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       Dramatics requires the most social integration of any recreational activity. That is, it requires the ability to work together with each other for individual and group satisfactions, in intensive inter-personal interactions in social groups. A play is an organic whole, not a sum of individual performances. The inter-dependence of the actors is essential. The play grows out of the impact of the actors on each other, interpreting their own roles in response to each other. Actors use their own genuine flesh-and-blood feelings to give meaning and substance to their roles, tapping their real experiences in similar situations as they find themselves in the play; recalling how they thought about being in similar circumstances. From this recall the actors create the characters in the play. In circumstances where there have been no identical experiences, the actors use their imagination, and recall experiences of others with whom they empathized in those somewhat similar experiences. They say, "Lets pretend."
       There is a vital interplay in drama between actors, director (who is the audience representative in the play development process) and the audience at the production. Audience becomes emotionally and intellectually involved in the play because action on the stage is purposeful and believable. Actors say what they mean, know who they are. In informal dramatics they create their own characters and roles in a play which they create. In plays in which an author created the story, it is up to the actors, with the aid of the director, to develop their characterization in relation to other characters in the story, as written and created by the author. This is a creative process. There is balance, harmony and movement in the total picture presented by the actors. The director, as audience representative, is aware of the truth and honesty in the picture in keeping with the author's lines.
       People learn to listen, learn to appreciate themselves, learn to appreciate and understand the feeling and behavior of others - empathize if you will - and can offer better leadership when they appreciate human beings.

       Sometimes in informal dramatics we are asked to take the syllables of a word and create a skit around each one. Each small group acts their word out in front of the rest of the participants, who try to guess the word from the acting. One time my group had the word "neighbor." To enact "bor," I played a very proper professor who introduced herself as Miss Persnicketytit. She proceeded to lecture to her class on the range, coloring, and other characteristics of the Amazonian titmouse, all in an exceedingly monotonous tone of voice. As the professor made absolutely no eye contact, she failed to observe that her class had begun to fall asleep or leave the room. Eventually most of the class had left and those remaining were draped on the chairs or floor, fast asleep.

       Informal dramatics is concerned with individual growth and the group process.... The interest in playmaking is transferred from a slick end-product to the process by which ideas and thoughts are fused into action. Each performance is a complete creative experience, not a rehearsal for some other time or place. Rather than memorize scripts, the participants are encouraged to keep the dialogue fluid and changing as new insights demand new responses. No bosses, printed pages or deadlines interfere with the actors' spontaneous relationship to each other and the play. All phases of the production are within their jurisdiction: the result is an expression of their understanding and perception. The leader repeatedly enforces the democratic process which assures each member an equal right to contribute to the development of the play. Nobody is told how to portray a part, or is pressured into playing a role he or she does not feel comfortable with. There is room for the aggressive individual, who may learn to contain enthusiasm, and the inhibited one who may slowly blossom.

- From Action and Interaction: Connecting People Through Play by Lanie Melamed.

       The following outline was developed many years ago by Jim and Ruth Norris and Pat Emerson. Since then, the material has been a welcome and valuable resource for ECRS leaders of Informal Dramatics.
       This type of drama can be done most effectively by breaking the group up into small units (no more than ten people). Each unit creates its own story, characterizations, and production, including properties, costumes, sets, etc. Often the people themselves portray inanimate objects: a turnstile, a water cooler, a slot machine, typewriters, showers, automobiles, etc. In informal dramatics, properties consist of whatever there is to be found at hand. For instance, a ping pong paddle for a tongue depressor; a coat hanger for the horns of a bull: a large sieve as a catcher's mask for baseball: a lamp shade for a hat, etc. The average person is apt to be freer in improvised dramatics than he or she is in the more formal drama with a script in hand. One is apt to have a more creative experience because one understands the material which one has helped to create and in which one can choose one's own characterization, whether it be human, animal or inanimate. At a given time the whole group comes back together and acts as audience for each presentation.
       Although this kind of dramatics is improvised and spontaneous, it should have form in order to be enjoyed by both the actors and the audience.

A. Skeleton Story
       The same dramatic situation is given to each unit. For example, you are a group of people somewhere engaged in some activity and -

1. There is a holdup. What does the group do about it?
   . . . . . .
   Other suggestions are:
   . . . . . .
   
2. The group finds a wallet.
3. A fire breaks out.
4. Each group creates a situation that must end with the words, "Oh, my goodness, it's 12 o'clock!"

