Motion, Emotion Lessons In Theater Class

Fake, punches, kicks, eye-ball pokes and sword-fighting were among the techniques instructor Kris Pruett, left, taught theater campers including Haven Kirkpatrick, right, on Tuesday at the Rogers Little Theater.
Fake, punches, kicks, eye-ball pokes and sword-fighting were among the techniques instructor Kris Pruett, left, taught theater campers including Haven Kirkpatrick, right, on Tuesday at the Rogers Little Theater.

ROGERS — Swordplay and fake kicks and slaps added a little punch to a children’s master class held at Rogers Little Theater.

Students from 8 to 16 honed audition skills, worked to combine sound and movement into their delivery and practiced stage combat during the two-week master class, which concludes Friday.

“That’s awesome. I feel cool,” said Alyson Dominguez, 15, after learning a sword salute Tuesday.

The sword fighting, where students learned moves with large dowels, was a favorite activity for Alexandra Harris, 8.

“It gets pretty intense,” said Wyatt Cochran, 16, while watching a group of girls pretend to pull each others’ hair. “We can basically beat the crap out of each other but it's fake.”

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Rogers Little Theater

A public presentation from the Rogers Little Theater Master Class will be held 6:30-7:30 p.m. Friday at the Victory Theater, 116 S. Second St., home to the little theater. Class members will act several fight scenes and present their monologues.

In a real fight, the fist would be balled up as tight as it could go, said Kris Pruett, master class instructor, but in a fake fight he tells students to leave the fist a little loose, just in case they hit someone. Stage combat is an illusion. His students may appear to be punching each other, but the punch is thrown to the side. He stresses safety. Each movement has its place, and the rhythm is gone when one piece is missing.

“It’s like a choreographed dance,” Pruett said.

The emphasis on auditions and stage combat is new, said Kevin Lancaster, theater manager. In the past, the two-week camp concluded with a production. This year, the camp will end with a demonstration.

“The kids and the parents both have been really excited on the new focus on learning specific skills,” Lancaster said.

Students also practiced monologues they might use in auditions.

When the theater has a casting call for children, there's always a large response, Lancaster said. He's seen 100 children turn out for six parts.

Auditions require an actor to present his or her best self, Pruett said.

“You’ve got 45 seconds to one minute to let them know who you are in somebody else’s words,” he said.

About half the children at the class said they had experience in a Rogers Little Theater production. All said they had been in some production.

Young actors tend to deliver their lines as quickly as possible and leave the stage, Pruett said. The camp will develop children’s skills as actors, he said.

Actors need to embody their character but also be aware of their body movement, Pruett said.

“The text is just as important as the actions in between,” he said.

Mary Murphy, 14, said it's her third year to attend summer programs at the theater. She has been in several productions, but said she has learned a lot during the class. Her monologue felt like it took hours as she adjusted her delivery and stance, she said.

“Each little sentence, each little movement means so much,” Mary said, “I feel really professional now.”

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