper with some information about the idea of the play, or 'theatre spectacle'. It wasn't a play as such but a collection of scenes about the struggles which young people face.
The title of the play was inspired by a quote attributed to Gandhi "First they attack you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, and then you win". This quote had been introduced to the class in lessons, and the students had explored ideas about misuse of power, non-violent communication, expressing feelings verbally and asserting themselves without inflaming a situation.
All the lines in the play had been written by someone in the cast. When the play had finished, some of the teachers spoke about how the ideas had been developed. There was an opportunity for members of the audience to ask the students or teachers questions, and many people did which I think shows how thought provoking the play was.
Eleanor was right, it was certainly different from any school play I've seen before, but still very interesting.
I love that kind of Drama, especially with young people - getting them to think and express themselves out of the norm! You do have a talented girlie x
ReplyDeleteIt's that time of year isn't it, a flurry of school activity - plays, sports day etc. The play sounds very interesting - youngsters are far more imaginative than they are sometimes given credit for and this sort of play shows off their talent.
ReplyDeleteJune
Great teaching! What a good way for them to learn to think about themselves and their actions. What a talented lovely daughter you have
ReplyDeleteHelen :]
Hi Jo,
ReplyDeleteThat sounds very interesting, and different from just being told what to do and say. I like it when schools make children think for themselves, usually they have better ideas than the adults. Well done to Eleanor. Thank you for the lovely comments you leave on my blog, I always look forward to hearing from you. Lots of love xxx
I thought school was out. Sounds like a very interesting play.
ReplyDeleteSounds a great idea to me, the kids will feel even more involved when they have part written the play.
ReplyDeleteWhat a interesting and different idea for a play..sounds like it would have been a great one to see...
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like a really different and interesting evening. Fabulous that the children had such a huge amount of input. Something they will always remember I'm sure.
ReplyDeleteLisa x
How fantastic for the children to have such a say in producing something though provoking. Wow
ReplyDeleteThat sounds really interesting. xxx
ReplyDeleteWhat a fantastic idea. I'd have loved to see what the group produced. Jx
ReplyDeleteThank you for all your lovely comments. It really did make a difference seeing work which the students have produced themselves rather than just learning the lines of a play. It was very interesting.
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