How to Play Theater Games
Theater games are a lot of fun, but they actually have a purpose. You can play theater games to bond as a cast, class or troop. The games improve teamwork, build characterization, provide a great warm up and teach acting skills that are integral to success in the theater. Follow these steps to play some basic theater games.
Other People Are Reading
Instructions
-
Start with a Warm-up Game
-
1
Gather everyone in a circle to play Primal Screams. This is a game for any sized group and helps get everyone loosened up and out of their comfort zone.
-
2
Choose someone to start. This person steps forward and makes a large gesture and sound. It can be silly or serious. Anything that comes to mind is fine.
-
-
3
The person steps back as everyone else in the circle mimics the gesture and sound at the same time.
-
4
Continue around the circle until everyone has had a chance to step forward and make an original sound and gesture.
Play a Characterization Game
-
5
Play Hitch Hiker. This game is for any sized group, but there are only four players at a time. The players rotate in and out of the scene. Hitch Hiker helps develop creative character building skills and improvisational thinking.
-
6
Construct the inside of a car with four chairs. Choose someone to be the first driver and the first hitch hiker. Everyone else waits their turn and plays audience. The actors must improvise a scene.
-
7
Build characters as the driver pulls over to pick up the hitch hikers. The hitch hiker must have an overwhelming emotion or strange personality tick. After a few moments of acting and dialog, the driver copies the hitch hiker's characterization.
-
8
Bring in the next hitch hiker with his own particular character. After a few moments, everyone in the car takes over that characterization.
-
9
Fill the car with hitch hikers. Once the car is full, the first player leaves the car to make room for another hitch hiker. One of the hitch hikers takes over driving and the game continues until everyone has had a turn in the car.
Bond with a Trust Game
-
10
Play Build Trust with Freefall. This is a theater game everyone can play. If you have a particularly large group, you may want to break off into smaller groups and play at the same time.
-
11
Gather everyone in a circle.
-
12
Choose someone to stand in the middle and blindfold him.
-
13
Pay attention as the person in the middle slowly turns around and then falls backwards or forwards without speaking.
-
14
Catch the person in the middle and then put someone else in the circle and repeat.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
During the game, justify the reason why a character leaves the car. Also bring out through the acting and dialog why the person is hitch hiking or picking up hitch hikers. Talk about where the characters are going and why. Keep each character distinct until its personality is taken over by everyone else in the car.
