Staging Youth Theatre

An informative guide to starting or running a theatre for young people. From the initial idea, through the tense days of rehearsal, to the final performance of the first production, it covers all aspects of youth theatre management, production and direction.

Normal.dotm0011901163SIU Press195141012.00false18 pt18 pt00falsefalsefalse!--StartFragment-- Fringe Benefits, an award-winning theatre company, collaborates with schools and communities to create plays that promote constructive dialogue about diversity and discrimination issues. Staging Social Justice is a groundbreaking collection of essays about Fringe Benefits’ script-devising methodology and their collaborations in the United States, Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom. The anthology also vividly describes the transformative impact of these creative initiatives on participants and audiences. By reflecting on their experiences working on these projects, the contributing writers—artists, activists and scholars—provide the readerwith tools and inspiration to create their own theatre for social change. “Contributors to this big-hearted collection share Fringe Benefits’ play devising process, and a compelling array of methods for measuring impact, approaches to aesthetics (with humor high on the list), coalition and community building, reflections on safe space, and acknowledgement of the diverse roles needed to apply theatre to social justice goals. The book beautifully bears witness to both how generative Fringe Benefits’ collaborations have been for participants and to the potential of engaged art in multidisciplinary ecosystems more broadly.”—Jan Cohen-Cruz, editor of Public: A Journal of Imagining America !--EndFragment--

In nineteenth-century Britain, the spectacular and highly profitable theatrical form known as "pantomime" was part of a shared cultural repertoire and a significant medium for the transmission of stories. Rowdy, comedic, and slightly risqué, pantomime productions were situated in dynamic relationship with various forms of print and material culture. Popular fairy-tale theater also informed the production and reception of folklore research in ways that are often overlooked. In Staging Fairyland: Folklore, Children’s Entertainment, and Nineteenth-Century Pantomime, Jennifer Schacker reclaims the place of theatrical performance in this history, developing a model for the intermedial and cross-disciplinary study of narrative cultures. The case studies that punctuate each chapter move between the realms of print and performance, scholarship and popular culture. Schacker examines pantomime productions of such well-known tales as "Cinderella," "Little Red Riding Hood," and "Jack and the Beanstalk," as well as others whose popularity has waned—such as, "Daniel O’Rourke" and "The Yellow Dwarf." These productions resonate with traditions of impersonation, cross-dressing, literary imposture, masquerade, and the social practice of "fancy dress." Schacker also traces the complex histories of Mother Goose and Mother Bunch, who were often cast as the embodiments of both tale-telling and stage magic and who move through various genres of narrative and forms of print culture. These examinations push at the limits of prevailing approaches to the fairy tale across media. They also demonstrate the degree to which perspectives on the fairy tale as children's entertainment often obscure the complex histories and ideological underpinnings of specific tales. Mapping the histories of tales requires a fundamental reconfiguration of our thinking about early folklore study and about "fairy tales": their bearing on questions of genre and ideology but also their signifying possibilities—past, present, and future. Readers interested in folklore, fairy-tale studies, children’s literature, and performance studies will embrace this informative monograph.

Youth Theatre: Drama for Life defines the youth theatre process, by outlining its constituent parts and explaining how these activities work in order to support young people’s development. As well as describing what is done in youth theatre, it also explores why it’s done and how to ensure the best possible outcomes. The book is in four parts: Part 1 explores the nature and purpose of youth theatre, drawing on Michael Richardson’s extensive personal experience as a practitioner and manager. Part 2 explains, in detail, the youth theatre process: warming up, playing games, voice work, developing skills, devising and the presentation of devised work. Part 3 discusses how to create an appropriate environment within which the youth theatre process can be most effectively applied. Part 4 covers the most common applications of the youth theatre process, namely using it in different education environments; and youth theatre productions and performance. On top of this, two appendices give a list of over 60 games that are useful to use in youth theatre; and a list of recommended further reading that supports this book. As well as giving key tips and advice from his own invaluable experience, Richardson offers comments from practitioners and participants on what makes a successful youth theatre experience. Michael Richardson has worked in youth theatre for over 20 years, has been involved in the training of other practitioners, and in the strategic development of the youth theatre sector in the UK.

This text explores how performers offer conscious-and unconscious-portrayals of the spectrum of age to their audiences. It considers a variety of media, including theatre, film, dance, advertising, and television, and offers critical foundations for research and course design, sound pedagogical approaches, and analyses.

The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre:Europe covers theatre since World War II in forty-seven European nations, including the nations which re-emerged following the break-up of the former USSR, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia. Each national article is divided into twelve sections - History, Structure of the National Theatre Community, Artistic Profile, Music Theatre, Theatre for Young Audiences, Puppet Theatre, Design, Theatre, Space and Architecture, Training, Criticism, Scholarship and Publishing and Further Reading - allowing the reader to use the book as a source for both area and subject studies.

Live theatre is an exciting, challenging profession - but how is professional theatre actually made? What are the roles and what does each person do? Which pathways lead into the profession? What skills are necessary to each role and how does the job differ according to the size of theatre or company? Written by the Acting Head of the Young People's Programme at the Royal Shakespeare Co. and former Director of Education at the Bristol Old Vic, this is a book for new entrants in the theatre industry needing a behind-the-scenes glimpse into how theatre is made. It covers each role including director, designer, sound and lighting, front of house, playwright and many more. Each chapter looks in detail at what each role entails, the main people who it involves working alongside and the skills required. Interviews with a number of key practitioners for each role provide authoritative and clear advice and insight for the reader. The book features interviews with all of the following and many more besides: Nick Hytner (National Theatre), Simon Reade (Bristol Old Vic), Mike Shepperd (founder and performer, Kneehigh), Emma Rice (Artistic Director, Kneehigh), Rachel Kavanaugh (Birmingham Rep), Tim Crouch (Writer/Director/Performer), Anne Tipton (Director), Stephen Jeffries (Playwright), David Edgar (Playwright) and Jack Bradley (Literary Manager).

This book introduces readers to the world of children's theater by highlighting one specific model, The Oyster River Players, a small children's theater company in New Hampshire. By exploring the history and dynamics of their own theater company, authors Kelly and Walter Eggers apply broader implications, expanding their focus to include children's theaters of other kinds and in different cultural settings. Throughout the book, the Eggers show how children's theater succeeds in helping young people learn in ways that would be otherwise inaccessible. Through forays into philosophy and history, as well as personal testimonies, the authors present a coherent argument for the need for children's theaters in nearly every community.