Drama babe! – Theatre Stage Experience for Agilists

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Drama Babe!
Theatre Stage Experience for Agilists
Photo credit (CC): GPS, https://www.flickr.com/photos/zoxcleb/12708086944/in/faves-58564123@N05/
Michael Tarnowski
Workshop at “Walk the Talk – Talk the Walk”
#WTTW, Annual Conference AC NL, 10.Sept.2014
Agile Consortium NL

Prologue
Who is your Performer?
Why do Agilists need Theatre Stage Experience?
Act I – Scripting the Performance
Act I, Scene 1 – Write the Playbook
Act I, Scene 2 – Set the Stage
Act I, Scene 3 – Set the Pose
Act I, Scene 4 – Direct the Performance
Act II – Staging the Performance
Act II, Scene 1 – Build the Stage
Act II, Scene 2 – Onstage & Backstage, Entrances & Exits
Act II, Scene 3 – Set the Light
Act II, Scene 4 – Set the Sound/Music
Act II, Scene 5 – Set the Costumes & Props
Act III – Performing the Performance
Act III, Scene 1 – Rehearse
Act III, Scene 2 – Find proper Emphasis
Act III, Scene 3 – Create Meaning
Act III, Scene 4 – Create Emotions and Authenticity
Photo credit (CC): Jeffrey Beall, http://www.flickr.com/photos/denverjeffrey/5636579214/

Prologue
Who is your Performer?
Michael Tarnowski
ISO 15504 Assessor
>30 yrs Actor & Director
Off-theatre & performance
groups
9 yrs SW developer
(Unix, C++)
>12 yrs Consultant;
Trainer & Speaker
Founder of Plays-in-Business.com
Scrum Master & Consultant for
Agile Transformation

You don’t believe what I yet heard !!??
Agilits communicate via Post-Its
and Source Code only!
Photo credit (CC): Peter Peerdeman, https://www.flickr.com/photos/peterpeerdeman/6957448486/in/faves-58564123@N05/

Prologue
Why do Agilists need Theatre Stage Experience?
Theatre and Stage Experience offers you
however a broad-wide toolbox of communication
skills:
• How to set the narrative structure your presentation
• How to prepare your stage: onstage, offstage, and
audience space
• How to use light, sound, costumes, and props properly
• How to rehearse & improve your presentation
• How to use your body language
Photo credit (CC): Azri, https://www.flickr.com/photos/azriadnan/1855533075

Act I – Scripting the Performance
Act I, Scene 1 – Write the Playbook
You are author and performer of your show at the same time.
As the author plan and structure your performance, presentation or
show. Take notes and scribbles in a kind of playbook or graphic
storyboard.
Determine your message, i.e. what you want to tell
Create a proper playbook
Write down your text aka the “lines”, i.e. what you want to say
Refine and detail your playbook during your rehearsals continuously
Photo credit: http://www.produktbezogen.de

“Drama Bow” – Narrative Structure of your Performance
Tell your story like a James Bond movie
Boom!
End: bombastic closing
Boom!
Yeah!
yeah!
Start: impressive intro scene
Highlights: in ascending order
of power to build the interest
Proudly stolen from Adam St.John Lawrence, Work•Play•Experience, Services Design: boom-yeah-Yeah-Boom

How to make your Story captivate and contagious
Spectators perk up when they
hear a Problem that holds
immediate Risk.
A Resolution creates immediate
value for the spectators.
Growth and Truth leads to fast
identification with the storyline/
characters. Truth gets credibility.
Vulnerability: being honest about
the challenges, fears, and failures
you/the characters faced gives
the story power.
Colours: describe landscape, time
of day/year, details of clothing,
props, etc.
Make sure that the details you
include serve your narrative;
cramming too much in, makes
your story too long and
convoluted.
Sometimes you have to “lose
your darlings” to keep your
stories tight and clear.
1. Structure it as a rough skeleton first:
a. Identify a Problem with immediate risks
b. Identify a Resolution (of the problem) and if
you want Growth of characters while
standing the risks.
c. Line-up the highlights in ascending order of
power/tension – experiment with their order
d. If you want add Truth or keep the story
fictitious.
2. Pimp your story – “put flesh on the bones”:
a. Add Vulnerability to the characters
b. Add Colours: decorate the scenes with details
to illustrate the atmosphere and scenarios.
3. Keep the story tense and short. You will get
more an more experience in knowing how to
edit yourself for greatest effectiveness.
4. Rework and refine Start and End – set
punchlines for “yeah, Yeah, BOOM!”
Photo credit (CC): Cydcor Offices, https://www.flickr.com/photos/cydcor/9323706582

Act I, Scene 2 – Set the Stage
Identify Spaces
• the space you perform – this is
your Stage.
• the space the audience is in.
Cross the barrier between stage
and audience only by purpose
and intentionally
Affect the Seating
In general the audience fills up from the back and along the aisle. Empty
rows and seats in between gives a feeling of an unattractive event.
Choose a room as tight as possible for your predicted numbers
Encourage the audience to fill from the front
Use: lightings; attends to offer seats; reserve rear rows until the rest of the room is full
(and fetch "reserve" chairs from another room only when needed).
Photo credit (CC): Mohammad Jangda, http://www.flickr.com/photos/batmoo/3735638680/

