On the Child Side: Theatre Anecdotes involving Children
Dangerous Face Painting
We spend some time teaching face painting during our Clowning Around classes. The first part is drawing designs in two inch circles with pencils. The kids pick their six favorite designs and draw them again in pen. On another class day, those six designs are what the kids use to ask other students in the class, "Which one would you like?" One face-painting day, instructions were given and a boy in the class was shaking his head, adamantly opposed to having someone color on his skin because of "ink poisoning." Chris told him it was optional, he did not have to do it. The water-based markers were brought out and the kids sat around the table. They drew on the backs of each others' hands. All too soon, the kids were done with the allotted two designs per person, and asked permission if they could draw a couple more. WARNING: Once permission was granted it didn't take but minutes to have whole arms full of art. And Mr. Toxic? His arms were as colored as the rest of them, pronouncing that "these pens are okay."
Mime Scare
For the last day of their mime class, the students were put in mime make-up so they could perform in the showcase. The white face applied, the black outlines placed around the eyes and the kids were sent off to the restrooms to look in the mirrors. Upon re-entering the classroom, one child announced, "I scared someone in the hall."
A Past Life Perhaps
One of the first “skits” that Marian had the kids create at a middle school workshop was a 7-second chore or something they do on a regular basis. Because of past experiences, Marian ticked off on her fingers the things the kids may NOT PERFORM: “You may not show me playing video games.” [kids groaned] “You may not show me playing computer games.” [more groans] “You may not show me watching T.V.” [“aww”] “You may not show me doing nothing or sleeping. And because someone once tried this, I must add, you may not show me going to the bathroom.” [Kids laugh] Now making eye contact, Marian adds for emphasis, “So if you don’t go skydiving on a regular basis, don’t do it. If you don’t drive the car, don’t do that either. Got it?” They always get it, in theory...
The last kid up mimed an allosaurus.
Theater Arts- An Oxymoron?
Marian often teaches after-school classes. Many times the students take home fliers and, with their parents, decide on what class to take. It never fails that at least one chld within the first three days asks, “When are we going to paint?” After a brief explanation about what “theater arts” means, Marian continues teaching projection and stage areas. Within a couple more class days, Marian usually has to explain again why the paints won’t be coming out, then it’s off to imaginative play and improvisation. Weeks go by with more theater games and skill building. The children are having fun and have given up the hope of painting. The final day is going to be an opportunity for the children to enjoy the theater games they’ve liked best. As the children are raising their hands and excitedly calling out what they want to do, one young girl raises her hand and asks, “Are we going to paint?”
“I Want to See the Stove”
Chris and Marian perform their interactive adaptation of Jack and the Beanstalk. Since Chris plays both Jack and the Giant, the two characters can’t be seen at the same time. The Giant’s wife sends Jack offstage to hide in the stove when she “hears” the Giant coming. After one particular performance, a group of little girls asked if they could see behind the curtain. When they were told “yes,” the first little girl said, “I want to see the stove where Jack hid.”
He Found His Voice
Chris and Marian were performing for a group of Head Start children and their parents. It was an interactive Jack and the Beanstalk play and Chris, as Jack, needed a “doorknocker” from the audience. He selected a little boy, costumed him in a gold tunic, and gave him the instructions: “When I go like this...” Chris pretended to knock on a door “...you say, ’knock, knock, knock.’” And that’s what the little boy did. Nothing spectacular, or so Chris and Marian thought. A week later, the Head Start director told Chris the boy he had selected never spoke in class before the performance. Now that the boy had been the doorknocker, he’d “found his voice.” (And wouldn't be quiet.)
Thar Be Sharks, Cap’n
Arr, me matey. We be performin’ Captain Bobella of the Beast, a frighten’ pirate tale. A lad from them a’watchin’ got picked to play one of the lookouts. And lookout he did. Twere no more than 15 seconds and he were brave enough to tell the fearsome Captain Bobella that thar were sharks ahead. Tweren’t in the script, so the Captain had to tell the persistant lad that thar weren’t sharks right then. Perhaps next time thar will be.
And Where’s the Giant?
It happened again with Jack and the Beanstalk; a child wanted to look behind the curtain after the show to find something (see childside entry “I Want to See the Stove”). Or in this case, someone. After a recent show, a young boy wanted to look behind the curtain for the giant. Marian must be easy to spot when she changes characters (three of them, to be exact--Mother, Funny Little Woman, Giant’s Wife). But when Chris changes from Jack to the Giant, he puts on a cap with a shoulder-length wig and a beard. It was different enough to send the child to the backstage, looking for who played the giant. Side note: We like letting the kids see behind the curtain. It gives them a chance to see how we set up our props and costumes. Ah, the magic of theater.
