Hitting 60 and Becoming Divas
Not much you can do about getting older, except laugh, so let’s do some drama about aging.
I taught a creative drama class with humour at a senior’s organization called Creative Retirement and several of the students wanted to continue. One of them was working as a volunteer for a program that was teaching English to newcomers, refugees and immigrants.
The teacher welcomed silly skits about learning English. And so, we began our ten years as the Drama Divas. In the next few weeks, I’ll share some of the shows with you. As well as share some silly scripts and stories.
From the teacher:
To: Whom it May Concern
Re: Creative Retirement Theatre Troupe
From: Kathy Sawatsky, ESL Instructor for Women’s Programs
Date: January 4, 2006
The Creative Retirement Theatre Troupe performed for the English as a Second Language Women’s Program in the winter of 2005. They produced and performed various scenarios of real life situations of immigrants in Canada. These situations were drawn from their own experiences or those of their family. The scenes were varied, from being humorous (misunderstanding in a hospital) to distressing (boy skips out of school because he doesn’t feel he fits in).
The language was very appropriate for an ESL group as they used simplified language as well as relied on the drama itself to convey meaning. The content was not only touching it was meaningful as well.
After the production, the actors, students and teachers sat in a circle and discussed the meaning of the short plays. The students were also able to relate the type of situation to their own experiences transforming the play into a wonderful language and sharing experience for themselves.
I see this drama being superb for most levels of language learning. Other activities could supplement this performance as well, such as writing their own stories and even performing short plays themselves.
It also allowed the students to see “ordinary Canadians” as having experiences similar to their own.
The students thoroughly enjoyed the Theatre Troupe and look forward to seeing them perform in the future. I am in full support of this type of drama, having seen the effects it has on the students.
Sincerely,
Kathy Sawatsky
Frankie’s Fine Dining
Frankie is wiping the table in Frankie’s Fine Dining.
Edna enters, and waits. Frankie shows her to a table. Edna asks if the cat has got her tongue. Frankie shows her the sign LARYNGITIS.
Stella and her German sister-in-law enter, see Edna and join her. Stella introduces her sister-in-law Anna, who can only speak German. Stella tries to make small talk about the weather. Edna is very critical about the weather and Stella defends it. Anna is trying to understand, but misses a lot, even though Stella pauses to explain. Then they talk about the time. Edna has to be at the airport in an hour.
Rosie enters with her baby. She sees the group and joins them. Stella makes introductions again. Edna has never seen the baby. Rosie asks the waitress for a highchair, but there is none available so she holds the baby on her lap.
Frankie has given menus and comes to take orders. Edna explains to the others that she has Laryngitis.
Edna orders soup and salad. She wants to know what kind of soup it is. Frankie’s sign is VEGETABLE. Edna wants to know what kind of vegetables. Frankie lets down the sign which says TOMATO, CARROT, ONION, CELERY WITH BASIL. Edna orders it, as well as orange, almond, feta salad. She specifies that she does not want the orange, any almonds and of course not feta! Frankie rolls her eyes to the audience. Edna wants to know what kind of herbal teas they have. Frankie holds up a sign that says REAL TEA.
Stella asks for the Special. Frankie has a sign SPECIAL: FISH AND CHIPS. Stella asks if the fish is fresh. Frankie says that she got it out of the freezer in the morning. Stella orders it.
Rosie says she wants Pasta. Frankie doesn’t seem to know what it is. Rosie explains that she wants Spaghetti with tomato sauce. Frankie understands.
Anna orders in German. Nobody knows what she wants. She finally mimes and communicates Hotdog with sauerkraut. Stella understands first. Frankie holds up a sign saying YES to hotdog and NO to sauerkraut.
Anna starts to gesticulate more and they think she wants to order something to drink. Then they realize that she has to go to the bathroom. They suggest bathroom, washroom, Ladies Room, and finally toilet. Frankie holds up a sign that says LADIES with an arrow. Anna leaves.
Frankie is getting food ready and starting to bring it to the table.
Rosie and Stella are handing the baby back and forth, he seems to be fussing. Finally, Rosie puts a blanket over her shoulder and nurses him. Edna is disgusted. After a short time, Rosie burps the baby and he spits on Edna. Edna is beside herself.
Anna comes back from the washroom and says in German that it is dirty. They all understand.
Frankie starts serving the food and everyone is nervous.
Edna starts poking around in her soup and before long she finds a button. She is outraged. Frankie is unconcerned, she writes BUTTON on the bottom of the ingredients. Edna asks to speak to the chef. Frankie holds up a sign, I AM THE CHEF. Edna asks to speak to the manager. Frankie holds up a sign, I AM THE MANAGER. Edna asks to speak to the owner. Frankie holds up a sign, I AM THE OWNER. Edna gets up to leave and says that she’ll eat on the plane. She leaves in a huff without paying the bill.
Stella tries to explain to the German sister-in-law. Rosie and Stella exchange looks and head shakes. Frankie arrives glaring, with the bill and a sign that says HERE’S THE BILL. Stella says that she’ll pay. Rosie says that she’ll pay. Stella says that she’ll pay. Rosie insists that she’ll pay, but Stella asserts that she will pay! The sister in-law stares.
Stella asks if Frankie takes credit cards. Frankie holds up a sign that says VISA. Stella asks if she will take Interact. Frankie holds up a sign that says CASH ONLY. Stella and Rosie look at each other lost and the German woman gives Frankie cash. They leave.
Frankie looks at the audience and shakes her head. She goes back to clearing and wiping the table.
FIN
References:
Proctor, Sue. The Archetypal Role of the Clown as a Catalyst for Individual and Societal Transformation. https://spectrum.library.concordia.ca/id/eprint/977096/