On Thursday evening, following a second thought-provoking session on Neurodiversity led by Mrs Sadler (Director of Academic Inclusion), the full cast of the Joint Play from Merchant Taylors’ and St Helen’s took part in a four-hour workshop with Frantic Assembly. This company choreographed the movement for the original West End production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, so this was a fantastic opportunity for the pupils. The cast were brilliant during the workshop; they threw themselves into every activity, took risks, and collaborated with effect across year groups and schools. Drama Scholars Krish P. (Divs) and Markus F. (Divs) who are involved in the production review the workshop below. Rehearsals are well underway, and tickets will go on sale shortly.
Krish P. (Divs), Drama Scholar, writes:
We learnt a multitude of skills including different ways to lift people up and how to choreograph short movement pieces. This was accomplished through a series of warm-up tasks that truly tested our ability to multitask and our ability to respond to others. Afterwards, we attempted the lifts together to create a piece of theatre which was interesting, not just through speech or storyline, but by how it was physically portrayed on the stage. The lifts were particularly useful, as in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, the main character, Christopher, needs to be lifted or moved around in several of the scenes.
At first it seemed counterintuitive to wrap your arms around somebody and try to hoist them up, because it seemed unnatural and messy. However, with practice, instead of looking strange, it looked elegant, especially when larger groups of people worked together. The movement pieces were also useful to learn about. Christopher often feels alone and if we can surround him with different movements, we can convey how he feels.
Overall, the workshop taught us many valuable theatrical skills and will greatly aid us during our rehearsals. We are incredibly thankful for the opportunity to be taught by a professional actor and to see the kinds of things that they would do when rehearsing for one of their own productions.
Markus F. (Divs) Drama Scholar, writes:
The workshop with Frantic Assembly focused specifically on movement in acting. The Drama Department is putting on The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time for the Senior Play this year, and Frantic Assembly is the theatre company that originally choreographed the movement for that show. We started the workshop with a full body warm up – extremely important before we tried any lifts. After that, we did an exercise called “push hands”, where one person put their hand on top, the other person put their hand below, and both people had to press their hand into the other. The person with their hand on top became the leader, and had to guide their partner around the room, just by pressing their hand into the other person’s.
After that, we did a support exercise in which you and your partner leaned against one another so that both of you could lift your inside leg and still be supported and balanced. Then, we moved onto some complex stage lifts all based on technique, not strength. This was good, because it meant that with the correct technique, it became easy to lift someone off the ground, no matter who they were. Lifts included the “wrap lift” and “jetpack lift”, which you can find out more about on the Frantic Assembly website.
After we finished the lifts, we moved on to some choreography. We learnt a sequence that will influence the choreography for the train station scene and a walking sequence that will be developed when Christopher, the main character, arrives in London. They are more visual experiences than ones that I can explain, so you’ll just have to come and watch the production in November!
