Theatre Game of the Week #22
A park bench is a simple place to sit. It's present in almost all cities, so this game works for students from all over the world. Everybody knows what a park bench is. I like to play this game with secondary students. If you find your students are having difficulty coming up with their own characters spur of the moment, you can let them draw characters out of a hat. This is a great game when learning about characters or working on improv.
Game Name: Park Bench
Students Needed: 4+
Items Needed: 2 chairs to be the park bench.
Time Needed: 10 minutes+
Step 1) One student sits on the bench. The setting is a park and the person on the bench has no character until the second student enters.
Step 2) The second student has decided who s/he is and who the person sitting on the park bench is. For example, the person entering could decide "The person on the bench is a celebrity and I am a big fan". In this situation, the actor would recognize the person on the bench, react to seeing their favorite celeb in person, ask for an autograph, etc. The first person on the bench, meanwhile, has to adapt to the situation, developing their character bit by bit.
Step 3) The scene ends when one student exits, hopefully after everyone figures out who they are.
In the End: Students have worked on the concept of character and have practiced basic improv skills.
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