Author: Matt Falduto

It’s been a while, but I’m back with part 3 of my series of articles on great theatre games. For this one, we’re focusing on teamwork and quick thinking skills. Drum roll…because it’s time to talk about… Location Creation!

Location Creation

This one could probably use a better name, but let’s go with it. I’ve heard it called the Martha Game, but honestly that name is worse than Location Creation. Who the heck is Martha? (If you know where the name comes from, let me know.)

How it works:

The entire group stands outside the acting area, ready to enter and be part of the game. The instructor gives them a location. Start with common locations, like a forest or a barnyard or a busy city street. Each student enters the scene one at a time and announces what part of the location they are creating. Then they adjust their body to approximate what they have announced. Speed is a necessity for this. The students shouldn’t spend time thinking about it – they need to just move into the scene and become something that fits with the location. By the end, your students will have created a complete scene using just their bodies. It is recommended that you only allow one ‘person’ to be in the scene – make them be objects as that will stretch those creativity muscles. Also, don’t allow multiple students to enter the scene at the same time – everyone needs to hear what the previous person chose to be because the most fun part of this is building off what the previous person did.

Example:

Let’s say the instructor gives the students the location of a beach. The first student runs into the space, saying I am the waves hitting the beach, and then approximates waves coming in and moving out from the shore. The second student says, I am a beach towel and lays flat on the ground. The third student says, I am a person sitting on the beach towel. A fourth student says, I am a person walking on the beach. The instructor says, Nope! Only one person per scene. Fourth student thinks quickly and says, I am the sunscreen the person is slathering over their arms. The fifth student says, I am a bird circling overhead. And so on. Each student continues to act out what they are until the final student enters the scene and completes the game.

The Why:

1. It forces the students to think quickly, an important skill for actors of live theatre, as one never knows what happen on stage.
2. It builds teamwork, particularly if you emphasize the idea of building on what the previous person did.
3. It helps student focus on their bodies and how they can use them creatively to become an object that is not anything like themselves. Becoming a tree or ocean waves or the planet Saturn (all things my students have become at one time or another) is not easy and forces them to think outside of the box.

This game is a great way to get kids moving and working together quickly. I find it energizes them for the more difficult games. And you can get really creative with locations. I’ve done Outer Space, on the set of a TV show, and Inside your Body. I think Inside Your Body was actually the idea of one of the students. They came up with great stuff for that one – blood cells, the pancreas, digested food, etc.

Next up: What Are You Doing?

Last time, I wrote about Three Pictures. This time we’re going to dive into one of my favorite improv games – Freeze and Justify. It’s one of my favorites, but it’s also one that so many people mess up. And mostly that’s because they forget about the second – and most important – part of the game. Repeat after me: You MUST justify!

Freeze and Justify

How it works:

Everyone stands in a circle. The playing area is the center of the circle. Yes, this improv game is theatre in the round. (Which makes me realize I should do a series about the different types of stages.) Two people are in the center of the circle and will create the first scene. The scene can be about literally anything, but here’s the key part. The person who starts the scene should choose an opening line that establishes two things:

1. The relationship between the two characters.
2. Where they are.

They continue the scene for a little while until one person (usually the teacher) yells “Freeze!” The goal of the person yelling freeze is to capture the actors in the most interesting physical positions possible. After they freeze, someone else from the circle taps the shoulder of the person who has been acting the longest and takes their place, assuming the exact same physical position of the person replaced. The newcomer starts a new scene that establishes a new location and a new relationship between the two characters, taking into account the the physical position they have copied. That’s the tricky part and the part that most people skip. You have to justify this (hopefully) goofy position you are starting the scene with.

Example:

Say two people are frozen and the one who has been there the longest is patting the ground with her hand. The newcomer comes in and says, “Sit right down here and let me show you how to fish like you have never fished before!”

Immediately, we know the location – near a body of water where fishing is possible – and the relationship – the expert fisherman and the novice. Plus, the actor used the physical position as part of the scene. Perfect!

The Why:

This exercise teaches students a number of important skills.

1. It teaches actors to be conscious of their body and what story it could be telling. It’s important for actors to make specific choices in terms of body placement and actions to tell the story or illuminate the character they are portraying. This game forces actors to think about this in a very specific way.
2. Like most improv games, it teaches teamwork. The actors have to work together to create an interesting scene.
3. It teaches storytelling. By forcing the actors to create a relationship and a place with one opening line, it offers actors the opportunity to practice creating the beginnings of story. Who knows? One of these beginnings may lead to writing a whole play based just on the relationship between two characters and an interesting location.

This a fun game and theatre kids generally love it. However, it’s very easy to get away from the three most important tenets of the game – justifying the physical position and establishing a place and a relationship. Oftentimes they need to reminded and given the chance to start again. If you let it go and don’t enforce those tenets, you will get far less interesting scenes, the game will drag, and they’ll have a lot less fun. And they won’t learn as much.

Note that there are lots of variations of this game. This is my favorite version.

Next up: Location Creation

And sign up your kids (if you have any) for a theatre class!

Over the years, and with the help of the internet, I have created a repertoire of theatre games that I like to play with my casts and in my classes. To give some insight into my thinking as a theatre educator, I’m writing a series of articles about my favorite theatre games and more importantly, why I do them. It’s important for the students to understand the why behind the games, so they can be more thoughtful about their choices.

Three Pictures

How it works:

Divide the actors into groups of 3 to 4. You could have larger groups if necessary, but I’ve found that 3 to 4 works well. Explain to the groups that their job is to tell a story in three pictures using just themselves and maybe a chair or table if available. The pictures do not move – the actors must be totally still and they cannot speak. Give them 5 to 10 minutes to create their story. I usually walk around the room, giving feedback and reminding them their pictures cannot move (that’s the one element that seems hardest for them to grasp). Then each group shows each of the three pictures to the rest of the class. Each picture should advance the story and the audience should be able to describe what happened.

Example:

The easiest example and one I’ve seen done many times is the baseball player hitting a home run. The first picture shows the pitcher, the catcher and the batter all ready for the pitch. The second shows the pitcher having just thrown the ball and the batter swinging the bat. The third picture shows the catcher and the pitcher watching the ball fly and the hitter starting to run the bases.

The Why:

This exercise teaches students a number of important skills.

1. They have to tell a story visually, no words, which emphasizes that theatre is very much a visual art form. Actions matter and we can communicate a lot with just our bodies and facial expressions even if we never speak a word.
2. They have to work together to tell the story. Creating a play requires trust and teamwork.
3. For aspiring playwrights, it demonstrates very clearly the need to have a beginning, a middle and an end to a story.

One of the elements of this game that I like a whole lot is the immediate feedback it provides. If the class doesn’t understand the story, that’s very obvious and tells the actors they need to work harder next time. I usually have them tell 3 or 4 stories with the same groups so they can practice the skills and improve.

Next up: Freeze and Justify