IB Theatre - Collaborative Project (first assessment 2024): Trestle Theatre Company

(4:45) Tension States

Aim: character work, improvisation, preparing for mask work and/or clowning, devising.

Setup: Participants find a space in the room. This is a particularly valuable section of Trestle work, which can be applied to any area of drama, including improvisation, script work, mask theatre, clowning and devising.

The following description outlines the physical qualities of the ‘seven states of tension’. It will be down to the participants to explore who the characters become in these states. The teacher/facilitator can provoke the improvising by asking them:

• What are your character’s intentions?
• How does your character feel about the other characters around you?
• Where is the tension being held in your body/muscles?
• What is your character’s catchphrase/mantra?

These are the tension states:

1. Melted: no tension, inert, sloth.
2. Fluid: no problem, relaxed, content, smooth.
3. Neutral: living, straightforward, void of emotion, accepting.
4. Watchful: curious, indirect, paranoid, playful.
5. Indirect: insincere, politician, flouncy.
6. Pushy: high status, legacy, authorial, iconic.
7. Stuck: immobile, tense, shock.

Don’t be concerned about remembering the exact terminology for the seven tensions. It is more about the feeling.

Trestle is a mask and physical theatre company: our mission is to inspire creativity through participation and dialogue, and we do this by approaching opportunities with an open mind, a playful approach, and our ever-surprising and engaging masks. Trestle has been making innovative physical theatre since 1981 and, in recent years, has focused its work on school workshops, performances, and teacher training; we work in partnership with schools, FE colleges, PRUs, and Universities to deliver the skills and resources needed to encourage high-quality learning through the arts.

(4:08) Focus Line Up

Aim: Considering direct address and focus for mask work.

Setup: Whole class/group make an audience, facing the performance space. Up to six volunteers line up in the performance space, facing the audience.

• Teacher/facilitator should label the volunteers one to six.
• The audience will automatically look at number 1, so number 1 is the major person on stage.
• If number “1” looks at number “2”, they have passed the focus on. Number “2” looks at the audience and now number “2” is being watched by everyone.

The game is to pass the focus down the line. It is essential that once the focus has been passed on, the giver doesn’t look back to the audience. The line-up must all look at the major person, and they are, therefore, minor.

• First of all, practice passing the focus up and down the line – it must be given and not taken at this stage.
• Now add emotional content, e.g. number “1” sees something a bit scary behind the audience and reacts to it. None of the line-up (minors) see it. Increasing the tension, number “1” passes the focus to number “2” who looks out to see what the problem is, (line-up now look at number “2”). Number “2” sees the scary thing and is more frightened, passes the focus to number “3” who sees it and is really scared and so on down the line.
• The tension and reactions must get bigger. The person in major must keep facing front and not hide their face. It helps to vocalise, but don’t use words.
• Try with different emotions, some emotions can get so big that they will need to go down the line three or four times. Keep it physical.
• Now try number “2” stealing the focus from number “1” (by looking at the audience before number “1” is ready to pass the focus on) and so on, but only one person must be in major at any one time.

The others support the major person by being in minor until it is their turn.

(7:41) Group Improvisations

Aim: Improvising as a whole class/group.

Setup: Majority of class/group as audience, with up to ten participants at the sides of the performance space.

• The teacher/facilitator will introduce the improvisation and allow the group to take it on in their own time. Characters can leave and enter the space at will.
• Ask them to try and keep in the role and not lose focus until the end of the improvisation

Scenarios that they could work towards, include:

• World disco dancing championship...
• Babysitting...
• An Audition...
• An Examination (use props, including tables and paper)...
• Visiting a Grandma’s house after she’s died...
• A blind date...

(4:07) With Trestle Associate Director Oliver Jones.

Trestle Masks are an exciting addition to any classroom or workshop environment, this short video will introduce you to some of the key ways into working with our three different mask sets.

(8:03) Some basic guidelines for putting on a full mask