DBI World Conference 2019 Accessibility stream: Concurrent session 4C Presenter: Simon Allison Topic: Bertolt Brecht and deafblind theatre

1. USING BRECHT
TECHNIQUES IN
DEAFBLIND THEATRE
Presented by
Simon Allison

2. INTRODUCING

3. BERTHOLD BRECHT
• Born Berlin Died 14th August 1956
• Children Frank Hanne Stefan Barbara
• Career Poet , Playwright, Theatre Director
• NotableWorksThe 3 Penny Opera, Life of Galileo, Mother Courage
• Genre Epic Theatre, Breaking the Fourth Wall
• Quotes ‘What happens to the hole when the cheese has all gone’
• ‘No one will improve your lot if you do not yourself’

4. SIMON ALLISON
• Simon Allison
• Born England
• Died Not yet!
• Children Rosie, Isobel, Pearl, Ralph
• Genre Performance Poet, Playwright,Theatre Director
• Career Project Manager Sense -Coordinator Deafblind InternationalYouth
Network –Founder andTrustee Drama Express-QAVS 2019
• Quotes ' If there is one word that will drive you, to the end of your tether, then it's
that word of rejection and dejection, However'

5. ‘BRECHT IS A KEY FIGURE OF OUR TIME AND ALL
THEATRE WORK TODAY AT SOME POINT STARTS AND
RETURNS WITH BRECHT’
PETER BROOKE (THEATRE DIRECTOR)

6. IN MY ROLE AS A DEAFBLIND PRACTITIONER I
WANTED TO INTRODUCE BRECHT TECHNIQUES
THROUGH WRITING,PRODUCING AND DIRECTING A
PIECE OF DEAFBLIND THEATRE.THROUGH ITS
SUCCESS I HAVE PRODUCED SEVERAL PIECES OF
SUCCESSFUL WORK FOLLOWING THESE TECHNIQUES

7. BRECHT USED VARIOUS METHODS
TO ADDRESS CONTEMPORARY
ISSUES ACTED OUT ON STAGE

9. Between 2014 and 2018 members of the
Deafblind International Youth Network
performed their play about the life of
Helen Keller. The group performed in
Ireland, Western Australia, England and
Romania. A total of 24 performances took
place to over 1,000 audience members.
The play was written to include many
techniques used by Brecht, especially
those associated with epic theatre

12. 1- WHAT BRECHT TECHNIQUES WERE USED
2- HOW DID THE YOUNG PEOPLE PUT EACH
TECHNIQUE INTO PRACTICE
3-WHAT WAS THE OUTCOME FROM USING THE
BRECHT TECHNIQUES AND HOW DID THESE
INFLUENCE AND STRENGTHEN THE
PERFORMANCE

13. SIX OF THE BRECHT TECHNIQUES WE USED
1-NARRATION
2-MONOLOGUES
3-SURREALIST HUMOUR
4-PLACARDS AND DISPLAY BOARDS
5-MINIMAL PROPS, SET AND COSTUME
6-FREEZEFRAME

14. USING THE EXAMPLE OF
THE BREAKFAST SCENE
FROM THE HELEN
KELLER PLAY WE WILL
INTRODUCE EACH
BRECHT TECHNIQUE

15. 1-BRECHT SEES NARRATION AS A VERY
IMPORTANT TOOL TO TELL A STORY,
SETTING THE SCENE AND THE
BACKGROUND.
NARRATION CAN BE USED TO CREATE A
CHARACTERS EMOTION, HIGHLIGHT A
PIECE OF SPEECH AND INTRODUCE PROPS
BRECHT OFTEN USED NARRATION IN EPIC
THEATRE TO DISCONNECT THE AUDIENCE
FROM USING THEIR IMAGINATION

17. NARRRATOR
It was breakfast time at the Keller household. Sat at the table,
Arthur Keller, Kate Keller, Phillip Keller and Helen Keller.
As with most mornings the only sound was the occasional clinking
of crockery. Kate ate her breakfast in a hurry knowing that Philip
had to leave for school in a matter of minutes. Phillip yawned, the
direct result of reading his school revision books late into the night.
At the head of the table Arthur Keller pondered over the Boston
Gazette, a weekly insight into world events of 1886. Arthur seemed
intrigued in an article about Ann Sullivan, a student at the Perkins
Institute in Boston.

18. 2-Brecht would often ask the narrator to
change narrative style during production.
The narrator addresses the audience as if
reporting the information directly from the
newspaper article Arthur Keller is reading
This monologue style of delivery would be
repeated several times during the production

19. “Today 4th June 1886 the Perkins School for
the blind said farewell to an exemplary
student Anne Sullivan.Anne, blind herself, had
an extraordinary rapport with her fellow
students.There must indeed be an
opportunity for Anne to continue her skills
working alongside her peers”

20. THE NARRATOR HAS A MULTI FACETED
ROLE. TELLING THE STORY, DIRECTING
THE ACTION, PROMPTING STAGE
MANAGERS AND DELIVERING FACTUAL
INFORMATION
IN DEAFBLIND THEATRE THE NARRATOR
IS CRUCIAL TO THOSE ASSISTING THE
DEAFBLIND ACTORS ON STAGE AS THEY
USE THEIR INTERVENTION SKILLS TO
GUIDE THE ACTOR THROUGH THE
PERFORMANCE

