ISTA-Scene June 08

Scene2007-8 June Issue 4THE QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF THE INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLS THEATRE ASSOCIATIONIN THIS ISSUE: ISTA PAST, PRESENT AND FUTUREPATRICIA ZICH 1933-2007: The International Theatre Educator www.ista.co.uk

Pat and her son Rick, in Cortland, 1966 Pat in Cortland, 1976Pat in London with Rick, 1993you while you are busy making plans.” And,so it seems – life has just happened to meand, mostly, it has proved to be the rightthing at the right time. I still don’t have timeto make plans...From Michael Thomas, Regent’sSchool Pattaya, ThailandI was very saddened to read theannouncement of the passing of Pat Zichon the website. To say that Pat was aninspirational figure is an understatement.Pat was the founder and life force of ISTAwho, in my mind, stands shoulder toshoulder with such luminaries as DorothyHeathcote in the pantheon of Drama-in-Education. The great organization that ISTAis today originates from Pat’s courage,determination and extraordinary creativity.Yet, she always set aside time to listen andmade one feel valued as an individual.From Ken Woollard, Ex British Schoolof Brussels, BelgiumAbout twenty-five years ago our firstPrincipal came back from a visit to a schoolin the Netherlands with the news that therewas a drama association that we HAD tojoin. “Your choice, of course, because you’llbe doing it, but this is an experience ourdrama students must not miss out on!” Hemust have seen part of an ISTA festival. HeMUST have spoken to Pat Zich. From then,up to the present and into the future, theBritish School of Brussels has been anabsolutely devoted member of ISTA and, forall the wonderful people we met along theway, none of us ever forgot that we owedthe very existence of ISTA to Pat. Pat was,in the very best sense, a formidable lady. Ihad never experienced her earlier activedays, when she must have made ensemblework to absolute perfection. And the veryword “ensemble” suggests a veryuntraditional approach, having no truck withprima donnas and elitism. She was a ladyof very high ideals and her approach todrama encapsulated them. My memory ofher was of the organizer, the lady arriving inthe taxi with the huge suitcase full of ISTAgoods, whose presence you felt as soon asshe stepped into the hosting school. Shewas always full of advice, suggestions andexperience, shared sensitively, for youwouldn’t want to have fundamentallydisagreed with her. So ISTA continues in itsmission of promoting good drama andwonderful social contacts between studentsand between adults. I got so much from it.My students got so much from it, and newgenerations of BSB students still do. Andnone of us forget that the idea and thefulfillment came from Pat.From Richard F. Smith, co-founder ofISTAPat sent us an invitation to attend her“first” combination Great Britian - Continentdrama festival at ASL in 1978-79 schoolyear. I don’t know how many schools wereinvited but I do know that the followingattended from Europe: Frankfurt HighSchool, Frankfurt International School,American School of Paris, ZurichInternational School. I don’t remember ifAmsterdam came that year or not. Wewere all excited about attending... Whenwe were walking up to ASL, Pat came out(quite strong as she could be), extendedher hand and said, You are Richard Smith,I've heard good things about you and I'mexpecting good things from you!” I juststared at her and said, “that’s nice.....” Ourone act was INTERVIEW by Van Italie (sp).We actually carried cardboard cut outs ofthe actors which where the size of theactors and painted gray. The show openedwith the actors behind their respectivesilhouette and moved across the stage inan intricate pattern to the beat of ametronome. All you saw were thecardboard cut outs moving across thestage. I remember the other show wasbeing critiqued in the outer hall and wewere getting ready to perform. No matterwhat I said or did, I was just making mygroup nervous. All of a sudden, I just said,“Come here. Let’s get in a group.” Wehuddled and I said, “One, two, three...shit.” After three they all yelled shit...!!!which echoed in the hallway... At least itcured us of our jitters but I don't knowwhat they were thinking out there. Anyway,the festival was a success and the nextyear I was the first school to host on thecontinent. Patty from Amsterdam was therethat year. My show was called ForHeaven’s Sake and Pat’s was calledIndians (I think...) It was the one act aboutplaying baseball. Also, I had to find some“semi-professional” show for the festival. Idid find something downtown and reviewedthe show. It looked OK but was all inGerman. I remember a great number called“Mozart on the loo”. The males in the showall had white tights on and it was anEnglish all-girls school (I think Marymount)all sitting in the front row. The harder theactors worked, the more sweat they had. Itwas after that year (I believe) that wedecided to form ISTA. The first meetingwas held in Zurich. Auggie Zemo acted asan adviser and tried to lead us in the rightdirections. We were concerned about thefollowing: non-profit status, layout offestival, insurance, liability. We agreed thatPat would be the director and the officewould be in London. I remember that we allsmoked, smoked, smoked! I was thedevil’s advocate as we kept saying “nowlet’s not jump too far ahead”, “what’s thatgoing to cost?” “how are we liable ifsomething happens?” The next school yearPat again hosted. We took the show lineand Nicholas Clay was our critique. Iremember he kept saying nice things aboutmy actor Marcus Calvin (the German actorI told you about) Needless to say, Marcuswas beaming from ear to ear. As ourmeetings progressed from year to year,ISTA began to grow in leaps and bounds.Actually, you may not know this but theInternational schools paid for everything (asfar as I know). The DoDDS schools paid fornothing and I had to raise the money. Ibelieve that was the breaking point andeventually I had to resign from the board(heart attack) and stop attending thefestivals. I believe the last festival we werepart of was around 1993 and I hosted inBaumholder, Germany. There were somany new things and the host teacher hadno influence in the process. Times hadchanged and the budget was important. Ibelieve I hosted the ISTA festival at leastthree times in Frankfurt and one time inBaumholder. And as for Pat, she wasbrillant! Very DIRECT, uncompromising,would say what she thought, had a vision,was a wonder theatre teacher and lovedher students. The last thing… it seemed atEVERY festival Pat ALWAYS wore thatblack jump dress made out of corduroy.She loved that outfit… I wonder if she wasburied in it.From Peter Wilkins, NarrabundahCollege, AustraliaDiary entry - Thursday, September 27thThe email on Grapevine was sent to meas a reply to an email that I had sent Patsome time ago. The message was brief: “Iam sorry to inform you that Pat died onSeptember 11th.” I stared at the messagefrom her brother, Mike Wiedmer, indisbelief. It was not until much later when Ichecked the ISTA website that I learnedScene | 2007-8 June Issue 4 | 3

that my dear friend had died of a heartattack. In the moments of sober reflection, Ican hardly be surprised. For years, Pat hadbeen unwell, but had done little to improveher health. She must have known, eversince her brother’s heart attack while inJapan, all those years ago, that her fatecould be pre-determined by a similarcondition.It does not ease the sadness that I feelat Pat’s death. I have known theremarkable founder of the InternationalSchools Theatre Association since 1990when she invited me to join the staff of theMunich International School’s festival. Ourfriendship was instant, and grewthroughout the years as I became moreand more involved in ISTA and the IB. Thememories flood back from festivals weworked at together to collecting bagelsfrom The Bagel Place on Seven Sisters Rdto take to Pat’s upstairs flat at 12AFinsbury Park Rd to feed the hungryCouncil Members to the two visits only Imade to her delightful Tayside cottage andthe outing to Pitlochery and the majesticbeginnings of the vast Scottish highlandsshe loved so much. More than any of thesememories, I value the immense inspiration Iderived from my marvellous, magnanimousmentor. A woman of such mighty will,vision and substance, Pat, at timesabrasive, at times intensely stubborn, oftenfiercely frugal was always loving andgenerous to those who shared her vision,her love of theatre, her dreams for a betterworld and her unfailing faith in the wondersof theatre to create that better world forevery young person, fortunate enough tobe touched and inspired by an ISTA thatshe built as a shining Eldorado of theatreeducation and experience.Pat has touched all our lives, enrichedour world, and taught us the true value ofpassion, love, friendship, social justice andthe power of theatre and the human spiritto transform our lives.Pat was a visionary, who never gainedthe recognition that she deserved for“making a difference” to so many people'slives. ISTA is one of the most significantorganizations upon the international stageof theatre education, and will always standas a shining testament to Pat's belief thatthrough theatre we can indeed create a“wonderful world”.I miss her every day, and these wordshardly do justice to a person who changedmy life, and taught me that we are a globalcommunity with the power to inspire,inform and change the world.From Joy Leach, a close friend of Pat’s– about the Memorial Serice held inAberfeldy in September…For those of you who were not able to bethere:I felt Pat was well remembered onTuesday afternoon amidst the warmth ofthe Aberfeldy community. Her brother Mikethoughtfully hosted the event opened by4 | Scene | 2007-8 June Issue 4piper Chris Grace (Pat had requestedbagpipes). Mike then gave a chronology ofher life, as Pat had written it for anoccasion 7 or 8 years back. Tributes wereinvited from anyone who so wished andthey flowed – spontaneous memories, emails & poems giving glimpses of the US,Teheran, Finsbury Park & Aberfeldy periodsof her life. Three members of theInternational Schools Theatre Associationhad come especially. (For me ISTA was aside of Pat’s life that I knew little of apartfrom the initials & that it involved theatre).Neighbours spoke, including a localshopkeeper & member of the town’s Bridgeclub. A couple of women came who hadbeen involved in helping her in the ‘flood’last Christmas.One particularly moving tribute wasfrom a young Aberfeldy guy who had beencajoled into a local drama group Pat washeading up. The group was travelling toOrkney they were due to perform in thenext competition ‘round’. He had a leadrole in the play & managed to break his legas they were waiting for the boat. Pat – notone to be defeated spent the night rewritingthe parts, with his character in awheel chair! I felt that in some ways he mayhave spoken for hundreds of young peoplefor whom Pat has worked over the past 30years – with her aim to helping them toshine & to learn how to be true artists.Natasha, who started out as Pat’scleaner & who had become a good friendhad organised the catering. We were allwelcomed with warm soup and a buffet.She & other close neighbours had becomegood friends.I gathered that the pathologist’s reportindicated Pat’s heart attack was quick &not protracted. A neighbour said she hadbeen feeling a bit unwell on Friday. Weunderstand that a local person has takenMillie & that she has happily settled into hernew home.I realised that one advantage of livingin Bradford is that it was a bit closer thaneither the South East or South West. Asmy train home didn’t leave till late, I had theprivilege of further reminiscing with Mike,Annabelle & Chris over a meal. ThanksChris for the lift to Perth.I think Pat was a woman and a half.Tuesday was naturally sad for everyone butfound it also inspirational.This comes with love from JoyFrom Matt Godfrey, ISTA Staff MemberI actually know very little about Pat. Weonly really met once and that was justbefore I started with ISTA in 1997.What little I do know about her actuallygoes way back before ISTA started andwhen she and I were just a couple of expatsmaking our way in the world. She, Iguess was in her 30s and I was 1 or 2. Myfamily had just been posted to theCanadian Embassy in Tehran when myMother somehow ran into Pat. They hit itoff and my Mother ended up working forPat as a lighting designer. Pat was directingin Iran and my Mother had worked with theJoshua Light Show in New York. One thingled to another and while I was at homewith the babysitter they put on aproduction of Godspell at the Iran /America Society. It was a huge hit.Over the years as I grew up andbecame involved in arts, first as a dancer,then as an actor, my Mother kept in touchwith Pat. Then one day when I was 16, myMother told me of her friend who hadstarted this wonderful International Theatrething. I started applying to be a teacherthat year. Although still just a student, I felt Icould connect with international kids andshare my experience of being in the Biz.Pat never accepted my application.Years went by, my Mother and Pat keptexchanging Christmas letters, I keptapplying certain that as I got older I wouldhave even more to offer and Pat keptturning me down. Finally one year, whenmy family lived in England and I was homefor the holidays, I made a call and trekkedacross London to Finsbury park to finallymeet this woman who had been a part ofmy life for a very long time.We had a nice lunch and she introducedme to her dog and we chatted about theTheatre and the World. We parted companyand went about our holidays. Eight monthslater she sent me to Hamburg to take part inmy first festival. It was only then I realizedthe compliment she had paid me. I had noidea what I was doing on that first festival. Ididn't even know I was supposed to teachan ensemble until I arrived. Whenever I hadasked I had been told: “there really isn'tany way to explain it until you’ve gonethrough it.”Although I have never “worked” withPat and I don't think I ever saw her show inTehran she has had an immense influenceon my life and I am deeply proud to be amember of body of Theatre people whotake risks, expand their minds throughoutthe world and who don't really know howto explain it until they have gone through it.Thank you very much Pat.From Gaby Spadaro, MarymountInternational School, RomeI was stunned and heartbroken to learnof Pat's death. I remember her warmth,caring heart and vitality. She was my firstcontact with ISTA and it was thanks to herthat I became so involved. Her dedicationto the development of the creative soul ofevery child she could reach out to was thesolid rock upon which ISTA grew andthrived. I will miss her yearly Christmasletter filled with the news of the year as itpassed, the seasons that she underlinedwith stories and memories. A great andwonderful woman has left an emptiness inmany hearts but her legacy lives on in Sallyand all the staff of ISTA who continueher work with the same doggeddetermination and creative spiritand vision.