B. Charades
       Charades can be fun if they are done as theater rather than as a pun or as mental gymnastics. Each scene should have action, story, and characterization. This is done by dramatizing words, slogans, plays, quotations, proverbs, song titles, books, etc. For example:

1. Words: parade, service, records, rainbow, gastric, innate, pilfering, barbeque, pumpkin, carriage, showoff, Eastern, breakfast, window, earthquake, Baldwin, nightmare, fireplug, outrage.
2. Slogans: any known advertising slogan such as, "So round, so firm, so fully-packed".
3. Quotations: "Don't shoot until you see the whites of their eyes."
4. Proverbs: "Haste makes waste."
5. Plays: "Life with Father"
6. Song Titles: "Easter Parade," "Oh, How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning"
7. Movies: "Gone with the Wind"
8. Books: "Of Mice and Men"

C. Dramatized Songs
       This form of creative dramatics consists of dramatizing the lyrics of a song familiar to the whole group. Choose a song that tells a story that has form implicit in it, that has a beginning, a middle, and an end. Keep in mind good characterizations, action and production possibilities. Any type of song can be used. Folk songs are especially adaptable, such as "Froggy Went A-Courtin'" and "On Top of Old Smokey." The song can be played and sung as the action takes place.

D. Local Situation
       The material here consists of the dramatization of a situation or problem that is close to the group, that they can understand and for which they have real concern and feeling. These problems can be group problems, community problems, or even national problems if the group who is dramatizing them is emotionally affected. Strong feelings can be expressed through satire, burlesque, or real and sincere emotion. There is no law against being serious, however.
       This kind of skit can be used to dramatize a group gripe, and in so expressing it, relieve the pressure that it caused. It can present a problem to a larger group of people without lecturing, can stimulate thought, discussion and action; can dramatize the need for solution by presenting a comprehensive picture of the problem, not by solving it.
       This kind of skit should also be fun, or it is apt not to be done at all.

E. Tableaux
       A dramatic picture which tells a story. This picture can be created by the group and can give them a chance for real dramatic expression instead of having them posed by the director in stiff, uncomfortable positions as is done so often.
       Rehearse the story as if it were to be presented as a skit, with action and dialogue. When the story reaches its climax, the action is "frozen!" A picture should be held three minutes during rehearsal, one minute during performance. This is needed to train the actors to hold the picture until the audience has time to take in the emotional meaning of the tableau.

F. Mass Chant (Choral Speaking)
       (This form has been used frequently by ECRS leaders.) It can be improvised by the group when suitable material cannot be found. It is a little more complex than the other creative forms and demands a great deal more self-discipline from the individual. This should be considered when presenting the chant idea to a group.
       The Mass Chant is usually a drama of sound alone. Consequently there must be a variety of sound. Some ways of achieving this are:

1. Use the whole group as background sound and throw individual lines against it. This can be done with one person speaking aloud, with two speaking together, three, etc. Male and female voices can be used alone or in different combinations.
2. Tempo can be variedÑfast and slow, etc.
3. Vocal patterns can be made with sounds and silences, loud and soft, etc.
4. Mechanical devices can be used to vary the pattern. Sounds of bells, music, whistles, footsteps, etc., can also be used.

       This is a highly emotional medium and has to be handled carefully or it gets to be too much for people to take, both actors and audience.

G. Other forms of informal dramatics

1. Combinations of tableaux and reader
2. Pantomime and reader
3. Tableaux or pantomime with singing chorus and orchestra as background
4. Skits can be improvised with paper bag puppets, shadow screen, etc.

• When looking for a plot, explore more than one story. Let the group choose. Always tell them they can talk: they will always ask.

• As soon as your actors get a story and the characters needed to portray it, get them into rehearsal or they will talk themselves to death.

• A skit is created on its feel. . . . You may have to fix certain cues and entrances, but otherwise ad lib it.

• Be specific. When working out the story, ask such questions as: Who? Where? What? When? in relation to the situation. Stick to your story. Your actors love to ramble.

• Let the actors cast themselves as much as possible.

• Make the beginnings and ends of scenes clean and clear. Have one of your actors call "curtain" good and loud at the beginning and end of each scene, unless you are using lights as curtains, or a curtain itself.

Note: See Games chapter for other activities with dramatic elements.

       I have been thinking about the activities that we often do at the beginning of an informal dramatics session. These activities need to be carefully selected so that they do in fact contribute to the participants' comfort in dramatics, rather than creating more self-consciousness.
       As all drama activities, the start-up activity must provide:

• structure: e.g. context, specific circumstances, something on which the participants can "hang" their actions
• stimuli to the imagination (story line, theme, props, etc.)
• sufficient scope to encourage individual interpretations
• broad framework which allows participants to choose the extent of their personal involvement.

• the use of props
• a guessing game
• a problem or conflict to be resolved
• a situation requiring a lot of interaction between the characters.

