Artsource The Music Center’s Study Guide to the Performing Arts ENDURING VALUES
TRANSFORMATION
THEATRE MUSIC ®
ARTISTIC PROCESSES
TRADITIONAL CLASSICAL
1. CREATING (Cr)
CONTEMPORARY
2. PERFORMING, PRESENTING, PRODUCING (Pr)
EXPERIMENTAL
3. RESPONDING (Re)
MULTI-MEDIA
4. CONNECTING (Cn)
FREEDOM & OPPRESSION
THE HUMAN FAMILY
THE POWER OF NATURE
Title of Work:
About the Artwork:
Life Cycle
Life Cycle follows the relationship of two characters,
Creators:
one female and one male, from infancy through child-
The Chameleons Keith Berger b. 1952
Sharon Diskin b. 1963
hood, adolescence, courtship, marriage, parenthood, middle-age, old age, death and finally, rebirth. On a
Background Information:
bare stage and without costumes or props, The
When Keith Berger and Sharon Diskin were children,
Chameleons use pantomime and mime techniques to
they did not dream about being mimes when they grew
project a spectrum of human emotions and enact the
up! Both were drawn to the theatre, studied acting, and
rituals of friendship, love and separation. Performed to
appeared in dramatic productions. When Keith was 15,
the music of Johann Pachelbel’s “Canon in D Major,”
he saw a mime concert by world-famous artist Marcel
Life Cycle is a work in which we see ourselves and our
Marceau. Marceau’s ability to create characters without
experiences reflected in ways that are playful, dramatic,
words had tremendous impact on him and opened up a
poignant and unforgettable.
new world of expression and artistry. He sought formal training at The American Mime Theatre in New York City and became one of the very first street mimes. Keith has performed his one-man show at Lincoln Center, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and for a Royal Command Performance before Princess Grace of Monaco. Sharon began her mime work with the Oberlin Mime Players under the direction of Keith Berger. She, too, had seen Marceau as a teenager and was struck by the
Creative Process of the Artist or Culture: Life Cycle was one of the first mime pieces on which The Chameleons collaborated. It began with a desire to do a story within a classic structure about universal relationships. They first started improvising ways to create changes of age solely with physical adjustments. As each vignette took form, they would outline and record the segments of action. Pachelbel’s “Canon” was then chosen as
fact that he worked on a bare stage without costumes.
a score because it was circular.
However, it was not until her participation in Keith’s
When it was completed, the
mime workshop that she discovered the true power and
mime drama was a cycle, begin-
depth of feeling possible in the art form. The Chameleons
ning and ending in a state of
began working as a team in 1985 and have since toured to
innocent birth.
the delight of audiences throughout North America and Europe. Their performance style is characterized by strong emotions and natural characters involved in real-life dramas. They are masters of the traditional mime illusions and acclaimed for their original mime repertoire. Artistic collaborators as well as husband and wife, The Chameleons’ performances demonstrate that silence, indeed, is golden.
Photo coutesy of The Chameleons
“Through silence we capture the essence of a moment, and in that moment we are transported.” Keith Berger & Sharon Diskin
California
Discussion Questions:
Sample Experiences:
After the video has been viewed:
LEVEL I
• Did you need words to understand the meanings
• Eye Improvisations: practice focus and concentration
of the vignettes (sketches) which comprise Life Cycle?
skills by asking the class to imagine they are watching
• What scenes do you remember most vividly? Why?
the following things using only their eyes to convey
• What scene was the funniest? Happiest? Saddest?
each idea: a tennis match, an airplane flying high, a bus
• How did The Chameleons make physical
that is late and then finally arrives, a spider crawling
adjustments in their movements, postures, walks,
near their toes, etc.
gestures and facial expressions to project the various
• Mirrors: in pairs, practice moving in a mirror image
ages of their characters?
of your partner. Alternate turns leading and following.
• What objects were pantomimed within the story?