StudentWritingNatasha Torin, King Williams College,UK – PARIS TAPSThe idea of attending an ISTA weekendworkshop sounded great when our teachersuggested the course to our class, andexplained how much we could benefit fromthe tutors expertise. Therefore when theforms came out I jumped at the chance ofgaining a place, and especially at the factthat it was in Paris.As we landed in Paris, we were plungedinto a city of culture and art, where it wasamazing to experience theatre in such abeautiful atmosphere. Despite missing a fullEnglish breakfast, we arrived at the schoolexcited to meet fellow IB students to notonly make some new friends, but also shareour theatre arts experiences.As we walked through the door, wewere welcomed by a crowd of smilingfaces (which put any nerves at rest) and webegan our first class. We were placed inour allocated groups and introduced to ourenergetic team leader. As we got to knoweveryone in our group, we all intentlylistened to our leader, David, who exudedenthusiasm and wisdom concerningtheatre arts. It was inspiring to be able tosoak up such knowledge and know thatwe were going to improve in all aspects oftheatre in this weekend.My favourite experience of the ISTAexperience was the stimuli, quick responsetask, where reading a poem inspired me tocome up with a creative response on paperand further develop it into a short dramapiece with my group. This task has enabledme to think more openly, and search forother ideas and ways of getting to a finalperformance, and has broken the thinkingof using a naturalistic approach each time.This workshop has aided me in therecording of my journal entries, and givenme more ideas of how to present my work.It has given me the opportunity to discovermy own meaning and definition of whattheatre is and means to me. ISTA is a funfilled, exciting yet exhausting weekend tohave, however what you get out of it isunbelievable!Marie Luise Schwarzenberg andMelanie Thompson, DresdenInternational School – BUDAPESTHIGH SCHOOL FESTIVALFrom studying theatre at DresdenInternational School our school hasattended numerous high school festivals inDüsseldorf, Tarsus, Trieste, and nowBudapest. Each festival has enhanced ourstudies as drama students with each andevery theme that we have worked with.The theme of the festival this year wasworking with stimuli. This topic was usedwith every ensemble in a different way. Theleaders led us into the city and worked withus on ‘sight location’ acting. Theseinspirations were used then back in theschool to help us develop our final piece.On arriving into the city, after a 15-hourtrain ride, our group had many variedthoughts about what they were seeing.Some of us were excited about the start ofthe festival, where as others were morefocused on seeing what the city had tooffer. After visiting the Hungarian baths, itwas finally time to go to the school.Upon seeing the American InternationalSchool of Budapest everyone was inshock! It was amazing! After seeing thenumerous basketball courts and beautifultheatre with a black box attached our entireschool was jealous and ready to startacting and using the impressive equipment.With a variety of different ensembleleaders, we spent the 3 days we hadworking together, creating inspiration, andat the end, our pieces to perform. Eachpiece created was done to express variedaspects of Budapest history such as,Communism, the 1956 Revolution, and theturn of the century.After long days of practice everyonewas exhausted and we spent the nights athost families from the school. Going tothem every night and feeling like you wereat home everyday made the festival somuch better.After talking to many people that allattended the festival, everyone had differentopinions on what the best experience therewas. Many said that the soundscape of therainforest was the best. “Turn into arainforest and just with our mouths wewere able to create such an amazing audioeffect I was stunned. You only saw theceiling and heard all the noises around youand became part of the mood that was setup. I felt like I was in a real rain forest.”(Friedrich Schubert, Dresden InternationalSchool) Other people said that theworkshops were the best because theywere split from the ensemble work andthey were able to work on other theatretechniques at a more focussed level.Another experience that came up was theperformance from a local Hungarian theatregroup. The performance as a whole wascompletely unique and showed us adifferent side of what theatre can be.After coming home from the festival werealized how much knowledge abouttheatre we gained there. During the festivalwe were constantly learning, whether it wasdifferent techniques or purely confidence inourselves even though we did not alwaysrealize it. One thing that one of the leaders,Jen Tickle, kept saying to her ensemblewas, “It’s up to you to make everyone elselook good.” Meaning, everything you do,do it your best, and you can count oneveryone else around you to do the same.Overall, the ISTA experiences arealways great! And this one was noexception. No matter how many you havedone before, whether this was your first oryour fourth, every time they are differentand completely worth it.Judith Durkin, Western Academy ofBeijing – KGV HIGH SCHOOLFESTIVAL, HONG KONGI signed up for ISTA in the first placebecause I thought that it sounded like afantastic opportunity not only to meetpeople from all over Asia but to learn allabout physical theatre. I have alwaysconsidered theatre to be very verbal and Ihave never really connected drama andperformance with dance and actions; andas a result I really wanted to learn aboutphysical theatre, to appreciate it and to findout how it could be incorporated into otherpieces of theatre.I was blown away when I first arrived inHong Kong and that’s not only because itwas beautifully warm compared to Beijing!Hong Kong is such a wonderful mix ofeverything – it’s old meets new, East meetsWest, and technology meets spirituality. Inaddition to this everyone is so friendly -wherever you go people say hello andgoodbye and they initiate conversations,they welcome foreigners and in Hong KongI truly felt at home. I did learn more aboutthe culture in Hong Kong and about thevast mix of nationalities, religions andbackgrounds that reside there. I also found“It was the first time in years that I actually believed that I could be who I am and notfear judgement; it was the first time I felt comfortable being the centre of attention. Thistrip, in and out of the classroom, was both a blessing and a revelation.”Will Pedersen, Student, Island School, Hong KongScene | 2007-8 June Issue 4 | 5

Ruth SpencerRuth SpencerSteve ReynoldsKGV High School Festival, Hong Kongit really interesting to note the conflictbetween spirituality and technology that isblossoming throughout the city and thisconflict actually inspired our final physicalperformance. It was a little bit sad to seethe way that the beautiful, peacefulatmosphere created by the vegetation, themonks and the soothing quality of atemple’s architecture was spoiled by thewhirring of the cable cars and the loud,brazen ‘Starbucks’ sign.But it wasn’t only the Hong Kong peoplethat were friendly, the people at King GeorgeV were really welcoming and made us all feelincredibly at home. We heard all the ghoststories, the sports stories, the history storiesand while I may have been nervous aboutmeeting over a hundred people that I hadnever met before in my life I think thateveryone was in the same situation and thisreally helped because it meant that everyonewas happy to simply walk up to strangersand introduce themselves! It can be reallynerve wracking coming into a new school buta combination of my two roommates fromSingapore introducing me to everyone theyknew and the group games we played in ourfirst session at the festival led to me feelingtruly welcomed by the end of the first day!I was also really nervous about stayingwith family that I did not know and this waswhat I was actually quite scared aboutbefore coming to the festival but thisactually turned out to be one of the6 | Scene | 2007-8 June Issue 4highlights of my weekend. I managed toovercome this by just introducing myself tomy host and roommates and just starting totalk about everything that we had incommon and we all became really goodfriends. My host was Chloe Chan and alongwith me she was hosting two girls, Hannahand Kate, from Singapore – the TanglinTrust School. Chloe’s mum Patricia wasgreat and she told us that despite the factwe were only in Hong Kong for three dayswe should really try and see as much aspossible. On our first night she took us tothe night market and then to a big shoppingcentre, on the second night she took us tothe harbour and on the third night she tookus to another shopping centre to meet upwith all the friends we had made during ourthree days. We were all about the same ageand so the outings were great fun! We gotto know each other really well and with thelarge amounts of chocolate and sweets thatwe bought on our outings we had somevery gossipy, very funny evenings whichmade the most enjoyable moments that Ispent with my host family.As well as lots of enjoyable momentswith my host family I had some wonderfultimes with my ensemble too!Students from Chinese InternationalSchool, Hong Kong – KGV HIGHSCHOOL FESTIVAL HONG KONGLucas SinWhen our school teacher showed usthe sign up form for ISTA, I thought that itwas just another workshop that happenedaround the Chinese New Year holiday. So, Idecided to sign up in order improve mydrama skills as a whole and to go to anactivity with my friends at school.However, through the week before thefestival, I found out that the festival was notas unimportant as it seemed. And once Igot to KGV, I suddenly felt somewhatnervous. I saw that almost everybody wasolder than me and the schools’ groups allstayed in a bunch as if they already hadlots of friends. I had always been a very shyperson and I couldn’t seem to find friendsout of my school to talk to. However, afterour first ensemble session, I discoveredthat even though we were very differentfrom each other in terms of background,we already seemed to have known eachother for a long time. After the first day, Ithought that the festival would be one ofthe best experiences I ever had.During the course of the ensembles, weworked for long amounts of time and kneweach other very well in the end. Steve, myensemble leader was very knowledgeableand was very kind. He was like a parent tous, caring and kind. He led his own schoolto the ISTA festival, and therefore obviouslyknew how to deal with students their agevery well. Through the ensembles, I learntan extensive range of knowledge andapplication skills about certain forms ofphysical theatre and certain theatredirectors/actors like Stanislavski and his“Magical moments filled with insightfullearning and good laughs with new andold friends.”Will Pedersen,Student, Island School, Hong Kongrelaxation/tension exercises. Already, I havestarted applying these skills in my comingschool production. In general, I feel that allthe ensemble leaders give up a weekendand dedicate their time and patience toteach a bunch of students how to becomemore professional and skilled in drama.They put in all their skill and focus to createthe best experience for us, and I thank allof them.Sadly, I could not be a host because ofmany reasons concerning home nor did Istay at a host family. However, I did learn alot of things about other cultures. In thefestival, I met Koreans, Japanese, Dutch,Norwegians, French, Americans, Thai,Malaysians and many others. It was awonderful experience for me to be able tomeet so many different people withdifferent ethnic backgrounds.The most fun and memorable was thefirst session where we did trust exercises tostrengthen the bonds between ourensemble. We decided to go an extra mileand do very physical trust exercises. Atfirst, during the trust exercises, I felt veryscared that we might hurt each other, and Iwas hesitant in doing the exercises.However, my new friends encouraged meto go on, and I overcame the challenge.This also linked to our performance,because we were not afraid to hideourselves from each other and openly usedour bodies to show a very uniqueperformance. From now on, I will try toincorporate more of the physical theatreskills in my daily drama work in order toimprove my quality as an actor.If I were to use three words to describeISTA from my perspective, it would beexperience, education and earn. Most ofthe festival was about the experience,especially during the cultural perspectives ofthe trip. Moreover, all the skills I learnt, fromensemble, from peers and from masterclasses were all part of my theatreeducation. And most of all, I certainlyearned a lot of things during this festival.Mainly friendship and knowledge. I think theISTA festival was most effective because welearnt about physical theatre in a relaxedand friendly environment. The ensemblegroups promoted socializing and meetingnew people, which then gave every studenta better opportunity to learn more effectivelyand in a more interesting way.I enjoyed every single bit of the ISTAHigh School Festival 2008 in Hong Kong,but I miss every single bit of it too. Luckily,we still have the Internet to keep us intouch.Plato SoThe ISTA high school festival 2008 wasone that is full of dramatic action, each dayfilled with different events and activities. I

