UK

APPROACH

Workshop at the Beginning of the Journey
The Headway Way

This is an example of exercises that can be used in a workshop when working with a group for the first time (typically of about 2 hours duration) and the reasons for each activity, including expected learning outcomes.

It is important that you are aware of the timing of the workshop yet not to rush any of the exercises. This workshop is about you and the participants. It is necessary to allow the workshop to go in other directions than you had planned and for you to feel confident with this. The nature of the group you are working with will not necessarily allow your workshop to follow the original plan.


THIS IS ME participants say their name and something they like such as a favourite activity and add a movement to demonstrate the activity

Example - “My name is Steve, and I like painting” demonstrating movement as if using a paintbrush.


FRUIT SALAD - participants sit on chairs in a circle, the leader walks around the circle labelling everyone either apple, orange or pear. The leader then calls out the name of one fruit. Those participants with that name must swap chairs and the leader will also try to take a chair leaving a new caller. The caller may also say “Fruit Salad” in which case all must swap chairs.

PRISONER - Half participants are seated (the prisoners), half stand behind (the guards). The leader has an empty chair. The leader calls the name of someone seated (a prisoner) who must move to the leader’s chair, the guard behind must stop them by gently tapping them on the shoulder. If the prisoner escapes then the guard becomes the new caller. After sometime swap prisoners to guards and vice versa.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Ÿ An effective way for individuals to get to know each other.
Ÿ Helps workers to learn names and fast track communication, address individuals very quickly and familiarly building up a connection.
Ÿ Helps you to assess communication skills - hearing, understanding, how comfortable they feel.
Ÿ Strengths and weaknesses
Ÿ Helps look at focus and concentration levels of individuals in the group and how easy they can react
Ÿ Basic listening and reaction skills





THE PHYSICAL WARM UP

Head, Body, Arms, Legs and face - Using gentle movement to stimulate the body, preparing it for any movement or actions that take place in the workshop.

These exercises can be used from and around a chair, depending on ability

Ÿ Looking at physical abilities of individuals in the group allows you to see what level of physical activity to use in future sessions.
Ÿ Listening and understanding


VOCAL WARM UP and SINGING


Ask the group to find any vocal note in their range and hold that note for a short time
To find a vocal note and slowly build in volume
To find a vocal note and slowly lower in volume


Ÿ Looking at vocal and oral abilities of individuals in the group and the group as a whole.
Ÿ Listening and understanding



GROUP DEVELOPMENT - TRUST EXERCISES


GUIDED PAIRS - Participants get into pairs, labelling each other A or B. A then becomes the leader who will guide B around the room. B will be asked to close there eyes for this exercise, after a while swap over

THE TRAIN - Participants will form a line with someone at the front becoming “the train” They will guide everyone else around the room, all except “the train” will be asked to close their eyes.

Ÿ This allows participants to bond and develop their relationships in others in the group, looking at who in our lives we can trust is very important, also looks at focus and discipline.



BEGINNING CREATIVITY

USING STIMULUS


Take an object and pass it around the group, ask individuals to examine the object using all the appropriate senses. Then ask individuals what it makes them think about what they see, hear, feel, smell, taste.

Write down or draw key words taken from the objects

(This exercise can also be done with music and any other sensual stimuli)

Ÿ Helps look at response and imagination within the group.


DEVELOPING IDEAS

Take the ideas and observations about the object and begin to create story and characters

Use the words /drawings to help develop ideas.

Try a circle story in which we go around the individuals and get them to add the next piece of the story. Allow the group to run free no matter how much or little the story makes sense, its about being creative. You can run this exercise until everyone is happy with the results.

Example Kris: Once upon a time there were two brothers and a sister.
Gavin: They went on a bus.
Sarah: Then a witch turned them into frogs and flew away.
Jean: So they went home and had a cup of tea…………..


Ÿ Allow the story to go wherever it goes and do not set any boundaries or barriers. Allow the group the freedom bearing in mind that they may not have a great understanding of the narrative.

Take story and motivate group into smaller groups to interpret part of the story into a live still image.

