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ACT III: The After-Play Forum
Imagine this: You go to the theatre to see a thrilling new play. Your mind is pulsing with ideas. Now the director and the actors return to the stage for a talk back. Most often, these post-performance discussions invite the audience to ask questions how technical elements were achieved, how an actor developed the role or how one learns so many lines. These questions can illuminate the artistry of acting and the fascinating technical world of the theatre, but few would claim that critical thinking is involved in the exchange.
If, however, the audience is invited to engage in a dialogue that is as theatrical as the play itself-one that builds on Peter Brook’s idea of “necessary theatre,” involves people’s participation in the event and illuminates the struggle to discover meaning in our lives-then that energy can be sustained and multiplied. Think of the richness of extending the performance into an all-group exploration where multiple, diverse opinions are expressed.
One way to achieve this goal is the After-play Interactive Forum. This design puts the focus on the audience rather than on the artists involved in the performance. Instead of a discussion that centers on the process of creating theatre, the Forum asks the audience to become active responders.
Daniel Renner, Director of Education at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, says the following about his experience with the Forum: ”So often we lose sight of the fact that theatre is a communal event. We might discuss the play on the way home, but we are already removed from the experience we just had with strangers in the dark. What this simple but elegant design provides is an opportunity for strangers to become a community that wrestles face to face with feelings, values and reactions to the primal issues of a play. Actors and audience engage in a sophisticated conversation that allows them to speak beyond correctness to what is important.”
THE MODEL
The Forum design consists of three parts: Statements, Exploration and Reflection. These three sections can be tailored to fit the particular challenges presented in any performance. Like a dance performance, the Forum feels as free as an improvisation but is, in fact, tightly structured to provide a safety net for the facilitator, the actors, and the audience. Rather than appearing as themselves, the actors often remain in role, reacting verbally and non-verbally.
The forum can be created by an individual or a team and is rehearsed with the actors and the facilitator prior to the presence of an audience. The devising is dictated by the content and mood of the play; remaining true to the playwright’s intent is crucial. It is not the purpose of the Forum to reveal new plot points or character developments but rather to excavate the audience’s response to the play.
PART I: Agree and Disagree Statements
After the performance, the facilitator greets the audience and reads a series of eight to ten statements related to the characters and their conflicts in the play. As each statement is read, audience members stand in support if they agree; if they disagree, they remain seated. Because the audience may have some initial shyness, this whole-group exercise asks for audience opinions without singling out individuals. No discussion takes place at this time. The simple act of choosing to stand in agreement or sit in protest creates powerful images of audience opinions. Now the seeds of community are sown. There is much laughter and camaraderie. In the first five minutes, the ice is broken.
The key ingredient for success is to design statements about which the audience is likely to be divided. For example: “It is okay to lie to protect a family member,” or “Rumors can be hurtful, but they usually don’t cause any lasting damage.” Often statements work best when presenting the opposite point of view from what the majority opinion might be.
PART II: Exploration
This section uses drama techniques designed to fit the style and content of the play. The goal is to achieve an interactive experience, garnering brief responses from as many audience members as possible. As participants express their ideas and listen to the thoughts of others, new insights are born, values and morals are explored and greater understanding is created.
Imagine...
*Following a production of “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” the audience targets how characters in the play were trapped by circumstances.
*Following “Oleanna,” the two actors remain in character while the audience asks them questions to uncover information about their motives. Then, based on what the characters reveal, the audience decides who is telling the truth and who is not.
*Following “Inherit the Wind,” the audience is asked to offer examples of other breakthroughs in science that have necessitated a loss or created a moral dilemma.
*Following “The Laramie Project,” the audience is asked if and how the people of Laramie have been changed by Matthew Shepherd’s death, the play and the presence of the Tectonic Theatre Company in their community. The characters respond to what the audience has suggested.