wish we could have had more time for thefestival, many of the actors, such as myself would have liked it to have been two orthree weeks as opposed to only five days.Thank you so much to all theadministrators that helped put this together,without you, my favorite event of the yearwould not have happened. Thank you!Kendra Flemming (Grade 7)I really enjoyed ISTA with all my heartand had sooo much fun my funny boneshook. This year the ensemble made ahuge difference to me. I know this soundscorny but we really did become a familyand we were extra kind to each otherbecause we were a family. Compared to allother years I had a bigger culturalexperience this time. After ISTA I felt a tinybit ‘Jakartan’. We all took back some ofyour kindness and humor. Suzy Davies wasincredibly creative, when I returned home Irealized I would always remember herteachings in drama. No matter what, whenI came back from ISTA I was a new andchanged for the better person.Nothing will take this amazingexperience from me.P.S This helped the ‘drama nerd’ in mefind away to shine…Tiffany Cho (Grade 8)This years’ ISTA was better than Iexpected. Even though only three schoolsattended this festival, I thought we had agreat time together. The ISTA staff workedreally hard trying to make us involved in theworkshops, and they taught us all the thingsabout drama like singing, dancing, andacting. Without them, ISTA really would bemeaningless. Their great sense of humourmade this year’s ISTA remarkable. Theperformance itself was fabulous. Who wouldhave thought that we only spent 4 days onthe performance? Overall, this ISTA wasreally unbelievably great and I’m really gladto be part of it and to have participated in it.Jack Moran (Grade 8)Enlightening! This is the only word thatcan be used to describe my experience atISTA. My experience at ISTA was the 3 E’s.The journey was exciting, entertaining, andmost of all educational.Firstly, what made the journey soexciting was ultimately the staff (mostlySuzy). Through out ISTA the staff jazzed up,something that should be dull and boring,into a fun, interesting event that I wouldsurely reflect on as a highlight in the future.The most exciting thing I had accomplishedat ISTA was by far making an entirely brandnew song up in under 50 minutes. This alsocould not have been possible with out theinspiration of my favourite staff member,Suzy. Suzy was the one who put her ownheart and soul in the song.Secondly, ISTA was entertainingbecause I was privileged enough to be ableto travel to Jakarta with a load of friendswho without could never have been thesame. Although, it was mainly making newfriends from a different culture and beingable to preserve that memory for the future.“A unique experience, at TAPS you get to learn about things from different parts of theworld; from people from even more different parts of the world; with students from evenmore different and various parts of the world… an enriching experience.”Vivaswan Venkat, Student, Shanghai American SchoolI was able to experience the Indonesianculture through the fabulous dancesperformed by local Indonesians. Thesedances made a huge affect on the way Ihad thought of the Indonesians previously.Thirdly, the experience was incrediblyeducational, as I learnt how to create a fullsong from scratch, the importance ofculture in dance and how people act fromdifferent cultures and religions.I will forever carry my journey at ISTA.Students from Shanghai AmericanSchool – Pudong – CHIANG MAI TAPSJeremy MadanyI decided to sign up for the ISTA eventbecause I believed it would be a goodopportunity to broaden my knowledge oftheatre. Chiang Mai was a refreshing breakfrom Shanghai, as the air was substantiallycleaner and the climate more enjoyable. Ithought that Chiang Mai would be a greatplace to learn and explore new kinds oftheatre. People from international schoolsall over Asia and even Africa were cominghere to learn more about theatre. I wasnervous about connecting with people fromother schools. Being in an ensemble andperforming in front of complete strangers isa daunting task, and my classmates weredefinitely nervous about that too. Hopefullyit would not hinder my learning process,and it did not. By the end of the first day, Ifelt like I was part of something larger, and Iwas. I was amongst people from all overthe world, and we were united for thepurpose of theatre.The most enjoyable moments spentwith my host culture were those that Ispent learning about their special rituals.When in Chiang Mai, I learned aboutkrathong lighting, Khon/Likay theatre, andLantern Festivals. All of these werebeautiful and had a profound impact onme. Such examples of northern Thaiculture reminded me of the diversity in ritualand theatre throughout the world, andmade me curious to learn more. I feltconnected to the locals when I participatedin their traditions. Helping connect localtraditions and other forms of theatre wereour ensemble leaders and masterclassteachers. My ensemble leader, AnthonyCunningham, was knowledgeable,humorous, and friendly. He led exerciseswith a purpose, and that purpose wasconnection. Anthony presented ideassimply and built upon them with a game orexercise, which also related to whatmasterclass leaders taught. He helped uscombine and connect with what welearned in our masterclasses. Most of thetheatre skills I learned over the weekendwere about body control. ThroughCommedia dell’Arte, Khon, and Likayexercises, I was able to learn about bodycontrol, as it is very important in all of thesetheatrical styles.Thai people are very friendly andreceptive. An excellent example would beduring the Lantern Festival, where anelderly lady included me and several friendsin the lighting of her lantern. The people atthe festival welcomed tourists, even if theyviolated the sanctity of the ceremony.Because of the connection to others, thebeauty and the splendour of the Lanternfestival was the most moving experienceduring my time at TAPS.In retrospect, overcoming the initial fearof working with so many strangers in anensemble was real, as I made friends fromother schools and I became comfortablewith them. Being around strangers andacting in front of strangers was the hardpart of the trip. Also in retrospect, ISTA’slessons were very important, and will haveimpressions on me for the rest of my careeras a student of theatre. Looking back atISTA, three words come to mind, andthose words are “Informative, engaging,enjoyable”. Involvement with local traditionand culture is definitely important, and I feelmy view has broadened after going toTAPS. I learned more, I made connections,and I applied my knowledge of previoustheatrical styles to newly learned ones. Iwas involved with exercises and activitiesthat made use of the information gained,and I enjoyed the entire process, despiteannoyances like early flight times andproblems in transportation. The only thing Iwould like more of would be free time toexplore the area and local culture. Otherthan that, I believe that this was a veryimportant experience for me, and I wouldstrongly consider attending another TAPS.Tania HuetingMr. Blair told our drama class abouttheir being an IB workshop in Thailand, Iimmediately signed up. I have always lovedDrama and probably will always. So when Iheard of the opportunity I jumped for itbecause I want to expand my theaterexperience and get to know new peoplewho have the same passion as I do.When I arrived in Thailand to be brutallyhonest I was a little surprised about thehotel. I didn’t expect to be living in a hut. Ithought we were going to be staying in ahotel. But I got to experience the Thaiculture so it was worth it. The first day inThailand I was really nervous that peoplewould laugh at me or that I wouldn’t begood enough. I was also nervous aboutbeing spread apart from my Shanghaifriends. However, I then realized thateveryone is learning new things together soit wasn’t that bad. While in Thailand Ilearned how to communicate through8 | Scene | 2007-8 June Issue 4

movements and how to expand myknowledge of Commedia dell’Arte.I learned on this trip that you must takeyour shoes off while entering a room due torespect. I also learned that most of thedishes you can eat with your hands andthey wouldn’t find that disrespectful. Beforethis trip I was really shy when it came tostage performances and often had stagefright. However when I came to Thailandand worked with new people I became lessshy and now I am capable of performingwithout any hassles.A moment that I will always rememberis the small scene that the Commediadell’Arte teacher showed us. He pretendedto be really hungry and found a fly that hetried to catch and eat. This helped mygroup in school perform our Commediapiece - where we took his ideas and put inour own techniques.If I could describe ISTA in three words Iwould describe it as a fantastic, fun andtotally worth it experience. I will alwaysremember TAPS in Thailand and I reallywould like to thank all the teachers andeveryone who was there. I have learned somuch and will always have TAPS Thailandin my heart.Catalina MonteroI haven’t taken drama for very long sothe way I heard about TAPS was by mydrama teacher, who explained to us what itwas all about and how productive it wouldbe for our future learning. In drama wetalked about how important it is to learndifferent theatrical cultures and this was aperfect opportunity to do so. I have been toThailand before but never to Chiang Mai,so I pictured it very differently. I could see alot more culture and tradition than in theother more ‘touristy’ places that I beenbefore. At first I was very nervous andlooking back my classmates were too, Ithink the reason why I was nervous is thefact that I would be surrounded by peoplewho I had never met before. I also wasn’tsure what to expect and in a way I wasscared that I would know everything Ineeded to know for the classes. I felt verydifferent by the end of the first day, Irealized how everyone felt the same way,the first day made me realize how fun andexciting this experience was going to be. Iloved my ensemble leader, all the activitieshe made us do were fun and I learned somuch from them. I think what I learned themost from him was the different way anidentical idea can be presented. During thetrip I learned a huge amount of newtheatrical skills; such as in CommediaDel’Arte that was something I had justfinished researching in school. In one of themaster classes I actually understood andlearned how the characters moved andhow important it is for an actor to beconscious of his or her body while actingand not just facial expressions. One of thethings that most challenged me during thetrip was the last performance in one of theensemble classes. We had to pretend tobe a company and we had to come upwith a plan for this rich person to found it.We were only given 15 minutes andalthough we were a group of 5, we weresupposed to think of every detailconcerning the play. This was hardbecause of the amount of time we had butafter awhile each of us focused on oneaspect and we got through it. I think a lotof things that I learned at ISTA are going tostay with me, especially during the IBbecause it gave me tools that I can use tolearn in the future. It would be hard todescribe the ISTA experience in just a fewwords but for me it was magical,entertaining and useful.Students writing from Tanglin TrustSchool, Singapore – CHIANG MAI TAPSWill HughesI signed up for ISTA in Chiang Mai tofurther my knowledge of Thai theatre andculture as I travel to Thailand a lot but havehad little experience of traditional Thai artforms. It was also because I enjoyed thelast ISTA festival I attended in Hong Kong.My first impressions of the school wereamazing; Prem was very specious,environmentally conscious and had afriendly welcoming atmosphere. Thisproved to be a great environment forcreative workshops.The experience was slightly daunting butvery exciting, I was looking forward tomeeting different people from all over theworld and see how their ideas andexperiences had differed to mine. By the endof the first day I felt a lot more comfortablewith the people I was working with andlearning from. I found that because we werecreating and developing work together anelement of trust was built between us andwe became closer than we would if we werein a less creative environment.Our ensemble leader was able to keepthe energy up throughout and used the rightexercises to match and support the energywe had. They also seemed veryknowledgeable about what we were doingand had confidence in what we were capableof. Over the course of the weekend Ifurthered by understanding of physical theatreby exploring the seven states of tension asboth a warm-up and in performance. I alsohad a good experience of creating work in anew ensemble with limited time and stimuli.Using commedia masks helped me tounderstand the importance of physicallycharacterising the whole body rather than justthe hands or face.Thai culture is completely different tome now after my experiences at ISTA as Iseem to relate the artwork, architectureand most noticeably the people, to whatwe learned about Khon and Likay. I foundthe gestures of Khon to be unique yetuniversally identifiable and was enthralledby the improvisational structure of Likay.The highlight for me was staying inMakhampom, the Thai village of artists,practitioners and teachers and watchingKristen Van GinhovenDaniel SarstedtMoira ArthursMoira ArthursRob WarrenCardiff TAPSthe performance of ‘never say die’. Beingcompletely surrounded by traditional Thaiculture and then experiencing it first hand(through the master classes) meant that theperformance was much richer as I wasable to understand and appreciate it thatmuch more.The three words I would use todescribe ISTA are: Openness, Discoveryand MotivationalAlex SaloyedoffI myself was invited to come along toChiang Mai at the very VERY last minute,Scene | 2007-8 June Issue 4 | 9

SEASON OF EVENTS 2008 – 2009HS Festivals Location/ Focus School/Venue Host Date FCD PresentationsFestival NameEurope Zurich The man in the frame: devising from a Zurich International Asha Lynch Nov 13-16 2/10/08 Yessingle stimulus School 2008Europe London An actor’s training: skills to master and American School Buck Herron Jan 29- 11/12/08 Noenjoy in London Feb 1 2009Middle East Dubai Arabian nights: ancient tales in a Dubai American Nancy Mock Mar 19-21 5/2/09 Yesmodern city Academy 2009Europe Izmir ‘Shadows in the ruins’: ancient American Collegiate Kerime Arsan Mar 26-29 12/2/09 Nobuildings and villages in Izmir Institute and Helen Ozbay 2009Europe Terezin “I have not seen a butterfly around The Terezin Sally Robertson Apr 17-19 5/3/09 Nohere”: the stories of Terezin Memorial 2009Asia Singapore Adventures in time and space: Tanglin Trust School Simon Veness Nov 21-23 9/10/08 Norecorded images and live performance 2008Africa Ghana Yaa Asantwewaa: inspirational women Lincoln American Gillian Ani Feb 26-28 15/1/09 YesSchool 2009Latin America Chile The recyclable theatre: re-imagining The Grange School James Russell Oct 9-11 11/9/08 Nospace and objects 2008MS Festivals Location/ Focus School/Venue Host Date FCD PresentationsFestival NameEurope Bucharest Our darkest fears: mood, tension, American Elizabeth Hunt- Nov 20-23 9/10/08 Yessuspense and a dash of Dracula International School Lucarini and 2008of Bucharest Greg JemisonMiddle East Bahrain The story of Gilgamesh: making epic St Christopher’s Tony Thomas Nov 27-29 16/10/08 Yestheatre School 2008Europe Cornwall Bananas don’t grow on trees: three The Eden Project Pam Horton May 7-9 26/3/09 Nodays at the Core 2009Europe Lisbon Saudade: lost loves and faraway places St Julian’s School Ian Johnston May 28-31 16/4/09 No200910 | Scene | 2007-8 June Issue 4

