THEATRE
“Theatre can help us build our future, rather than just waiting for it.”
- Augusto Boal
CREATIVE DRAMATICS
Students learn to use their voices and bodies as instruments to create characters that will bring the main idea of a story to life through a series of events. Theatre games, storytelling techniques, improvisation, presentation skills (such as projection, articulation, body focus, diction, and eye contact), and vocabulary (like character, setting, plot, narration) are introduced. Activities are crafted to be age-appropriate. Students will apply their knowledge and skills to the final presentation.
PLAYWRITING
Students explore themes, story structure, improvisation, and fundamentals of playwriting. Students create simple monologues and dialogues through participating in theatre games and improvisational exercises. Students present their work as a culminating task.
MIME / PHYSICAL THEATRE
Students learn about the ancient art of mime, focusing on non-verbal communication and using movement and facial expressions to tell a story. Students learn about body focus, eye contact, cause and effect, conflict, and how to break down a story into sequential order. Workshops are physical, engaging, and align with social-emotional learning.
SPEAKING + LISTENING
Students learn Listening as a skill and Speaking as an art form by employing various methods and techniques of traditional storytellers. Basic elements of music (tone, timbre, rhythm, beat, etc.) are combined with fundamentals of public presentation (prosody, vocal projection, movement, gesturing, etc.). Students begin with several sessions of listening development before delving into the discipline of public speaking. Students are assigned written material as the basis of their oral presentations. All lessons are carefully crafted to be developmentally appropriate.