The first Forum design was created for my play, “The Wrestling Season,” a challenging play that explores the destructive power of rumors and the search for identity. Following this play, the actors returned to the stage still in character while the audience rated and ranked them on their behavior in the play from most objectionable to least objectionable. The characters were moved along a line of responsibility drawn on the stage according to the shifting opinions of the audience. Then the characters responded briefly to their ranking.
The Explorations section of the Forum asks the audience to engage with the characters. Artists work together to discover the staging of this section. How can the actors engage with the audience to explore their behavior in the play? Various techniques can be used, including Hot-seating, where the audience engages in a dialogue with actors who remain in character; the Participation Box, where those who are not culpable are argued out of a box drawn on stage; or Voices in the Head, where the audience is asked to create the subtext not stated explicitly in the play. These are only a few of the possibilities for exploration. The possibilities are as limitless as our imaginations.
PART III: Reflection
Since the last section of the forum is about closure, it is designed to create final thoughts. This does not mean drawing conclusions but rather summing up the collective thoughts of the group. One of the characters may be asked to offer thoughts that have been written and rehearsed prior to the Forum-or the closure can be structured as hopes for the future, words of comfort, advice, or final thoughts on a theme embedded in the play. The audience might be put into roles, as in the Forum for my play, “Everyday Heroes,” where they become mentors for young people everywhere, offering advice to the two young brothers in the play. During this section, the facilitator charges the audience to negotiate this final phase by themselves, taking turns without being called on. The result is a litany of thoughts, the audience’s individual and collective commentary.
THE FACILITATOR
Much of the success of the forum is dependent on the facilitator’s energy and attitude. Using few words, the facilitator establishes benevolent leadership, explaining each step with simple, clear directions, never asking the audience’s permission by saying “Okay?” at the end of sentences.
The facilitator explains that the forum is a space where we can agree to disagree, that many disparate opinions will be offered; all will be given equal validity. Throughout the Forum, the facilitator accepts audience responses with neutral comments, such as “thank you,” never using status to skew the nature of a free exchange of ideas by offering an opinion. If an audience member offers a problematic response, the facilitator need only ask, “Does everyone agree with that?” then step back and allow the audience to respond. It is never the task of the facilitator to teach but rather to assist and promote safe participation.
The facilitator repeats audience comments, paraphrasing the general idea. This repetition is necessary to define and clarify, but often it is merely to help the audience hear a soft-spoken or hesitant offering. It may be necessary to condense a long-winded participant by politely interrupting and consolidating the response. For this part of the forum, the facilitator’s biggest challenge is to listen carefully.
During the Reflection, after having given instructions, the facilitator remains silent in order to allow the audience to negotiate the closure. “If you have something to say,” the facilitator charges the audience, “stand and take your turn.” Experience has proved that audiences are amazingly respectful and generous during this phase of the Forum if the facilitator gives concise directions and trusts their ability to take turns. When responses have begun to diminish, the facilitator ends the forum, thanking the audience for their participation and encouraging them to continue the dialogue. The actors de-role and take their curtain call.
IN CONCLUSION
What happens if we take the risk of combining high quality performance with active challenge? What might be the result of audiences who are engaged as active responders?
Jeff Church, Producing Artistic Director of The Coterie Theatre in Kansas City, MO, where the first Forum designs were developed, offers his thoughts. “Ultimately this was clear: Without the Forum included at the end of performances, the applause was polite. With the Forum, the audience was on its feet, having taken ownership of the experience.”
If we create post-performance experiences that are as challenging and theatrical as the performance itself, we extend the meaning of the play, create community through shared experience and value our audiences beyond the role of spectator. Most importantly, we give audiences the truly rare experience of engaging in an open debate without having to reach conclusions about who is right and who is wrong-and that is a satisfying conclusion to an evening of theatre!
To continue the conversation about audience talk backs, visit the DramaBiz Forum at www.dramabiz.com/forum
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©2008 DramaBiz Magazine. All Rights Reserved.
©2007 Dramabiz Magazine. All Rights Reserved.