Konnektiv is an experimental community drama group run by a dramatherapist in Stafford. It currently has 7 members and we are working with Japanese Fairy Tale, narration, sculp, movement and sound.
Konnektiv has been running for a while now, and I have been using a Facebook group to update interested people about our progress. In order to make the updates accessible to anyone, not just Facebook members, I am now writing it as a Blog. This means that my next task is to go back in time. The next few posts are copy/pasted from the Facebook group.
Early Feb 2011 Hi All, thanks for joining this group. Konnektiv are an experimental drama group that has started running on Monday nights in Stafford. Anyone who lives close enough and would like to come along, please do. Others may join just to be kept informed about what is going on and to get news of events and performances.
Slightly later in Feb 2011 This evening we experimented with sound and rhythm, using body, voice and instruments. We listened to some Japanese music - and commented on the rhythms and texture of the pieces, and how they seemed to tell many stories. In our experiments several themes came up, including overcoming inhibitions - needing to share the experience of creating using unfamiliar formats, in order to support each other through reflection and elaboration of sound making. In this way inhibitions are gradually overcome. Also we worked with a picture of a couple of peasant farmers, who worked through pain and hunger because that was their only means of survival - and asked the question - how can we portray a tiredness and a pain that we have not experienced? Members shared stories of their own, finding familiar themes - household drudgery, physical illness, mental distress, the feeling of ones body getting older and having to find less painful ways of completing a task. On reflection, as I was in the kitchen wiping up the dishes on my return, I pondered on the human will to survive, because we had spoken about choice, and the lack of choice that the peasant farmers had. But they did have a choice, and they chose to live. Humans choose to live through incredible amounts of pain and hardship. I wondered about fear of death being a motivating factor, but I don't think the peasants in this story had this fear, or much of it, so what gives humans the incredible capacity that they have for survival?
Still later in Feb 2011 Tonight we welcomed a new person to the group. It was great to have an extra person, and over the next few weeks, hopefully one or two more will join in. We have likely problems with the venue as it seems that there are staffing issues at the centre and so I am currently looking into other venues. It is a shame because the hall we are using is great, but these things happen. Ideas welcome.
Because we managed to get into the centre today we did get to do some physical work, and with the new member I didn't want to do anything too experimental so we carried on working with creating sculpts, although we did get the opportunity to incorporate a bit of the drum rhythm that Sophie came up with last week.
What we are doing is very physical, which may be a surprise to some, as it could seem that just standing still in a certain position doesn't take much skill, but it does, balance, tension and mood have to be conveyed, as the sculpts are held for some time, and also there are those very important moments of getting into position, which must be done properly: the movement is slow and deliberate, and take control of the body. This progression from the natural, relaxed standing position to the sculpt is very important, as it helps to tell the story. We also worked with levels - using 1-5 as numbers describing how tall each person stands, so there is a variety of levels on stage at once, making the final picture more interesting.
Some of the warm ups are becoming more challenging and some members of the group find holding or changing positions quite difficult. Awareness of the body, centre of balance and shifting of weight are most important in achieving the final effect, as is each person working within the boundaries of their own comfort zone, whilst occasionally being able to challenge these boundaries to find potentialities that they didn't know they had. So the group spent some time finding different positions, each with a story, and each reflected by the rest of the group. The reflections enable the person to see their position held by others, and also help to create the all important group connectedness, where each person becomes more aware of the others in the group.
I thought about an orchestra, with each player blending their own melody and rhythm in with each other player, and how they all need to be listening carefully to what everyone else is playing so that their own sound fits in, creating a complete sound that is beautiful to hear. In this drama, each player must be aware of what each other player is doing, to add to the picture, which must then fit in with the narration and the sound effects that are interconnecting with the sculpts.
Timing, awareness, control and a shared group experience bring about some beautiful dramatic moments
Hi all - just come back from another Konnektiv evening. Another new member, and two not there for various reasons. With a small group like this the dynamic changes a lot with different people, and it is important that the group are open to changes and welcoming to new members. Saying that, it is easier also to absorb new members because less is more in terms of building relationships and negotiating dramatic styles.
