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Education pack written by – Finlay

McGuiganEngagement and

Learning Facilitator

Hull Truck Theatre01482 488248

finlay.mcguigan@hulltr

Contents

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Going to the Theatre 3

Cast – Creative Team – Stage Management 4

Director’s Interview 5

Designer’s Interview 6

Composer & Musical Director’s Interview 9-10

Education Activities: 11-15

- Literacy 11-12

- Drama 12-13

- Classroom 13-15

Costume Designer’s Mood Board 16

Freeze Frame Information 17

How to be a Nanna Workshop 18

Engagement and Learning at Hull Truck Theatre 19

Synopsis Don't mess with the Nannas!There's a party at the palace and you're all invited. Only, someone's been missed off the list and she's not very happy about it! Join our five magical Nannas as they spin the tale of Princess Briar Rose in this reawakening of a fairytale classic packed with music, song, dance and laughter. Has the King managed to destroy all the spinning wheels? Will the Prince be able to fight his way through the tangle of thorns? Or is the Princess set for a very long sleep?

A note on how to use this pack:The pack has been created with teacher and pupil in mind so that any visit to Hull Truck Theatre to see Sleeping Beauty can be enhanced by both pupils and teachers reading it or using the education activities. If you are a teacher looking to inspire and educate your students through drama, this pack can offer you a guide to accessing the new English curriculum through drama devices. It provides your pupils with practical material to develop critical thinking and performance skills to aid creative learning.

Going to the TheatreVisiting the theatre can be a really exciting experience for children and young people. The whole experience should be enjoyable for both pupils and teachers and so we’ve made some suggestions you may wish to consider in advance of your trip.

A theatre trip provides an opportunity to ignite the imagination and stimulate creative responses which enhance learning. If you plan your visit in advance and think about what you want your pupils to focus on they will get maximum benefit from their visit. You may want to familiarise your pupils with what the theatre look likes by visiting our website and looking at our pictures and programme. Find a synopsis of the play you are going to see and discuss the key elements of the story and anything in particular you would like them to look out for.

Whilst it’s great to prepare pupils, especially if it’s their first visit to the theatre, do bear in mind that surprise can also be stimulating and is part of the fun and enjoyment of the experience.

Important things to consider when in the TheatreIt’s important to enjoy the performance in the moment and to react and respond to the story as it unfolds. If this means laughing out loud or being quietly enraptured, pupils should understand that this is perfectly acceptable for themselves and other people in the audience. However, it is important to remember that the theatre is a public space and so discuss expectations of behaviour in relation to respecting and exploring a different environment and the other people who may be using it. The theatre will usually make an announcement to remind audiences to switch off or silence mobile phones but it may be worth you discussing this with pupils in advance.

Please also bear in mind safety issues and ensure you have sufficient staff for supervising toilet trips. For school visits Hull Truck Theatre offers one free ticket per six pupils for ages 7 and under and one free ticket per 10 pupils age 8 and over.

Useful questions to aid discussion:- What is a theatre? – A place that shows plays and performances.- What is the difference between a performance in a theatre and seeing a film/TV show? – A theatre performance is a unique experience that involves actors and audience sharing the

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same space at the same time. A film/TV show is one of many copies; it is the same every time you see it. - What ways are there to look at a play? – The plot, the themes, the set, the acting, the lighting and sound. You can also just enjoy watching the performance and being carried away into the world of the show and then discussing your experience afterwards.

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Creative TeamWriter – Mike KennyDirector - Mark BabychComposer and Musical Director – James FrewerSet and Lighting Designer – Ciaran BagnallCostume Designer – Siân ThomasSound designer – Mathew ClowesMovement Director – Jon BeneyStage Manager – Jen HirstDeputy Stage Manager – Sophie Sierra

Cast and Creatives

Director’s Interview – Mark Babych5

CastAnnabel Betts – Nanna JanineJames Frewer – Nanna FrewNicholas Goode – Bad Nanna SandraHarry Hamer – Nanna Dorothy PinkLaurie Jamieson – Nanna Noonoo

Community EnsembleJoe BeckettSophie BevanPaul DeyesKelly GaleFinlay McGuiganOllie MuddJames Newton

1. What is the role of the Director in the creation of Mike Kenny’s Sleeping Beauty?

To put the piece on the stage. My role is to create the life of the production, because in Mike Kenny’s version there is no clear way of staging the show. There are no prescribed ways of doing it. So my role is to invent the world in which our version of Sleeping Beauty is told.

