While You've Been Napping...

.....we've been busy.

By "we" I mean my set/prop students and I. Our school is putting on a spring performance of Midsummer Night's Dream by ye olde wordsmith Billy Shakespeare, and we're having a BLAST pulling together all the props and backdrops, and even some of the costumery involved.

Working on the donkey skull for Nick Bottom's transformation.

Right now, we're in the throes of some serious paper mache projects. Nick Bottom's transformation into a half-donkey is our main focus right now, as our actor playing Bottom needs to be able to practice with the oversized head and fine-tune his "transformation." Also on the agenda: making oversized mushrooms and toadstools with which to pepper the woodland side of the stage.

Trying some googly eyes for Nick Bottom. 

Last week we worked with some oddly shaped packing styrofoam to create the base or "skull" for Bottom's head, and made sure the interior was fitted for the specific actor, with attention to any padding or sizing that was needed to ensure the donkey's head does not go flying from the actor's noggin in the midst of their performance. (Our Nick Bottom is a very exuberant actor.)

Gathering supplies for tomorrow's class.

One of the great things about this class is that most of the materials we're using are old discarded items and recyclable items. A big plus for us was raiding the treasure trove of recyclable art materials at SCRAP Bin, where all sorts of "creative reuse" items are sold at amazingly cheap prices. We loaded our drama closets with a ton of goodies that have equipped us to bring our creative projects to life.

As my spring gets busier and busier with more creative projects - artistic, writing and otherwise - you can expect some more bragging from this proud teacher about the amazing things her students are doing. It's a small class, but all of are them well-suited for the task at hand, and I am always amazed at the sorts of things they can come out with. (I haven't even told you about their grandiose designs for the stage.)

So stay tuned....more creative mayhem on the way.....!