theatrecreation

an all arts for Earth project

Shakespeare and the Green Man

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A Mole and Rat Experiment

Four stories about rivers. The first is a performance of five chapters from Kenneth Graham’s classic novel culminating, not in Toad's conversion to society, but in ‘The Piper at the Gates of Dawn’, when Mole and Rat meet the demigod Pan. The second - a mash-up of 'The Pied Piper' and 'The Three Billy-Goats Gruff' - is new verse in which the Troll and the Piper meet a watery end. The third, 'The King Who Stopped a River', reveals how very ancient the mistake of hubris is. Last is 'The Racing Rivers', in which Alaknanda and Bhagirathi compete across the Indian landscape to become the Ganges.


Chapter

Extracts from ten classic texts with animals and birds in focus, from William Blake’s ‘The Tyger’ to Emily Dickinson’s ‘Poem 254’ with Rudyard Kipling, Beatrix Potter and Lewis Caroll in between – all episodes from literary landmarks told in just over an hour. It’s family-friendly if you allow D. H. Lawrence’s ‘The Elephant is Slow to Mate’. Intended for street and school, here is the natural world shining through these children's tales, adapted into rough iambic pentameter. Perhaps the most obscure piece is the opening of Charles Kingley's 'The Water Babies', in which a chimney-sweep escapes across a moor-top.


Mask-making - Durning Library

This was a workshop for the Fun Palace project marked by activities in libraries around London. We made simple masks out of, largely, recycled materials for and with young people who were encouraged to engage with the services that libraries have to offer - the opportunity to read and expand their horizons through self education and fantasy-making. All activities were free and artists were engaged on a voluntary basis. The dedicated library staff supported the activities and made sure that everyone felt at home.


Materials

Paper and card seem to be the easiest materials to manipulate for people with limited craft experience. Gumstrip is very versatile, but quite tricky to handle when wet, though it does work as a less messy alternative to papier mache. Staples are quicker and less messy than glue and work well when making bases that just need assembling quickly. We didn't use paints at Durning Library due to limited time; drying and transportation of wet card become problems. UHU is the best glue for paper and gouache is my preferred paint as it's water-based and comes out in the wash.


Mask-making - Salvation Army

These mask-making sessions were fun and accessible, though we never actually performed in the masks that were made. We experimented with wire structures as a base but found that if the wire was too thick it was difficult to manipulate; if it was too thin the structures lost their shape too easily and did not support the paper outside effectively. The masks caught the imagination of the young people who attended and they were eager to try the craft themselves. The Salvation Army does great work to offer these sorts of activities for free.


Story Den - Transition Town

This project took place in the Transition Town market at Crystal Palace, marking halloween. We built our den out of string, fabric and bags of rice and listened to horror stories aimed at children of a range of ages. The parents who were passing through could often only leave their children for a short time while they bought local produce so the storytelling sessions were staggered. Horowitz's tales were very popular - particularly one about a haunted phone. The young people were also encouraged to tell each other spooky stories of their own.


Puppet-making - FEAST

It was very cold when we made these simple puppets out of recycled materials - mainly used coffee cups. They were rod-and-hand puppets that turned out to be very expressive. For the rods we used barbecue sticks that we partly snapped at one end. We were given a big collection of pipe-cleaners and a lot of coloured tissue paper that was also very useful. The FEAST market in West Norwood gels the community and offers a chance for small-scale, local producers to sell their wares and farm produce accompanied by great music.


Play creation

Working with the children of refugees we developed a story about an underwater kingdom, focussing on the adventures of a girl and an octopus. Using drawings to create a backdrop, we discussed plot and characters while we worked. This activity was offered to a charity in Clapham Junction who organise events to help young people with their after-school homework. Trips are also offered and the participants are encouraged and motivated with games and competitions. The workshops are well staffed by volunteers.


Theatre-making - Transition Town

These structures worked very well and could be built with ease to create effective Pollocks-style paper theatres. The parts were cut and slotted together by making half-length slits in each 'joint'. Staples were the easiest way of quickly joining other parts and saved having to wait for glue to dry. Once the base shape had been built, the children could use coloured paper and felt-tip pens to create more vibrant scenery that stood out well against the black frames. As we worked we talked about the puppet stories that could be enacted on the finished stages.


Story Train - Upper Norwood Library

This was a research project that aimed to find out if Applied Theatre and live art could be employed to 'create community'. Parents, volunteers and children told stories that they knew or were improvised and the material gathered informed what was made by the available range of art materials (in this case a locomotive). Then the art prompted more storytelling, in this case dramatically enacted by members of the group. Six weeks of development made the finished performance an amalgam of the children's ideas - a dark night, an unpredicted halt in the train's journey and a fire-breathing dragon.


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