Applied Theater
Session 3 Recap: Beginning the Playbuilding Process
Tuesday, October 14, 2014 Filed in: Session Recaps
by Kevin Ray
There are many ways to create an original show in tandem with ensemble members. As facilitators of Bridging the Gap, Tim Connell, Sherry Teitelbaum and I use a process that is sometimes called devised theater and other times called playbuilding. Through playbuilding, we use theater games and activities to generate ideas from group members. We watch the group to see which ideas are exciting them and then we support the group in developing those ideas into a show through improvisation and reflection.
As a starting point, the facilitation team presents a central idea that we hope will spark the group’s interest. In the past, we used an overarching theme as our point of departure. We worked with group members to make plays that explored themes such as the generation gap, love, and food.
This year, we began the process with a new kind of starting point to offer returning group members a fresh change of pace and to give ourselves as facilitators a new challenge. Rather than starting with a theme, we started with a
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There are many ways to create an original show in tandem with ensemble members. As facilitators of Bridging the Gap, Tim Connell, Sherry Teitelbaum and I use a process that is sometimes called devised theater and other times called playbuilding. Through playbuilding, we use theater games and activities to generate ideas from group members. We watch the group to see which ideas are exciting them and then we support the group in developing those ideas into a show through improvisation and reflection.
As a starting point, the facilitation team presents a central idea that we hope will spark the group’s interest. In the past, we used an overarching theme as our point of departure. We worked with group members to make plays that explored themes such as the generation gap, love, and food.
This year, we began the process with a new kind of starting point to offer returning group members a fresh change of pace and to give ourselves as facilitators a new challenge. Rather than starting with a theme, we started with a
Read More...Comments
Amethyst on Session 2
Sunday, October 05, 2014 Filed in: Voices from the Group | Session Recaps
Bridging the Gap is featuring blog posts from our group members to give an inside view of what it's like to be part of the project. This post about the second session is written by Amethyst, who has returned to Bridging the Gap every year since 2011. You can see a picture of her in conversation with Jack above. Enjoy!
This week was the first time the seniors and younger participants came together. Since I am one of the senior participants, I was very eager to meet and greet the younger members of our theatre group. Of the younger members who attended, some had been part of Bridging The Gap before, and some were brand new members. It was very good to see people I had interacted with in prior Bridging The Gap workshops; but it was also great to meet new people as well.
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This week was the first time the seniors and younger participants came together. Since I am one of the senior participants, I was very eager to meet and greet the younger members of our theatre group. Of the younger members who attended, some had been part of Bridging The Gap before, and some were brand new members. It was very good to see people I had interacted with in prior Bridging The Gap workshops; but it was also great to meet new people as well.
Read More...Our First Session(s)
Monday, September 29, 2014 Filed in: Session Recaps
Two different generations of LGBTQ people met separately for Bridging the Gap’s first session(s) of 2014.
On September 27th, older LGBTQ adults aged 60 and up and younger LGBTQ adults between the ages of 19 and 27 convened during two different first sessions. It’s a tradition to hold separate, age-defined sessions during the first day of Bridging the Gap to give people from each generation an opportunity to meet each other, begin to form relationships, and air perceptions about the other generation in a safe space before both generations come together for our second session. This year’s first session was a wonderful mix of fresh-faced new members and familiar friends from the past. The sessions were led by facilitators Timothy Connell, Kevin Ray and Sherry Teitelbaum.
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On September 27th, older LGBTQ adults aged 60 and up and younger LGBTQ adults between the ages of 19 and 27 convened during two different first sessions. It’s a tradition to hold separate, age-defined sessions during the first day of Bridging the Gap to give people from each generation an opportunity to meet each other, begin to form relationships, and air perceptions about the other generation in a safe space before both generations come together for our second session. This year’s first session was a wonderful mix of fresh-faced new members and familiar friends from the past. The sessions were led by facilitators Timothy Connell, Kevin Ray and Sherry Teitelbaum.
Read More...