Workshop 2 – Sandy

For each of the workshop activities, remember to uphold the expectations of your class and the accompanying resources in the links and activities on the Respectful learning page. These expectations should be regularly reflected on and discussed as part of the activities for this resource.

Review p 34 of Teaching First Nations Content and Concepts in the Drama Classroom on Ilbijerri Theatre Company's education webpage, and discuss what is appropriate and not appropriate when learning about and performing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander characters in the school classroom. Note: your teacher may wish to review this with the whole class.

You may want to make these expectations clear and accessible for members of the class to access, if you have not already done so.

Learning intention

• To develop a deeper understanding of the play Stolen by staging and rehearsing a scene with a range of elements of production and production roles.

• To understand how dramatic meaning is developed from the play script to performance.

Assumed knowledge

It is assumed that you have completed Activity 2 on the Respectful learning page, including accessing associated resources on Ilbijerri Theatre Company's education webpage

Instructions

• As a whole class, review the scene ‘Hiding Sandy’ near the beginning of the play. 

• Identify the key images in this scene. Create a series of tableaux (freeze frame images) as a way to plan the next part of the activity. 

You're now going work on a class performance of this scene. If your class is near or over 20 students, your teacher may ask you to divide into 2 big groups.

• Allocate roles to explore this scene on the stage. Group members may be actors, directors, designers and/or technicians. Ideas about how the transitions between the multiple worlds in Sandy’s story of removal should also be explored. 

• Stage the opening image in which Sandy is fishing at the river.

  • • What actor choices (voice, movement, timing) and production elements (lighting, sound, projection) can convey the strong sense of connection to Country in this opening image? 

    • How can this atmosphere of contentment be broken, and tension built?  

• ‘Always on the run’ is a recurring line and central truth of Sandy’s story of removal. Choose a moment that embodies this notion of the endless search for stability, home, culture and belonging and shape the dramatic action into your performance to convey Sandy’s experiences and emotional states. 

• Layer this action to incorporate the emotional, social and cultural consequences of removal for survivors of The Stolen Generations.

• Continue to stage the key images of this scene and incorporate them into your performance through the contributions of various production roles.

• Rehearse and perform the scene.

Reflection

• As a class, identify and record the central ideas and issues in this scene. For example, Sandy represents the children whose removal from Country leaves them always searching for the comfort and security of belonging.  

• Record notes for this scene against the 5 ideas and issues in your logbook for later reference, including your theoretical and experiential understanding. Refer to the Unpack the rubric page, if you are unsure of what this means. You might also refer to the Study notes page for tips on recording your notes.