Act I, Scene 3 – Set the Pose
“More important than what you say is how you say it.”
(Albert Mehrabian rule)
The Basics of Business Body Language, Laura Montini, http://www.inc.com/laura-montini/infographic/getting-ahead-in-business-with-body-language.html

The 4 most important Body Language Tips
1. Show Tension. Stature is preparation for everything we do.
Always stand on stage in Stature
When you do so, the body inhales, your core muscles pull up, and your chest
expands.
Don’t over-emphasise by pumping up yourself like a body builder
Photo credit (CC): Glenn Loos-Austin, https://www.flickr.com/photos/junkchest/47929871

2. Maintain Eye Contact. Like our voice, our eyes convey everything.
Eye contact connects us literally and figuratively with one another.
Eye Contact helps you to embody integrity, confidence and authority
Don’t stare at your spectators
Switch between focusing an individual spectator in the front, in the
middle, and in the back of the audience
Don’t look in spectators’ eyes directly – look at their foreheads instead
Evaluate when to maintain and when to stop keeping eye contact
Photo credit (CC): Nick Fewings, https://www.flickr.com/photos/jannerboy62/9739279883

3. Make movements (gestures & walks) purposeful. Positively,
gestures help you effectively tell the story – negatively, they detract
from what you are saying.
Gestures and walks must be purposeful, not random, unconscious
or ever repetitive.

4. Use Abdominal (Belly) Breathing –
not your lungs! Abdominal breathing
gets you a longer flow of air. Your voice
becomes louder without stressing your
vocal chords; and belly breathing
calms panic attacks (“stage frighten”)
also.
Become acquainted with abdominal
breathing
Photo credit: http://bestanxietyremedies.com, http://www.entrepreneursspeaking.com
Train your voice daily (e.g. in the bathroom)

Act I, Scene 4 – Direct the Performance
“Block the Play”
Determine your movements and
positions on stage.
Use Scribbles and Stage Directions
to relate movements with lines; note
them all in the playbook.
Create movements that:
• transfer meaning and mood of your story line
• help to feature other speakers/performers at appropriate moments
• keep the audience awake and involved

Stage Descriptions (Theatre) & Customer/User Experience
Stage descriptions helps you to define Customer/User Experience (CX/UX).
Stage directions tell: Documenting functions alone doesn‘t tell:
What characters enter and leave a
scene
How a user might enter or leave a particular part
of a site or applications
What and how characters do on stage What a user might be able to do while – that is not
a click
How characters do and say things What the particular interaction is with some
functionality
What happens in the background What happens in the background
What sounds are heard What audio clues help explain the functionality
What the lighting should be What visual clues help explain the functionality
What the context is – the mood and
environment
What the context is – helping set the conditions for
the experience and the desired response
What the tempo and rhythm are What the tempo and rhythm of an interaction or
experience are
Stage Directions + Dialogue + Set
= Overall Experience
Functions + Interactions + Emotional
Response = Overall Experience
Proudly stolen from Stage Directions Meet Functional Specifications: They Have a Lot in Common, Traci Lepore,
http://www.uxmatters.com/mt/archives/2009/03/stage-directions-meet-functional-specifications-they-have-a-lot-in-common.php

Stage Descriptions
Upstage
Centrestage
Downstage
Up
Centre
Centre
**** Audience ****
Right
Right
Right
Right
Centre
Right
Centre
Right
Centre
Down
Centre
Left
Centre
Left
Centre
Left
Centre
Left
Left
Left

Act II – Staging the Performance
Act II, Scene 1 – Build the Stage
Your customer touch points are
your Stage Sets:
• your conference booth, speaker platform,
venue
• your retail store(s)
• your website/marketing brochure
• etc…
Build the stage accordingly to your intentions,
and business strategy.
Stage building shall support your message
Stage building shall look professional – avoid
clumsy assembles
Use curtains, flames, roll-ups, and lighting
Less is more

Act II, Scene 2 – Onstage & Backstage, Entrances & Exits
What the public can see is “Onstage”
What you want to hide is “Backstage/
Offstage”
Show the audience the backstage
machinery by purpose only – e.g. in case
of “Making of…” shows.
Use line-of-sights, curtains, etc., to hide
the backstage.
A powerful entrance impress the audience
and gives power to yourself.
Move on/off stage powerful and confident
Focus your role when entering the stage
Enter stage always from left if possible
Most impressive entrance: “The King’s entrance”,
(door) UpCentre
Choreography all entrances and exits

Act II, Scene 3 – Set the Lights
Light creates atmosphere easily.
Light kills atmosphere fast: cold,
hard, white light.
Use natural light as often as possible
Use spotlight to highlight you in a crowd
Use (spot)light to emphasise special
experiences or sequences of interest:
e.g. light coming from the side wings; light in your
back dazzling the audience when you enter
Red & Yellow: warm light
Blue & White: cold light
Blue & Green: light difficult to handle
All mixture of colours: interesting – experiment with
Photo credit (CC): Dan Brady https://www.flickr.com/photos/djbrady/2068433063/in/faves-58564123@N05/