       My fondest memories of ECRS date back to eight summers at Geneva Point. I remember the building of mass chants, and the use of tableau in the depiction of a scene, usually presented on stage to other members by silent and motionless participants. These were powerful and very real. Pat Emerson and Ed worked miracles in producing extraordinary events in the evening programs.
       Leaders didn't need power back in those days. The leaders believed so much in what they were teaching that what they gave out to those attending was devoured, and enjoyed avidly.

Formation:

Players seated in chairs or on floor or ground, in circle or grouped informally.

Object:

For each player to learn something about activities that one other player enjoys, and to pantomime two or three of these activities for the whole group.

Action:

Players pair off. Each pair converses for 3 or 4 minutes about activities they enjoy (swimming, sleeping, cooking, etc.). Each player decides quietly which of his or her partner's activities will be acted out for the group, and how it will be done.

The leader asks for a pair to volunteer. In front of the group, or in the circle where all can see, one member of the pair begins: "This is my friend, Annie, and she likes to...." (pantomimes an activity). Group allows time for action to be completed and then guesses the action. When they successfully identify the activity, the player continues, "She also likes to...." (another pantomime) and guessing is repeated. "She also likes to...." (pantomime). After no more than three actions, that player is introduced by the other: "This is my friend, Andy, and he likes to...." (pantomime). After the second member of the pair has completed two or three pantomimes and they have been guessed by the group, the leader asks for another pair of volunteers.

Action continues until all the pairs who want to volunteer have introduced a friend and pantomimed activities that the friend enjoys.

       The group is sitting in a circle. The leader mimes holding something in her hands. She says, "I have in my hands an imaginary object, It can become anything you like. a toothbrush or a pizza, an animal or a bicycle -- small or big, animate or inanimate. It becomes a different thing for each person. Show us what it is for you by using or responding to this object without sounds or words. When you are finished, let it return to a small blob in your hands and pass it on to the person next to you."
       The imaginary object travels around the circle from person to person, becoming something different for each person, until it gets back to the leader.
       To add another element, have each person pass on the imaginary object s/he has created to the next person as is, so that a person may receive a half-eaten pizza, for instance, and must change it into a kite blowing in the breeze, or a pet mouse. The leader may direct, "Let it transform itself into something else." There is more interaction between neighboring participants and the added challenge of transforming one thing into another.
       After the activity is over, the leader may ask, "What did you see especially vividly?" and allow people to ask others what their thing was, if it was unclear. This directs attention to the relation between actor and audience, and the process of communicating without words.

       Place two or three objects in the center of a circle of sitting people. I frequently use a long cardboard tube and a flimsy, single-colored scarf; other possibilities are a paper cup, a frisbee ...things that are fairly open-ended, not identified with a single use. Ask the group to use these objects singly or together to show what it is or what they are doing: for example, tie the scarf around your waist and use the tube as a broom, to create a person sweeping the floor; use the tube as a baton to conduct an orchestra or to twirl as a drum major: use the scarf as a matador's cape in a bull fight. These are brief, individual vignettes in pantomime, not lengthy skits although sometimes other people join in to make a more elaborate scene.
       People volunteer one at a time to use the props: the circle of people is the audience.

       ECRS has been, and always will be, a big part of my life. I've been involved since I was six years old, and I've grown up with it. I've gotten so much support and learned so much from many people and experiences that I can only say it has given me a great outlook on people, places and things. I feel that ECRS is something to stay involved in. It has evolved, and I am a part of that evolution. I don't ever want to lose touch with it.

       This game can offer situational experiences directly related to building acting skills.
       The group is seated in a semi-circle facing an open area which is used for performing the action. By way of introduction, the leader may ask, "How do you know what I'm doing when I perform some action, or where I am when I perform another? Generally, by relating my body, its stance and its senses to the action in question, or by my association with objects and people around me."
       A volunteer is asked to act out A-what, or a simple action in pantomime. When another member of the audience knows what "it" is doing, she/he joins "it" and adds an appropriate action. Others may continue to join "it" when they recognize the action. A-what may be an everyday activity, washing clothes, playing a musical instrument, feeding baby, etc.
       The game may be varied by having "it" choose to act out A-where, thereby selecting a location for his action. A-where may be a supermarket, a gasoline station, circus, etc. A-who is a further progression of the game, with actors impersonating people, real or imaginary. This requires more concentration and can be especially useful in developing theatre techniques.
       "It" announces in advance whether he or she will be performing A-what, A-where or A-who.

- From Action and Interaction: Connecting People Through Play by Lanie Melamed.

