Boal strategies: Arsenal of the Oppressed – the ‘blind series’
table of contents
What is the Arsenal?
Magnets
The Blind Car
The great game of power
Handshakes
Establishing a Healthy Group Dynamic:
· Devoting time and attention to this at the beginning of the process
· Offering opportunities for fun relaxed ways of working to develop
· Lots of simultaneous activity that has success built in
· Attending to problems in the way students relate to each other
Magnets
In this series we deny ourselves the sense of sight, in order to enhance our other senses and our capacity to use them for perception
Participants close eyes walk slowly around the room with arms folded
In the first part of the game if anyone touches anyone else they must back off quickly: the magnet is negative.
After a few minutes the magnet becomes positive. From now on if you touch anyone you must stay stuck together and continue to move.
The Blind Car
- Group in pairs: one person stands behind another, who is the car. From behind, the driver guides the movements of the ‘blind car’ (person with eyes closed), by using a series of ‘signals’, e.g. finger in middle of back = go forward, on the left shoulder = go left, on the right shoulder = go right, on the neck = reverse.
- As there are a number of cars, it is important to avoid ‘crashes’. The cars stop when the drivers stop touching them.
Columbian Hypnosis
- Find a partner: A and B.
- A raise hand so that palm is facing out. Move this arm slowly. B to follow this with face, from a short distance away. Move through levels, etc. Not trying to catch the other person out.
- Repeat: swap A and B.
- Do as a whole group.
- How does it feel to lead? How does it feel to follow?
The Great Game of Power
- Table, five chairs, bottle.
- Arrange the objects so that one of the chairs is the most powerful object.
- Objects can be moved/placed any way you like, but must not be removed.
- When the most powerful is found: one person to come in to the image, take up the most powerful position without moving anything else. Others: can enter and try to take away this power.
Handshakes / Complete the Image
Two people shake hands and freeze
Group reads the image: who could they be? What is the situation eg business meeting, friends
One participant leaves: new person comes in, takes up a position that completes the image
Drama and Picture Books
The Watertower
The Watertower by Gary Crew and Steve Woolman (1994) is an excellent example of a text that can be read in multiple ways. These different readings are provided through various postmodern features of the text, particularly the indeterminacy of the plot, intertextuality, the contesting discourses of illustrative and written text and the unusual formatting and layout of the book. All of these features invite the use of critical practice in order to unlock the various meanings. This book challenges the parameters of the picture book genre and introduces science fiction although there is no suggestion of science fiction throughout the written text. It is the illustrative text that causes the reader to access previous experiences with science fiction texts (mainly movies). Steve Woolman uses shape, line and colour to turn a harmless looking water tower in to sinister object with alien undertones. The astmosphere is reinforced by a strange symbol on the tower which reappears all over the town and on clothing. This symbol appears to have power over the characters in the later scenes in the book. (Double spread) The people are facing the reader but their eyes are focussing on the tower with an eerie expression.
The Watertower provides the opportunity to explore how symbolism and intertextuality work to provide other readings and meanings.
The design and layout of the book position the reader to read in different ways.
I believe that it is not enough to simply read this text, it needs reading and rereading. It requires examination and deconstruction. It is though inquiry that students will be given the tools to interrogate the text and unearth the multiple meanings. The following lesson plan investigates the text via drama strategy. It is note at this stage that every drama is different depending on the group of students, the particular time and the particular context. Therefore there can be different departures.
Key Questions: My key questions in planning for this departure relate to the town:
What kind of town is it?
Where is this town?
Who lives there?
What is happening?
How do they feel about visitors?
What is their response?
Each presenter will have their own key questions, purpose, the key questions may relate more to Bubba and Spike and therefore the departure would engage different strategies, strategies relating more to characterisation eg costuming
Introduce the Book: Discussion
· Read to page 18 Stop Bubba is alone in the tank
Drama Strategy; Soundscaping
Divide the group into small groups. Create the sounds =that Bubba hears in the tower. What was it like in there?
Use objects and voices
Contrast; loud and soft.
Each group ‘performs’ their soundscape. It is important that the remainder of the group listen with eyes closed. This enables the creation of atmosphere
· Read the remainder of the book
Discuss symbols and pictures how do they alter the written text?
Introduce the focus questions:
What kind of town is it?
Where is this town?
Who lives there?
What is happening?
How do they feel about visitors?
What is their response?
Strategy: Mapping the Town of Preston
In groups students map the town of Preston. As they work teacher moves between the groups posing questions.
As the students map they are asked to identify the type of characters who live in Preston (eg shopkeeper, teacher, doctor etc) . This activity can be used to develop character profiles for a whole group role play.
Groups share their maps, questions from other groups.
Strategy: Tableaux
Revisit page 2, 6, 16. Discuss the fence. Why is it broken/ how has this happened. In groups students create a tableaux to demonstrate what they think may have happened to the fence. The tableaus are presented. Before dynamisation the remainder of the students predict what they think is happening. Group dynamises to confirm or reject these predictions
Another departure for this section could be a whole group role play with the Mayor calling a town meeting to announce and discuss the damage to the fence.
Strategy: Inner circle Outer circle
Students are asked to sit on the circle. Every second person moves in to form an innercircle. Teacher in role as a newspaper editor speaks only to the inner circle asking them to visit the town of Preston to investigate the rumours that have been circulating in regard to the watertower. Impress on them the need to talk to locals and find out their fears, feelings etc. Inner circle turns and interviews outer circle.
Purpose: Building narrative
Inner circle turn back into the centre to report their findings
Strategy: Headlines and Graffiti
Two large sheets of paper are made available and the reporters write the headline they would use for a feature story about Preston. Meanwhile the outercircle students write their feelings about the reporters and their intrusion. Sharing.
Creation of spontaneous poem
Strategy: Tableaux/moving through time
In groups students work to create two tableaux
Two years before this time
Two years later
Other strategies/departures
Costuming
Hotseating
Process Drama
Writing Opportunities
Write a letter to a friend who lives in another town. What would you tell them?
Bubba’s journal entries. Before he went to the watertower that day. His entry the next day.
The newspaper story
Writing in role as the council Clerk writing the minutes of the town meeting.
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