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Final Paper – RAFT / Turn
Around Project
Monica
Taylor - 4522884
Prof:
Carolee Mason
DART
3P04
March
27, 2013
Turn
Around Project’s Applied Theatre Techniques with RAFT – Niagara
To begin to understand the applied theatre
project that I am proposing for the Resource Association for Teens (RAFT) it is
beneficial to understand the Turn Around Project. I am assessing the existing
connections between the Turn Around Project and the RAFT and proposing changes
and the addition of an applied theatre component to the Turn Around Project’s
association with the RAFT. This report will outline the background of the Turn
Around Project and the RAFT as well as providing a description of clients and
staff as well as the needs of the group. The proposed workshops will be
outlined and provide rationale to its efficacy. To conclude, this report will
explore the anticipated outcomes of the project.
The
Turn Around Project (TAP) was created September of 2006 at Brock University
when Dub Poet Michael St. George was hired to teach a class called “Alternative
Forms of Theatre”. TAP became a group of students who had a desire to work with
Jamaican youth. The goal was to foster positive attitudes, generate change, and
bring awareness to alternative ways of thinking. Since 2006 TAP has been in
charge of summer trips to Jamaica, India,
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Japan
and locally in Canada (Turn Around Project). These trips bring arts supervisors
and session leaders to these areas to work with disadvantaged youth and to give
them an outlet of expression and education through the world of arts. Meaghan
Gowrie, a member of TAP and session leader in Jamaica had this to say about the
experience;
“Our
mandate is to connect communities through the arts. So we offer a variety of
workshops in music, dance, theatre, film, photography, visual arts, culinary
arts etc. We try to enforce communication, peace, love, unity and respect
through them. In the past five years we’ve done projects in Jamaica, India,
Japan and Niagara. We look for communities that have been affected in one way
or another. So we do projects at the RAFT (homeless shelter for teens) in
Bhopal India (where people are facing the effects of the chemical explosion 20
years ago) and Jamaica (where we bring half of the youth from the inner city,
and half from the country because there is a lot of conflict and hostility
between the two groups) (Gowrie).”
Meaghan is one of the many volunteers that
assist the not-for-profit organization that has grown to incorporate many
dramatic and artistic educators around the world. The drama facilitators, for
example, work with groups of eight to twelve youth in one workshop a day for
two weeks. The facilitators run two workshop groups consecutively, one in the
morning and one in the afternoon. A typical session for TAP to run is eight
weeks. The drama facilitators in this time will spend forty hours with each
youth member over the course of the summer. In Jamaica, specifically, the drama
facilitators use applied theatre to address the conflicts that have been
created between the youth of Jamaica. Youth from the city and youth from the
country are brought together by applied theatre in order to understand each
other and eventually come to an understanding and respect for each
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other through applied theatre practices.
It was these practices of conflict
resolution that I believe would be beneficial to the RAFT. In 1994, in response
to the lack of services provided in the Niagara region for at risk youth and
homeless youth, the RAFT was opened. Community groups, service clubs, the faith
community and concerned individuals in the Niagara community, fund the RAFT.
The program provides many services to homeless or at risk youth in the
community such as the original drop in center operating five nights a week. The
RAFT expanded to include a “16 bed 24/7 hostel, a Steps to Independent Living
Program, a Regional Transportation program, a community based Youth
Reconnection Program and Community Development Initiatives aimed at
strengthening stressed neighborhoods and empowering at-risk youth” (The Raft
Helps). The community development initiatives are aimed at reducing and
preventing the number of at-risk youth in Niagara. Through its Neighborhood
Awakening Initiative, the RAFT helps build stronger, caring communities in
Niagara by engaging potential at – risk youth and fostering their empowerment,
independence and self-esteem. I believe that an additional resource (applied
theatre workshops) would provide a program for these youth that would enable
them to see their projected and current successes and help prepare them
emotionally for next steps they want to take.
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Workshops
and Activities Outline
Conflict resolution is the motivation
behind bringing Turn Around Project facilitation techniques to the RAFT. The
Turn Around Project drama facilitators use drama games, activities and
discoveries to foster an inclusive environment of learning and wondering. There
are many ways to resolve conflict. Many responses chosen by people result in an
escalation of the conflict. Physical violence, war, verbal abuse and silent
treatments are some reactions to conflict. It is essential that the
participating youth learn how to communicate with themselves and with others
about conflict that can arise on a day-to-day basis. The applied theatre
program may seem like just games and activities but it is building an essential
skill set that will assist these youth in achieving a happy, fulfilling life.
The program will be run on a day – to –
day basis to adhere with the needs of these Niagara youth. Most youth stay
approximately six days but some only stay one night and some others for longer.
It is unreasonable to ask these youth to commit to a five-day program when they
may feel that they cannot commit or may feel pressured into showing up. A drop
in daily program would be the most beneficial style of program delivery for
this clientele.
As each day would be different, a common
theme will run throughout them so that the returning youth feel like they are
experiencing something new and learning something new but new clients will not
feel like they are intruding on an already on going process. The goal is to
create an inclusive environment that fosters the safe and creative venture into
self-discovery and conflict resolution through applied theatre. To give an
example of a “typical
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program
day” a breakdown will be provided below for the hour that the facilitator will
have with the youth.