It is good to hear the group members becoming more confident with voicing their ideas about what we are doing and how things can be portrayed. As we are becoming more familiar with the style of drama that we are developing, I found myself becoming more directive. I don't think that this is a bad thing, because now it feels we are ready to start putting together something that can actually be performed, and some group members said they feel that it adds more direction to the proceedings. However I am aware of the danger of treading on creative toes, and so at some point passed the role of director to another group member. This enabled the group member, rather than to make suggestions from the sidelines, to take on a more central and powerful role within the group. It meant that I could stand back for a bit and allow the creative flow to continue. I do think some leadership is necessary, but leader role can be passed between group members.
We brought in a new energy today, to contrast with the slow, deliberate and intense movements that we have been working with. The new energy involved a sort of freestyle movement of 'magic', a group of dancers, shaking and banging percussion instruments, who moved across the stage like leaves blowing in the wind, who would shortly be followed by a storm. We experimented with how the magic would move, leading with elbows and knees, swirling in all directions. It was very good exercise, and whilst breathless as most of us are unaccustomed to such energetic movement, it was also quite exhilarating. Each person took it in turns to stand outside of the group and watch, so that we could see from the audience point of view how the final piece would look.
Later we discussed how people felt about bringing in more challenging physical roles. We need to ensure that whilst people are not requested to endanger themselves, and need to work within their own abilities, that they are also exercising and becoming more aware of their physical abilities and the potentialities of their bodies. The most important instrument of the dramatist is the body, and to be aware of our bodies, and how they move and feel, and our full range of physical expression is extremely important.
There may also be a feeling of increased confidence in a persons everyday life, through having a greater range of expression, and through extending ones physical comfort zone, and of course a general increase of physical fitness.
One member of the group had an idea that we could use the idea of the elements to vary the dynamics and energy of the physical telling of the story. Previously, the feeling has been very earthy, and today there was a feeling of air in the movements, possibly fire. We thought that it would be good to use the Eastern elements rather than the Western, to go with the Japanese theme
We started by building up an imaginary scene, with all actors taking on a seeminly random position, and then imagining a scene around them. Each also imagined a sound. We then combined the scenes and sounds so that we shared the picture that was created, each taking it in turns to stand out and walk through the scene, taking in the senses of what had been built in the space. This use of imagination and creativity relaxed the group and opened up the creative mind, as well as building up a sense of shared space and purpose.
We built some more on the physical work, and further development of the actors sense of balance and awareness of their own movement. It is great to see the actors moving with more confidence and self assuredness, and being more experimental with the movements they make. All are developing their own style of movement, some balletic, gymnastic, some along the lines of martial arts or tai chi. The actors were asked to move slowly, and then at some point to hold the position, becoming more aware of their ability to be centred and balanced at all times. Where is the position being held? where is the centre of the pose? are the muscles and joints relaxed at all times? When the position is held, are those muscles firm or strained?
Returning to the story, we carried on with our journey through the narrative, deciding on further positions and movements which are the vehicle through which the narrative is given physical, dramatic meaning. A different member of the group took on the directors role, and became the central point for discussion and the sharing of ideas. It is interesting to see how different members each have their own way of developing the directors role, and whilst it is challenging for someone who has little experience of drama to take on this central role, each member has made it their own. Continuing to do this helps people to appreciate their own leadership style, and ability to take responsibility for the artistic direction.
On a practical note, we have been discussing the possibilities for performance. We have decided to work on 2 more stories after this one, and have an evening of 3 performances, with food, drink and displays giving information and a flavour of Japanese culture. We have decided that September will be a good time for the performance, and discussed a possible venue. Also on a practical note, I will be going to see someone from a local Housing Association tomorrow to discuss a change of venue for rehearsals. Once this has been decided, I will ask a local newspaper reporter to come and do an article on us, maybe with a picture and use this to promote the group and maybe get one or two more members.
There are some pictures for todays session, which I will add as soon as I find the lead that attaches the camera to the computer!