2. What inspires you about Mike Kenny’s version of Sleeping Beauty?

Mike Kenny is very good at taking well know tales and putting a different spin on them. Making you see them differently. We all probably know Sleeping Beauty from Disney or traditional pantomimes. But this isn’t, it is neither Disney nor pantomime. He has taken a well-known tale and refreshed it. However, it still has certain elements that we would be familiar with but it is not the same as the Disney film or the pantomime. Most of these tales need to be retold for each generation.

3. What will be the challenges in directing this version of Sleeping Beauty?

The challenges are bringing together several elements all at once. There is a large musical thread that has to be in tune with the storytelling that also have to be in tune with lots of the visual elements. So it is bringing together elements of acting, music, dance and movement as a language of production.

4. Why is Mike Kenny’s version of Sleeping Beauty an important story for young people?

This version is all about parents allowing their children to grow up as confident human beings and not overprotecting them from life’s thistles and brambles. Inevitably we are all going to fall into the briar at some point in our lives and we can’t stop that from happening. So, we can’t wrap people up in cotton wool and that’s what this version of the story brings out.

5. What key advice did you learn from your Nanna?

To eat. My grandmother was a Ukrainian refugee that lived through the Holodomor, which was the great starvation of the 1930s. The Stalinist starvation of the 1930s. She always had food on the go because when she was young she never knew when the next mouthful was going to come.

6. If you could go anywhere or do anything, where or what would you do?

I would go on a round the world adventure with my wife and daughter.

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Set and Lighting Designer’s Interview – Ciaran Bagnall

1. What is your design concept?

The design concept is to create a fun and magical experience for the audience. Mike Kenny’s version of Sleeping Beauty references spinning wheels and the world turning like a spinning wheel. I wish to create a world influenced by spinning wheels and circles. This will all knit together with the influence of the Nanna’s and their knitting. There will be yarn bombing, where public places are covered in knitting and crochet. The design will be full of colour and knitting.

2. Where do you find inspiration?

I find inspiration from a range of artist I am interested in, I find ideas on the Pinterest website and YouTube. The artist that has inspired the work for this year’s Sleeping Beauty is Toshiko Horiuchi MacAdam. She is a Japanese artist who creates play areas out of knitting brightly coloured materials together. She has inspired our brightly coloured, safe, playful environment for the story to be told within.

3. Do you have a process that you work through when beginning a new project, or does it change depending on the piece?

I work on a similar process for most projects. A step by step process starting with a conversation and reading the script with the Director. I will then carry out general research of the period, the theme and key elements of the story and back up the research visually, for example, a mood board of ideas and colours, shapes and artist’s work for inspiration. The Director and I work very closely to craft the ideas and inspiration to match what the Director is looking to achieve when telling the story. These ideas are made into a ‘White Card’ model box where the ideas are formed into a three dimensional model. All models are made to a 1:25 scale, therefore for every 1 cm measured on the model it is equal to 25cm on the stage. After more conversations and changes in ideas, the ‘Final’ model box is created. This will be in full colour and will be as close to the final built set you will see on the stage. Finally, throughout the rehearsal period and technical process the set and small ideas will still adapt and change, it really is never locked down.

4. What excites you most about designing for theatre?

Helping to create the relationship between the actors and the audience. I am able to create a world and environment that aids the storytelling, helping to support the audience’s understanding of the story.

White Card Model Box 7

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Final Model Box

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Composer and Musical Director’s Interview – James Frewer

1. What will your creative process for Sleeping Beauty be? Do you have a process you work through or does it change depending on the piece?