Asia Shanghai Zodiac stories: the Chinese calendar Shanghai American Doug Hundley Feb 5-7 11/12/08 YesSchool 2009Asia Hong Kong A funny thing happened on the way to Chinese Clare Stearns May 21-23 2/4/09 Yesthe Peak: the art of clowning and International School 2009comedyPS Festivals Location/ Focus School/Venue Host Date FCD PresentationsFestival NameEurope Dusseldorf “Touch Tailor Wibble” and other amazing Dusseldorf Romeo Bryant Apr 23-26 12/3/09 Noadventures: landmarks and their stories International School 2009Bonsai Location/ Focus School/Venue Host Date FCD PresentationsFestival Festival NameLatin America Sao Paulo My beautiful concrete jungle: urban art Associacao Escola Emily Mar 19-21 5/2/09 Yesand green spaces Graduada de Sao Paulo Blackburn 2009TAPSSchool/Venue Host Date FCD Teachers StudentsEurope London TAPS 1 Sally Robertson Oct 9-11 2008 11/9/08 Yes YesThe Drill HallEurope Cardiff TAPS Jess Naish Oct 16-19 2008 11/9/08 Yes YesSherman-Cymru TheatreEurope London TAPS 2 Sally Robertson Nov 13-15 2008 2/10/08 Yes YesThe Drill HallAsia Bangkok TAPS Darren Scully Nov 21-23 2008 9/10/08 Yes YesRuamrudee International SchoolAsia Penang TAPS Randy Moss Feb 5-7 2009 11/12/08 Yes YesInternational School PenangNorth America Savannah TAPS Jackie Gordon Oct 3-5 2008 4/9/08 No YesSol C Johnson High SchoolNorth America Montreal TAPS Louis Bouchard Nov 7-10 2008 25/9/08 Yes NoSEBIQ and SEBIQNorth America CIBO Pat Prather/CIBO Feb/Mar tbc tbc Yes NoSan Diego and Mo’olelo Theatre Co. 2009Scene | 2007-8 June Issue 4 | 11

Jez GreggSuzy DaviesTara BrodinSherri D SuttonJakarta Middle School Festival12 | Scene | 2007-8 June Issue 4due to the fact that I am not in a yeargroup sitting A level or IB exams. However,I felt eager from day one to take on theopportunity.Upon arriving in Chiang Mai, Iunfortunately was not incredibly aware of mysurroundings, being as tired as I was.However, after a short sleep on the mini-busfrom the airport to the hotel, I wascompletely thrown into a new world. The firstthing I remember is the stunning views fromthe hotel, they were simply incredible. Theresimply wasn’t time to take enough photos.When we had made our way the hostschool’s campus (The Prem Centre), I wasdesperate to get straight not the workshops, despite the lack of sleep; that wasnow a thing of the distant past! I didn’teven think of being self-conscience for aminute, I couldn’t afford to be. I wanted themost out of every master class I took.By the end of the first day, I wascompletely exhausted. With two full onclasses lasting over an hour each, andconsisting of, an introduction to the course,and a Thai theatre form named ‘Lei- Kai’. Ilearnt a wider range of ways to use the skillsin drama I had already learnt, along withsome brand new theatre styles influenced byculture. Energy was the key to most of thesestyles, and I developed skills that helped meexert this in more than one burst.Moving outside the safety of the masterclasses and into dauntingly different worldthat was northern Thailand was anexperience I will never forget. The way thatpeople can live in such remote environmentsstill hasn’t ceased to amaze me. Ourlocation was not only 2 hours flight from thecapital (Bangkok), but also a good hour’sdrive from the main city of Chiang-Mai.But, the highlight! The lantern festival! Itwas by far the most incredible and beautifulspectacle I had ever seen, and I believe willbe for a great period of time. Apart from thefact that the local Thai people weren’t tooshy to set off large fireworks rather close tothe back of your head, and drop flaminglanterns on top of you that burn the sleevesof your shirt, it was basically awe inspiring.I will never forget the fantastic times,fantastic classes, fantastic culture andfantastic people that I encountered inChiang-Mai, I am already waitingimpatiently for the next trip.Jennifer McTaggartFor me, the trip was really an eyeopener for the incredible world of theperforming arts and how big it is. It showedme how to grow my own work and reallyhow to work more effectively. I’m alsostarting to see why my drama teachers dothings the way they do and saw howputting into practice the ideas of constantlyquestioning, constantly finding out moreand of course getting up and trying insteadof talking really come into play when youhave ten, twenty minutes to come up withan improvisation.It was the first time I had heard aboutan ISTA event, or a festival for drama atthat, and as I’m thinking of doing drama atA level I thought it would be a good way tofurther my learning, develop some newskills, and maybe I’d make some newfriends. I have no idea what to expect, andI don’t regret the decision to go. Thisfeeling stayed when we first landed inChiang Mai. Seeing the beautiful mountainsand the area surrounding the airportdefinitely put me in an awed state of mind.Chiang Mai at first reminded me of Vietnamwhere I went on a school history trip lastyear, but I soon realised Chiang Mai is reallyquite different and has much of its ownculture to offer.Andrew, my ensemble leader had aunique way of teaching us, which kept usthoroughly entertained throughout theweekend. He treated us like adults whilegetting us to play the silliest games aswarm-ups. However, he did explain for thewarm-ups he used and any other exerciseswhy he had chosen them, which I thinkmade it easier for us to see how they builtonto what we would learn as the core ofthe lesson. In the master classes, it was asif he was a student himself, which I guesswas true because the teachers were thereto learn not just to teach. I found themaster classes very interesting and cameto see the connection between each of thestyles, Commedia dell’Arte Italian comedy,and the traditional Thai theatre Likay andKhon. I had done Commedia before withMarco Luly because he came to my schoolto do workshops a year ago so that was atleast familiar, but revisiting the form allowedme to develop my understanding furtherand to understand more of what Marcowas teaching us. Likay and Khon howeverwere completely different from anything Ihad ever done before. That was a newexperience that I wouldn’t have hadanywhere else. It immersed us all in theThai culture and at least gave me a deeperunderstanding and respect for their theatre.A highlight in the whole experiencewould be for me the people I was sofortunate to meet. It didn’t matter if theywere doing IB and I was still doing GCSE,even though this made it confusing trying tofigure out what year we were in at school.Even though they had more experiencethan I did, we were generally the same ageand I learnt as much outside the workshopsas I did in them, about both drama andeveryone’s stories. In the words of so manythere it’s like we are all one big family.In the long term, the ISTA festival taughtme more about myself, what I canaccomplish and what I have yet todiscover. Three words are hardly enough todescribe my experiences in Chiang Mai,but if I had to pick then I would say it wasan amazing adventure, and I can’t wait untilnext year. But before I finished this off, Iwould like to take a line or two to thankeveryone that made this possible: MrVeness for coming with us and I really hopehe had as much fun as we did, MauriceHalder for organising the event, to the

ensemble leaders and any other staff thatwas present. Without your hard work, thiswouldn’t have happened and been such asuccess.Roei Hillel, Li Po Chun United WorldCollege of Hong Kong – KGV HIGHSCHOOL FESTIVALMy experiences in the ISTA FestivalIn the beginning, our teacher told usabout a theatre festival that would hostinternational students from differentcountries, and would take place in HongKong. A lot of people showed theirenthusiasm but I wasn’t sure what to thinkabout it, and whether I would like to takepart in this festival or not, only because Iwas afraid and nervous. I was afraid aboutacting for 3 days in a foreign language, andI was especially afraid to perform in front ofso many people. I thought about it forcouple of days, and than I decided tocome, just so I can say I faced my fears.Even though I live in Hong Kong, thefestival helped me know Hong Kong betterand appreciate the fact that I live heremore. The experience of visiting the BigBuddha was amazing, and I couldn’tbelieve that I had never visited it before. Atthe end of the first day I felt relief, becauseI knew my ensemble members, I knew thedirection of the festival, I met some reallynice people and I experienced a lot. Thebig Buddha, the workshop with all themembers, the activity in our ensemblestheyall gave me an idea of what is going tohappen and the fact that I would have thebest time there.One of the people that impressed methe most was Ruth, my ensemble leader.Ruth comes from the dance area, which Ihave never had any experience of. I wasvery excited to be guided by a dancer in afestival about movement theatre, becauseshe has a lot of experience in this area.Ruth was very open, but at the same timeshe had a very clear vision. She knew whatshe wanted to do, but at the same timeshe didn’t try to force us to go in directionsthat we didn’t feel comfortable with, norwith the exercises nor in the final show.She let us explore our body, movements,the space, the group members and music.The most important thing that I took fromRuth is the ability to express oneself withmovement, and her self-confidence. I feltsometimes a little bit exposed, while doinga curtain action, but Ruth encouraged meto explore the space, “scoop” and letmyself loose. I’ll try to use it in the future,when I’ll have to exaggerate mymovements on stages, develop a characteror if I’ll want to involve special movementdancessections in my shows.The most special moment for meduring the festival was in our finalperformance. Our group had two differentscenes, one that shows the “falling” part ofa spiritual journey, letting yourself go, andthe other one about hanging on withyourself, a friend, faith and religion, which“Theatre is great because it celebrates diverse approaches and perspectives - but in ISTA itis especially amazing how different styles and totally different approaches blend seamlesslyto provide a shared cultural experience. People from different backgrounds coming togetherin harmony - that's what makes life beautiful!”Bianca Yu, Student, Li Po Chun United World College of Hong Kongwe showed by hugs. On our finalperformance, we decided to hug theaudience- first, to make the show moreinteractive; second, to let them experiencewhat we were experiencing in our spiritualjourney. When I went to hug the audience, Ifelt “high” in a way- I felt concentrated buton the same time, I didn’t think about whatI was going to do. I got connected to themusic, looked the audience in the eyes,showed them that my hug is real, searchedfor the “right” person, and hugged him.That was an amazing experience for me,and maybe, that was the spiritual journeyof my experience in the festival.The thing that I found really hard wasone of my master classes, the “musicaldance” with Jessie. I never danced beforein a professional way, though I was alwaysvery interested in musicals; therefore I waslooking forward to this master class.However, I couldn’t do it- as much as werehearsed and tried again and again, Icouldn’t manage to remember all themovements, listen to the music, look atJessie and act along with him. It was a bitdisappointing, especially because therewasn’t enough time to practice and tryagain, but I had an amazing time there- Iunderstood how powerful dance is, andhow acting is necessary in this type ofperformance.ISTA was an amazing experience. I gotto know a lot of different people from allover the world and had the right to workwith professionals from all different theatreareas. I faced my fears, and let myself togo, for once. I improvised, which usually Itry to avoid, and I didn’t let language be ablocking factor in this process. In the futureI will definitely try to involve body-workmore, and look on how I can use my bodyas a tool, because it is natural andaccessible.ISTA = challenging, exploring,contacting.Students from the American School ofBombay – NEW DELHI MIDDLESCHOOL FESTIVALBethan AlexanderOne of the reasons I tried out for ISTAis because I thought I had a good chanceto get it, but more importantly I would learna lot and have so much fun and that’s whatI did. It was fun preparing a play andperforming it and working with other kidsfrom different schools and interacting withthem. I made so many new friends andlearned so many things about acting andbeing in theatre. I learned about being ontime in a play so that everyone wastogether when you do a certain move atthe same time or say something at thesame time.I had a really nice host family, and thegirl named Rose who was 16 was reallynice and took care of us well. She madesure we knew where to go and we foundher easily. She also helped as an ISTAhelper so we saw her a lot. At their homethey gave us what we needed and it wasfun hanging out at their house.The games were awesome there, it wasreally well organized and A LOT OF FUN. Iam glad they split us up with other schools,otherwise I wouldn’t have met many otherpeople. And the teachers were really goodand nice.If I had to describe ISTA in 3 wordsthey would be: Fun, Interesting, Amazing.Dominique PrattI think that ISTA will have a long termimpact on me. Lots of the activities, gamesand performances we did allowed me to beopen to new ideas, and do things that Inormally would be really nervous to do. Ithink ISTA has made me more confidentand more sure of myself. I also learned alot about how to act well, I hope I alwaysremember the skills I learned because Ithink they will help me in life. I really feel likeISTA has helped me to challenge myselfand I really feel like I have grown. I think itwas totally worth going to ISTA because Ithink it has helped me to be a moreconfident person, and I had so much funalong the way.At the end of the first day I already feltreally different. I think in our ensemblegroups I felt like we knew each other reallywell, even at the end of the first day. By thetime we had to leave, we were even closer.I think this was because we did a lot ofactivities that aloud us to get to know oneanother. I got to know a lot of people fromall around the world and I made somereally good friends. Also I feel way closer topeople from our own school. Were like theista family.Sagar GalaniWhat made me sign up for ISTA wasthat I wanted to improve my Drama skills. Ialso wanted to interact with new people.Out of the many skills, I learnt, I think themost important skill I learnt was how toreact to an action that happens in a scene.I have realized that while actors are on astage, the audience doesn’t only look atthe person who is saying the dialogue, theylook at everyone which is why reaction isso important. I think the highlight of ISTAwould definitely be the dance. Watchingthe performance and dancing wasundoubtedly the best part. I think one part Ifound really hard was trying to concentrateduring the ensemble. Some days theschedule would be so tiring that I wouldScene | 2007-8 June Issue 4 | 13

