Welcome

My name is Erin and I'm a Peace Corps volunteer from the US. I've been living in Sfantu Gheorghe, Romania for 9 months and have been working with the drama club for nearly 5. Although I act as the director and coordinator for the club, much of what we do is up to the students who attend and whom I hope to pass the management of the club over to entirely (with the help of a teacher or two) when it comes time for me to head back to the states. I have little working experience with drama, other than participating in a club and taking several classes in high school, as well as volunteering at a community center theater. Despite my lack of experience, I love all aspects of the stage and hope to encourage the students I'm working with to pursue it as either a hobby or a career throughout their lives, if that's what they want to do. Currently there is no drama program at the Mihai Viteazul school, other than the few productions the teachers put on through their own time and interest. I hope that through the club, the students will develop a better understanding of drama, participate in some challenging yet fun activities, gain self confidence, improve their English skills (which are already amazing) and become interested enough in the art to carry the club out on their own.

We put on our first production, Christmas Good and Bad, in mid-December. During the preparation for skit, we focused on pantomime instead of using real items to perform the scenes. This was good for two reasons: 1) we had no budget and therefore could not afford props and 2) it provided an opportunity for the students to learn about body placement in relation to imaginary objects and really helped them to focus on simple movements and how to control them. We also worked on projecting the voice, body placement on stage, ie don't have your back to the audience, and simple stage terminology. Every session included some sort of theater activity and everyone seemed to enjoy the experience.

We are currently working on the art of improvisation and hope to put on a production of some sort in the spring.

I hope to get the students involved with this blog and to get them posting their ideas, experiences and thoughts here. Please stay posted for more updates and upcoming videos. Thanks!
erin