Assignment: Storytime Performance

DUE: Thursday Oct 13

Using the book you read for the Book Report assignment, write a short script (5-10 mins performance time) that tells a story from the book, or from additional research inspired by something you read in the book.  The story can be of an event or events, a place, or a character or three.  It should not be purely the story of an idea or concept from the book, though if the story of a person (or whatever) dovetails with a concept, that is lovely.

Additionally, your story should involve a Map (capital “M”) in some manner.

You yourself should be a performer in the piece, with the specific role of “presenting” the story to us — think about the different ways structurally that this can be accomplished (c.f. the use of narrative in Radiolab, or other “narrative theater” examples we’ve talked about.) Additionally, you should use at least 1 but not more than 3 of your classmates as actors for additional roles.

Your script should also include:

  • context and/or environment
  • character(s)
  • action
  • a specifically chosen costume element for each character
  • a scenic, video, and/or sound element related to the context or environment
  • a prop

You can (perhaps even should) utilize other work you have done thus far, where you find natural, interesting, or thought-provoking connections (like the juxtapositions we did in class, but now you can pick and choose for content, decide which things are better juxtaposed with one another than other things.)

Write your script in whatever program you choose; we will later transfer these scripts into CeltX, which is the software we will be primarily using for scriptwriting for the rest of the semester.

You should find a small amount of rehearsal time with your classmates prior to class, but it is ok for it to be rough — think of this as a lightly-staged reading of your script.  Your actors may be on book. You will also each have a few minutes of rehearsal time on Thursday, prior to showing your work.  You will be presenting your pieces in the Shared Dance Studio; so even if you don’t rehearse in that space, be sure to think about that space and how you want your performance situated within it.

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