The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe- Week Ten: Interlude.

Ten weeks! A whole ten. That a lot of weeks. More fun and games this morning with our Chameleons; though thin on the ground today as sickness seems to have struck. Better this week than the performance though we suppose. Still, the show must go on and so in the absence of the cast we needed to finish the play as planned, we rerouted and decided to rehearse the show as best we could from the start- with people in costume. There was also no Ben or Miles this week so with myself and Ella at the reins we launched into another week of madness through the wardrobe.

Before we got started on the rehearsal we had some down time with the cast. Sat together we talked about the show and about how everyone felt about it. The past few weeks have been very intense and we wanted to allow the cast some time to actually talk about the show and air any concerns they might have. This was important for everyone; we encouraged everyone to give honest opinions about how they felt. Many felt excited. Many felt nervous. Most of the concerns were about lines, some were about the order of the scenes. These are common things to be concerned about; and teaching the Chameleons that it is alright to feel this way helps to tackle those nerves which might otherwise get in the way.

Back to rehearsals and we decided to have a mini dress rehearsal. With so many cast this term we wanted to use the reformatted plan to allow everyone a chance to try on their costumes, The cast have been very patient waiting on these and while this was a far cry from the dress rehearsal we thought it would be a chance to try everything on without the added stress of the full run (everyone can enjoy it more this way). The cast are looking fab all dressed up and again we're excited to see it all come together on the Cygnet stage in a few weeks.

Following on from some of the concerns our Chameleons raised at the start, we decided to perform a run through of the show focusing on everyone entrances and exits. This helps the cast to learn the scene order, and going through at a relaxed pace helps everyone learn which side of the stage they should be on at what time. It's a bit of a dull admin task, but figuring this out is an important part of the show running smoothly.

After the runthrough we decided to finish with a game. The shape game is a great way to get the group on their feet and creating; so we decided to play that. Varying themes appeared  this week such as objects from a forest, under the sea and creatures you would find in Narnia (many wolves, centaurs and tigers featured).   

So we're on the home stretch now. One week of rehearsals. One dress rehearsal, and then finally the performance. Where does the time go? The cast are working tremendously hard on this show and it is looking fantastic. As always we are impressed by their efforts and very excited to stage the final battle next week when hopefully everyone will be feeling better. Until then take care and stay warm. 

Story-Makers: The Adventures of the Owl and the Pussycat- Week Three: 'Puppets.'

This morning's Story-Makers session was all about puppets. So far we have looked at storyboards for mapping out a story and building set/props to help tell the story. With puppetry we were looking at a different means of telling the story: one that does not involve actors. There were two types of puppets that we were looking at today. Those were static puppets and animated puppets. 

We sat down and read the story once more, to refresh our memories and remember what characters appear in it. Then we looked at some examples of both types of puppet. Static puppets are puppets which, in this case, did not move. They can be maneuvered around but feature no parts that lift or rotate. For an example of this we looked at some people-shaped cardboard figures which were decorated to resemble the owl and the pussycat from the story. 

We also looked at an example of an animated puppet. The puppets we were to create in the session were from cardboard and split-pins. Our examples were a puffin with wings that moved and a shark that had the pussycat on its fin: the latter of which being the part that moved. These were better for making creatures, or for making objects or people which needed to move or make different poses. 

There were mixed opinions about the puppets. Some story makers took immediately to the idea of making animated puppets, while others went for the static puppets. By the end of the session most have attempted to try and make both. Some lovely creations were made; both representing characters and people inside and outside of the book. 

Making puppets using cardboard as we did is a simplistic way of doing so; but within theater it is sometimes better to start with something simplistic. Often this will transform into something brilliant. In terms of creating a version of our story with puppets; making them simplistic is best, as we would certainly require a lot of them. The story makers did a fantastic job this morning. Next week we will embark on another adventure- either with masks or creating an undersea cave (exact adventure tbc). 

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe- Week Nine: 'Peter's First Battle'

We're almost there now. This week saw the Chameleons edge ever closer to the end of the show. It will be a somewhat shorter post this week; as our main focus now is rehearsing the material our cast have created and staging those final few scenes. A quick round of games to get everyone warmed up and then it was straight into action.

