The Wonderful Wizard of Oz- Week Three: Chorus, Casting and Puppetry!

Week three, and what busy session for our Chameleons this morning! We had a whole heap of fun things that we wanted to do this week before beginning work on the final show next week. Puppetry, choral work and, as promised, casting the show and giving everyone their characters. There was a lot to do and a lot to get through before we could reveal our casting choices though, and the group again produced some incredible work this week!

We started the session by talking about the Chorus. What is the Chorus in theatre? The Chorus is made up of members of the ensemble which serve the intentions of the play. For some shows it might be that they are narrators, or that they are characters in the background who make up part of the larger stage picture. For our version of 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,' the Chorus will take on a variety of different roles and engage in a number of different physical theatre sequences. Our Chorus will be involved in nearly every scene, working to create the many magical effects and stage pictures which we have planned. It's an exciting role and the group seemed to enjoy the concept of having the chorus involved.

To help the group begin to think and work like a Chorus, we did some group/choral exercises- which involved them working together as one unit and moving their bodies in a number of ways. We kicked things of with a fun name and action game- where the group had to do an action and say their name, after which we would pass actions around the group, with one person doing the action of another to send energy at them, and the next person choosing someone else and doing the same. Next, we got the group to huddle together and move around the room, with one person elected the leader.

We last did this game during Peter Pan when building one of the physical theatre sequences. This time we asked the group to think about moving fast and slow, experimenting with speeds while everyone tried to move at the same time. We discussed how the original Chorus, back during the times of Ancient Greece and the birth of theatre, used to talk as one and serve (often) as the voice of the city onlookers in plays.

Once everyone had a turn at leading the Chorus, we played our favourite shape game. It's always fun to see what the Chameleons think up and this week we tested them by asking them to make shapes in small groups, instead of one large one. This week we asked them to create vending machines, rainbows and a pirate ship! The group are all beginning to feel more confident moving their bodies and using them in creative ways to create a world of different things. This will be a massive help when it comes to creating some of the physical sequences for the show.

We then stopped for a break. This week there was the added excitement of cake as we celebrated the seventh birthday of one of our Chameleons. Cake makes the break time that much better, plus it's nice to see the group celebrating together.

After the break we moved onto the second major theme of the week; puppetry. The final show will feature elements of puppetry and so we set the group the challenge of bringing some random objects to life. They were tasked with finding an object from within the room and transforming it into a puppet, which then had to feature in a scene.

There were some fantastic scenes made with a range of weird and wonderful objects. From a tissue and broom, to a book and a banana. The Chameleons performed their scenes to one another and there was some wonderful moments in all of the work. Each member of the group fed back on the performances they saw to say what they had liked about the scene. We enjoy allowing the group to give peer feedback as it builds bonds and helps everyone that there is a lot to learn from an audience.

Next out came our fantastic hand puppets. The group was split into pairs and each pair was given a puppet to work with. They had to bring the puppet to life, giving it a voice and showing us how it moves. The Chameleons all dived straight in and set about learning how their puppet should move and talk.

Again the group watched each smaller group's work and gave praise. Every single pair found ways to bring their puppets to life in different and exciting ways. Some had scenes and words, some had props and actions and all of them had plenty of character. It was wonderful watching the group tackle this task as it is different from anything we have done before. This term we hope to implement puppetry into the show on a larger scale and the group certainly seem like they will do a wonderful job.

Finally, as the session drew near complete, we sat down and looked at the script. One by one we talked about the different characters in the play, focusing on ones who might not be so well known. The Monkey King, Captain Oreo and the (newly written) Basil the Receptionist were among those we needed to explore before the session was done. When all was said and done, we finally revealed who was playing who.

The cast seem very excited to commence work next week. They did tremendously today with the amount that we asked of them. Some fantastic work was made and we are very excited to see the group get stuck into rehearsals for our big show. Until then enjoy some more pics from the session! See you next week!

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz- Week Two: 'What are you doing & what's in the box?'

Welcome back! It was week two for our Chameleons this morning and following last week's introductions it was great to get stuck into some acting and scene work. Joining us for today's session was the lovely Emma, Anthos's long time (and ever mysterious) team member and guardian angel, and Gaia; veteran of the Anthos Young Company- whom recently appeared in the AYC's 'H' at the Bikeshed theatre and 'Sherlock Holmes- The Red Inheritance' as John Watson. Ben was absent today, busy organising events for the Pride festival, but the show must go on!

So to kick things off we had chair games- where one person stands in the middle and has to try and claim a chair from someone else in the group. The others must communicate silently and agree to swap chairs without the middle person stealing either chair. It is quite a lot of fun and a good way to get everyone moving. Then we had the counting game. The group had to count up to three, repeatedly, moving around in a circle. However, every time the numbers went around one would change to something different; so for instance number three became a clap. Instead then of saying the number everyone had to clap. Then number one changed to the work square and number two become banana. It is a good concentration exercise to get the group thinking.

Then the Chameleons played the shape game, and had to work together to create different shapes. As always they made some interesting shapes but we also, for the first time with the game, hit a snag. One of their shapes fell apart as the group were in debate about how best to create it. We paused the session for a few moments here to talk about the concept of working together and, importantly, believing in their own ideas. The shape had crumbled because the group had second guessed themselves; which in a performance can be a disaster. The Chameleons were told that they needed to believe in the work they create in order for it to succeed and be the best it could be. Once we had talked they were asked to create the same shape again and sure enough (see picture above- it was a pyramid) they created a very good piece of work, with everyone involved. Sometimes these snags happen and we feel it's important to explore the problems, since there is probably a lot to learn.

Next we had a break to unwind before diving into some of the acting elements of the session. It's important sometimes to have some down time where the cast can breathe before we launch into more work. When we returned we played a favourite game of mine, 'what's in the box?' In the game each person has to pretend that they have a box, and inside the box is an object which they must then mime out. It is brilliant seeing what is inside everyone's box- as there is usually a colourful variety- from large cinema screens, to binoculars, to snakes, mice and even a unicorn. The game serves as a gentle way into physical theatre and acting for those who may be unfamiliar with it.

Next we continued with the themes of circle activities and played another favourite- 'what are you doing?' This is a brilliant acting game which has featured in our work many times before- one person will stand up in the middle of the circle and perform an action. The next person comes up and asks what they are doing, to which the first person says any action but what they are doing. Then the second has to perform that action and so on. There are always a variety of actions, which is why it is so much fun to play. From walking a tightrope, to mowing the grass and reading a book (for three hours specifically) to being chased by a T-Rex. It's a good chance for everyone to get a bit silly and have some fun.

Once the games were done the scripts came out. We had some extracts from the final script which the cast had to stage in groups. Each group had a different scene which they had to bring to life. Some featured Dorothy, some featured the Wicked Witch, but it was a good chance to see everyone's ideas for how the scene should look. Obviously we have ideas of our own but we like to see what the group comes up with, since this can lead to new ideas completely. As I've said many times, they are a very creative group and this creativity comes across in their work.

Lastly we played one more group game in preparation for next week's physical session. The cast have to work together to create a machine, but they cannot talk to one another. One by one they must go up and become a moving part of the machine, joining and connecting together to build the complete machine. It was a very cool creation by the end, primarily being a rather elaborate juice maker (and custard machine too).

At the end of the session we talked about next week- which we are planning to be a physical theatre and puppetry week- two elements that will feature in the show. With that another week comes to an end. The group are very passionate about the show- which is just wonderful- and excited to find out who they will be playing. Next week we shall reveal all, though there's so much talent that casting this show is going to be no easy task. Until next time however, enjoy further snaps from this morning!