I think it completely depends on what the piece is. If it’s a Christmas show, for something like Sleeping Beauty, it depends on finding a way to write it. With Sleeping Beauty we explored several styles, trying to build up something that pleases everyone musically. If we take something popular children enjoy, for example ‘Frozen’ or ‘Wicked’, we will then merge that with a really distinct style. Last year, for Mike Kenny’s Cinderella at Hull Truck Theatre, we mixed gypsy folk, ‘Wicked’ and ‘Frozen’. This year we mixed it with 50s / 60s and have taken that as a style. We have also looked at Phil Spectre’s Christmas album which has had a very strong influence in terms of the sound rather than the actual tunes. Finally we merge those catchy songs from ‘Wicked’ and ‘Frozen with our chosen style. The Director and I jam with instruments and lyrics during the summer before the production. The Director and I work on the sound, this is recorded and I take the songs away and work to improve them. This year we have the same musicians in the cast which has been very useful. I know their skills and strong points so we can work together to create songs that suit the whole cast.

2. How do you collaborate the music with the design?

This year, before we had seen the design, I had held a lot of conversations with the Designer about the music and the design. I wouldn’t say the music goes to design or design goes to music, it’s definitely a collaborative process.

3. How will being a live musician and performer be challenging for you and your role in the creation of Sleeping Beauty?

I think the most challenging part of it is in the rehearsal room, because you have to think of yourself as a performer; I am constantly thinking about how to perform, follow the story emotionally and sing, but then I need to think of the overall ark. My job is essentially like dramaturgy (composing the flows, peaks and troughs of the story with sound) so I have to watch that as well as been aware of what I’m doing and saying. It is extremely rewarding because you can put yourself into the character and add your own influences. However, playing the music live, keeping it all in time during the shows is challenging. I have to keep noting the cast because when a performance runs for 50 shows it is difficult to continually keep the performance alive. I need to ensure my musicians are fresh and alive on stage. I have to give notes and therefore, performing live and remembering little notes for the cast is the hardest thing.

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4. What are the stages you go through to create music for Sleeping Beauty?

I start by reading the script in a lot of detail. This will then lead into a meeting with the Director where we discuss what the Director sees and what I see the music sounding like. Together we create demos of the tracks on the guitar, piano and singing. This year, for example, there were things in the lyrics that I wanted to explore further. I went to meet the writer Mike Kenny to ask for more lyrics and additional songs and more choruses. At Hull Truck Theatre we are striving to get the audience as involved as possible during the show, so we were really aware they had to be catchy. Next, I will try not to listen to the music for a while. This allows the songs to naturally evolve in my head, so when I come back to them, they have transformed and I can rework them easily. Again, I meet the Director and we look more closely at how the lyrics fit the tunes and where certain instruments, for example the violin, can fit in the pieces of music. From here I will ‘score’ the pieces of music. This means to write the songs in musical note form for the cast to learn from. This involves working all the rhythms out and how different instruments can complement each other. The final stage is to play the songs to the cast. I run an open rehearsal space, where I do not believe being precious is a healthy way to work. Cast members can offer their own ideas as they all know their instruments and have their own individual style. These ideas get thrown together and reworked into the final pieces.

5. What excites you the most about creating music for theatre?

The reason I think theatre is really important and exciting is because you can be in any genre live, whether that’s dance, theatre, stand-up comedy, and there is something about the energy that comes from being live that affects you. Music is vital, especially for a show like Sleeping Beauty, it brings it alive. When you see performers sweating their way through the piece, really caring about every single note they play, there is something about great performers and the way they are really enjoying it, it provides an energy and that is what excites me the most about performing live and creating music for live performances. When it is for a Christmas show, it is such a responsibility because it could be the first time people are experiencing live theatre or there could be lots of people who have seen a huge amount of theatre. So when you see audience members singing along to your songs; that is the most rewarding gift you can receive. That is what excites me about creating music for live performance.