Konnektiv has been running for a while now, and I have been using a Facebook group to update interested people about our progress. In order to make the updates accessible to anyone, not just Facebook members, I am now writing it as a Blog. This means that my next task is to go back in time. The next few posts are copy/pasted from the Facebook group.
ReplyDeleteEarly Feb 2011
ReplyDeleteHi All, thanks for joining this group. Konnektiv are an experimental drama group that has started running on Monday nights in Stafford. Anyone who lives close enough and would like to come along, please do. Others may join just to be kept informed about what is going on and to get news of events and performances.
Slightly later in Feb 2011
ReplyDeleteThis evening we experimented with sound and rhythm, using body, voice and instruments. We listened to some Japanese music - and commented on the rhythms and texture of the pieces, and how they seemed to tell many stories. In our experiments several themes came up, including overcoming inhibitions - needing to share the experience of creating using unfamiliar formats, in order to support each other through reflection and elaboration of sound making. In this way inhibitions are gradually overcome. Also we worked with a picture of a couple of peasant farmers, who worked through pain and hunger because that was their only means of survival - and asked the question - how can we portray a tiredness and a pain that we have not experienced? Members shared stories of their own, finding familiar themes - household drudgery, physical illness, mental distress, the feeling of ones body getting older and having to find less painful ways of completing a task. On reflection, as I was in the kitchen wiping up the dishes on my return, I pondered on the human will to survive, because we had spoken about choice, and the lack of choice that the peasant farmers had. But they did have a choice, and they chose to live. Humans choose to live through incredible amounts of pain and hardship. I wondered about fear of death being a motivating factor, but I don't think the peasants in this story had this fear, or much of it, so what gives humans the incredible capacity that they have for survival?
Still later in Feb 2011
ReplyDeleteTonight we welcomed a new person to the group. It was great to have an extra person, and over the next few weeks, hopefully one or two more will join in. We have likely problems with the venue as it seems that there are staffing issues at the centre and so I am currently looking into other venues. It is a shame because the hall we are using is great, but these things happen. Ideas welcome.
Because we managed to get into the centre today we did get to do some physical work, and with the new member I didn't want to do anything too experimental so we carried on working with creating sculpts, although we did get the opportunity to incorporate a bit of the drum rhythm that Sophie came up with last week.
What we are doing is very physical, which may be a surprise to some, as it could seem that just standing still in a certain position doesn't take much skill, but it does, balance, tension and mood have to be conveyed, as the sculpts are held for some time, and also there are those very important moments of getting into position, which must be done properly: the movement is slow and deliberate, and take control of the body. This progression from the natural, relaxed standing position to the sculpt is very important, as it helps to tell the story. We also worked with levels - using 1-5 as numbers describing how tall each person stands, so there is a variety of levels on stage at once, making the final picture more interesting.
Some of the warm ups are becoming more challenging and some members of the group find holding or changing positions quite difficult. Awareness of the body, centre of balance and shifting of weight are most important in achieving the final effect, as is each person working within the boundaries of their own comfort zone, whilst occasionally being able to challenge these boundaries to find potentialities that they didn't know they had. So the group spent some time finding different positions, each with a story, and each reflected by the rest of the group. The reflections enable the person to see their position held by others, and also help to create the all important group connectedness, where each person becomes more aware of the others in the group.
I thought about an orchestra, with each player blending their own melody and rhythm in with each other player, and how they all need to be listening carefully to what everyone else is playing so that their own sound fits in, creating a complete sound that is beautiful to hear. In this drama, each player must be aware of what each other player is doing, to add to the picture, which must then fit in with the narration and the sound effects that are interconnecting with the sculpts.
Timing, awareness, control and a shared group experience bring about some beautiful dramatic moments
Hi all - just come back from another Konnektiv evening. Another new member, and two not there for various reasons. With a small group like this the dynamic changes a lot with different people, and it is important that the group are open to changes and welcoming to new members. Saying that, it is easier also to absorb new members because less is more in terms of building relationships and negotiating dramatic styles.
