Battle of Gate Pa

'Reporting Live from the Battle of Gate Pa' 

A play written by Jenny Jenkins about the Battle of Gate Pa; 

the events of the battle and the reasons behind them.

For secondary school Social Studies and History students. 

A shorter primary/intermediate school version of this play is also available.

The play follows this format: 4 characters, General Cameron, Rawiri Puhirake, Heni Te Kiri Karamu and Archdeacon Brown, are interviewed by 4 news reporters at 4 different points of time throughout the battle to make the 16 scenes. This play takes only one hour of class time to prepare and produce. The intention is for the children to stand in a designated area of the classroom (e.g. the back left corner of the classroom for the Army Camp where a reporter interviews General Cameron) and to read their part from the script, after practising in pairs. Each scene is about 2 minutes long, so little rehearsal time is needed. No costumes or props are required.

The play uses nine actors, but may also be acted by a whole class, by having students play one scene each, e.g. 4 different girls playing Heni's 4 scenes, and being interviewed by 4 different reporters. The play takes about 45 minutes to perform.

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