Blog Post #4 Theatre: Everyone has a story

Throughout my theatrical experiences I have learned that everyone has a story, and everyone’s story deserves to be told. I’ve developed empathy for others because acting involves putting yourself in someone else’s shoes. Below is a photo of me playing a homeless woman in a musical when I was 13 years old. This role made me realize how privileged I am and made me reflect on how other people have not had the same opportunities I have. I have played many different characters that have provided me with the opportunity to understand that everyone has an invisible backpack that they carry.

As a future educator I want to provide drama opportunities for my students so that they can understand someone else’s experiences. Some strategies I have learned, besides participating in plays, include writing in role, collective voices, and hot seating. Writing in role is an activity where students write journal entries from a character’s perspective (Dawson, 2016). This activity enables students to take on another perspective without actually having to act it out. Collective voices is an activity where a class reads a story together and then the students is divided into two different groups (Arts Online, 2007) . Each group is assigned a character. The two groups face each other and discuss a problem in the story. In each group all of the students collectively represent the thoughts of their group’s specific character. This provides students with an opportunity to take someone else’s perspective in a collaborative way. A strategy provided by Tompkins (2013) is hot seating. Hot seating is a strategy that allows students to take on the role of a character featured in a story. The student comes in a costume and answers questions from the class in role. This provides students with an opportunity to see the world from another person’s point of view. Understanding multiple points of view and voice is an important literacy skill, but it is also an important life skill. Understanding that people have different perspectives can help students develop empathy and compassion for others. Therefore as a future educator I want to facilitate activities that promote understanding different points of view.  

References

Dawson, K. (2016). Drama Based Instruction: Writing in role. Retrieved from http:/ /dbp.theatredance.utexas.edu/teaching- strategies/writing-role


Arts Online. (2007). Drama Glossary. Retrieved from http://artsonline2.tki.org.nz/ecurriculum/drama/glossary.php