We spend some time teaching face painting during our Clowning Around classes. The first part is drawing designs in two inch circles with pencils. The kids pick their six favorite designs and draw them again in pen. On another class day, those six designs are what the kids use to ask other students in the class, "Which one would you like?" One face-painting day, instructions were given and a boy in the class was shaking his head, adamantly opposed to having someone color on his skin because of "ink poisoning." Chris told him it was optional, he did not have to do it. The water-based markers were brought out and the kids sat around the table. They drew on the backs of each others' hands. All too soon, the kids were done with the allotted two designs per person, and asked permission if they could draw a couple more. WARNING: Once permission was granted it didn't take but minutes to have whole arms full of art. And Mr. Toxic? His arms were as colored as the rest of them, pronouncing that "these pens are okay."
Mime Scare
For the last day of their mime class, the students were put in mime make-up so they could perform in the showcase. The white face applied, the black outlines placed around the eyes and the kids were sent off to the restrooms to look in the mirrors. Upon re-entering the classroom, one child announced, "I scared someone in the hall."
A Past Life Perhaps
One of the first “skits” that Marian had the kids create at a middle school workshop was a 7-second chore or something they do on a regular basis. Because of past experiences, Marian ticked off on her fingers the things the kids may NOT PERFORM: “You may not show me playing video games.” [kids groaned] “You may not show me playing computer games.” [more groans] “You may not show me watching T.V.” [“aww”] “You may not show me doing nothing or sleeping. And because someone once tried this, I must add, you may not show me going to the bathroom.” [Kids laugh] Now making eye contact, Marian adds for emphasis, “So if you don’t go skydiving on a regular basis, don’t do it. If you don’t drive the car, don’t do that either. Got it?” They always get it, in theory...
The last kid up mimed an allosaurus.
Theater Arts- An Oxymoron?
Marian often teaches after-school classes. Many times the students take home fliers and, with their parents, decide on what class to take. It never fails that at least one chld within the first three days asks, “When are we going to paint?” After a brief explanation about what “theater arts” means, Marian continues teaching projection and stage areas. Within a couple more class days, Marian usually has to explain again why the paints won’t be coming out, then it’s off to imaginative play and improvisation. Weeks go by with more theater games and skill building. The children are having fun and have given up the hope of painting. The final day is going to be an opportunity for the children to enjoy the theater games they’ve liked best. As the children are raising their hands and excitedly calling out what they want to do, one young girl raises her hand and asks, “Are we going to paint?”
“I Want to See the Stove”
Chris and Marian perform their interactive adaptation of Jack and the Beanstalk. Since Chris plays both Jack and the Giant, the two characters can’t be seen at the same time. The Giant’s wife sends Jack offstage to hide in the stove when she “hears” the Giant coming. After one particular performance, a group of little girls asked if they could see behind the curtain. When they were told “yes,” the first little girl said, “I want to see the stove where Jack hid.”
He Found His Voice
Chris and Marian were performing for a group of Head Start children and their parents. It was an interactive Jack and the Beanstalk play and Chris, as Jack, needed a “doorknocker” from the audience. He selected a little boy, costumed him in a gold tunic, and gave him the instructions: “When I go like this...” Chris pretended to knock on a door “...you say, ’knock, knock, knock.’” And that’s what the little boy did. Nothing spectacular, or so Chris and Marian thought. A week later, the Head Start director told Chris the boy he had selected never spoke in class before the performance. Now that the boy had been the doorknocker, he’d “found his voice.” (And wouldn't be quiet.)
Thar Be Sharks, Cap’n
Arr, me matey. We be performin’ Captain Bobella of the Beast, a frighten’ pirate tale. A lad from them a’watchin’ got picked to play one of the lookouts. And lookout he did. Twere no more than 15 seconds and he were brave enough to tell the fearsome Captain Bobella that thar were sharks ahead. Tweren’t in the script, so the Captain had to tell the persistant lad that thar weren’t sharks right then. Perhaps next time thar will be.
And Where’s the Giant?
It happened again with Jack and the Beanstalk; a child wanted to look behind the curtain after the show to find something (see childside entry “I Want to See the Stove”). Or in this case, someone. After a recent show, a young boy wanted to look behind the curtain for the giant. Marian must be easy to spot when she changes characters (three of them, to be exact--Mother, Funny Little Woman, Giant’s Wife). But when Chris changes from Jack to the Giant, he puts on a cap with a shoulder-length wig and a beard. It was different enough to send the child to the backstage, looking for who played the giant. Side note: We like letting the kids see behind the curtain. It gives them a chance to see how we set up our props and costumes. Ah, the magic of theater.