• Walk This Way: guide the class to walk to a variety
• In which scenarios was a rose used? What did it
of words - backward, forward, on toes, on heels,
reveal about the characters’ relationship?
through slush, on hot sand, on a sticky floor, as if they
• How did the music make you feel as you watched the mime? • What happens at the end of the story? • Did you ‘see’ yourself in any of the characters and identify with their experiences? • Why is the artwork entitled Life Cycle?
Multidisciplinary Options:
are injured, afraid, happy, etc. * • Imaginary Objects: Create an imaginary object, such as a ball and explore its shape, feel its weight, show its size and pantomime tossing it in the air and catching it. Change the texture and temperature of the ball, as well. Using these techniques, pass the “ball” from person to person. LEVEL II
• Create pantomimes which explore ethical issues.
• Tug of War: divide the class into six-person teams
Values such as honesty, fairness and moral responsi-
and play this game with an imaginary rope.
bility can be examined in conflict situations
• Pantomime Activities: have students shine their
involving peer pressure, cheating, gang violence,
shoes, go fishing, write a letter, bake a cake, set the
drugs, etc. Improvise each scene to the turning point
table, deal cards, get dressed, go roller skating, rake
in the action and then freeze it in a tableau (frozen
leaves, sew a button on a shirt, etc.
picture). Note the characters’ body language and
• Instant Replays: create scenes in slow motion using
positions at the climax of the conflict. Resume the
concentration and muscle control.
pantomime, resolving it in an ethical manner.
* • Clay Motion: Have students move as if they were
Freeze the scene’s conclusion in a final tableau.
made of clay. When words are called out, they will
Audio-Visual Materials:
shape themselves into forms that depict each word.
• Artsource® video excerpt: Life Cycle, courtesy of
Possible words include sticky, sports, cat, etc. LEVEL III
The Chameleons.
• The Silent Language: use mime to say “I’m sorry,”
• Photos: courtesy of The Chameleons.
“I forgot,” “Is something burning?,” “My foot’s asleep,”
Additional References: • Kipnis, Claude. The Mime Book. Harper & Row,
“I’m scared,” “Surprise!,” etc.
* • Playwriting and Pantomime: create a mime scenario
Publishers, New York, NY: 1990.
about a day in the life of a specific character and write
• The American Mime Theatre, 61 Fourth Avenue,
a synopsis of the action to use as a pantomime script.
New York, NY 10003. • Berger and Diskin’s Show and Tell Mime (30 minute video). www.chameleonsmime.com.
*
Indicates sample lessons
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THEATRE
BALL TOSSING TRANSFORMATION
LEVEL I Sample Lesson INTRODUCTION: Mime requires concentration, control of movement and physical and emotional reaction to events. A fundamental mime skill to develop is the ability to create imaginary objects and work with them so that their essence can be successfully conveyed to an audience. This skill is called pantomime. OBJECTIVES: (Student Outcomes) Students will be able to: • Create a variety of imaginary balls and explore their sizes, weights and textures in a ball tossing exercise. (Creating) • Describe, discuss, analyze and connect information and experiences based on this lesson. Refer to Assessment at the end of this lesson. (Responding & Connecting) MATERIALS: • A volleyball. PROGRESSION: • Have the class form a circle and then toss a volleyball around until everyone has had a turn catching and throwing it. • Put the volleyball away and then ask the class to visualize an imaginary volleyball suspended in the air before them. •Use the following directions to give each student practice in miming an imaginary ball. • Put your hands on the ball before you. • Explore the shape of the ball. How large is it? • Feel the weight of the ball. Make it light. • Make the ball heavy -- so heavy you can barely lift it above your head. • Put that ball down. Pick up another ball you can hold in one hand. • Toss the ball into the air. • Follow the ascent and descent of the ball with your eyes and head. • Emphasize the catch so that we can ‘see’ the weight of the ball by the way it affects your hand. • Toss the ball to another person. • Roll the ball to another person. • Bounce the ball to another person. • Change the texture of the ball. Toss balls that are alternately wet, sticky, hot, fragile, etc. • Gather all of the balls and put them away until the next session. 3