Ÿ Asking the group to follow instructions and motivation to work under self control. Also looks at expression through movement


Ÿ This is the first time that we are working in small groups and allows us to see how efficient the group are at following instructions and working with more freedom. Also looks at expression through movement

Add one line of dialogue or statement to each still image

Bring group back together and show back to group

Ÿ First level of performance, Looks at confidence focus and control.

Work as one big group putting the images together

Add movement to move pieces from one to another.

Record with a storyboard using pictures and statements on paper

Ÿ Recording the work, using memory and response


Wind down and feedback and group evaluation - A brief chat with participants about what they liked / didn’t like / struggled with etc


Ÿ You may or not get to this stage, depending on time or ability, don’t panic just be aware of the time and try to get a little feedback at the end no matter where you get to. This is important for an analysis of the group and of your relationship with them, understanding their needs for planning the next workshop. It also involves the group in the workshop , enabling participation rather than a workshop that is ‘delivered’ to them.

Ÿ Make sure you keep a record of your sessions and their outcomes , this will help you plan your following sessions and also see how you can develop individuals and the group in certain areas.

WORKSHOP SAMPLES

UK Festival Workshop – Alison Walton-Robson

Outline

This workshop is designed to be run with a large group who have some experience of drama workshops but are still new to the form, are a multilingual group and with an assumption that participants may and may not have worked together before. Some familiarity but still a need to get to know each other better. The term ‘learning’ refers to the assumption that everyone in the group is learning from working together in that particular context.

Aims

To:
build skills toward performance
continue to build communication between participants
encourage small group working between internationals
push the comfort zone whilst still staying safe
build on identified strengths and knowledge
build the idea of giving and receiving info
build on paying attention to each other
listening and responding offering
practice useful skills in performance
increase cooperation with others or unfamiliar people
encourage openness and reception of the ideas of others
increase sociability within the group
find a common physicality of language
develop our own ways of communicating within the group
build confidence to initiate conversation/communication
offer or discover ‘visual tools’ or ‘physical tools’ for this to surpass language barriers

Warm Up
In a circle - the group stands in a circle; they are asked to all have a good look around and to really notice each other, to turn their heads and meet each others eye and to look at everyone in the circle. The facilitator encourages this and checks it has been understood by everyone using their own movements in an exaggerated way to ensure everyone understands the instructions. The smallest contribution is valuable - everyone will contribute in their own particular way.
Good mornings – facilitator invites a range of greetings offered by volunteers, to be heard, accepted and to be repeated by all the group together. For example;
- in all the different languages
- in gesture
- in as many other physical ways as can be invented by the group

Learning – allows the facilitator, who should take careful attention to detail, to begin to assess the group - who may need extra support to contribute, notice support needed, body language, e;g; if someone has speech problems or physical difficulty or shyness. It also allows adjustment of the session plan for later if necessary.

These Icebreaker exercises may seem very simple but can offer complex introductory interaction within the group and important of a contribution which is within our comfort zone. A hello is familiar to all of us and yet in this context becomes very different in different languages; this exercise gives us something common yet different. It is easy to do and for someone who may struggle with communication it offers a way to succeed in offering an idea. Warm up also begins thought processes, like a light bulb beginning to glow and offers gentle challenge.

Exercise 1
Follow the leader – Ask for a volunteer – this person becomes the leader. The person to their right becomes ‘the last’; the person to their left becomes the end of the line. Everyone follows the leader. As they begin to move around the room, using all of the space, this passes on down the line as the group all take their movements by copying the leader. The leader decides how we all move. The leader is changed by the facilitator when it feels right and they become ‘the last’ at the end of the line. The next person in line then becomes the leader and so on in turn until everyone has experienced having been in control.

Learning :

- Taking turns
- Observing others
- Retaining focus, paying attention and retention of info.
- Copying watching, listening and copying skills
- Offering and accepting ideas
- Teamwork
- Exploring the space

Exercise 2
Mirroring – Set up the group into 2 lines each person with a partner opposite. Notice each other, make eye contact, look into each other eyes. One partner acts out a version of their morning routine. E.g. brushing hair, cleaning teeth, getting dressed etc., This is very familiar information to participants and is easily accessed from working memory. The other partner opposite becomes the mirror and shows the reflection.

