19th January 2011
If you’re new to Pyjama Drama, the first time you come along to one of our classes, you may wonder why we don’t have piles of dressing clothes; gowns, crowns, masks and pretty ball gowns. Isn’t that what drama and performance is all about?
So here’s the thing. We don’t need them. All we need to create magical, exciting, fun-packed drama, is a child’s imagination.
Every week in Pyjama Drama children enter into a different imaginary world. Whether flying to the moon on a rocket ship, having tea with a tiger or dancing with the king and queen; they create the environment and all the bits and pieces that fit into it. To be more serious for a minute, we’re really passionate about this aspect. We want to use drama as a way to fire the imagination, to help develop and inspire inquisitive little minds and for that reason the only ‘props’ we use are small brightly coloured play cloths, these can be transformed into many things, from a hat to a butterfly’s wings, a puddle or an ice-cream or to wrap up a present for your best friend the monkey.
Dressing up is brilliant fun and children love it, as a parent, I quite often have tea with a three-year old dressed as Batman, but we know from many years working with children that as far as classes go, it’s better if you don’t have them. Mostly you find that costumes get in the way; dull the creativity and improvisation that comes so naturally to children. And that sparkly dress in the box....well, it’s just not quite as sparkly as the one in your imagination...