Drama Tuesday - The Drama Teaching Space

Spaces of learning/Spaces of Performance

 We take for granted that students understand how the elements of Space and Time are crucial building blocks for making drama. But we usually think of this in terms of the performance spaces we use – our theatres and performance venues. In this post I shift our thinking to consider that every drama room – whether it’s a purpose built space or a classroom rearranged - in the same terms as we do in making drama: the physical space,, the social space and the imagined emotional space. 

The space of performance is essentially an interaction between participants who are performers and participants who are audience. We can think of the drama teaching space as the interaction between participants – students and teacher – and the physical, social and imagined emotional space. 

I am thinking about this having read an interesting post from TheatreFolk in Canada and a new publication they have put out called Return, restore, rebound: Post-Pandemic Resource.. In that post they discuss the challenges of being a teacher who has been teaching online and remotely as they return to their physical classrooms. (https://www.theatrefolk.com/products/return-restore-rebound-post-pandemic-resource) . In particular, they set out to support the beginning teacher who is moving into the physical space of teaching for the first time after their graduation – a delayed taking up of a teaching position because of the Pandemic. 

In that resource, they pose useful questions for teachers – fresh to the space or returning to the space – reflecting on the potential of the teaching space. The physical strengths and limits as well emotional reactions to being in the space. The potential for doing things differently. 

In my work with drama teacher education students I include a module on thinking about setting our “perfect” drama teaching space (as part of a workshop on Managing Drama Teaching). At one level there is no “perfect” drama teaching space – and at another level the “perfect teaching space” is the one you are in the process of making. It is always in a state of becoming.

There are some important principles though: be organised. I have lost track of where this image comes from – the antiquated dimmer board takes it back somewhere into the dim dark past. But the notion of managing the space is important. 

The second image was something I drew after visiting a successful teacher’s space. Christina is thoroughly organised. For example, students know that if they missed a class, the can always go into the shelf where notes from each workshop are kept and find what they missed. 

The other thing about this teacher’s work, is that each student had their own portfolio which they added to systematically with each lesson. This provided both organisation of accumulating learning, it also made explicit metacognitive processes of articulating learning through writing and journal entries. (Of course, nowadays, we might not have a physical portfolio but keep a digital one). There is more to teaching drama than being able to lead a process drama. 

If you work in most secondary schools in Western Australia there is likely to be a purpose built Performing Arts Centre. They vary but are basically a workshop space of about 14 metres by 114  metres with associated dressing room/green room (that is also another teaching space). They are equipped with lighting bars and lights, sound systems. Most are carpeted. They are in. effect black box theatres. But if you are the drama teacher, most likely the only drama teacher in the school, you will wind up being responsible for a facility that costs over a million dollars to build and a school community that don’t quite understand the complexity of being responsible for it. There is the technical side – sound and lighting that requires specialised knowledge. There is the security side where there is equipment that is highly desirable that can be easily stolen or misappropriated. There is the maintenance and air conditioning and all the Occupational Health and Safety requirements when it comes to audiences and not having students push each other around on the scaffolding for the lighting. 

That’s a huge amount of financial and professional responsibility for a beginning teacher. And, sadly, so little time in a teacher education course to provide the necessary background for managing. Part of the work of drama teachers is to manage their teaching and learning space.

What are the necessary knowledge and skills to step into the drama teaching and learning space? What do you need to know to teach drama – apart from a knowledge about the art form itself?