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Education ActivitiesThe Sleeping Beauty Education pack activities serve as a menu for suitable activities to help your groups discover the tale of Sleeping Beauty. They are a selection of ideas for you to use directly, as you need, to mix and match or to use for inspiration.

Literacy – Starters:

1. Alphabetical Order – As a whole group, think of a character from the tale of Sleeping Beauty. This can be from any version; Mike Kenny’s at Hull Truck Theatre, Disney’s, Perrault’s or the Grimm Brother’s. Starting with the letter ‘A’ of the alphabet, describe the group’s chosen character using a descriptive word beginning with the letter ‘A’. Each new group member uses the next letter of the alphabet to find a suitable descriptive word. How far through the Alphabet can you go?

2. Associated words – As a whole group, choose a character from the tale of Sleeping Beauty. For example, if the group choose the Prince, draw out a large image of a Prince. Ask the group to share ideas of words they associate with a Prince. Think about the positive and negative aspects.

Mains:

1. Writing the script - As a group, read a version of the tale of Sleeping Beauty. As individuals or in small groups, choose a section of the story and re-write it as a script.

a. Remember to have Character names down the left and their lines on the right. b. Stage directions (an instruction in the text of a play, especially one indicating the movement,

position, or tone of an actor, or the sound effects and lighting) should be placed in Brackets ( ). c. Devise short performances of the scenes they have written. Work in small groups of 5/6. Provide 15

minutes to create them and provide time to show back and share with the whole group.

2. Reviewer - As a whole group or in small groups, read the Grimm’s and the Perrault’s version of the tale of Sleeping Beauty.

a. Discuss which they preferred and why. What was good about it? Would they recommend it to others?

b. Ask the groups to write a review on the story they preferred. c. Can the group write a review on the Sleeping Beauty tale they see at Hull Truck Theatre?

3. No invitation - Mike Kenny’s Sleeping Beauty is told from the point of view of the Nannas. The fairy Godmothers of his version. Nanna Sandra, is missed out on the baby naming day celebration invitation list and is extremely upset and angry for not receiving an invitation to the party.

a. Ask the group to write the story of Sleeping Beauty, but from the point of view of Bad Nanna Sandra. b. Think about: How she feels now she has placed the curse. Whose fault was it if Bad Nanna Sandra

won’t accept it as her fault that there is a curse on Briar Rose? Was Bad Nanna Sandra always evil or did events make her that way? How does Bad Nanna Sandra see the story happening? What is important for Bad Nanna Sandra to tell the audience?

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4. Briar Rose’s Diary - Think about Briar Rose’s Journey through Mike Kenny’s version of Sleeping Beauty. a. As Individuals or in small groups, ask the group to write a diary entry from Briar Rose’s point of view

at the beginning, the middle and the end of the tale.

5. Word Association Poetry - Bring together the descriptive and associated words from starter activity 1 and 2. a. Ask the group to create a poem using these word as inspiration. b. It can be narrative, it can rhyme, it can be a shape poem, in the form of the Briar Rose Hedge for

example, or an alliterative poem. c. Working in small groups of about 5/6, the group can devise a simple physical response to the poem,

based on the images they can imagine when they hear the poem. There should be a moment of synchronicity, where everyone is doing the same action or movement. There should be a moment where everyone has contact with everyone else and finally a moment of stillness.

d. Present these to the rest of the group. Provide an opportunity for feedback. What did the group like? What can be improved to present the images in the poem more clearly?

Drama – Starters:

1. Re-enacting the story – Narrate the tale of Sleeping Beauty to the group. a. Ask the group to form a circle in an open space. Inside the circle will represent the performance

space in which the story will be re-enacted by the group. b. Usually the story can be narrated by an adult and the group can offer or be invited in to take part as

characters, objects or setting.

2. Sleeping Beauties – Ask the group to find a space by themselves in an open space and lay down. a. The group are going to pretend to be asleep for 100 years. b. Ask for a volunteer to play the Prince. They must wake as many of the group as possible. They can

only do this by making them laugh.c. Ensure that no physical contact is allowed.