Alan HayesDavid LightbodyMike Pasternak and Sherri SuttonTexas TAPSjust want to sleep on the field. I think I justtried to drink some water and juice toovercome my sleepiness. The impact thatISTA will have on me for a long time wouldbe that it is never too hard to make newfriends. I have made so many friends in thistrip and it is amazing for me to understandthat to make a new friend, all you need iscommunication.Students from Regent’s School Pattaya– KGV HIGH SCHOOL FESTIVALLaura RandI have decided to sign up to haveanother opportunity to explore the differentaspects of theatre when working in anensemble and to make friends fromdifferent countries and schools in theproCess. My first impression of the hostcity on my arrival was that it is a verydeveloped country but having culture at thesame. I was not nervous about anything atthe beginning of the festival as I have beento ISTA before this but I was excited to seewhat the theme was for this ISTA trip andhow I and the other students were going touse it. At the end of the first day, I felt moreat ease with the people I was working withas I have spent my first day getting toknow them on our trip to the Buddha. Thebest quality of my ensemble leader is thathe made us want to produce the piece weproduced and from this, I have learnt how14 | Scene | 2007-8 June Issue 4to interpret and use props differently. Thehighlight in my opinion was the finalperformance because that was when allthe ensembles gathered together andjoined their pieces to make one big piece, itwas a highlight because it was interestingto see what everyone else had producedduring their ensemble sessions. The impactthat this ISTA experience will have on me inthe long term is that I have made newfriends and acquaintances and know moreabout working together in an ensemble andbeing more open-minded to other people’sideas and suggestions. The three wordsthat describes ISTA for me are enjoyable,educational and an opportunity forexperience!Katie SmithI signed up for ISTA because I lovedrama, my teacher recommended it andbecause students from my school who hadbeen before told me it was really amazingand that it would greatly improve my dramaskills. At first I was nervous about howdifficult the ‘learning’ part would be andwhat if I didn’t meet the expectations of theteachers? But when the weekend started Irealised that everything was taught in arelaxed way and that it wasn’t like being inclass and that no one wanted anythingfrom you that you weren’t willing to give.And now, looking back on the trip, I learntso much without actually realising it at thetime. I think that I learnt the most in myensemble group led by Jesse; I particularlyenjoyed exploring different ways of showingdramatic tension and have found it to besomething that I have used a lot in mydrama lessons. Also, Jesse was a greatteacher, mainly because he didn’t act like ateacher and was cool, but also because heunderstood we were teenager and madethings interesting for us.One of the best things about ISTA otherthan drama was being in a foreign countryand staying in a host family because for meit brought me closer to the people whowere doing ISTA with me. My firstimpression of Hong Kong was “Oh myGod, it’s so cold” and that it had a lotbuildings and things going on and wasreally happening and cultural but stillmodern. My host family was really nice andwelcoming and made the trip a lot easieras I had people who could explain to meabout Hong Kong.Overall, ISTA was a fantastic experienceand at the end of it I felt quite strangebecause I had done so many things andmet so many people in one short weekendthat I couldn’t really get it through my headwhat I had been through. In the long termISTA has defiantly helped to open my mindto different ways of expressing myselfthrough drama as well as introducing me topeople who I’m now going to keep incontact with.ISTA was – IntenseSurrealTiringAmazingPaula HakkajaThis was the second year that Iparticipated in an ISTA festival. Last year'sexperience made me to sign up for it againand I don't regret it. Hong Kong has alwaysbeen one of the dream destinations for meand therefore as the opportunity arose I gotexited beforehand. Furthermore, the daysbefore the festival were quite intense as allof us were excited about host families,workshops, ensembles and new peopleduring the event.The host families varied in theirnationalities and backgrounds, which madethe experience even more engaging for thestudents. My host family originated from theUK, which meant that I was part of morewestern lifestyle. It was a good change, as Icome from Europe and quite often get tomiss European customs and food. Thisbrings up another pleasant factor for me inHong Kong – the cool weather.The workshops in ISTA were also verystimulating. They were not only fun, butalso practical. We learned many new skillsthat can be applied in the drama at futureperformances. For instance, I learnedabout seven energy levels of a human andhow they affect performers, characters andthe audience. Furthermore, I discoveredthat important part of the performance isan occupation of a space on stage – how acertain position of a neutral body in spacecan appeal more dramatically thanexaggerated actions. Therefore performers,directors have to think about the positionson the stage even more.Working as an ensemble is animportant factor of every production.Compared to the previous year, theensemble was more consistent. Ourensemble leader involved everyone in thebrainstorming process and therefore everyperson had some of their ideas applied tothe final performance. Although in thebeginning, it was difficult to apply all thedifferent ideas to one production, in theend everyone listened to each other more.Overall, it was great to meet so manypeople with the same interest at once. Thedifferent cultures of all the students werecontributing to my personal development.However the time in Hong Kong waslimited and the only local culturalexperience was gained when we went tosee a monastery. Also we did not haveenough time to socialize with our friendsand this made the leaving especiallyheartbreaking.Matthew GalvinISTA was a very helpful program not justfor drama but for daily life, it really openedmy eyes and allowed me to experiencemuch more than what I was expecting. Imainly wanted to go to ISTA so I couldimprove on my drama skills and also tomake lots of new friends, which I did.My first impressions of Hong Kongwere mainly put into two words: Cold &Lights and where ever I went it seemed likeboth of those words were always there.

Before and during the festival I didn’t feelnervous nor did I feel scared I was alwaysmyself during the festival and I neverchanged. After the first day I made a lot ofnew friends and I learnt more about ISTAand what I will be doing during the course.With my host family I again experienceda lot but it seemed that the whole time withthem was enjoyable. My ensemble leaderwas very down to earth and could relatereally well to all of us, some main qualitieswere definitely to have fun and to try newthings also she never got angry she justalways stayed chilled. A technique that Icertainly learnt was vocally making calmnoises like wind etc also there were a lotmore trust exercises used so that helpedas well. A major moment in ISTA was whenthe final performance was performedbecause I got to watch what everyone hadmade and decided to put on. One of myfriends was chased by someone with aknife and really shook him up along withme and my other friends. The ISTAexperience has made me want to go backbecause it was just so fun.Three words that describe ISTA: JustHavin Fun!The student ensemble from WesternAcademy of Beijing reflect on theirfestival experience in NEW DELHIPetra AdamovaBefore ISTA I didn’t know how toMIME, how to develop on my own ideasand how to trust other people.During ISTA we had 2 workshops inwhich we learnt different techniques ofacting. One of the workshops that I didwas MIME, and I really enjoyed it, becauseI have never done MIME before. We learnthow to do the moonwalk, how to pushsomething and then fall, how to do tug ofwar with each other and many other reallyinteresting things. I wasn’t really good atthe moonwalk, because it was the first timethat I have done it so I didn’t have thatmuch experience as other people.The other workshop that I have done wasDEVELOPING ON YOUR OWN IDEAS.Before this workshop started I thought that itis going to be a workshop where you justwrite down your ideas and thoughts and thenexpand on them, but it turned out to be thecomplete opposite. We had to think of anidea and then other people will tell you whatto do to make it better, and then they changethe characters, setting and the ending andyou end up with a different story. I reallyenjoyed this workshop and I don’t think thatthey should change anything about it.Most of the time on ISTA we spend withour ensembles, which are groups in whichwe would create a play that we wouldperform at the end of the festival. I reallyliked our ensemble leader, because he was“ISTA was a life-changing experience.”Nicholas Oravetz, Student,Jakarta International Schoolfunny, and very creative. Our play took placein the desert and we exchanged roles as wewent on, no one was the main character.Amelia WillsI enjoyed meeting new people andworking together in an ensemble. I likedworking in an ensemble because at first wewere all quiet and shy. After we hadworked together for a day we started towork together well and make new friends.Staying in India was pretty cool too.Our host family was extremely nice andfriendly. They also had a big house and twodogs. I had a good time shopping, going tothe mall, playing games, and eating junkfood with them.Now that I’ve gone to ISTA not reallyknowing anyone (in the 2006 one of mygood friends was in my ensemble so Ididn’t talk to as many people), I’ve gottento know people from Manila, New Delhi,Dubai, Qatar, and many other places. Ihope to continue talking to them andremembering all of the things we wentthrough together.I enjoyed working in the workshops Me,Myself, and I, and Slow Motion. I likedlearning how to do things in slow motion. Iknow how to fall and how to die in slowmotion. I learned that the illusion of slowmotion in theater is helped by facialexpression.In Me, Myself, and I, I learned thatactors often do the stereotypical things thatreal people don’t actually do. These arecalled beautiful lies. A good way to preventyourself from telling beautiful lies is to actonly for yourself. If you pretend that theaudience isn’t there, and not to look atanyone else, you’ll do something originaland be ‘real’ on stage. To read somethingthe way that you, not anyone else wouldsay, or without making it sound likesomething that came out of a book is tohave someone else read it to you, and thenrepeat it again the way that you would sayit. It then sounds like you have just thoughtof it and are saying it.My favorite moment was when we liftedTamara. We had just gotten the performancejust right. The performance was going reallywell, and then we lifted Tamara higher thanwe had ever done before. I heard theaudience gasp, and I knew that that we hadfinally gotten it perfect.This ISTA was different, but just asamazing as our ISTA. If I could do it again,I’d do it again and again, until I got tired ofit (which might take a while). I hope toalways remember the awesome time I hadand to get myself into high school ISTA so Ican do it again.COMMENTARY ON THE FESTIVALEXPERIENCERoots and Wings was the theme of thisyear’s International Schools TheatreAssociation middle school festival. Prior toattending the festival, held this year in NewDelhi, India, the eleven students from theWestern Academy of Beijing spent timeFrankfurt High School FestivalTop: The Frankfurt staff team - from L to R- Debbie Kidd, Tara Brodin, Sherri Sutton,Sam Yates, Dan Heffernan, Chris Craig,Thom Gain, Kristen Van GinhovenBottom: From left to right – AnnieMcManners (festival host), staff members –Kristen Van Ginhoven, Tara Brodin,Sherri D Sutton, Debra Kiddexploring the theme to try and find a way ofdramatizing the idea. On the first day of thefestival, along with 13 other schools,performed the piece they had devised andreceived very positive responses.We arrived in New Delhi a day ahead ofthe festival in order to take in the sights ofthe old city and spend a little timeexperiencing some of the vibrant anddynamic culture India has to offer. Ahighlight of the day was visiting the... andwalking through the 1000 year oldstructures, full of history that filled the park.We finished the day off with a trip to theDilli Haart market, a colourful shoppingexperience.The festival opened with a bang. A trioset the front garden of the school alive withaction. The prancing of the puppet horse, thedancing of the slightly built Indian boy bothmoving to the complicated beat of the drum.175 students participated in the festival,all with a strong interest in theatre andperforming.The ensembles spent time togetherdevising their component of the finalperformance. These were held in variouslocations including fabric tents erected onthe field and in a local park. The studentsalso participated in specialist workshops, 3of these from the Indian culture.The evenings were filled with frivolity. Aninternational fayre with rides and food onoffer from various countries on one eveningand a Bollywood party on the other. At theend of each day the students returned totheir host families.The final performance, based on an oldstory from India, was beautifully presented,with all students playing a part to bring thestory to life through movement, dialogue,sound light and a final song.Lindsay AtkesonI think that ISTA was one of theScene | 2007-8 June Issue 4 | 15

