Soundtrack Performance Group

by Glenys McQueen (c)2004
"LEARNING" BACKWARD: IMAGE AS GUIDE TO THEATRE AND DANCE "EXTRAORDINAIRE"

or

WAR AND PEACE…IN THE SPAGHETTI POT
Do you want to engage yourself and your students in: creating and performing a play or dance? exploring some aspect of the curriculum? improving technique? "dis"-covering dynamic associations around the art of science and the science of art? seeing the world as a series of narratives? Nature surrounds with stories and we have been observing them, acting and dancing in them forever. We just need to take time to DIS-COVER them and our own, deepest connections to them. Of all the worlds which echo the cosmos, perhaps the most immediate and familiar one is…the kitchen. It is where we can see high mystery, dizzying transformations, magic and mayhem unleashed, and chaos erupting and tamed by fire, water, air and earth's many gifts. Stories of Shakespearean breadth and depth; with the scope of Greek tragedies and Commedia-infused commentary. We just have to look…

If all these worlds mirror each other, if they simply repeat each other's stories in their own ways, using their own ingredients, then, perhaps by mirroring them, we, too, can be reminded of the lessons they teach. The first, universal lesson is…movement. It is our 'mother tongue'. It connects us with the Universe. It is the first and last indication of life…for us and all characters, plots, events, whether in the kitchen or the cosmos. It is our best language for mirroring.

So, let's begin with…cooking spaghetti. What is the story here? Basically, two very different elements/characters, with opposite traits, are brought together. They interact dramatically, with a startlingly familiar result: both are transformed. The water is absorbed by the spaghetti; the spaghetti loses its original shape and texture and their interaction is announced by the steam their actions release. By the end, the image has altered entirely. Nothing remains of the original. What has just happened? Was it a war? or a love affair? Can one 'story' contain both interpretations? Yes, as the arts tell us, it's all in our point of view!

Here is what the workshop will entail:

a) divide the participants into several groups (5-7 in a group, ideally)
b) decide which groups will work on WAR; which on PEACE
c) introduce the idea of VERB CHAINS (see additional sheet)
d) each group must interpret the event by extracting/assigning verbs which correspond to the point of view they have been assigned…meaning that they will end up with a list of verbs outlining either a belligerent event or an amicable one.
e) groups translate the verbs into full body actions (see Verb Chain exercise page)
f) groups present their versions WITH APPROPRIATE MOOD-BASED MUSIC added g) do "mix-n-match" with the final presentations, having reps from each group improvise together. Possible variations (depending on time)
a) addition of movement variations: round robin; pauses; poses; etc.
b) interjecting personal movement phrases
c) adding text
d) extending into themes…what is history? what is truth? who 'owns' it and why? what are the implications (personal, communal, national, international) of differing perceptions? Explore the many layered 'teaching moments' that the work presents. e) altering spaghetti into human metaphors. Writing scenes, personal journals, presenting scenes.
f) extending the metaphors through art, personal writing, further movement/dance pieces

VERB CHAINS

PREMISE: by EXTRACTING the verbs from any action, event, idea, motive, reaction, the result is: a) a clear, concise, workable "process chart" from which to learn, understand, dialogue, review the material or, b) a dynamic, dramatic "TEXT" for translating the verbs into movement, poetry, a story, an art form, a drama.

* Extracting and defining the verbs may be done: all together, with the teacher; in groups; or individually. EXAMPLE: ...brushing our teeth. Have students work through the idea with you in gesture.Here is the list of verbs which would emerge from the activity:-

-REACH (...for the tube-huge stretch)
-GRAB or SNATCH ("take" is dull...the tube)
-YANK (...the tube.. "bring" is nondescript)
-TWIST (...off the cap)
-SQUEEZE (...the toothpaste out)
-OOZE (..what the toothpaste does)
-SCRUB (...the teeth)
-GARGLE (..or swish)
-SPIT.

* Explain that for a group to translate these verbs into action, the actual movements will be like the full body movements used in the MAGIC HAND-- only now the verbs (and the image behind them) become the basis for the full-body movements.
* FLIP THE IMAGE. MIME/GESTURE vs. FULL-BODY

MOVEMENTS. In order to extend the movements beyond the everyday gesture, the mime aspect of the image (e.g.. how do we change "reach" from the gesture into an "abstract", full-body movement?), think of the image from the point of view of the "DONE TO" (here, the TOOTHPASTE) rather that the "DOER" (the toothpaste is undergoing much more exciting movements than the hand...so BE the toothpaste as you go through translating the verbs!)

* now divide class into groups of 5. Young children, though will likely all work together with the teacher to pull out a list and then likely divide into groups of 3 to present.

* have the group(s) choose an activity and extract the verbs. Then have them chose the best 5-7 to turn into movement.

* once they have the verbs chosen, give them a few minutes to translate the verbs into full body movements. HINTS: have all students do all verbs (avoid the "I'm a cup"--all be the coffee). Students may each do an individual translation of the verbs, or they may decide to do a collective one--they will likely use both options before they are finished..

* Once work is close to being ready, remind the groups that they should have the following:

1) a beginning or opening tableau (starting point in "statues") and a clear ending.

2) be able to tell you what kind of mood they wish to communicate--or feel that their new performance piece transmits. You need this information in order to PROVIDE THEM WITH MUSIC which agrees with and supports their desired mood.

3) ask them to TITLE their work. They will see that their movement work will not (nor should it, if they are escaping the gesture factor) look anything like the original.

* ADD MUSIC at the moment of PRESENTING/SHARING the work: remind students that they do not need to keep time to the music, but rather let it support them (and the music is created for this).

* Once the groups are ready to present their work, ask what their desired mood is (they have already chosen a 1-word description). If the class is large, two or three groups may need to present simultaneously. In this case, ask for groups whose mood is dark or gloomy; the next round may be of groups whose work is upbeat, hopeful; then try a random variation, etc.

* Have several pieces of music ready which will SUPPORT the desired mood.

* After each group of students present their work, ask them to LIST THEIR VERBS. Ask why they chose the verbs they did. Review which verbs were left out (in this way the whole process is being reviewed after each presentation).

© G.McQueen Fuentes/ Soundtrack Performance Group 2002