Paul E. Turtola
After a large collection of cases has been studied, the class will choose those stories from which a larger play can be made. It is possible for the students to create a detective play in which the detective or detectives can solve different types of cases in several scenes. The play as a whole may have a central theme that can unite the cases and contain a message that an audience will have to figure out.
I have an idea that deals with using the audience as a cast member in a play that we create. In other words, the class presents a detective play and presents clues to each case in a number of scenes acted out in front of a small audience. The audience will attend the performance having prepared to solve the cases beforehand, and will have materials available to help them figure them out. In a manner of speaking then, the audience will take an active role in the play by being the detective, and will attempt to solve each case when called upon in the course of each scene. A lot of what went on in the classroom lesson plans, where students were supplied with art materials and gathered information, will essentially go on in this performance as well.
Experimenting in the class by rehearsing the stories will give the teacher a better idea of what will actually happen during a performance, and after the stories are acted out and the rough spots smoothened out, a better result will begin to take shape. The main idea is to get the audience involved early in the event, so it will be imperative to watch and listen from the moment the play begins, and pay close attention right up until it's final scene. Attention to detail, a good attitude and proper behavior will be important needs in being able to correctly solve the problems created in the play.
From Lesson Plans to Research:
Why Study Interactivity and a History of the Audience?
The culminating activity described previously, a detective play, will rely heavily on the use of the audience as a cast member (detective) in order to complete (or solve) the play (case). If the detective does not interact with what is presented to him, then very little work can be done toward solving the case. Watching and listening, two important tools of learning, must be utilized by the audience in order to interact correctly, and by working on strengthening these skills, the unit can achieve its work towards making students better audience members. This action will attempt to improve on the behavior young people have at public performances of events, and in effect can improve cultural aesthetics as we know it.
To properly understand the concept of interactivity it becomes important to study historical aspects of groups of people (not just theatergoers) who attend artistic events. These audiences will be comprised of the many groups of people who experience artistic events like art shows at art galleries, dance recitals in dance halls, musical concerts in arenas, and even movies in movie theaters. Historical references will be made to determine what each group's needs were in order to satisfactorily be entertained during the course of different cultures.