21. 3-SURREAL COMIC SCENES
CREATED A STYLE OF
UNEXPECTED HUMOUR OFTEN
ASSOCIATED WITH SERIOUS
MATTERS

22. NARRATOR - ARTHUR KELLER HAS EMPLOYED
ANNE SULLIVAN AS HELEN'S TEACHER. AS A
STARTING POINT ANNE WAS TO TRY AND
TEACH HELEN HOW TO BEHAVE AT THE
BREAKFAST TABLE. WITH NO FAMILY MEMBER
ABLE TO PROPERLY COMMUNICATE WITH
HELEN BREAKFAST WAS OFTEN A SCENE OF
TOTAL DESTRUCTION
ARTHUR AND KATE KELLER DISCUSS THE
EVENTS OF THE PREVIOUS EVENING AS HELEN
SCATTERS BREAKFAST CEREAL ACROSS THE
TABLE AND OVER HER FAMILY. EVERYONE IS
OBLIVIOUS TO HELEN'S ACTIONS

23. 4-PLACARDS AND DISPLAY
BOARDS AND FREEZEFRAME
BRECHT USED THIS COMMUNICATION
METHOD TO TRANSMIT INFORMATION TO
THE AUDIENCE. OFTEN USED TO MAKE A
STATEMENT OR INTRODUCE HUMOUR.
PLACARDS WERE FAMOUSLY USED IN THE
BOB DYLAN VIDEO SUBTERRANEAN
HOMESICK BLUES. INDEED DYLAN IS
QUOTED AS BEING HEAVILY INFLUENCED BY
THE WORK OF BRECHT

24. NARRATOR- ARTHUR LEAVES THE BREAKFAST
TABLE TO GO TO WORK. IN TURN HE BIDS
GOODBYE TO EACH FAMILY MEMBER.
PROPS –TWO CLOCKS
ARTHUR – ‘MY TIME AT WORK SEEMS TO PASS
VERY QUICKLY THESE DAYS’

25. 5-Minimal and multiuse of props and scenery
In Deafblind theatre a non cluttered environment ensures
successful negotiation around the stage. The layout of both
scenery and props can be used as reference points for the
actors positioning themselves for each scene. Constant
scenery changes and too many props can become both
confusing and misleading.
In the Helen Keller play the table remains on stage
throughout the whole production as it is a central
reference point for many of the scenes.

26. NARRATOR -ANNE SULLIVAN HAS BEEN A
REVELATION WITHIN THE KELLER
HOUSEHOLD. HELEN'S BEHAVIOUR HAS
CHANGED DRAMATICALLY AND MEAL TIMES
ARE NOW A SCENE OF PEACE AND NEAR
CALM. THIS HAS GIVEN ANNE THE
OPPORTUNITY TO DEVELOP THE
COMMUNICATION OF HELEN INTRODUCING
A FORM OF DEAFBLIND SIGN LANGUAGE. THE
PROCESS OF SPELLING OUT WORDS ONTO
THE HAND OF HELEN HAS ENABLED THE
BOND BETWEEN THEM TO STRENGTHEN.
TODAY ANNE IS PRESENTING AN OBJECT TO
HELEN, SPELLING OUT THE NAME OF THE
OBJECT ON TO HELEN'S HAND.

27. THE SCENE IS CRUCIAL TO THE PLAY AS
IT SIGNIFIES A MAJOR BREAKTHROUGH
IN THE COMMUNICATION BETWEEN
ANNE AND HELEN. FOR THE FIRST TIME
WITHOUT PROMPTING HELEN
INDEPENDENTLY SIGNS ONTO THE
HAND OF ANNE ASKING FOR THE CUP.
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF JUST THE ONE
PROP CLARIFIES IT’S IMPORTANCE IN
THIS SCENE

28. MIMIMAL COSTUME
WHERE THE ACTORS WEAR SIMILAR COSTUMES THERE IS AN ENHANCED
SENSE OF TOGETHERNESS AND BELONGING WITHIN THE C AST

29. BRECHT INTRODUCED A TECHQNIQUE WHERE A PROP
WOULD HAVE MULTIPUPLE PURPOSES
CAN YOU IMPROVISE WITH THESE PROPS?
A GREAT TACTILE WORKSHOP EXERCISE

30. 6 – FREEZE FRAME
Using this method the narrator
can catch up with the action
on stage. Putting movements
on hold there can be focus on
the finer details of what is
taking place

31. NARRATOR:
ANNE ENCOURAGED HELEN TO BE
MORE INDEPENDENT WITH HER
COMMUNICATION, EXPRESSING HER
NEEDS AND WISHES THROUGH
SPELLING OUT WORDS ON ANNE
SULLIVAN'S HAND

32. AT THE END OF EACH BRECHT PLAY THE
AUDIENCE WILL HAVE HAD TIME TO
STUDY THE STORY AND RECOGNISE ANY
SOCIAL MESSAGES. BRECHT WOULD
OFTEN CHOOSE TO CONCLUDE HIS
PLAYS WITH ISSUES UNRESOLVED,
LEAVING THE AUDIENCE TO THINK OF
THEIR OWN OUTCOMES

33. BRECHT ACTIVITIES FOR DEAFBLIND
THEATRE WORKSHOPS
1-TACTILE EXPLORATION OF PROPS
2-EMOTIONS IN THE FRAME
3-RED CARPET THEATRE
4-THE DRIVE THROUGH
5-NET WORKING