New Delhi Middle School FestivalTop: Pete Benson works with the fullfestival ensembleBottom: staff team – clockwise from left -Mike Caemmerer, Pete Benson, Phil Clark,Emmy Abrahamson, Liane Campbell, NeilFarrelly, Matt Godfrey, Daniel Sarstedtgreatest drama experiences I have everhad. It was so much fun to participate insuch an interesting event, with so manypeople. One of my favorite activities duringISTA was doing the workshops andworking in the ensemble groups. I reallyliked doing these activities because theymade you work together to try and create aperformance. I also liked them because Ireally learnt a lot about acting.Some of the things I learnt whileworking in the groups was: Number 1, youmust trust your fellow actors. To do this weplayed many games that included thatfactor. One game was that we had to closeour eyes and run in one direction, and trustthe other people in the group to catch you.Many people were scared to do thisbecause they were afraid the otherswouldn’t catch them, but after playing thegame the second time around people werea bit more confident and ran faster. Thesecond thing I learnt was how to symbolizesomething in a performance that was notpossible to get or use. For example in ourensembles performance we needed waterfor a river, but since that was not possiblewe had to symbolize the water by wavinglong pieces of blue cloth instead. The thirdthing I was given was some tips on how tobe a better actor. Some of the tips shegave us were: when we speak we shouldspeak loud and clear so the audience canhear us, and also when we were projectingtableaus we should try to keep our bodiesnice and strong and hold them there foraround 3 seconds. These were all the tipsour ensemble leader gave us and I thinkthat they were really helpful to me. BeforeISTA my acting skills weren’t that good, butafter all the ensembles and workshops Ifeel like I improved so much. I feellike ISTA was a really wonderfulexperience and I am really glad Igot to come on this trip.Each year ISTA awards a scolarship for an IB Theatre Teacher based in NorthAmercia to attend a TAPS in Europe or Asia. This year from 8 applications,Andrew McBee was selected as the recipient of the 2007-2008 award. Here hetells of his experiences as he attended the Paris TAPS.A seemingly small detail of my stay in Paris will serve as a lens to focus on myexperience attending the TAPS conference.But first, the context: In Baltimore – the city where I live and teach – the offerings intheatre are scant. The city claims only four professional theatre venues. While one ofthem boasts a talented resident company and strong, well-directed productions, theregional theatre is uneven and the local Shakespeare group struggles to survive,mounting the Bard’s work in a borrowed church. Local theatre artists generally flee toneighboring Washington to seek their livelihood. Most of my students begin the IBTheatre Arts course without having ever attended a play in their lives.But I’m in Paris, squished in a crowd of people pushing their way into the lobby ofthe Theatre de Chatelet to see “Monkey,” a fantastically glitzy, technically wondrous,and highly acrobatic dramatization of the Monkey King legend from ancient China –the first of three performances I’ll attend as a participant in the conference. At the doorto enter the theatre lobby, a young woman is handing out some kind of newspaper,and she pushes one into my hand. I hold onto it through the performance and take itback to my hotel room.It’s “La Terrasse,” a journal that lists all of the theatre events in the greater Paris areafor that week. That is, the whole journal is articles about theatre – reviews ofperformances, interviews with directors and artists, pictures of actors and sets. There aredozens of them – dozens of them – and the writing gives an idea of the range of theatreexperiences you could have in single week in Paris, from conservative stagings of Ibsento cutting-edge movement pieces that interpret non-theatrical texts, explore politicalthemes, redefine the actors’ relationship to the audience. Just reading the articles is aneducation in the ideas and practices of contemporary theatre. I’m so excited and awed,I’m ready to quit my job, sell my house, and move to Paris immediately.I pick up another copy of “La Terrasse” when I visit L’Ecole Internationale deTheatre, the school founded by Jacques Lecoq. This second issue focuses on theatreeducation. Again, it is filled with articles and interviews, this time concerning all thevarious schools and training programs for actors in the city. I gather quotes, ideas,experiments to try with my students.I’m inspired, invigorated – just from picking up a journal.Another experience, a deeper one.On the first day, Nick Connelly, my group leader, tells my group to convene at theMusee Branly on the following day. The museum is dedicated to the cultures of theSouth Pacific, Africa, and South America, and since the objets d’art it displays arelargely used in rituals, Nick thinks it should stimulate us to think about PracticalPerformance Proposals.The experience is indeed stimulating, but not in the way that Nick intended – notfor me anyway. At first, I’m struck by how a crowd of well-heeled, well-educatedParisians and tourists, who surely pride themselves on their appreciation of differencesin culture, stroll through the museum admiring implements that the indigenous peopleof these regions used for war, ritualized murder, and the establishment of maleprestige and dominance. And how ironic, I think, that the visitors view these objects as“art”, when, as Marcel Duchamp (a Frenchman) pointed out, such a definition wasbogus: to the people who used them, they were everyday objects, created forutilitarian purposes that the museum visitors would abhor. Aesthetic considerationswere secondary, if important at all. The irony is heightened by the classes of artstudents sketching the objects.While Nick wants us to think about the rituals that are explained in connection withthese object as a form of theatre – the kind of ceremony that Artaud invoked as theessential theatrical experience – I can only think about the museum itself as theatre,where the visitors play the role of liberal-minded sophisticates who are fascinated with“traditional” (formerly known as “primitive”) cultures which first colonization and nowcapitalism seek to eliminate. I wonder: To what extent do any of these places retainthese “traditions”? And should we hope that they do? That they continue such violentand misogynistic practices as female castration? Or wouldn’t we rather that they wearNike sneakers, carry cell phones, and eat at McDonalds?Outside the museum, I share these thoughts and questions with Nick, and wedebate them until the group has reassembled. The discussion – about museums,about art, about theatre, about the role art plays in our society – continues over lunch.And eventually, we come around to connecting our ideas with concepts in the newIB Theatre Arts curriculum.Even teaching theatre, we can fall into a rut, confine ourselves to routines. Myexperiences in Paris – the innovative workshops, the unorthodox performances, thefrank discussions with other theatre teachers – yanked me out of mine. My gratitudeto ISTA is immeasurable.16 | Scene | 2007-8 June Issue 4

Devising Theatre and Drama in Education:WORLDS APART?by Jeff AitkenJeff is currently Theatre Managerand Head of Fine Arts at EscuelaCampo Alegre (ECA), theAmerican international school inCaracas, Venezuela. He isexaminer and an approvedTeacher Workshop Leader for IBTheatre. He is also ISTA RegionalRepresentative for Latin America.Like many of you, I have enjoyed years ofdevising theatre, both in the classroom andin the community. I am equally passionateabout the many forms that devised theatremay take: site specific, experimental,educational, political and more, and find theeducational and artistic benefits of devisingone of the inspiring aspects of teachingdrama. Implicit in devising are collaborativequestions about ourselves, our relationships,families, communities, politics, and the manyforms of theatre that give voice to the issuesthat impact us. Sometimes the answers areforthcoming, but often the value is in the“getting there”. As teachers, the “gettingthere” is fundamental to what we do,because, although we tend not to directdevised theatre, as facilitators we need toprovide a structure in which it can happen. Inrecent years, I have come to evaluate howbest I can vary the “structures” I provide forstudents during the devising process; afterall, one of the many silver linings in devisedtheatre lies in its possibilities for reinvention.Devising allows for a constant redefinitionof theatrical performance (DevisingTheatre, Alison Oddey, 1994: 23).So in an attempt to revitalize the“structures” of the devising process, I foundmyself re-connecting to earlier days,specifically in the area of Drama in Education.Years ago, at the University of Windsor, I didmy undergraduate degree in Drama inEducation and was introduced to the magicof Dorothy Heathcote, Gavin Bolton, DavidBooth, Richard Courtney and Brian Way. Weexplored the power of play, the teacher-inroleand the value of Story Drama.In the years that followed Windsor, itappeared that I had forgotten the potential ofsuch magical means. Perhaps forgotten isn’tthe best word – necessity dictated that Ishape myself as a teacher well-versed inacting techniques, production elements andpractitioners from times past. Drama inEducation for me took a place on the uppershelf, quite likely due to a system that placedsuch great emphasis on acting lessons andthe school play. At any rate, on the shelf nomore, dust cleared, I have started to rediscoverthe value of Drama in Educationand its place in the devising process.Drama, which has been described as‘the human process whereby imaginativethought becomes action’, is more than just aperformance on stage: as Brian Way states itis ‘a rehearsal for life’... (R. Courtney in ATheatre in Your Classroom, Bernie Warren(Ed), 1991: 4).In the following paragraphs, I will focuson two areas: in Part One, some of thecurrent approaches to devising theatre, ineffect, some of the “structures” that may beapplied to the process; in Part Two, somepractices within Drama in Education that Ihave found to ignite my approach todevising. The following commentary iswittingly infused with quotations, mainly forstudent reflection, but also to provide links towhat I believe are some outstanding sourcesin these fields. By no means can mydiscussions here be completelycomprehensive, but it is my hope that thequotations and sources will generate somepossibilities for incorporating Drama inEducation into the devising process.Part One - A Structure for DevisingI know what you’re thinking – this titlereads as somewhat of a paradox; after all, theessence of devising is rooted in the premisethat there is no structure, no definitive methodand no predetermined final product. Thereare, however, some “contexts” upon whichthe devising process can be based, and asyou’d expect, they allow for variation anddeviation. The contexts are neither intendedto be sequential nor are they meant to beused exclusive of one another. By no meansoriginal, they come from a number ofsources, a number of projects and a numberof people.Context One: ResearchingResearch, whether part of text-based ordevised theatre, is fundamental to theauthenticity of any piece; it involves theacquisition of theatre knowledge fromdifferent cultures and historical periods andits application to practical performance.Research develops devisers’ depth ofunderstanding of issues and topics. It is anopportunity to delve into the differentworlds…allows you to communicate with theaudience on a variety of levels. Your piece islayered, the complex understanding reflectedthrough subtext, characterization, anunexpected scene or image or in set designor costume. You make available to theaudience what you understand. If you haveonly one layer, that’s what they’ll get.(Devising: A Handbook for Drama andTheatre Students, Gill Lamden, 2000: 10)It is important to consider that researchneed not only take the form of individualreading or browsing of the Internet.The starting point may be theme,concept or even a story – research is acollective responsibility – It is from researchwhether book-fed, style-fed or life-fed thattheatre is made. BUT action arrives beforeword! (Through the Body, Dymphna Callery,2001: 165)Some of the best research practicescome from group-work and combiningacquisition of knowledge with action… and Iguarantee the sources are endless:• Books, magazines and the Internet –acquire and connect to performancepractice.• Photos, art and photography books –reflect, copy, edit, collage and improvise.• Interviews and questionnaires in thecommunity – contact a range of members,reflect and write.• Performances, ceremonies, rituals –experience, record, discuss and improvise.• Newspaper articles and maps – comparethose from different times and cultures.• Museums, galleries and tourist offices –use visits and pamphlets to createhistorical/cultural narratives.• Mosques, synagogues, churches, andtemples – experience the diversity andbeauty of each. Record, respond andimprovise.Context Two: CreatingCreating involves the doing, theshaping, or the making of the piece andcertainly has more variations than I couldpossibly summarize, but it is worth notingthat early on it is important to challengetraditional roles most often associatedwith text-based theatre.Actors or practitioners challenging theidea of actor-as-interpreter and reclaiming thenotion of actor-as-creator (Callery, 2001: 161)The first and most fundamental aspect ofeach context is the participants: who theyare and what they bring to the drama interms of experience, expectations and skills.The early part of the rehearsals is aboutinitiating and the latter is about responding(Devised and Collaborative Theatre, APractical Guide, Tina Bicat and Chris Baldwin(Eds), 2002: 98)Create a working atmosphere, one oftrust and confidence…I value energizers andhaving fun. Explore what we play and why.(Lamden, 2000: 9)Take time to explore details, establishgoals, roles and even a few rules.A high degree of democracy in all areasof the work, equal input... I prefer the term‘creating’ rather than ‘devising’ – creatingimplies a single vision but with the creativeimagination of others being given theopportunity of being involved (Oddey, 1994: 54)The shaping of material may begin fromcountless stimuli, and may be exploredcollaboratively through a variety of approachesand performance skills using both traditionaland non-traditional theatrical forms.• Exercises – introductory, physical warmups,trust, ensemble/complicite,Scene | 2007-8 June Issue 4 | 17

