| class |
workshop | performed workshop | performance | |||||
| moment |
event | story | ||||||
| participant |
player | facilitator | principal | |||||
| narrator |
author | actor | ||||||
| past |
future | |||||||
| real |
imagined | |||||||
| available |
sensory | |||||||
| environment |
other | self | ||||||
| themes |
interview | questions | questions | |||||
| set
up |
play | observe | new setup | |||||
| stimulus |
response | framing |
casting | question | preparation | enactment | intervention | |
| DIALECTIC | discuss/feedback | decide | debrief | |||||
| what
if |
re-cast | tilt | comedy/drama | |||||
| low |
moderate | low | ||||||
| personal |
community | global | ||||||
| strong
feelings |
conscious mind | subconscious mind | ||||||
| ENACTMENT | ||||||||
MODE
Class examines the practices and processes of raw theatre and
does not distinguish between a player or participant – more time may be
spent in the focus stage (creating a collective creative state)– working
towards the potential of ensemble – which can be described as the change
from a ‘group of individuals’ to an ‘individual group’.
The protective nature if the social self is diminished in this process (see
methods below) facilitating greater creative potential.
Workshop occurs for a target or specific group. This group
may have a specific need such as; team building or putting the play into the
professional ( both are themes already served by past Raw Theatre events. Workshops
are theme specific and task oriented see(ref)
Performance Workshop uses Raw Theatre in an instructional sense
- for example a lecture or masterclass of actors, animators or screenwriters.
Performance may occur with observers (audience) seated in a
wider concentric circle eg; theatre in the round or in front of a semi-circle
of players and participants. Raw Theatre Performance is dependant on the team-work
and proficiency of the Raw Theatre Ensemble – practiced and rehearsed
approaches.
[Performance has three subsets: I – Live Theatre (entertainment). II –
Live Theatre (education) III – Television.]
TYPE
Story – generally a story is constructed, has a beginning
middle and end and seeks to include some form of conflict to propel the dramatic
or comic tension and there bye the interest of the observers and participants.
Event – is a sequence of moments that may not have the
same sense of construction of a story and may not carry any particular form
of tension, neither must it have a beginning , middle and end.
Moment – a moment is just as it sounds; a singular moment
- current enactments are less concerned with constructing moments
ROLE
Player is someone who has trained in the different processes
of selecting, shaping and telling a story, event or moment. This person has
an expertise which is necessary in Raw Theatre as a performance and corporate
workshop, but is less important for Raw Theatre Class as all players and participants
are seen to be on an equal footing.
Participant is someone who sits with the players in the first
circle and may be called on to offer suggestions for story material. The more
a person becomes a participant it is expected that a proficiency level increases
in RT
Observer is someone who sits outside the first circle and observes
the processes taking place.
Facilitator* (may also be a player) shapes and moulds proceedings.
A facilitator is responsible for setting the context, interviewing the player
or participant and framing the story enactment.
Principal is the player or participant who has provided the
material for the enactment
TELLER
Narration. A story or event may be narrated by either a player
or a participant.
Authorship. A story or event may be authored by either player
or participant.
Acting. A story or event may be acted by a player or participant.
(modes or methods of telling through either of the above is discussed below)
TIME
Past. Events based in the real may come from the past.
Present. Events based in the real and imagined may come from
the present.
Future. Events based in the imagined come from the future but
can be based in presently known fact.
CIRCUMSTANCES:
(includes characters)
Real given circumstances are interpreted as those which the
participant offers as fact.
Blended given circumstances are those where either the player
or the participant merges given facts with imagined circumstances.
Imagined given circumstances are entirely fictional - these
are less likely to occur in Raw Theatre's present form.
IMAGERY
All modes/methods of enactment acknowledge inherent techniques:
Sense Memory a players or participants ability to recall images
using sense memory.
Available Stimulus a players or participants ability to acknowledge
and use the offers* being made by others in the enactments.
