This week the grade 8 students completed their first performance assessment for the unit Yes, And! (Improvisation). This involved competing in the Improv Olympics! The two events students were assessed on were The Waiting Game and Scenes from a Hat. Both performances involved students performing 2-minute scenes on the spot (without a script) with very minimal preparation time. Students rose to this difficult challenge and performed scenes that were interesting and entertaining to the audience! Students also earned points for these performances. After tallying points for all events, the winning team was Hair of the Girls (HOT G). Not far behind was 2^nd place team, Zushi.

Congratulations to all improv performers. Have a great Holiday!

Did you know that CISB has recently become a member of the International Schools Theatre Association (ISTA)? We are thrilled to be a part of this association, which provides a multitude of theatre opportunities for students and teachers such as theatre festivals, professional development and and an Artist-in-Residence program! This is a big step in the development of the Theatre Arts Program at CISB. Though we are new to this association, we are looking forward to taking full advantage of all ISTA has to offer our students and teachers.

New member of ISTA!

ISTA certificate

Yesterday, the cast list for The The Truth, The Whole Truth and Nothing but the Truth went up and the CISB StageCats did their first read-thru of Act 1! With 30 students in the cast and almost 20 students working backstage, it is sure to be a busy and exciting 8 weeks of rehearsal. The show opens at the end of November! Check this blog regularly for updates on the rehearsal process.

CAST LIST:

The Truth, The Whole Truth, and Nothing but the Truth
by Patrick Connolly & Angela Knowles

CHARACTERS

JUDGE DURDEN – stern and intelligent; eager to banish Nonpersons Martyna Pekala
ELIZABETH WARREN (Present) – accused in court of being a Nonperson  Sophie Ness
ELIZABETH WARREN (Past) – the various “versions” of the character in flashbacks Bella Ness
PARIS  HALE, ESQUIRE – charismatic lawyer “for the good of the community”  Nicole Teo
MARTHA  LUMPKY – the noble, nervous lawyer defending Elizabeth Anna Zhao
CHARLIE BATES – Elizabeth’s best-friend; victim of the “crime”  Vince Ma
ALICE – Witness #1 Keana Kormylo
ARTHUR – Witness #2 Qirui Wu
ABAGAIL – Witness #3 Paulina Jaroscenka
MR. WARREN – Elizabeth’s father Sean Li
MRS. WARREN – Elizabeth’s mother Carolina Liu
MRS. BATES – Charlie’s mother; hysterical about her son’s condition SiYun Joung
MIA BATES – Charlie’s younger sister Elizabeth Han
BILL – experienced court bailiff Samuel Tung
BOB – inexperienced court bailiff Tony Wang
SALLY – the courtroom stenographer; a real train wreck Lucia Alvarez Garcia
IAN – juror; stands up for what he believes in Abadi Alshehri
MALICIA  – juror; missed her vacation; eager to banish Nonpersons Sunny Meng
JAZZY – juror; eager to banish Nonpersons Serena Lau
PETUNIA – juror; eager to banish Nonpersons Olivia Ou
ROSE – juror; eager to banish Nonpersons Jane Ling
CELIA – juror; eager to banish Nonpersons Stella Yuan
TOM – juror; eager to banish Nonpersons Arzum Li
JERRY – juror; eager to banish Nonpersons Lawrence Han
FELICITY – juror; eager to banish Nonpersons Renee Zhang
CHARITY – juror; eager to banish Nonpersons Sophia Deng
HOPE – juror; eager to banish Nonpersons Kana Hsu
PRUDENCE – juror; eager to banish Nonpersons Angel Liu
ESTER – juror; eager to banish Nonpersons Isabella Liang
PRINCE – juror; eager to banish Nonpersons Andy Geng

The cast and crew of Selfie by Bradley Hayward would like to say a big thank-you to everyone who took time out of their busy schedules to come and see the production last week. It was a great success, with 2 sold-out shows! We hope to see you at our next CISB StageCats production, opening at the end of November.

Photo by CISB IT Dept.

Photo by CISB IT Dept.

Photo by CISB IT Dept.

Photo by CISB IT Dept.

It was a great week in Grade 6 Theatre as we continued learning skills that will help us communicate with an audience effectively! Students performed mini-plays in which they had to express a specific emotion through their voice, body language and facial expression. Students also started drawing their own set designs.

Starting set designs

Working on set designs

Emotion/ Expression Mini Plays

Emotion/ Expression Mini Plays

CISB StageCats’ production of Selfie by Bradley Hayward opens this Tuesday, September 20th at 6 pm.

Over the past 3 weeks, the 8 talented young cast members have been working hard to bring Selfie to life. They’ve explored the characters’ struggles and triumphs by drawing personal connections and by experimenting with the concepts of change and personal growth.

We are very excited to share this powerful story with our audiences.

If you have not purchased your ticket yet, there are still some available at the CISB front desk for only 20 RMB!

Show Times:

• Tuesday, Sept. 20th
• Thursday, Sept. 22nd
• Friday, Sept. 23rd

All shows begin at 6 pm in the CISB auditorium. See you there!

“Life is not about what other people see. It’s about the picture you have of yourself.”

Photo by Patrick Connolly

Photo by Patrick Connolly

Photo by Patrick Connolly

Photo by Patrick Connolly

Grade 6 students learned how to use their voice in performance this week! During our voice lessons, students took part in vocal warmups, breathing exercises and practiced projecting their voice to an audience.

Vocal projection Activity

Vocal Projection Activity

Projection Activity – Part 2

The Grade 6 classes have been learning all about communicating with an audience through tableau and exaggeration. How do we use our actions and body language to help the audience understand our story?

In Grade 8, students have continued honing their improv skills through games like “The Waiting Game” and “Hands Off.” Teamwork and collaboration are especially important in these types of performances.

Hands Off – one performer acts as the other performer’s hands

Hands Off

Tableau

Tableau

What’s Inside the Box? – students use exaggerated movement to carry an imaginary box across the stage

The CISB StageCats had their first rehearsals for Selfie by Bradley Hayward over the weekend and throughout the week. This is the first small-cast production for the StageCats, with only 8 actors taking the stage! We are looking forward to sharing this intimate theatre experience with the audience. Tickets for the show go on sale Monday, September 5^th at the CISB front desk. Because this show will be staged in a unique way, there are only 40 tickets available for each show! So buy your tickets early for September 20^th (Tuesday), September 22^nd (Thursday) or September 23^rd (Friday) at 6 pm! Only 20 RMB! Check this blog regularly for updates on our rehearsal process. Hope to see you there!

This has been a great week for grade 6 and 8 Theatre Arts classes! The Grade 6 students started their new unit called “Is Anybody Out There…?” which focuses on connecting with an audience. Students completed a post-it activity highlighting the differences and similarities between movies and live performances, and also started learning about how to create an effective tableau.

The grade 8 Theatre class has continued learning about improv this week. We discussed improv techniques and the dos and don’ts of improv scenes. Students practiced these skills by playing improv games like Sound Effects and Freeze!

Movie vs. Live Performance Post-it Activity

Team Tableau – At the Movies

Team Tableau – Rock Concert

Experimenting with props and costumes

Improv Game – Freeze!

Team Tableau – Amusement Park