Community Theatre Research Task

DARTS (Doncaster Community Arts)

This organization is situated in Doncaster, a small town in South Yorkshire, England. There are multiple founders of this organization since it is a charity.

There are around 30 artists in this organization and they all work towards creating programs and creative projects for the participants to do. 
-Purpose of organization (mission, goals) 
Are they focused on: Theatre for Advocacy, Theatre to Heal, Theatre for Development (of communities), Theatre to Educate/Bring Awareness, etc. 
"We work with people who don’t have much to do with the arts. Doncaster is filled with diverse individuals living in distinct communities – our artists use their skills to intrigue them, engage with them and fuel change."
-Who do they serve? Who benefits from their work and how? 
We work with the people of Doncaster... it could be the boy in a pupil referral unit, the teacher striving to work more creatively, the dementia patient and her carer, the adult looking for work, a young person in their own neighborhood  or a child with disabilities, the list is endless. Please click below to find out more about what we are up to right now.
-Choose a couple of projects/practices/activities and discuss why you find them particularly interesting or important. 
This organization has a couple of groups that are all related to multiple aspects of art and fun. They have a quirky choir, knit and knatter, book group, doncaster young writers, asthanga yoga, healthy dance solutions, explore music, sewing group, explore drama and explore visual arts.  I would be interested in the healthy dance solutions because I think it would be interesting to see how people put effort into something they like and use towards something they want to do, ie. lose weight. 
-What are some similarities and differences in work you have done in theatre compared and contrasted to the work of this organization (choose 3 or 4). 
There aren't any particular acitvities that any of these groups do that we've done in the past in theatre specifically, but some of these groups do, do things that we've either done academically or as a school during events such as fitness week (asthanga yoga) 
-What aspects of this organization's work might you want to explore further in your own work and why? 
I would deffinitely want to work with the 30 artists and find out how exactly they plan their activities, and based on what information they focus on. 
-What do you think the lasting legacy or impact this organization's work will leave in the communities they have worked in?

FUNNY -- End of Unit Reflection

• What makes US laugh...and why. 

Personally, I have a very hard time laughing. There's a difference between finding something funny, and actually going hysterical about it. For me, I find very many things that are funny in my everyday life. However, I don't really have a laugh about all of it. The major things that do commonly make me laugh though is unusually funny behavior  and this makes me laugh because of it's rarity and stupidity. Another thing I find funny is sarcasm, because its very often ironic, and its funny when someone doesn't understand it, whether you're on the receiving or giving end. I also find lame things funny, not as a whole but just as how lame it is. Things I relate to, I find funny. Sometimes when people crack typical bengali parents joke, I find it funny because I can relate as I have bengali parents and know what they're like on a day to day basis, so when someone makes a joke about that I find it funny because I know what they're targeting at. A perfect example of one of the only TV shows that makes me laugh very often, and incorporates most of these aspects "New Girl". 

• What makes OTHER people laugh...and why. 

I think that similarly to me, other people also definitely find sarcasm funny and can actually have a laugh over it (if they're quick and fast enough to understand it). A lot of people I know, and see regularly find insulting a great thing to laugh about. I have mixed feelings about this but I think most of the times people find it funny to insult or watch someone get insulted because they've probably never been in the person's shoe so they can't exactly detect if there's anything wrong with it, and generally making fun of something about someone is funny.. to other people. 

• Why some things are funny to different people. 

I think some things, and particular things are funny to particular people because not everyone has the same kind of humor. Some people lack humor and some people over flow with humor. Also, comedy always has a target audience, comedians and script writers know that not everything will make everyone laugh. For example, old people wont find jokes about them funny, however that might be funny to a teenage audience. Some things are meant to be funny if the audience is able to relate to it, so if the audience isn't capable of making it relate-able then its typical for them to not find it humorous. Here is an example of a video that may only apply to bengali girls and thus people from other countries and cultures may not find it as funny as girls in bangladesh would. 

• How “being funny” can offend people...personally, culturally...and sometimes unify people. 

Sometimes, often, in the process of being funny ethics and emotions can be lost. Sometimes, people are brutal to other cultures and don't consider the impacts of their jokes. Sometimes, comedians make fun of cultures, offend others in light spirit. Depending on the brutality of the joke, people get offended, personally and culturally. If someone were to crack a joke about my religion then depending on how horrible or serious the joke is,  I would get offended and so would most strong religion believers if their religion was made fun of. The same concept would be applied to any other person in any other context. If someone is very patriotic, and their country is made fun of then generally, they would feel offended rather than finding it funny they will defend it and take it personally. So, in conclusion, I think that comedians should be careful in terms of making sure that they don't offend a persons culture or religion too distinctly, so to be light about it. Also, if people don't find it generally funny and rather offending then they just shouldn't watch it in the first place because everyone has their freedom of speech. That being said, comedians should watch their tongue and consider other people's beliefs and values before cracking a joke. Being funny in offending terms can unify people because if a group of people find the same thing funny, then they will make fun of it together and defend each other in the process. Here is an example of a comedic video that not everyone might funny, but perhaps people with light spirit may. (I personally find the end bit hysterical) 

•Whether or not we personally believe there should be “ethics” to comedy. 

This topic is rather controversial. I personally definitely believe that there should be ethics in comedy. I think that it is genuinely possible to make comedy without severely bruising someones feelings. In my opinion everyone should have a certain level of sympathy towards their fellow human beings. Not being able to recognize that you're hurting someone is definitely an alarming trait to have, and recognizing that you're hurting someone in the means of your humor and not doing anything about it is a more alarming trait to have. Considering other people beliefs and culture is really important specially when it's for your own entertainment. I don't personally think that it is ethical to offend someone and then have a fit about it, there is nothing funny about offense and I think people should understand that. 

• Comedic Genres and Devices comedians/performers use. 

There are many comedic genres and devices comedians and performers use. Russel Peters for example uses observational comedy to make silliness about a normal tradition in a society. A movie called The Proposal incorporates cringe comedy which is mostly made up of embarrassment. Eddie Murphy a famous american comedian uses "blue comedy". The Three Stooges, well renown comedy is "physical comedy" that the performers in Three Stooges incorporate to make funny without the use of any words. Likewise, all famous comedians and performers use one or the other kind of comedic device for their comedy. 

• Improv comedy rules and skills and games and the tradition of TheatreSports. 

Some rules and skills to have in comedy is never say no. Always accept the offer, specially when performing for an audience. Sometimes it'll be likely for you to improvise, always take the reactions of your audience to identify what they're finding funny, and go from there and initiate an action plan. It is always important to be in character, even if what you're performing is very funny, it'll be twice as funny if you can present it with a straight face. Use of expression, and exaggeration is a key ingredient to be in character and make something funny. Last but not least, use the stage wisely and never fall out of character, keep going no matter the circumstance. 

The tradition of TheatreSports continues being seen in classrooms to this day. Games such as Taxi, Alphabet, Party Quirks, Props, Poetry Interpretation, The Dating Game, as such are great games to improve theatre skills and overall have fun. All of these games have multiple rules and they all are needed to be played under various circumstances, thus, generally making them a challenge, but great source of fun and skill development. Win, win. 

Major Interests in Theatre

My major interests in theatre are costume and makeup. I think theatre design is a very important aspect of theatre. There is so much you can do with acting and being in character, but the prop of costume and makeup up make its that much more a believable scene. I definitely think that it's the most fun part of theatre, being able to experiment lots and come up with an end result that is very significantly a part of the final performance. I don't suppose the designers are the only ones benefiting from the enjoyment of theatre design, because costumes and makeup can many times enhance the performance of the actors making them feel more in character and a part of the set.


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