Imaginary Stimulus a players or participants ability to use
and express imaginary circumstance and situations.
CONFLICT
The three types of conflict in a story-telling/dramatic context are recognised
and inherent in story and event enactments – but are less conspicuous
or necessary in moments.
Environment A character’s conflict with the world in
which the story occurs – eg; the heat of an unventilated room in summer.
Inner A character’s conflict with their inner landscape–
eg; to marry or not to marry her second cousin.
Inter-personal (other/s) A character’s conflict with
the other or others in the story– eg; to tell mom and dad that she wants
to marry her second cousin
(And/or combinations of the above)Stimuli: may be elicited in various forms
by the facilitator. \
STIMULI
Themes a theme may be presented to a group and from this theme
suggestions emerge to become the stimuli for enactments; eg, the parent-child
relationship.
Interview. An individual participant may be interviewed and
as the interview continues, elements of the participants life story are used
as stimuli for either; moments, events or stories.
Questions may be asked directly by the facilitator of specific
participants; eg, can you tell us about an impacting moment you have experienced
in the last few weeks
Reports may be solicited by the facilitator; eg, can you please
give us a progress report of your period of employment with this company. (specific
to the corporate workshop)
STAGES
First stage - (SET UP phase is concerned with
establishing material for each theatre event.)
Second stage – (PLAYING phase focuses
on the action and the actors bringing the material to life.)
Third stage –(OBSERVATION phase gives
participants a chance to reflect on the action and its impact)
PROCESSES
1– stimulus: the initial question or theme explored by the facilitator
with the group or with the individual
2 – response: the emergent theme or context provoded by an individual
(usually a participant)
3 – framing: the given circumstances and context connected to, or about
the material shared in the response
4 – casting: the selection of the player to enact the framed events
5– question: players ask questions of the story provider to assist their
portrayal ofevents and relationships
6– preparation: time is given to the players to connect to one another
and dispense withunwanted energies or distractions by naming and exposing them
7– enactment: the playing out of the material - the improvisation
8– intervention: facilitator and others may intervene and re-cast, change
the direction, suggest a 'what if' etc
| 1.
stimulus |
2. response | 3.
framing |
4. casting | 5. question | 6. preparation | 7. enactment | 8. intervention | 9. discuss/decide/debrief |
DIALECTIC
- discuss, decide, debrief: discussion occurs wheneverthe group feels the need
to debate or feedback.. Decision occurs
when the group needs to decide on where to go next, do they re-work the previous
scene? change to a new scenario? etc
debrief occurs at the end of the raw theatre or whenever a subject has been
introduced that is of particular impact.
INTERVENTION
what if: the participant, facilitator or player might suggest a 'what if' to
the scene to take it a new direction
re-cast: the facilitator may suggest players swap roles or the participant play
themselves in the enactment
tilt: the facilitator may introduce a greater degree of difficulty to raise
the stakes of the material
comedy/drama: players might be asked to replay the scene in the opposite context
of its first interpretation
RISK
low: low stakes - material is non-challenging and non confronting
moderate: moderate stakes - material is moderately challenging - subject matter
may be slightly charged -
high: high stakes - the material eally matters to the players and participants
- confronting and challenging
UNIVERSE
personal: story set within the personal life and personal universe - material
that is specific to the individual
community: story material that is common to the community - be it a corporate
group or class group - material is common to the group
global: universaly recognisable - affecting the global community - the universal
reflectionof the personal story
BODY
STORY
The ‘body-story’ refers to the current focal energies of the conscious
and/or subconscious mind, or put another way, the stuff we are feeling most
about, right now. The interviewer/facilitator will initiate a series of questions
that will promote the participant to identify an aspect of his or her body story
they are willing to share. - the acting class may also refer to the body story
in terms of the energy of the actor, eg do they appear nervous, relaxed etc
ENACTMENT
the acting out or role play or improvisation (see
enactments for full beakdown)
The next page details the enactments of a Raw Theatre workshop event.