EXTENSIONS: • Experiment with different kinds of balls: billiard balls, balloons, beachballs, marbles, footballs, superbouncy balls, giant balls, etc. • Practice miming other simple objects such as a glass, a mug, a plate, silverware, paper and a pen, a book, a pair of scissors, a toothbrush and toothpaste, etc. Work first with the real object, then with the imaginary one. VOCABULARY: mime, concentration, control of movement, physical reaction to events (as these terms relate to mime), pantomime ASSESSMENT: (Responding & Connecting) DESCRIBE: Describe the way it felt to throw a real ball, then describe the way it felt to throw an imaginary ball. DISCUSS: Discuss the specific things you needed to think about when you mimed the ball throwing. (weight, size, distance, focus, etc.) ANALYZE: Analyze the things you would need to do to show the differences between the miming of a baseball, beachball, small super-bouncy balls, and a ping-pong ball. What would you need to do with your body? CONNECT: Think of other activities that you could portray in mime and scenarios where they could occur. Emphasis on: Common Core - CA State Standards for Language - Reading; Writing; Listening; Speaking
Keith Berger & Sharon Diskin Photo courtesy of the Chameleons
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THEATRE
INSTANT REPLAYS TRANSFORMATION
LEVEL II Sample Lesson INTRODUCTION: Many television sports broadcasts use “instant replays” so that the viewer can observe action and plays in slow motion showing every detail of the physical movement. In mime, no special equipment is needed to create instant replays. Mimes make their own replays by controlling their bodies so that there are no stops in the action and no sudden or sharp movements. This slow motion movement is a constant slow rhythm that never changes or varies. OBJECTIVES: (Student Outcomes) Students will be able to: • Move, run and perform simple activities in slow motion. (Creating & Performing) • Describe, discuss, analyze and connect information and experiences based on this lesson. Refer to Assessment at the end of this lesson. (Responding & Connecting) MATERIALS: None
Sharon Diskin and Keith Berger Photo courtesy of the Chameleons
PROGRESSION: • Talk about the use of instant replays on television. Is everyone familiar with the technique? Does movement put into slow motion look awkward or graceful? Does watching something in slow motion allow the viewer to discover things they would not normally see? •Ask the class to find a place on the floor with plenty of room to move. Then, using their whole bodies, have them find ways of moving in slow motion. Don’t worry about doing anything specific, just concentrate on making slow movements that are uniform and constant. • Now practice a simple movement in slow motion. Try sitting down, standing up, and then stretching. • Try walking in slow motion. Progress from walking first in a regular tempo, then in a very fast tempo, and finally in a slow motion tempo. • Next, practice running in slow motion. Pay careful attention to the way you move from one leg to the other. Shift your weight gradually to keep the effect of sustained slow motion.
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• Select a simple activity to perform in slow motion. SUGGESTIONS: • Sweep the floor. • Comb your hair. • Wash your face. • Hammer nails. • Get dressed. • Fry an egg. • Fly a kite. • Catch a ‘fly’ ball.
Simple props may be used or pantomimed. • Take a photo. • Play the flute. • Pick a bouquet. • Make your bed. • Blow up a balloon. • Brush your teeth. • Blow some bubbles. • ‘Shoot’ a basket.