• Questioning/Brainstorming/Discussion –aims, objectives, roles, content, form, style,story and audience.• Improvisations – as exercises anddevelopment of material (with and withoutoutside audience)• Stimulus Development – vocal panels,question charts, colour and texture charts,discussions techniques (open, “conch” andconnected to role), theme building blocks,collages, body maps, mood charts,playable actions displayed through actionsplans and storyboards, conceptual imagesthat lead to tableaux• Development of skills – mask, mime,improvisation, vocal, puppetry, dance• Connections to practitioners – skill, style orculturally based• Designs – ground-plans and sketches thatlead to set and prop experimentation• Music – playing, responding, recording andediting to create sound-scapes, soundeffects and compositions• Site specific – parallel to your project, go tonew locations for stages of creating• Installation – parallel to your project, use asdevelopment towards a product• Film, photography and image media –integrate into live performance• Published or student-written text - integrateinto the processContext Three: Evaluating and ReflectingAs mentioned earlier, this context will nodoubt take place throughout the processand will involve students viewing andevaluating their own work and the work ofothers as well as reflecting on the processesof making theatre. Evaluating and reflectingcan happen in a number of forms, fromwritten and verbal to discussions betweensmall and larger groups.The evaluation of such work isdependent on those making or participatingin the theatrical event. Access can meanexcellence. (Oddey, 1994: 164)It is worth also discussing the type oflanguage that is appropriate and in factnecessary to the devising process and how itmay differ from other types of reflection. Thisnecessity derives from the fact that therereally is no language common to evaluatingthe devising process. This is an excitingopportunity to expand the type of languageused in the making of theatre!The importance of evaluating the processin relationship to the product…there is nocommon critical language in which devisedtheatre can be assessed or understood,which implies a need to differentiate andarticulate ways of looking at devised theatre(Oddey, 1994: 82)A will to enlarge the language of theatre thatis thrilling to behold and essential to absorb!(Michael Coveney in Lamden, 2000: 44)Using an audience throughout theprocess can improve the quality of devising.Devising a participatory programme thatinvolves the audience in choices anddecision-making means finding a subtlebalance and relationship betweenconstructed historical material and thepresent, socio-political, economic, andcultural climate or reality. (Oddey, 1994: 115)Consider:• The use of a journal or performanceprocess notebook (for both facilitator and18 | Scene | 2007-8 June Issue 4participants).• Involve an audience in choices –encourage for example local members ofyour community to become part of theprocess of making, evaluating andreflecting. “Always present work to aconstructive audience during development.They see what you’ve missed” (Lamden,2000: 26)• Discussions – regular series of questionand review periods into the whole process.“Discussion serves to re-establish direction”(Lamden, 2000: 27)• A sequence of reflective exercises focusingon individual responses with the aim ofexploring the route from impulse to gestureand image – view them as experimentsthrough which you further creativeunderstanding and development… (Callery,2001:173)• Define and debate on the processes ofmaking theatre!Please note once again: these contextsare neither exclusive of one another, nor arethey intended to be sequential - contexts willoverlap! Also, many ideas mentioned camefrom the wonderful devising sources quotedthroughout and the extraordinary people I’vehad the honour of working with whendevising theatre.Part Two - A Place for Drama inEducationStart from where you’re at.(Development Through Drama, Brian Way,1967: 8)Drama in Education for me was neverabout an audience but instead about theparticipants and what drama could do forthem and their development. A disregard forthe audience may not be applicable todevised theatre in the sense that quite oftenan audience is looming months down theroad and an understanding of therelationship to that audience needs to beexplored. However, it is in terms of thestudents’ development that I believe Dramain Education has much to offer the devisingprocess, that is, the personal and culturaldevelopment of those involved.Drama is as intangible as personalityitself, and is concerned with developingpeople. (Way, 1967: 7)The following practices can only beintroduced, and like the contexts in Part One,they work best when interchanged,overlapped and adapted. It is my intentionthat from the sources listed you’ll take theopportunity to delve further into thepossibilities of Drama in Education and itsplace in the devising process. I have foundthe following three areas particularly useful asexploratory devices in the research contextof devising, although they can be equallyeffective throughout the process.Story DramaStory Drama – which I’ll define for themoment as improvised role-play based onstory…allows participants to at oncebecome the co-constructors of a story, thestory itself and the characters living within thestory: as the poet David McCord says, theyare “the singer, the song and the sung”(Story Drama: Reading, writing androleplaying across the curriculum, DavidBooth, 1994: 12)Storytelling need not be treated in thetraditional sense, where young faces eagerlyawait details to unfold in front of them. Astory has the potential to stimulate muchmore in the sense that it may create aresonant relationship between individualresponses and the story itself. Used as anexploratory device, story and the act of StoryDrama have great potential in the context ofpreparatory research.In my work story and drama are foreverlinked…linking incidents and events that thechildren and I experience together into anarrative that echoes the books and talesthat have gone before, connecting thechildren to me and to the story network thatgives meaning to our lives. (Booth, 1994: 11)The Story Drama is interactive, althoughthe starting point is in fact a story; itdemands the interaction and exploration ofthe participants: they respond, role-play,create new characters and may alter thepath of the story itself. The facilitatoremploys the issues, themes, conflicts, moodor spirit of the story as a beginning fordramatic exploration. The Story Dramaprovides participants with connections tonew ideas, relationships, cultures andhistorical periods.Children can step outside their ownculture, their past lives, their experiences intoother worlds – strange, different, unsettling orfantastic – and meet characters that theydidn’t know existed or stare back from themirror…deepest issues can be explored,argued, clarified, wondered about…Thestory’s voice speaks to us all! (Stories toRead Aloud, David Booth, 1992: 5)The Story Drama can provide a specificbenefit to the initial stages of research duringthe devising process. The right choice ofstory has the potential to furnish participantswith a new way of acquiring and processingknowledge. I use Story Drama as a stage ofresearch to explore aspects of historical andcultural contexts. After all, stories often reflectthe very cultures we are investigating. FredInglis calls culture “the collection of storieswe tell to ourselves about ourselves” (inBooth, 1994: 40)I look for stories that contain universaltruths that we can all recognize, inside anarrative that will hold the attention of agroup of youngsters from variousbackgrounds (Booth, 1992: 7)The storyteller role in a Story Drama issimilar to that of the facilitator in the devisingprocess in that he/she is not there tomanage, but rather to guide a continualprocess of organization and reorganization,of focusing and refocusing.I suddenly recognized the power ofletting the drama emerge from the children’simaginations as opposed to my giving themconstant instructions and orders. I neverlooked back (Booth, 1994: 9)In terms of praxis, Story Drama (likedevising) has about as many devices asthere are stories out there! Consider forexample: stopping the story and asking forreflection, author’s ideas, themes; engagingin role-play; questioning in role; drawing,graphing, writing and painting all types ofreactions; creating story-songs usinginstruments, sound effects or voices; usingthe story as a monologue and trying alternatelocations for telling, listening or creating.

By questioning the children as if they arein role, I can help them picture that world,and the role gives public voice with which toshare the creations of their imaginations(Booth, 1994:18)There are also wonderful opportunities inthe elementary/primary division of your, or aneighbouring school - have your studentsintroduce Story Drama to younger childrenas a means of unraveling a new potential forthe devising process. Seek out stories in themost unusual places! What better way toexplore and absorb a new culture than touncover its many legends, myths, fables, folktales, ghost stories, mysteries, allegories andbedtime stories?Over the years, I have seen a single talegive rise to a hundred different treatmentsand interpretations, determined by theparticipants and the moment, each storydrama unique, yet included somewherewithin the original story’s fabric (Booth, 1994:11-12)Teacher-in-Role and Mantle of the ExpertDrama is to be about meaning-indicating,meaning-seeking, meaning-making andmeaning-finding… with this Heathcotealways keyed in to her pupils’ readiness towork in depth (Acting in Classroom Drama,Gavin Bolton, 1999: 177)Dorothy Heathcote established for manythe efficacy of “Living through” drama andthe “Teacher-in-role” within the classroom.These conventions were most oftenattempted, in part, to provide students withthe chance to engage with making meaningout of situations and/or information. This isby no means simply having the teacher playa role; the teacher continuously comes out ofrole to allow students to reflect and negotiatemeaning and provides opportunities forreflection. By definition, this is a managedevent: time and space are manipulated forthe purposes of approaching problems,making judgements and exploring issues.Her approach is based on a communalperspective, so that pupils take on their rolesas ‘we’ the people of this culture and not as‘I’ an interesting individual interacting withother individualistic characters…it is rarelyabout a particular personality; it is about theproblem we have to face as a community(Bolton, 1999: 186).I have found the search for meaning andthe students’ readiness to work in depth aparticularly useful exploratory device in theresearch context of devising. What betterway to engage your students in the searchfor information and its meaning than in role?In practice, I create situations based on theaccumulated research and then experimentwith potency, relevance and meaning. The“Teacher-in-role” can also raise the level ofcontent and often draws particular attentionto information or issues that may surfacethrough the course of the improvisations.Students are invited to look for implications,check motivation, evaluate information,assess consequences and make decisions.It is not merely unrehearsed butunrehearsable. (Bolton, 1999: 180)I have found “Mantle of the Expert”, alater convention of Heathcote, to be equallyeffective in the research context of devising.In addition to exploratory improvisation beingused to qualify research, characters,situations and meaning, Heathcote turned tothe question of how the pupils’ perspectivesshould be framed.We shall see that ‘framing’ and ‘taskselection’ became the pivotal structures ofMantle of the Expert (Bolton, 1999: 227)“Mantle of the Expert” involves looking ata situation from a particular point of view.Within the improvisation, students are giventhe role of an “expert” related to the chosenarea of research. These portrayals will requireconsiderable preparation; I find placing theresearch in a performative context allows thestudents and myself to explore specificdetails in an authentic way. In addition, thisoften creates considerable interest forstudents during the context of research – anarea normally equated with dental surgery. Inaddition, this provides multiple perspectiveson a given subject as well as a new methodof discarding less useful information.‘Busy Authority’ sums up the ‘Mantle ofthe Expert’ role. From this point inHeathcote’s teaching, this was thespringboard from which all learning could bepursued ‘Mantle of the Expert’ canaccommodate for anything in drama, for themethod can be used to teach anything(Bolton, 1999: 241)I have my students carry out researchtasks as experts – designing, tracing,reporting, measuring, decoding, visualizing,demonstrating, instructing etc. I have thembring whatever they’ve accumulated to thesession and then launch the improvisation viashort, precise tasks relevant to the stimulus,theme or form. Although as a facilitator, I amstill in role, I act only as a colleague to thefellow “experts”. Here I have the chance tocreate and maintain a professional vocabularywith my students in role and to determine thequality and validity of their research.Dorothy Heathcote has found a way ofbringing the power of make believe into theclassroom so that her pupils can be ‘insidethe skin of the expert’ and achieve ‘his senseof joyous intellectual adventure’ using, not theidentity of a Scout movement culture, but thatof an enterprise culture (Bolton, 1999: 244)What should Heathcote’s followersunderstand first and foremost? The answer Ibelieve lies in ‘authenticity’ …she means arigorous attention and respect for what istrue, true for the scientist and scholar andthe artist and craftsman…A passionateinterest in how things are made and who willbe responsible for them underlies heremphasis on tasks, for tasks rely on that kindof knowledge (Bolton, 1999: 244)Interplay: Integrating the ArtsIf a child has a particular image, thought,or feeling to express, then he or she shouldbe able to choose the best form in which toexpress it (Alistair Martin-Smith in Warren,1994: 96)The above was written by a fineprofessor of mine back in my Windsor days.He introduced me to the concept of Interplayas being more than just a little music andartwork added to the drama. Although wehave all explored cross-curricular projects, itis worth looking at the value of incorporatingmusic, art, drama, writing and dance into thedevising process as equal mediums, eachcapable of reaching students in new andunique ways.Working to integrate the arts helps tobridge the gap between image andword…the creative media should be seen ascomplementary and interdependent, ratherthan isolated… (Alistair Martin-Smith inWarren, 1994: 98)I try to practically encourage students ofall abilities and preferences to get involved inthe devising process: actors, singers,instrumentalists, dancers, designers,painters, sculptors, writers, photographersand maybe a few with no experience in any.Many creative souls make for a diverse andlayered piece! And most importantly, have allmembers start the process together early onin the research context and with eachdiscipline contributing in an equivalent way.There is the potential here for new language,new learning and a new means of creating.By moving from medium to medium,students have the opportunity to compareand contrast the different symbolic meaningsoffered by each art form…meaning iscreated by moving back and forth betweenthe word (or image) and the child’sexperience and feeling (Alistair Martin-Smithin Warren, 1994: 121)Integrating the arts provides a context formany different kinds of learning, and allowschildren to perceive their artistic product asone stage in an evolving process rather thanas the final goal (Alistair Martin-Smith inWarren, 1994: 123)“Story Drama”, “Teacher-in-Role”,“Mantle of the Expert” and “Interplay”, whenintroduced as exploratory devices in thedevising process, can present new methodsof developing not only drama but also thepersonalities of those engaged.The aim is constant: to develop peoplenot drama. By pursuing the former, the lattermay also be achieved; by pursuing the latter,the former can be totally neglected, if notnullified. (Way, 1967: 7)And finally I return to a point I made atthe outset, one with which I will conclude;that is, the most fundamental aspect indevising is that of the participants, and howeach brings something unique to theprocess. Such value is found in the qualitiesthat make us human and for which thedrama will always be based.To develop people we need to start byconsidering some aspects of the basic natureof human beings; whatever practicalmanner we find for beginning drama,these basic aspects of humanityare relevant. (Way, 1967: 9)Student WritingThe student writing that appears in thisissue has been selected from sampleswe have received throughout the year. Itcannot be a comprehensive compilationdue to space, and the fact that at thetime of going to print we still have threefestivals yet to take place. I will collate afully comprehensive record of ALLstudent writing we have received overthe summer, once our final event hastaken place and publish this on thewebsite. I will announce this in the nextissue of Scene, in the members area(main page) and in File O’Facts inAugust. Thanks, Sally.Scene | 2007-8 June Issue 4 | 19

