THE KITE RUNNER Arizona Theatre Company Play Guide 1

THE KITE RUNNER
DISCUSSION
Kite Building Exercise
1. For this exercise you will need:
A) 15-20 yellow pieces of cloth (depending on class size)
B) 15-20 brown pieces of cloth (depending on class size)
C) Some rudimentary materials to build a kite. i.e. construction paper, rubber
bands, glue, popsicle sticks, etc… Enough for every member of the class to make
a rudimentary kite. No scissors. No staples or staplers. The more rudimentary, the
better.
D) A stopwatch
2. Divide your class into 2 teams, the yellow team and the brown team. Have each
team elect a leader, preferably a person with a commanding presence. For the first
third of class, the brown team is in charge. Their instructions are as follows:
A) First each team should wear their color. The team in charge should wear their
color as a headband. The submissive team should wear their color as an armband.
B) The brown team is to order the yellow team onto the floor and into a seated circle.
Members of the yellow team must obey every order from the brown team and should
be faced outward so that their backs are facing to the inside of the circle.
C) Generally, for every member of the yellow team, there should be one member of
the brown team. Try to avoid having friends match up with friends. That could taint
the process. The brown team should always remain standing, and the yellow team
should always remain seated.
D) A couple of members from the brown team should then put all of the materials for
the kite building into the middle of the circle.
E) Brown team leader should then instruct the yellow team as follows: “Each of you
has 7 minutes to construct a kite. You must construct your kite in complete silence.
If you do not complete this task in seven minutes, you will be punished. Begin!”
F) Yellow team should then begin and must complete the task in silence. Members of
the brown team should act as guards and have 7 minutes to get the members of the
yellow team to perform. It is important that every member of the yellow team has a
kite to present when time is up.
G) At the end of seven minutes, yellow team members should present the kites to the
brown team. Brown team members should break the kites into two separate pieces
and throw them aside.
3. For the second third of class, brown team and yellow team switch. Yellow team is
now in charge and walks the brown team through every step as instructed above.
4. Now each member of the class has felt what it is like to be on the team in charge
and on the submissive team. As well, each member of class has a broken kite. For
the final third of the hour, members of opposing teams must now work together to
reconstruct their kites.
5. Have your students write about this activity and how it relates to the play.
Arizona Theatre Company Play Guide 36