       In August, 1986, Eddie and I cut delightful animal characters from wallpaper books, experimenting with the use of finger puppets made from this medium. We explored together. During the quiet time, snipping and gluing, we talked. About what? Learning processes, people, behaviors, power (omnipotence), threats/hurts - perceived and real - fears, discoveries, life, death (I don't think Ed ever had a problem with his own mortalness.) We talked about the fears of many: to explore new concepts, to let go of constricting opinions, to fail without even trying, to fence-sit, to refuse to make a decision, to do nothing, accomplish zero. I jokingly said, "Hey, the road of life only leads to one place!" He chuckled. In Ed's warm and slowly emerging laughter there was acknowledgment. We both knew! He knew that I knew a secret he'd known for a long time. Faith is the flip side of fear. We're all mortal beings. We are not saints. In order to grow as human beings, we have to become willing to try (whatever), to open ourselves to failure as well as success, to change if need be. Ed believed in me. He never doubted the potential for growth in any of us. And of course ECRS was and is such a forum for human growth. To be an active participant in one's own growth is an Ideal . . . . and ours for the grasping.

ED MOYER as I see him:

E - EVERGREEN, Energy, Emissary, Embrace, Enthusiasm
D - DRAGON-SLAYER, Dedicated, Dauntless, Diligent, Dear
M - MARGARET
0 - ORCHARD, One-of-a-kind, Observer, Ordinary, Organizer, Open
Y - YEOMAN, Yardstick, Yeast, Yearning
E - ESPRIT, Emancipator, Encourager, Enrichment
R - ROOSTER, Re-create, Ray, Reality, Receptive, Resolute, Respectful, Repertory/Reservoir, Resilient.

       In this version of this popular game, there is no pressure to participate. Members may participate when they are ready. The focus is on the fun in acting and not in competition for speed or in the use of shortcut signals. All ages can enjoy "Charades".
       Players are seated on chairs, benches, or couches in a semi-circle. A player thinks of a slogan, a saying, a proverb, title of a song, a book, a poem, the first line to a poem, a word, etc. Whatever it is, the attempt should be made to select something with acting possibilities.
       When a player has something on his mind, she/he offers it to anyone who wants to act it out. The information is whispered to the volunteer, who proceeds to act it out for the rest of the group. The clear space at the far side of the semi-circle can be a natural stage.
       As the volunteer acts, players try to guess what she/he is acting. The actor may not talk or make a sound, but may nod her/his head to indicate if the suggestion is hot or cold.
       A few simple signs may be helpful to indicate categories for the volunteer actor:

A. The number of fingers held up indicates the number of words.
B. Fingers extended on one wrist indicates syllables. The number of fingers indicates which syllable is being acted.
C. Extending arms in broad circular motion means the player is acting out the entire idea of the saying, not the individual words.
D. Motioning with both hands behind one's back indicates that the player is acting out background material.

       When the solution has been found, the volunteer resumes her/his place in the circle. Another player volunteers a slogan and someone else offers to act it out.

- From Action and Interaction: Connecting People Through Play by Lanie Melamed.

       Evaluation is essential to learning from informal dramatics: it is the time for deepening understanding, for clarifying ideas and for gaining fresh insights. Without this opportunity for group appraisal, creative playmaking rarely reaches new achievement levels. The discussion should provide new understandings and constructive comments which would permit group members to help one another improve their skills. "What were the play's highpoints?" "What did you enjoy most about this performance?" "What was the most moving moment for you?" "How did you feel when you were attacked?" Only after the group has had a chance to build on the positives, should the discussion be turned to the question of improvement.
       Those involved in the performance should have a chance to evaluate their own performance before the group comments are solicited. Emphasis should be on how to work at improving one's interpretation rather than dwelling on the mistakes made. If Eric's sorrow did not seem real, ask Eric for his comments: why he reacted like he did, how he felt when he was trapped and what he might do differently next time. Since therapy is not the purpose of informal dramatics, the focus should always be on the character played rather than the individual. Criticism should remain objective and should be based on the positive aspects of the actor's performance to give him something solid to build on. "Where did the king give us a feeling of warmth and royalty?" "When did the salesman best communicate his feelings of loneliness and disappointment to the audience?"
       If the group discussion does not result in an adequate evaluation, the leader should be ready to express her/his opinions, what she/he felt to be the highpoints, the uniqueness of some character or turn of event. The leader generally has had more experience than the group members in this area, through reading, viewing or participating in good theater. It is important that she/he point out the significance of what was accomplished, and especially any evidence of growth or original thinking which was observed.
       Informal dramatic methods as outlined above can be applied to various kinds of productions, from situational dramatics to characterizations, pantomime, puppets, mass chants, etc. As individuals gain more experience their attempts will be more satisfying and their opportunities for growth will increase.

- From Action and Interaction: Connecting People Through Play by Lanie Melamed.