Print Page | Close Window

Directing Elementary school students

Printed From: Community Theater Green Room
Category: Producing Theater
Forum Name: Directing
Forum Discription: For questions about handling shows, actors, crew, board members, children ...or do we repeat ourselves?
URL: http://www.communitytheater.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=4582
Printed Date: 11/27/24 at 7:09am
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 8.05 - http://www.webwizforums.com


Topic: Directing Elementary school students
Posted By: Karin
Subject: Directing Elementary school students
Date Posted: 4/23/10 at 9:37am

I have been asked to run a summer play for elementary and middle school aged kids.  The camp meets 3 hours a day.  How many weeks is the LEAST amount of time needed for a cast 0f 20 to memorize and learn basic blocking and acting to put on a short play.




Replies:
Posted By: vickifrank
Date Posted: 4/23/10 at 4:38pm
It depends on the play.  With a large cast, you might really have only relatively small parts.  But you could have a play with 4 principles and 16 small parts--the principles would need much more work than the rest.
So if you don't say what play it is, you could at least say how many lines or pages the biggest part has....guess how long it would take you to learn the part, then triple the time for a middle schooler.  Remember, that your camp could have rules that include "homework" for those cast as principles, so they learn the lines on their time.
 
Here's the catch with kids--short attention spans.  While you work with one set of kids, you may want a partner to be doing something with the rest.  Most directors of kids that I know separate the kids into predefined groups each run by an adult or competent Teenager assistant.  So while group "A" is working with the musical director, group "B" is learning the dances, and group "C" is learning blocking.
 
(You also didn't mention whether the 3 hours a day were for one day a week or 5 days a week.  If you meet with time inbetween allow a bit of room for kids to forget)
 
Finally, a suggestion.  Maybe some fun ideas can help you.  Consider as part of the activities a "race" to learn your lines.  You can separate the principles from the rest in categories and offer a prize for the winners in each category.  Similar contests can be held for least errors in blocking, most expressive face (offer this contest early, because 3rd graders can mug for-ev-er), best homemade costume, funniest player, funnest person to work with, most improved.  Your prizes can be as simple as a paper plate award.  You have a set of kids with plates and markers (Call them the 'critics') in charge of coming up with the awards for the day and presenting them--do tell them they have to be positive, and appropriate..


-------------
_____________

http://www.studio-productions-inc.com
1-800-359-2964

The theater scrim people



Print Page | Close Window

Bulletin Board Software by Web Wiz Forums version 8.05 - http://www.webwizforums.com
Copyright ©2001-2006 Web Wiz Guide - http://www.webwizguide.info