Connie,
This doesn't sound like someone that is listening to you or knows what you do. The Athletic Director/Principal has limited knowledge and experience about the rehearsal/performance process. There are basically three choices for you.
1. Keep doing what you are doing and hope that he sees the value in your work.
2. Attempt the method he suggests as best you can.
3. Educate him on the type of engagement the students are doing when they are NOT on stage.
I don't know which would be the right course of action given the particular person and your specific situation, but here are some ideas on ways to engage students who are not on stage. Many of these they are already doing, he is just not seeing it.
- take down all blocking for all characters like you are the stage manager
- partner with other cast members to memorize lines
- keep an actor's journal of experiences that the student records in each time they leave the stage, reflect on each experience
- do physical and vocal warm up to prepare to go on stage and to relax after being on stage
- put actors into small groups that are often in the same scenes together to work on character in small groups
- complete a character chart or map and share with other cast members to see where their character intersects
- have students pre-block their character before they go on for a blocking rehearsal so they have thought through different movements and motivations prior to standing up to have you block them in a scene
- visualize their success on stage
- go through all the blocking in a small area without saying the lines to get muscle memory on the blocking
- reflect in a run through on their performance and list ways they can improve their performance the next time they go on stage
- stay in character for the entire rehearsal to help learn sustainablity
- write what their character does prior to each time they come on stage in the show
- practice any physical movements, accent/dialogue or practical issues off stage that will be done on stage
I am sure there are a million more things that actors do off stage that is important on stage that your students could think of as well.
I would ask the students to give a presentation to the Principal about what they do at rehearsal...maybe even a DVD, perhaps make a fast forward video that demonstrates the work the students do in rehearsal and performance.
Also, I would emphasize the visualization of success in the rehearsal process. Here are a couple of articles about it.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/frank-niles-phd/visualization-goals_b_878424.html
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/flourish/200912/seeing-is-believing-the-power-visualization
Both of these use sports as well as other examples in research to prove that visualization is as important as actually DOING!
I hope all goes well! Leslie
-------------------------------------------
Leslie Van Leishout
Theater Education Coordinator
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
Edwardsville IL
-------------------------------------------
Original Message:
Sent: 05-25-2014 09:34
From: Michael Johnson
Subject: rehearsals
Show your Athletic Director the last scene in Chaplin where everyone comes out to the wings to watch him receive his academy award. Your students are doing something, they are supporting their peers on stage by being quiet and respectful while work is being done and in this sense they are all one at that moment-- a team. The bench at a game is doing something while their teammates run and shoot.
-------------------------------------------
Michael Johnson
Trinity NC
-------------------------------------------
Original Message:
Sent: 05-24-2014 16:57
From: Connie Sandoz
Subject: rehearsals
Hello,
I've been directing for 20 years and just this year have a new administrator who happens to be the athletic director also.
His only observance of the students was during tech week, which we all know is hectic. He believes students should never be standing around - they need to be involved in something at all times. He said when he's coaching, he does drills and they move on from one thing to the next - something new every 15 minutes. I tried to explain to him that they can't all be doing something else if they're waiting to go on stage, listening for cues, etc. He insists I'm wrong.
I don't even run rehearsals where everyone has to be doing something because we're going through the play scene by scene. I have no problem letting kids do homework if they're not in a scene we're working - he insists that's wrong - that they should always be doing something theatre related.
Any thoughts? Any words of wisdom? Am I wrong???
Thank you!!
-------------------------------------------
Connie Sandoz
Theatre Director
Henderson NV
-------------------------------------------