At long last, Peter, Susan and Lucy meet the great and mighty Aslan. The cast (one person especially) has been eagerly waiting for the appearance of the lion in rehearsals. We talked about presence for this scene; about how a king might talk and where they might look. How others might react to him too. Aslan's arrival has certainly been long awaited in the story and in our rehearsals. There is little time to bask though, as things move quickly for our characters from this point onwards.

Before the siblings can rest, they are attacked again. This meant another fight scene to stage. Unlike last week- the second battle between Peter and Maugrim is more intense. It meant more actions to learn and more time needed to practice. The boys did a fantastic job with the scene, however, and the fight looks great.

Meanwhile Edmund is still stuck at the Witch's camp with Gimmerbrick and the wolves. Staging this scene was quite fun-as Aslan's forces come to the rescue. There is a lot of comedy within the scene; testament to how diverse a range our brilliant Chameleons can perform. For such a short scene in the script- it has a lot of heart.

Moving swiftly on from there- the events leading up to the finale have been set in motion. Aslan, Lucy and Susan decide to head to the Witch's palace, in order to save their friends and strengthen their army. Creating the palace was fun as the Chameleons got to experiment with different poses that they might be frozen in. The scene also saw the return of Mr Tumnus, whom has been absent since the beginning. Safe at last the army is now ready to face the Witch.   

As I mentioned; a snappier post this week. Next week the battle for Narnia begins as Peter comes face to face with the White Witch. The project feels as though it is flying past now. The cast have done a wonderful job with the show so far and with every passing week we get more and more excited about seeing them perform at the Cygnet next month. Side note; we got a fresh order of Chameleon tops this week and so, as seen above, more of our cast now fly our flag! They look awesome. Until next week then; adios! 

Story-Makers: 'The Adventures of the Owl and the Pussycat'- Week Two: Building a Boat.

A new week with our Story-Makers and a lot of fun was had this morning as we got crafty. Last week we looked at story-boards and creating a layout for the narrative of a story. This week the focus was set; how can you use set to help create a story? In Carol Rumble's 'The Adventures of the Owl and the Pussycat,' the characters venture out to see in a box 'on the living room floor.' It made sense then that perhaps we could make our own boat...well it did to me; so much so that this morning I found myself on the bus into St Thomas with armfuls of cardboard and a bagful of stickers. Thankfully, unlike the rest of the week, there was no rain at all this morning. Finally some luck!

It's not all about craft and making, however. We played some games to get everyone warmed up first- as custom in drama workshops. The games are simple, silly ones which help the group ease into drama, as well as familiarise themselves with each other. Part of the mission is to build confidence and communication skills, so this aspect of the workshop- however short and sometimes irrelevant it may seem- is important for the group and for the facilitator in charge. Games are a fun way to bond with a group and learn about participants. 

We talked a bit about the theatre, asking whether any of our Story Makers had been to see a show before and what set there might have been. Then we spoke about how we could use different things to represent what we wanted in a story. For example, we couldn't have a real boat on stage because it would be too big. In order to help us then, the group got a chance to create their own boat which, if we were aiming for this, could be used in a telling of the story. 

Everyone got stuck into the creating of our boat. Using separate sheets of cardboard the group decorated them with a multitude of drawings, sketches, scrap paper and scissors. So many different drawings and stickers went into the vessel before we finally assembled the pieces, tying them together with colourful string to form the shape of the boat. 

Whilst facilitating is important, it is equally important within early years work to respect the space of children and allow them the chance to communicate and bond with one another. New friendships have started forming in the group; which is wonderful to see. A team based project such as this really help to forge these; with a common goal being an excellent springboard for constructive and positive conversations.

All in all a lovely morning with the Story Makers. Creating the boat was a lot of fun and, mad as it was, the final result was colourful and could indeed make an appearance again before the end of term. It has been a busy week at Anthos between all our amazing youth groups, so I will stop typing now and go and rest. Next week we will be looking at the characters in the story again and creating some cool animated puppets to help us in telling it.