Atonement Dumb Show

Yesterday in English class, our teacher gave us a theatre opportunity, and I realized how much it connects to our studies in theatre! Each group was assigned a scene from the first 3 chapters of Atonement. Our group had the scene in which the Quincey cousins arrive and Briony experiences struggles with her cousins and the play. We had to justify our choices for props and color. The big catch was: no talking! We had to convey our scene without any noise, which proved difficult because facial expressions and actions become of utmost importance so that the audience can understand the scene without relying on words. I portrayed Briony, so I wore white to convey innocence. After our skit, we presented to the class about our choices. Then, after everyone was done, we talked about what had went well/what was frustrating. The conclusion that we came to was that our productions were similar to Briony's in that she was frustrated because everything had not worked out as she had envisioned it, just as is often the case with theatre. I really enjoyed this because I love performing dramatic things, and was fun to have to rely on my facial expression and actions. Yet, at the same time, it was difficult because I often rely on the strong projection of my voice to convey emotion. Overall, it was a great learning experience, and I am starting to see how all of our IB classes interconnect.