Going Through 'Theatre For Children' Text

Today we spoke about The 'Theatre For Children' Text that we had previously annotated. We were asked about the way in which the content surprised us and how this will affect our performances. All of this information should be considered as we prepare for our project.

Someone pointed out, that they were surprised the volatility of children. They didn't think about the way in which the children might respond to their performance, nor did they think about the fact that these children may have no knowledge of theatre etiquette. As actors we must prepare for unpredictable responses etc.

Theatre etiquette is the proper way to look and behave when you are attending a theatrical experience. Here is a links to a web page about Theatre Etiquette:
http://www.foxtheatre.org/TheatreEtiquette.aspx

Another person stated that they had forgotten about the extent of a child's imagination. Referencing the shows that we saw on our Theatre Trip- '39 Steps and 'Charlie and The Chocolate Factory', most of us found the performances in '39 Steps' more enticing, despite the fact that they only had 4 actors, 3 boxes representing a train, a picture frame as a window etc. While 'Charlie And The Chocolate Factory' had 16 million pounds worth of spectacular special affects, I thought that I could more easily believe the story in '39 Steps' due to the incredible performances by The Actors. It is worth remembering that children are more likely to believe in the story, if The Actors believe it themselves e.g. if a cardboard-cut-out is meant to represent a tree, then The Actors should actually believe that it is a tree for children to believe the same.

As my personal target is to speak more in class, I mentioned that I was surprised that the text stated that, "The difference between a 3 year old and a 7 year old is greater than the difference between a 30 year old and a 70 year old". However, I thought that I could of elaborated on my point, by stating that during our project we must always keep in mind the different age ranges and try to appeal to all of our target audience. I also need to take more opportunities to answer questions during class.

It was also mentioned that we may be The Children's first experience of theatre and so the whole experience may be very alien to them. The way in which our Tutor, Ella, explained the way they may feel us, is by comparing it to the way that we would feel if we were taken to France and were expected to understand the Language, without previous knowledge. Therefore, we cannot expect them to respond the way we may anticipate for them to, nor can we expect them to respond at all.