3. 10 second Tableaux – the group must work together or individually to create frozen images in ten seconds. a. Ask the group to move around an open space and listen to your instructions. b. Call out still images/tableaux for the group to form. Give the group ten seconds to accomplish each

one.c. Start with simple images and move onto images related to Sleeping Beauty or characters from

Sleeping Beauty.

Mains:

1. Underscore – Explore creating atmosphere and soundscapes with the group. a. Using the poems written in literacy activity 5, create a soundscape for the physical performance.

Think about the sounds and rhythms the words create. b. Use percussion instruments and parts of the body to create the underlying soundscape.

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2. Freeze Frames – Expanding on the work with still images. a. Ask the group to work in groups of 5/6 or as a whole group. b. Explore creating freeze frame images based on themes or topics from the tale of Sleeping Beauty.

For example, being left out and forgotten, not being listened to by your peers, or power. (Please see ‘Freeze Frame information’ on page 17 of this education pack).

c. The groups need to think about their relationship with each other and is the image they are showing clear? Think about how they can make the image dynamic and more energetic.

d. Thought track the frozen image. Ask the group members to create a sentence that relates to the image or how their character is feeling. (Please see ‘Freeze Frame information’ on page 17 of this education pack for Thought Tracking Tips).

e. Finally, let the groups bring the frozen images to life for a few moments. What do they create? How far can they take the scene? Can they solve problems for certain characters?

3. Hot seating – Investigating characters from Sleeping Beauty and assessing the group’s knowledge of the story.

a. Provide a space for individuals to play the role of a sleeping Beauty character. Ask them to take their place in the interview chair in front of the audience.

b. Audience members can ask the character questions. The character in the hot seat may use their knowledge of the tale and improvisation skills in order to answer each question fully.

c. Discuss with the group which parts of answers were found in the tale/play/story they have looked at and which were not told in these version and must have been invented by the character.

d. Think about the audience asking questions as other characters from the same tale. You could also link this to the diary entry task to help investigate what Briar Rose is thinking about.

Classroom – Starters:

1. What do Nannas do? – A group discussion.a. Discuss what your group believes Nannas do? What makes Nannas so special in people’s lives? What

special Nanna powers do they have and how do they use them?

2. Storyboard – Using any version of the tale of Sleeping Beauty, create a storyboard of the key moments in the tale.

3. Preserving life – A group discussion.a. Discuss how to preserve somebody’s life for 100 years in today’s society. What technology would

you need?

4. Set designer – Ask you group to individually design the set for one of the scenes in a selected version of Sleeping Beauty.

a. Think about the materials and colours needed. Where are the characters at this point in the story? What do the characters need during this scene?

5. What is power? – A group discussion.a. Discuss with you group what they believe power to be? Who is powerful in the story? How can

power be used for good or for evil? What does it mean to be powerful?

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Mains:

1. Make your own Nanna – Drawing/writing exercise to explore the inner thoughts of a character. a. Working in pairs, ask your group to draw round each other’s whole body on large sheets of paper. b. Ask the group to add to the picture, by drawing or writing the following:

i. Head – what does the Nanna think about?ii. Heart – what or who does the Nanna love?

iii. Hands – what is the Nanna reaching out towards?iv. Feet – what is the Nanna stepping/striding towards achieving?

c. These can be based on what the group actually think, love, reach and strive towards but in the form of a Nanna, if the need arises.

d. Finally, provide the Nanna with a super power. What is it and how will the Nanna use it to help the world?

2. 100 year later – Ask the group to imagine they have been asleep for 100 years.a. During this time the world has continued to develop. Think about what might the world look like

when the group awakes: would they recognise it?b. How might technology and communication have moved on? What would the houses look like? What

would the school look like? How would transport have developed? c. This activity could be achieved as an art exercise, a small group research and presentation exercise

or a short devised piece off theatre improvisation to show how everyday situations are different after 100 years.

