Week 2 - Brainstorming conflict scenes

First Lesson

• My group and Abdullah's group performed the conflict scene where I wanted to build the fence but Abdullah didn't
• It started off well because there were only four people on the 'stage' however as more people from the groups started coming up it was very loud and chaotic and couldn't tell who was talking or even who each person was impersonating
• Then we read a poem called Filthy Heart
• We had to find verbs in the poem e.g. beating and thumping
• Ms Ruiz put us into groups and then gave us a verb from the poem
• I was with Aman, Salma and Varoon and we had the word beating
• We had to act out the word while Ms read the poem
• We took inspiration from the heart when it beats and copied the same movement

Second Lesson

• We entered the classroom and sad music was playing
• There were chairs laid on the floor, papers scattered, the bin upside down and the table on the floor
• On the board we brainstormed what characters, setting and conflict must have happened e.g. robbery, abuse, fight
• Then Ms put us into groups - my group is me, Arnima, Sahil and Daniil
• We had to act out what might have happened and recreate the mess
• Also we had to include thought tracking (what the characters are thinking, they say aloud when everyone else is in a freeze frame)
• We chose to do this scene:

The drunk husband came home and started shouting at the wife and abused her, their child tried to stop it and the neighbour got angry because of the noise

Characters

Malcolm (Drunk husband who physically abuses wife) - Sahil

Innocent wife who gets physically abused by Malcolm but doesn't want to divorce because she wants Sophie to have two parents - Federica (me)

Sophie 8 year old daughter who always sees her parents fighting and wants everything to stop - Arnima

Mr Harry Potter Neighbour who always hears screaming, banging and feels sorry for Sophie - Daniil

• 

Week 1 - Introduction to Conflict

This week we got introduced to the topic we will be exploring in Drama - Conflict. We focused on Forum Theatre, which is a form of drama strategy where  any spectator in the audience is allowed to say 'Stop' and change or suggest how they could improve or completely change the character or/ and the situation/scene the actor is impersonating. However if you say stop, you have to go and take the place of the previous actor and act out what you have suggested.

• The scene Ms Ruiz gave us was where there were two people and one of them wanted to build a fence next to their house, however the other person didn't want a fence.
• They were arguing about whether the fence would be built.
• When Abdullah and Jamila were acting it out, I found there could have been improvements made in the character choice so I shouted stop.
•  I suggested that they both could've been elderly people and arguing about who lived there the longest - or something along those lines so I replaced Jamila and acted out what I had suggested

The class then voted which one was better. Abdullah & Jamila or Abdullah and I (we got the most votes).

Then the class had to decide which team they were on Abdullah's side or my side. Almost every  girl chose my side with the exception of two and every boy chose Abdullah.

I was actually really happy that I got all the girls because girl power is strong! 



Below is the picture with each character description.

Back Row

Nikita:- The caregiver - she is the young woman who takes care of me (the elderly woman) and warns me when my pressure gets to high or I become to angry.

Maria:- Elderly woman who comes every day for tea and lives across the street

Arnima:- Elderly woman who comes every day for tea and lives across the street

Famke:- Eldest daughter of mine who got divorced but has a child

Jamila:- Daughter who loves to party and goes to clubs everyday

Sofia:- Daughter who loves to party and goes to clubs everyday

Front Row

Tereza:- My best friend for 50 years who has lived everything with me and knows me inside out.

Federica (me):- Elderly woman (60 years old) who wants to build the fence so she doesn't have to see Abdullah's horrible face again

Nehal:- My dog named Ripley who pees only in Abduallah's garden

Rawan:- Famke's daughter who is 6 years old and sucks her thumb

*All the characters have names however I forget them including mine and so on Sunday I will check with everyone and update this post with the names

First Blog Entry Introducing Drama

MYP: Conflict Year 9 Drama
Key Concept: Perspective
Related Concept: Expresssion & Narrative
Global Context: Fairness & Development
Stamtement of Inquiry: We can understand how conflict arise at home, school and in society through the field of drama
Inquiry Question: Can controversy be explored through drama to represent different perspectives?