Warm Up: 5 – 15 Minutes
Augusto Boal’s “The Structure of the
Actor’s Work” provides activities that assist in developing awareness and
control of emotions. The warm ups that will start every session will be chosen
based on Boal’s principal that will aid in understanding personal emotions and
emotions of others when deconstructing the meaning and resolution of conflict. Boal
describes how “like all human beings, the actor (the at risk youth in this
case) acts and reacts in a repetitive way for this reason, we must start with
the ‘de-mechanization’, the returning (or detuning) of the actor, so that he
may be able to take on the mechanisms (of other people involved in the conflict
in this case) of the character he is going to play. He must relearn to perceive
emotions and sensations he has lost the habit of recognizing” (Boal 30). Muscular,
sensory, memory, imagination and emotion exercises are provided to achieve a
level of emotional understanding that will help the at risk youth find a base
to their opinions and beliefs about the conflicts in their lives.
First Activity “Two
Revelations”: 15 Minutes
In his book,
Michael Rohd lists several conflict-preventative dramatic activities that he
has collected. An activity called 'Two Revelations' helps rid of conflict that
might arise in the future. The basic idea of this activity involves secrets.
Two people form a pair and each member of the team comes up with a secret. One
of the team members reveals his or her
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secret to the other. When the secret has been revealed, both
individuals have to talk about them and identify what misconceptions were
formed by keeping this secret. This activity portrays the malicious effects of
secrecy and distrust. Rohd provides an example: “John and Jane are in a team
together. John thinks up of a personal secret. Jane thinks one up too. Then
John reveals what his secret was. Let's say that secret was that he hates Jane
because she always uses him to cheat on a test. Jane might have been thinking
all along that John doesn't mind. The bitter mistrust between them would grow.
Then Jane takes her turn to reveal a secret” (Rohd). When both secrets have
been revealed, a lot of mistrust evaporates. This shows the individuals who
don't keep any secrets have a greater possibility of avoiding conflict.
Second Activity “Bad
Sentence Structure”: 15 Minutes
Once the youth have experienced an activity
that reveals the issues that can arise from a festering conflict (example provided:
two revelations), the follow up activity will provide the youth with a possible
solution or a new conflict resolution skill. An activity outlined by Patricia
Sternberg in her book Theatre for
Conflict Resolution: In the Classroom and Beyond provides an activity
called “Bad Sentence Structure”. She recommends making lists of sentence that
promote the reduction of bad behavior. For example “rather than saying ‘I hate
you,’ which might antagonize the other person, you could say, ‘I hate what you
said about me.’ This may cause a change in the behavior because unlike the
first sentence that attacks the person as a whole, the second doesn’t target
the individual but rather the behavior of that particular individual”
(Sternberg). This activity will provide the youth with an applicable example to
conflict resolution. It is recommended that the facilitator attempt to
encourage
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youth
to share their conflict sentence resolutions to the group to give the group
more examples to think about. Of course, if the youth are not comfortable with
sharing they are not expected to. Forcing youth in these situations to step way
outside their comfort zone may lead to disruptive behavior, walking out and the
choice to not attend any more sessions.
Wrap Up/ Cool Down: 10
Minutes
It is always
important to debrief with a group after teaching them something. I love the
quote that is out these that to teach someone something effectively you must
first tell them what you are about to teach them, teach it to them and then
recap what you just taught them. The debrief acts as the portion of the session
where a solid conclusion can be driven home to the youth. It provides time for
individuals to discuss issues that may have arisen during the hour or in their
personal lives. These cool down activities will usually be facilitated in a
circle so the group members can feel connected and on equal playing fields with
their peers. Having the facilitators sit on the floor (or chairs) with the
youth provides the visual and emotional sensation that the facilitators are
approachable and accessible. The cool down can consist of the facilitator
posing a question that stimulates community discussion. The facilitator could
provide the group with a conflict scenario and have the group come up with a
solution together using the skills that they had learned that day.
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Anticipated Outcomes
Boal brings life to the anticipated
outcomes for this kind of theatre; “ We cannot live in isolation, under arrest
inside ourselves. We can learn enormously when we recognize ourselves in
alterity: the Other also loves and hates, fears and has courage – just like me,
like you, even though he/she, you and I have cultural differences. Precisely
because of that, we can learn from each other: we are different, being the
same” (Boal 2). Providing a drop in conflict workshop through applied theatre
techniques will be essential component to ensuring that the needs of all
clients are met. There are many at risk youth that will benefit from hands on
application of conflict resolution skills. The workshops have the main goal of
learning strategies and perspectives on conflict resolution but the
self-discovery that happens during these sessions can have positive influences
on other aspects of their lives as well. Building confidence, awareness,
community skills, communication skills and empathy can assist these youth in understanding
the world around them. These activities for this client group are activities
that they may not have the opportunity to access in other venues. Many times,
at risk youth miss out on extra curricular activities both in and after school.
The applied theatre drop in workshops at the RAFT will provide these clients
with opportunities they may not get elsewhere.
I will test the efficacy of these
workshops by providing a method for feedback from the youth. Anonymous cards
will be available for the youth to write their concerns and wishes on to assist
the tailoring of the program to the specific needs of the clients.
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References
Boal,
Augusto. Games for Actors and Non –
Actors: Second Edition. Abingdon: Routledge, 2002. Print.
Gowrie,
Meaghan. Personal Interview. 5 March. 2013.
Rohd,
Michael. Theatre for Community, Conflict & Dialogue: The Hope is Vital Training
Manual. Portsmouth: Heinemann,
1998.
Sternberg,
Patricia. Theatre for Conflict Resolution: In the Classroom and Beyond. Portsmouth: Heinemann. 1998.
The Raft Helps – Resource Association For
Teens. Niagara Resource
Service For Youth. Web Page. Accessed:
March 20, 2013.
Turn Around Project – Connecting
Communities Through The Arts. The
Turn Around Project of the Arts.
2012. Web page. Accessed: March 20, 2013.
