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| CREATIVE COMMUNICATION CLASS at Clarkston Global Academy 2016. Students take turns witnessing one another. |
In the past few weeks, as InterPlay Atlanta prepared for the one-day fundraiser, "2016 Give InterPlay Day," on April 7th, the certified leaders were documenting their work with people in underserved communities through photographs, writing, getting endorsements, and interviewing one another. Here Jennifer Denning asks Ruth Schowalter questions about her work with teenage refugees in the Clarkston, Georgia, area and the role InterPlay plays in her life.
Thank you for taking the organizational
lead on this for Atlanta this year! Can you talk about your commitment to
InterPlay Atlanta?
InterPlay
has been life changing for me in the three short years since I “discovered”
this gentle improvisational system! (I
know InterPlay has been around for 26 years nationally and in Atlanta since
2008) But it was in 2013 that I came across InterPlay on the internet while
I was researching the use of improvisation to teach English language fluency
and knew it would be a useful tool for my instructional purposes.
From
the time I met you (Jennifer), I was enthralled with the forms and principles
of InterPlay and began integrating them immediately with my American English fluency
lessons for short courses and workshops (i.e., instructing Brazilian educators)
at Georgia Tech Language Institute, international graduate students at Emory
University’s Goizueta’s Business School, and eventually with teenage refugees
in Clarkston, Georgia (the Ellis Island of the south), at the Clarkston Global
Academy.
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| INTERPLAY HAS CHANGED ME. Here I am (fourth from the right) with the participants in my "Creative Communication" class at the Clarkston Global Academy at the end of one of our classes. As I evolved from a "sage on the stage" kind of teacher to a "coach on the side," the forms and principles of InterPlay have assisted me in joining in with my students, being among them, supporting and not judging their efforts. |
What
I didn’t expect from InterPlay is that its alchemical properties would
transform me! We’ve been so fortunate to have you (Jennifer) here in Atlanta providing the
structure for us local InterPlayers to “play,” explore, and go as deep as we
each desire to understand more about our own body wisdom.
I
might proclaim that I am an InterPlay evangelist! That proclamation wouldn’t
surprise any of my friends, colleagues, neighbors, or family members. InterPlay
offers us all “choices” to the extent that we want to engage in this creative
improvisational system that fosters authenticity, freedom, ease, and joy.
It's wonderful to see the pictures from
InterPlay at Clarkston Community Center and also to read some of the
reflections from your participants. What have been some of your favorite
moments teaching InterPlay at Clarkston Community Center?
Unrestrained
jubilance! While InterPlay forms are executed in a way that is recognizable no
matter where you are in the world, unexpected executions of the forms can emerge
because the people are different! The resettled teenage refugees are always exuberant
during the InterPlay form, “Walk Stop Run.” As an educator who hasn’t worked
with teenagers before, I wasn’t prepared for the boundless energy and chaos
that ensues as they whir around the large auditorium with its raised ceiling
and large windows emitting warm streams of sunlight on wooden floors. They
chatter; they hook their arms and move together; and they mostly run with
little stopping or walking. In addition to being wowed by their energy, I was
also challenged by accepting their choices and wondering how I might tweak my
directions to garner different results.
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| INCREMENTAL STEPS SUPPORT DEVELOPMENT OF CONFIDENCE. In this photo, you see students telling longer stories and "embodying" them. |
Offering
the students in this “Creative Communication” class the opportunity to play
around with vocal and physical range has created punctuated moments of delight
for me. More than one student has “popped” out of their comfort zone to speak
louder or to create an imaginative body movement to accompany their name or
tell a story. As I observe the classmates “witness” each other’s “creative
communications,” I see them being both supportive and encouraged. These
particular moments also encourage me because they reinforce my ideas about the
role our community plays in our lives. Our actions can make one another
stronger.
It
has been such a delight to see a natural-born InterPlayer emerge from the group.
One Nepalese young woman volunteers at every opportunity to tell a big body
story, to do a DT3, to engage in the mystery of communicating something about herself
even though she doesn’t know what the outcome will be! I am so appreciative of
her courage to improvise and the fun that she experiences and demonstrates to
our class.