ReplyDeleteIt is good to hear the group members becoming more confident with voicing their ideas about what we are doing and how things can be portrayed. As we are becoming more familiar with the style of drama that we are developing, I found myself becoming more directive. I don't think that this is a bad thing, because now it feels we are ready to start putting together something that can actually be performed, and some group members said they feel that it adds more direction to the proceedings. However I am aware of the danger of treading on creative toes, and so at some point passed the role of director to another group member. This enabled the group member, rather than to make suggestions from the sidelines, to take on a more central and powerful role within the group. It meant that I could stand back for a bit and allow the creative flow to continue. I do think some leadership is necessary, but leader role can be passed between group members.
We brought in a new energy today, to contrast with the slow, deliberate and intense movements that we have been working with. The new energy involved a sort of freestyle movement of 'magic', a group of dancers, shaking and banging percussion instruments, who moved across the stage like leaves blowing in the wind, who would shortly be followed by a storm. We experimented with how the magic would move, leading with elbows and knees, swirling in all directions. It was very good exercise, and whilst breathless as most of us are unaccustomed to such energetic movement, it was also quite exhilarating. Each person took it in turns to stand outside of the group and watch, so that we could see from the audience point of view how the final piece would look.
Later we discussed how people felt about bringing in more challenging physical roles. We need to ensure that whilst people are not requested to endanger themselves, and need to work within their own abilities, that they are also exercising and becoming more aware of their physical abilities and the potentialities of their bodies. The most important instrument of the dramatist is the body, and to be aware of our bodies, and how they move and feel, and our full range of physical expression is extremely important.
There may also be a feeling of increased confidence in a persons everyday life, through having a greater range of expression, and through extending ones physical comfort zone, and of course a general increase of physical fitness.
One member of the group had an idea that we could use the idea of the elements to vary the dynamics and energy of the physical telling of the story. Previously, the feeling has been very earthy, and today there was a feeling of air in the movements, possibly fire. We thought that it would be good to use the Eastern elements rather than the Western, to go with the Japanese theme
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-12463153
ReplyDeleteAn example of using Drama with teenagers in a PRU
http://www.bma.org.uk/health_promotion_ethics/psychologicalandsocialneedsofpatients.jsp?page=7
ReplyDeleteThe psychological and social needs of patients - and discussion of arts therapies
Monday 4th March
ReplyDeleteWe started by building up an imaginary scene, with all actors taking on a seeminly random position, and then imagining a scene around them. Each also imagined a sound. We then combined the scenes and sounds so that we shared the picture that was created, each taking it in turns to stand out and walk through the scene, taking in the senses of what had been built in the space. This use of imagination and creativity relaxed the group and opened up the creative mind, as well as building up a sense of shared space and purpose.
We built some more on the physical work, and further development of the actors sense of balance and awareness of their own movement. It is great to see the actors moving with more confidence and self assuredness, and being more experimental with the movements they make. All are developing their own style of movement, some balletic, gymnastic, some along the lines of martial arts or tai chi. The actors were asked to move slowly, and then at some point to hold the position, becoming more aware of their ability to be centred and balanced at all times. Where is the position being held? where is the centre of the pose? are the muscles and joints relaxed at all times? When the position is held, are those muscles firm or strained?
Returning to the story, we carried on with our journey through the narrative, deciding on further positions and movements which are the vehicle through which the narrative is given physical, dramatic meaning. A different member of the group took on the directors role, and became the central point for discussion and the sharing of ideas. It is interesting to see how different members each have their own way of developing the directors role, and whilst it is challenging for someone who has little experience of drama to take on this central role, each member has made it their own. Continuing to do this helps people to appreciate their own leadership style, and ability to take responsibility for the artistic direction.
On a practical note, we have been discussing the possibilities for performance. We have decided to work on 2 more stories after this one, and have an evening of 3 performances, with food, drink and displays giving information and a flavour of Japanese culture. We have decided that September will be a good time for the performance, and discussed a possible venue. Also on a practical note, I will be going to see someone from a local Housing Association tomorrow to discuss a change of venue for rehearsals. Once this has been decided, I will ask a local newspaper reporter to come and do an article on us, maybe with a picture and use this to promote the group and maybe get one or two more members.
There are some pictures for todays session, which I will add as soon as I find the lead that attaches the camera to the computer!