Making Meaning Through Movement

1. Mime

In mime we are using our bodies to interact with imaginary objects, people, locations and audiences. Working in mime has a number of practical advantages, First it can be immediate and by definition requires no props or setting. Second mime can focus us on the visual and kinaesthetic communication (stripping away verbal communication) as it relies on only gesture, facial expression and movement. Third it is something that all children naturally do in their play and even older students often experience a sense of pleasure in being allowed to ‘equip’ their work from the store rooms of their imaginations.

2. Expressive movement / dance drama

Movement work in drama can easily cross the line into dance. By adding movement or percussion to activities such as essence machines, transitions, storyboards, movement work can become more theatrical and expressive. Classes who are used to expressing themselves in more formal styles will often ask for music to accompany their work. Sometimes the work is set up as dance drama and the boundaries are intentionally merged.

3. ‘Move if ….’

This simple strategy can be used at the start of a drama to make links between past, real experiences and the themes and issues in the drama that is about to unfold. I invites engagement and encourages empathy. The participants stand in a circle and the teacher makes a series of statements starting with: ‘Move if…..’. All those to whom the statement applies must move to a different point in the circle. For example, a drama about migration might open with a number of ‘move if’ statements which require the participants to think about their real life experiences of travel, leaving home and separation. This is an active, personal and safe way of opening the door to engagement with the drama.