Learning Objectives:

• To encourage creativity
• To develop physical awareness
• To cooperate in group work

This is a very popular drama game and a useful technique which can be developed easily towards improvisation or physical theatre. It's also highly accessible and great fun! Divide everyone into small groups (4-6). Call out the name of an object and all the groups have to make the shape of that object out of their own bodies, joining together in different ways while you count down slowly from ten to zero. Usually every group will find a different way of forming the object. Examples could be: a car, a flower, a clock, a washing machine, a fire.

• Encourage groups to think about using different levels with their body shapes, eg high, medium and low.
• You could choose objects from a play you are rehearsing or a theme you are exploring (see the drama lesson on Evacuees).
• Groups can also be given a couple of minutes to devise an object of their own which the rest of the class try to guess.
• You could make it a rule that after 10 seconds they must be completely frozen in position.
• On the other hand it can be fun if they are able to make objects that use movement.
• You can use the shapes created as a quick way into creating ideas for physical theatre.