I think we have all fell into the quandary of “What Show Should I Do!” Then we go searching for just the right show for all of the students involved, although nothing quite fits all of the needs of the program.
There really is a simple solution to that problem by devising your own production with ALL the students you have available.
Devised theatre – frequently called collective creation – is a method of theatre-making in which the script or performance score originates from collaborative, often improvisatory work by a performing ensemble. The ensemble is typically made up of actors, but other categories of theatre practitioners may also be central to this process of generative collaboration, such as visual artists, composers, and choreographers; indeed, in many instances, the contributions of collaborating artists may transcend professional specialization. This process is similar to that of commedia dell’arte (which I talked about in an earlier post) and street theatre. It also shares some common principles with improvisational theatre; however, in devising, improvisation is typically confined to the creation process: by the time a devised piece is presented to the public, it usually has a fixed, or partly fixed form/script.
Devising methods vary and most often develop based upon the backgrounds and talents of their members. Work creation may, for instance, begin with an image, a plot, a theme, a character, historical documents, an entire novel or a single line as a point of departure; a devised work may be text based or entirely physical; it may be politically engaged, purely aesthetic, a docudrama, a melodrama, a performative ritual, or a fairytale. The devised piece is only limited to the creative juices of the people involved in the process of creating a theatrical piece.
Over the years my students gravitated to devising plays with social themes, something that spoke to them or something they wanted to bring to the attention of the general public. However, there were those devised performances that were pure whimsy creating a story not of this world. I remember one such piece that was wholly created from a piece of art one of the students had created in an AP Art class. It was filled with such creative thought and action.
Getting stuck with what play to do can actually be a rewarding experience, getting the creative juices of your students flowing, ending up with an incredible piece of theatre that the students can be proud of THEIR creation.
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Stewart Hawk
Washington State Thespian Co-Chapter Director
206-465-4568
stewart.hawk@gmail.comhttp://wathespians.org------------------------------