Learning :

- Taking turns
- Observing others
- Retaining focus, paying attention and retention of info.
- Copying watching, listening and copying skills
- Offering and accepting ideas
- Teamwork
- Social skills

Commentary
The above workshop is based on a session devised f or groups from Malta, Belgium and the UK some whom had met and worked together before and some not. The common language was English - though not everyone spoke it and it certainly was not the first language of participants. Participants spoke Flemmish, English, Dutch, Maltese and various different dialects within their own countries.

EFFECTS

Opening Doors - UK - The Journey

HEADWAY - SEVEN STARS - Kris, Jean, Tim, Paula, Andy and Mark

We can look at the success of the project through the thoughts of those who took part.


How did you feel when you first heard about the project?

Kris - I didn’t really want to do it, but my mum came in and put my name forward, she said it would be good for me.

Paula - excited but a bit scared, but alright as my mum was coming.

Tim - I really wanted to do it, but I was worried it would not be possible for me to go, because of practical reasons

Andy - I really looked forward to it.

Jean - I was excited but nervous at the same time. Ally said she would look after me


What did you think about the bag?

Paula - I thought the bag was colourful.

Tim - I felt it was an interesting collection of objects

Jean - I liked the rattle, because it was bright and made a nice sound

Andy - I like creating stories from the objects in the bag

Kris - I liked using the objects and putting them together and turning them into a story


What new skills did I learn in rehearsals.

Tim - We knew we were performing to people who did not speak English, so we took the language out.

Andy - Working on a show with so much movement. I was tired at first but got better

Kris - working on a show with no talking, never done that before

Tim - How to work on stage using masks

Jean - I enjoyed dancing in my coloured dress, and the beautiful music

Paula - I enjoyed playing lots of characters, rather than just one.


How did you feel about travelling to Malta?

Jean - it was scary at first, mainly the flying.

Kris - I had never flown before so I wasn’t sure but I knew I had to go for it. Once we were up there I wondered what all the fuss was about

Paula - I was really excited

Tim - I was ok, I thought well if I don’t do this, even though I had flown before it would be a wasted opportunity.

Andy - I was looking forward to flying to another country


What did you enjoy about Malta?

Andy - meeting new people and the food and drink

Jean - I loved the shopping, I like being on the wonderful stage.

Tim - I was a little worried I might have fallen off the small stage, but loved doing the show

Tim - I enjoyed the seafood pizza with the whole sea in it and the arcade we went to on the night out

Andy - I liked meeting people and the warm weather

Paula - I enjoyed making a speech to the whole group before we came home

Kris - I enjoyed eating squid, the nice weather and seeing how people live in other countries

Tim - I realised how Malta was a lot cleaner than England , no litter or graffiti.

Kris- Malta is not very wheelchair friendly.


What did you think about the groups from Malta and Belgium?

Kris - I thought they were very nice people, they were good at communicating with us and very helpful.

Andy - I think they were very friendly and made us feel very welcome. And Wim was funny.

Tim - I thought they were very friendly

Paula - I liked the people as they were very friendly and funny.


What did you enjoy about Belgium?

Andy - I was sad I was not going on this, but happy for all the others and said to say “hello”

Kris - I was excited to see my friends from Belgium and Malta again

Tim - I was excited because I had not been to Belgium before

Paula - I was excited because I had heard Belgium made really good chocolate

Mark - I liked going away with the doctor (Tim)

Paula - I liked the party after the show but was sad at the end when we had to go home.


What are you thoughts about the project ending?

Kris - I am sad because I have made so many friends and great experiences.

Andy - I will miss working with the other groups

Tim - very sad, I have enjoyed working and performing to two different cultures


Why should the partnerships continue?

Kris - to allow more countries to get involved making the project bigger.

Paula - So we can create more theatre with the groups

Tim - To build more bridges with other groups like ours, and continue seven stars domination of the world


How have you personally benefited from the project?

Kris - I am a lot more world wise and feel more confident travelling and meeting new people.

Tim - Travelling with seven stars has really helped me with my independence.
Paula - I feel more confident being away from my mum and dad

Jean - I thought it was wonderful and have never felt like it in my life