Festivals&TAPSThe Student JourneyOne of the many inspiring aspects of a Board of Trustee meeting, is the timewe spend together creatively brainstorming various aspects of ourorganisation and its work. In January 2008 much time was spent talkingabout ‘putting the theatre back into ISTA’. This strand of thought wasdeveloped further by our Programming Group. They worked with hosts andmyself to create a very specific theme for each festival. This has been‘announced’ with our new Season of Events (see the middle pages of thisissue). Another discussion focussed on the developmental journey from ayoung person attending a Primary, Middle, High School Festival and movingonto TAPS; along with some consideration of the similarities and differencesbetween Festivals and TAPS as our two major strands of events. Theoutcome of that discussion and an overview of the ISTA student journey isoutlined for you below.Festivals are an experience in themselves:TAPS is the start of a journey.theatre makers as part of a devisingcompany.The weekend includes a culturalexperience or ‘out and about’, oftenincluding site sensitive or site specificwork in ensembles (often specialised)workshops and a final festivalperformance. At selected festivalsstudents are invited to bring along prepreparedpresentations.ISTA events focus on three areas of learning:Theatre PracticeCreative LearningInternationalismPrimary School FestivalsThe Theatre PlaygroundSeeing oneself within the theatricalprocessAn introduction to theatre makingFor students aged 9-10These festivals provide andintroduction and exposure to ensembleand creative play. Learning focuses onhow to apply ensemble to theeducational process.The weekend includes a culturalexperience or ‘out and about’ in thehost city, full group work, full groupmusic, ensembles, workshops and afinal festival ‘sharing’ of materialcreated.Middle School FestivalsThe Theatre WorkshopSeeing others in ensembles andworkshopsTheatre making and an introductionto theatre performanceFor students aged 10-14These festivals provide an exposureto and experimentation of theatre skillsand styles. Learning focuses on theacquisition of new skills and how touse ensemble skills within the devisingprocess.Festivals ‘cast a broad net’:TAPS provide a ‘deepening’ of work.The weekend includes a culturalexperience or ‘out and about’ in thehost city, full group work, full groupmusic, ensembles, workshops and afinal festival performance. At selectedfestivals students are invited to bringalong pre-prepared presentations.High School FestivalsThe Theatre CompanySeeing oneself in relation to othersTheatre making, theatreperformance and world theatreFor students aged 14-18Festivals take place mostly within aschool environment:TAPS take place mostlyoutside of a school environment.These festivals provide anexperience that focuses on theapplication of both the ensembleapproach and specific theatre skills tothe devising process. Students areTAPS WorkshopsProvide a seminal theatre andlearning experience for IB TheatrestudentsSeeing oneself as a theatre makerwithin the collaborative processTheatre in the making, theatre inperformance, theatre in the worldFor students aged 16-19TAPS are the highest level of theatretraining that ISTA provides.TAPS are workshops for studentsof IB Theatre. They provide a seminaltheatre and learning experience thatwill act as a launch pad for their ownfurther explorations of theatre, withinthe context of the IB Theatre course.The weekend offers an ensembleexperience that engages students withthe philosophy of the IB Theatreprogramme; tools and strategies tomanage their own discoveries andlearning; a starting point and resourcefor further work; a range of theatreperformances; master classesfocussing on specific areas of theatre.ISTA events are:Unique Practical IntensiveExperientialISTA: The International Theatre Educator20 | Scene | 2007-8 June Issue 4

A BRIEFHISTORY OF1978-1979 – The first High School Theatre Festival at theAmerican School in London, England with 8 schools present. HighSchool Festivals continued for a few years in Frankfurt, Brusselsand Paris with roughly 150 students at each, representing 10schools.1982-1983 – An all-night director’s meeting resulted in theformation of the Association. We became a non-profit organisationand membership was opened up. An Executive Council wasformed, statutes were written and an official philosophy formed.The first Travelling Troupe was created and produced The Crucibleunder the direction of Bill Smart. The ISTA logo, based on anancient Persian symbol for Lady Sun and designed by Pat Zich,was adopted.1983-1984 – Student Directed Scenes were introduced; the firstbeing from Rosencratz and Guildenstern Are Dead. The ISTAnewsletter first started with editor Bev Meyer.1984-1985 – Two festivals took place for High School studentsand Pat Zich was hired as part-time Executive Consultant. Shetook over the ISTA newsletter; we presented at ECIS for the firsttime and the first Teacher Conference was organised.1985-1986 – We moved to 3 High School Festivals and theTeacher Conference moved to Stratford-upon-Avon.1986-1987 – The first Middle School Festival took place in Zurich.The position of Executive Consultant became full time and Pat’sbook Teaching Ensemble Technique in Theatre was published.1988-1989 – Michigan State University began to offer graduatecredit to participants in the ISTA Teachers Conferences. TheTravelling Troupe, sadly, was discontinued due to lack of funding.1989-1990 – Membership exceeds 50 and we buy our firstcomputer equipment. Our first summer programme ISTASUMMERTIME takes place in Lancashire.1990-1991 – Two Middle School Festivals for the first time; thirtynine schools were involved in High School Festivals and MiddleSchool Festivals had participants from four continents – Asia, NorthAmerica, Australia and Europe.1991-1992 – A landmark year with membership reaching 60 andwe held our first festival in Asia. Three new monographs joined thenewly computerised publications Teaching Ensemble Technique inTheatre and Dramantics (by Tim Willliams). ISTA SUMMERTIMEmoved to York and Council elections were opened to themembership.This year also saw our first International Baccalaureate Theatre ArtsProgramme Symposium in Stratford with 90 teachers andstudents.1992-1993 – Our first High School Festival in Asia. ISTA ‘centre ofoperations’ temporarily moved to Upstate New York as Pat caredfor her son Rick. Executive Council meeting held in Amsterdam inMay.1993-1994 – For the first time in the history of the organisation,with sound financial planning recommended by August Zemo, ISTAended the year with a surplus!1994-1995 – Four High School and four Middle School Festivalsthis year. Our first festival in Australia hosted by NarrabundahCollege.1995-1996 – Staff retreat hosted by Tim Williams in Spain andISTA became a registered Company and Charity in the UK.1996-1997 – Dinos Aristidou took over as President. TedMiltenberger was recognised for his leadership of the organisationsince its founding. TAPS continued in Stratford with, this year, DrIan Hill attending from the IB. We hired our first Asia PacificCoordinator (Sally Robertson). ISTA SUMMERTIME continued atTASIS in London.1997-1998 – We organised our first Teacher Conference in Asiacalled The Balinese Experience. ISTA ceased its own summerprogramme, but began lending support to ENCORE! summerprogramme, based in the South of France.1998-1999 – First TAPS held in Asia Pacific, in Australia at StLeonard’s College. The IB Middle Years Programme, Drama andTheatre Experience took place for the first time in Vienna.1999-2000 – Our first festivals in Africa and the Middle East(Tanganyika and Bahrain respectively).2000-2001 – Mike Pasternak took over as President. Pat retiredand Sally Robertson took over as CEO of the organisation. SallyDellow took over the Asia Pacific Coordinator role. First ‘personnel’began work for ISTA as Jo Webb took over accounts. ISTAproduced 10 events this year.2001-2002 – First Primary Teacher Experience and first TAPS inNorth America. ‘Scene’ ISTA’s quarterly journal replaced themonthly newsletter. The Executive Council was replaced by theBoard of Trustees and our Memorandum of Articles was amendedby special resolution. We held our first Tech Festival in Malaysia.2003-2004 – A second landmark year with membership exceeding100. We produced 13 events this year. We also introduced a newrange of publications beginning with Drama and the Middle SchoolCurriculum, IB Projects in Practice and the IB Handbook. Our firstStrategic Plan was created by David Lightbody and SallyRobertson.2004-2005 – The number of events moved to 14 this year. Weheld our first Primary Festival, which took place in Amsterdam; andwe had two Primary Teacher Experiences, one in Europe and onein Asia. IB North America were approached regarding ISTA’s role inrunning workshops for teachers in the region; we were invited tobe workshop provider. Ted Miltenberger retired from the Board ofTrustees. We introduced a new role within the organisation – thatof Honorary Life Member – Ted became our first. The main ISTAoffice moved ‘down under’ to Perth in Western Australia.2005-2006 – Mike Pasternak retired as President and DavidLightbody replaced him. Mike was invited to be Honorary Lifemember, along with Dinos Aristidou. We produced 16 events thisyear including 4 TAPS; our first in North America with full IBsupport in San Francisco. We also began a new collaboration withthe Sherman Theatre in Cardiff for TAPS. ISTA worked alongsidethe IB to produce the new Teacher Support Material for the IBTheatre course.2006-2007 – ISTA produced 19 events. The Strategic Plan isupdated (including a new Growth Strategy). Our main officereturned back to Cornwall.2007-2008 – We introduced our first Bonsai Festival, which tookplace in Berne. We are now supported by one full time employeeand four part time personnel. A Memorandum of Understandingwas created between the IB and ISTA. Three interim Boardmeetings were set up, to supplement our main annual meeting inorder to discuss long term planning and growth. We will finish theyear with 145 members and look ahead to 24 events on nextyear’s calendar…Scene | 2007-8 June Issue 4 | 21

In the hands of our CEO, Trustees,Honorary Life Members and PersonnelDinos AristidouAlex CliftonSally RobertsonJo WebbDarren ScullyMike PasternakDavid LightbodyBev BrianIan PikeFenella KellyTed MiltenbergerJo DoidgeEmmy AbrahamsonDoug Bishopwww.ista.co.uk