Act II, Scene 4 – Set the Sound/Music
Sound creates atmosphere easily
– even shrill, loud, sound/music.
Sound kills atmosphere fast – even
melodic sound/music.
Sound/music create tension.
Sound/music gets meaning.
Use sound/music by purpose only – define their meaning upfront
Sound/music shall pace your movements and props properly:
in introducing/closing or during a movement
Chose sound/music decisively – think twice in selecting them
Sounds/music are potentially under copyright – use royalty free
sources
Photo credit (CC): MaDonna via http://www.fromquarkstoquasars.com
Some royalty free sound/music sources:
• http://www.grsites.com/archive/sounds/
• https://soundcloud.com/
• http://www.freesound.org/

Act II, Scene 5 – Set the Costumes & Props
Costumes serve as a kind of branding. In marketing
events they function as corporate identity (CI).
On stage each costume communicates: it determines
certain stereotypes, it addresses punchlines, it
defines the personality of a character, and, and, and...
Costumes create meaning and WOW-factors
Be exuberant in using costumes
Props (properties) are identifiable (real)
objects used during the performance.
Like costumes props communicate as well.
Props create meaning and WOW-factors
Be spare with props – each prop on stage has to be used, has to have
a function/has to have support other props.
Eliminate all non-used props

Act III – Performing the Performance
Act III, Scene 1 – Rehearse
Performers rehearse and train again and
again.
They train consistently their text, their
movements, and the exact timings for
the punchlines.
Like theatre rehearsals your rehearsals
should also progress from early free-form
rehearsals through technical rehearsals (lighting, sound/music, special
effects) up to final on-site rehearsals with all costumes, props, and all
technical machinery (light, sound, special effects, etc.).
Prepare yourself: topic of your show and ways to perform
Rehearse and improve yourself over and over again
Rehearse with a peer to get real feedback
Don’t shoot the peer for the feedback

Act III, Scene 2 – Find proper Emphasis
“The tone creates the music”
You are author and performer of your show
at the same time.
As the performer test different ways to
pronounce and to intonate your lines. – There
are more than 100 variations in presenting
a line!
Test force/strength of your movements.
Evaluate the timing of your movements and lines
Evaluate intonation changes: speed, melody, loudness, energy, timbre,
and resonance of your voice – experiment and play
Evaluate how pauses change/force meaning
If needed, rewrite your lines to strengthen your message
Note the ways to speak the lines in your playbook
Rehearse, evaluate & improve – Rehearse, evaluate & improve – Rehearse,
evaluate & improve …

Act III, Scene 3 – Create Meaning
“On stage Everything gets a meaning”
You can’t avoid it: the audience notices
everything and interprets everything:
the performer’s anxiety/nervousness/uncertainty,
movements/gestures performed unconsciously, a
clumsy designed stage, improper used light, and
sound, and, and, and...
In a fraction of a glimpse the audience will decide when something in
your performance supports or contradicts your message/intention.
Be focused and confident in what you perform
Keep voice (intonation) and movements in sync – both shall support
each other all-times
Chose movements, pauses, voice, and timings after extensive
evaluations and rehearsals only
Use costumes, light, sound, and props decisively and by purpose only
During your performance follow your script – don’t improvise
headless – be tuned and follow your line steadily
Photo credit (CC): ArtMind, https://www.flickr.com/photos/artmind_etcetera/3047482919

Act III, Scene 4 – Create Emotions and Authenticity
“Don’t manipulate – convince the audience”
Love and value your audience – they spent
THEIR time listening/watching you
Don’t bore the audience – entertain!
Don’t sell – offer a “gift” instead (the benefit
knowing you, remarkable facts, information, etc…)
Be authentic yourself
Speak in your tongue – don’t use words and
phrases that are not yours
Don’t use props you aren’t acquainted with and only wear costumes
you feel comfortable
Don‘t fake being something that isn’t you (joking, telling great stories,…)
Be fair to other performers on stage – “Let stars be stars”

The ultimate Punchline
Your audience always keep in mind
Start and End of your show only,…
the parts in between… they forget.
Photo credit (CC): Flood G., https://www.flickr.com/photos/_flood_/6732863457

Questions? – Comments? – Interested in
consultancy, or business plays, stage directing?
Or call me:
+49-172-6915261
(cell phone/mobile)
Drop me a note:
info@plays-in-business.com
Twitter: @M_Tarnowski, @PlaysInBusiness
Facebook: http://bit.ly/PiB-FB
LinkedIn: http://bit.ly/MT-LinkdIn
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SlideShare: http://bit.ly/MT-SShare
This document may be further distributed free-of-charge in its original, complete form only. Please credit Plays-in-Business.com.
All images used are – if not stated otherwise – from my theatre productions with the German off-theatre groups diegewissen and
“Junge Bühne Schlangenbad”.

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Drama babe! – Theatre Stage Experience for Agilists

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