How does InterPlay help the teen
refugees at CCC become more confident communicators?
What
is confidence? And how do we recognize it when we see it? I’ve been playing
around with this concept for years as an instructor of English as a Second
Language at the Georgia Tech Language Institute (I taught there for 20 years
and now work there contractually).
I
know that creating an environment in which students feel comfortable to take
risks and make mistakes is key to developing an adventurous communication
style. The improvisational structure of InterPlay offers the structure for
creating this “safer” environment. Let me explain a few components here:
Incremental Steps—Confidence is built in the students
one step at a time, beginning with “short tellings” and lengthening to longer
storytelling moments engaging skills such as speaking slowly, speaking with
enthusiasm, using a made up language, or describing something from a
perspective of a child, expert, etc…. These incremental steps are sneaky and
before they know it, students are engaged in telling their stories in ways they
never thought possible.
Easy Focus—InterPlay participants are given clear
directions but encouraged to soften their “gaze” or “focuser” and to discover
how they want to execute the directions. In other words, the directions provide
structure but the individual finds what they need to say or do within or outside
of the structure. Giving students permission to be themselves and make choices
is empowering.
Witness—Being seen and being heard without
interruption is a powerful experience for anyone, especially if you are doing
it in a language that is not your native language and in an adopted culture.
InterPlay has us “witness” one another, creating a “sacred” place for these
resettled refugees to tell their stories in English in a fully embodied way. To
“embody” a second or third language is empowering. To have someone see you do
that is positively re-enforcing.
Noticing and Affirming the Good—InterPlay is critique free! Instead of
my writing down a list of things for students to improve in their
pronunciation, organization of ideas, or nonverbal skills, I along with all of
the paricipants applaud the accomplishments! Very good. Very good. Hurray! The
students practice acknowledging what they are experiencing in their individual bodies,
to ground the learning in their whole person—body, mind, heart, and spirit. This
kind of affirmative noticing results in increased self-awareness..
Respecting an Individual’s Choice—Participants are asked to choose what
is best for them as they “try” new behaviors “on.” That is, students are given
freedom and authority as to how they want to execute the directions. Taking
actions based on their own internal authority certainly helps develop
confidence.
The
practice of having these occur in the “Creative Communication” class is
challenging and definitely a work in progress!
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| WORK IN PROGRESS. CPACS supervisors watch while I begin a typical "Creative Communication" class at the Clarkston Global Academy. We begin each class by saying our names, making short physical actions, playing with our voices, and sharing short snippets from our individual lives. We play around with expanding vocal range (volume, speed, and pitch) and physical range. The class is always a work in progress. |
What are some of the greatest gifts you
have personally received from your involvement with InterPlay?
Great
question Jennifer! Although InterPlay has informed my life in many ways--too many to name, so I will speak about two here.
KINESTHETIC
IMAGINATION.
Before
InterPlay, I had never heard of the phrase “kinesthetic imagination.” What I
found out is that I am very much a kinesthetic person and that is the way I
experience the world. InterPlay really helped get me out of my head and
intellect and to connect with my body. For example, last year, I collaborated
with fellow InterPlayer on art performance piece, “Embody the Mother,” during
which I danced and painted on stage. To prepare for this performance, I danced
every day before painting three “quick” paintings. Creatively I was able to lead
with my body, to have the ideas, brush strokes and images be generated through
movement. Movement continues to impact my visual art making.
EXFORMATION.
Another
gift I have received from InterPlay is the concept of “exformation” and a way
to achieve it. This tool is a way of releasing excess information from our
“bodyspirits.” Whether this information is deemed good or bad, we can let it go
from our bodies, hearts, minds, and spirits. For those of us who are
particularly kinesthetic, it is so much fun not to mention cathartic. Since
2013, I have been doing lots of exforming and my body loves it!
Why are you supporting InterPlay
Atlanta on Give InterPlay Day?
I
love InterPlay and have become a part of a warm local, regional, and national
InterPlay communities. I know that InterPlay offers us all a sustainable way to
be our authentic selves and still be present in our communities.
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