• One by one, have each student perform their action in ‘real’ time and then replay it in slow motion. EXTENSIONS: • Express an emotion in slow motion, communicating it through body language. Suggested emotions: anger, happiness, sadness, shyness, surprise, etc. • Create slow motion scenes with another person, timing your slow motion movement to keep pace with your partner’s. VOCABULARY: instant replay, slow motion, pantomime ASSESSMENT: (Responding & Connecting) DESCRIBE: Describe what you did to move in slow motion. DISCUSS: Discuss the specific differences between moving in normal speed (tempo) and in slow motion. ANALYZE: Discuss the differences in what you observe when the action is in slow motion, rather than at normal speed (tempo). CONNECT: Discuss the possibilities of moving in accelerated time (ultra fast tempo) and how this would alter the impressions, mood and meaning of an activity or scene. Emphasis on: Common Core - CA State Standards for Language - Reading; Writing; Listening; Speaking
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THEATRE
PLAYWRITING AND PANTOMIME THE HUMAN FAMILY
LEVEL III Sample Lesson INTRODUCTION: Combine the arts of playwriting and pantomime to create scenarios which follow the daily activities of specific characters entitled, “A Day in the Life.” Direct students to write a detailed progression of the actions and emotions to give them a structure with which to rehearse, revise and evaluate their work. OBJECTIVES: (Student Outcomes) Students will be able to: • Create a mime scenario about a day in the life of a selected character and write a synopsis of the action to use as a pantomime script for an original mime piece. (Creating & Performing) • Describe, discuss, analyze and connect information and experiences based on this lesson. Refer to Assessment at the end of this lesson. (Responding & Connecting) MATERIALS: Paper, pencils, pens. PROGRESSION: • Watch the videotape of The Chameleons’ Life Cycle. Talk about how each stage or age of the characters seems to flow from one to the next. Observe how the individual scenes combine to form a whole story. • Make a list of the emotions projected in Life Cycle. How do the artists use facial expression and gesture to convey the many moods and feelings? Do the characters seem natural and real? • Tell your students that they are going to create a mime scenario not of a character’s entire life, but of one day of his/her life. Have them choose an occupation on which to base a character from the list below or from an idea of their own. Remind them that in the art of mime, words are never mouthed nor indicated. Character suggestions: • computer programmer • fireman • automobile mechanic • teacher • jeweler • farmer • hairdresser • actor • lawyer • gardener
• athlete • librarian • nurse • secretary • tailor • photographer • model • maid • magician
• doctor • carpenter • plumber • artist • musician • florist • waiter • cook • mailman 7
• Next have them develop a pantomime revealing the activities of their chosen characters from the moment they wake up in the morning until they go to bed that night. How do choices they make about their characters’ personalities determine the way they do things, everything from the way they wake up, to what they wear, eat, etc.? • Then have them write out the scenarios they have improvised with descriptions of the situations and feelings their characters experience. From a playwriting perspective, a pantomime plot must be simple and easy to follow. Start by outlining the actions in the beginning, middle, climax and conclusion. Next, flesh out the outline by choosing an emotional progression to convey the effects you wish. Remember that the elements of humor and surprise can add texture to a story. • Lastly, write a synopsis of the pantomime to use as a script with which to rehearse. • Share the scenes with the class. EXTENSIONS: • Pair characters from the various scenes and have them interact in pantomime improvisations. • Perform pantomimes based on personality types, such as: grouch, dreamer, slob, perfectionist, wallflower, ‘brain,’ etc. • Create a day in your own life as a mime scenario. VOCABULARY: playwriting, scenario, character, plot
pantomime,
mime,
ASSESSMENT: (Responding & Connecting) DESCRIBE: Describe your favorite scene in Berger & Diskin’s Life Cycle with as much detail as possible. DISCUSS: Discuss the character you selected to portray through mime and the specific activities you chose for that character to perform. ANALYZE: Analyze the strengths and weaknesses of your mime scene and how you used humor or surprise. Discuss ways to refine these parts so they will have even more impact. CONNECT: Discuss how a pantomime is different from a play and how both draw upon real life situations and characters. Sharon Diskin and Keith Berger
Emphasis on: Common Core - CA State Standards for Language - Reading; Writing; Listening; Speaking
Photo: Robert Castle
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