3. Set designer – An opportunity to turn the set design drawings into a three-dimensional model. a. Ask the group to create a 3D model of the set designs. Using a shoebox on its side to represent the

theatre space turn the drawing into a small model. b. Think about the different materials the group would need to represent their designs. Think about

scale, you could create scale sized figures to represent the characters in Sleeping Beauty. These can be used to scale the set around them.

c. Look back at the set and Lighting Designer’s Interview for additional information in the process of designing a model box for a piece of theatre. There are images of the White Card model box and the Final model box to provide inspiration on pages 7 and 8 of this education pack.

4. Costume designer – ask the group to draw costume designs of their own interpretations of Briar Rose, The Prince and a Nanna.

a. For higher level group members, think about a costume design for a Nanna that must also become another character. This is called multi-rolling.

b. In Mike Kenny’s version of Sleeping Beauty the Nanna characters multi-roll, becoming another character instantly on stage. For example, turning from Nanna Noo-Noo into a Frog and straight on in to The Prince.

c. Think about how the costume can change easily into another character’s costume, without the actor/actress leaving the stage.

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5. Power – An exploration of showing power in performance. a. Check in with the participants to explore who enjoyed having the power and who preferred being

led.b. There should be no talking during this exercise unless instigated by the teacher/facilitatorc. This is a trust and physical command exercise and participants should focus on their partner.

Working in pairs, one should be A, and lead the other, B, around the space. d. At a given instruction the B should close their eyes. A will direct B around the space using simple

touches to the body. (Ensure participants do not use pokes, slaps or punches).Touch to the top of the back = GoTouch to the top of the head = StopTouch to the chest/collar bone = BackwardsTouch to the left arm = Turn LeftTouch to the right arm = Turn RightTouch to the lower back = 180 Degrees Turn

e. Ask the B’s how it felt to be led. Did the body move differently and tentatively because you were blind?

f. Ask the A’s how it felt to lead. Did they feel a sense of responsibility for their partner? Did they feel powerful and in charge? Where there participants who took more risks than others? Can they play with pace and levels in their movement?

g. Swap roles, repeat the exercise and again discuss.

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Costume Designer’s Mood Board

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How to become a NANNA18

Freeze Frame Checklist:- Face the audience- Facial expressions illustrate thought and emotions- Levels and depths- Dynamic bodies/physicality- Frozen – Keep your body and gaze frozen

Notes on thought tracking:- Tap a character on the shoulder and they must speak aloud about his/her inner thoughts during the freeze frame.- You can also get the audience to call out what they see and how they believe the character is feeling.- How has the character been affected by this situation?- Make sure the audience understand what is

Freeze Frame Information

Workshop Ideas to get the group to physically become a Nanna.Note: Demonstrate yourself being a Nanna if you wish; it helps to show the groups exactly what you mean by slowly becoming a Nanna. It also helps to engage and inspire them to join in.)

What words and sounds do the group associate with Nannas?Get the group to imagine a Nanna they know in their lives or a Nanna from a film or cartoon…Now ask the group to imagine becoming a Nanna…

Is their Nanna:Big/Small Fast/Slow Heavy/Light Grumpy/Kind with Walking Stick/Zimmer Frame

Get the group to start to move around the space as if they were water particles and need to fill the space evenly. Get the group to move leading with their walking sticks/frames, or their hip replacement or their face. Get the group to change from themselves into a Nanna, slowly, as you count to 10.

1 is himself/herself as a human. 5 is half human and half Nanna. 10 is full Nanna and no human. As you count, slowly, to 10, they must change into a Nanna starting with their feet, legs, into the hips, body, arms, fingers, head and eyes.

Explore the space:Have the group move around the space as their Nanna. Ask them to carry out simple everyday tasks as a Nanna. For example, brushing their false teeth, making a cup of tea, and knitting.Ask the Nannas, whilst exploring the space to meet new Nannas and have improvised conversations. What do Nannas talk about? Can they carry out these conversations in character?

Discuss: Finally, after the group has had a chance to become a Nanna, discuss what they discovered. Did they see life in a different way? Was it easier or harder to carry out normal everyday tasks? Did their Nannas have friends? Did they work together at points to carry out tasks?

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