BEd2 Major Specialism Drama Children’s Rights Presentation
Our BEd2 Major Specialism Drama had their group presentation on the 5th December at St Patricks Campus, Drumcondra. They were joined by a wonderful audience of 6th Class children from Glasnevin Educate together as well as representatives from the Ombudsman for Children's Office, the Abbey's Community and Engagement department and the Drama teaching staff from the school of Arts and Movement, DCU.
The students had been devising a theatre piece in collaboration with their Drama Lecturer, Sharon Mc Ardle and Director/Writer Declan Gorman. The aim of the module was to examine how to make meaningful and socially conscious drama programs within school settings and where students could also experience aspects of the drama continuum from process drama to theatre. The central activity this semester was to involve participants in devising a collaborative theatre piece whereby Children's Rights would be the central over arching theme.
The presentation opened with a lively interactive debate around Needs Vs Wants, led by Rebecca Mc Laughlin from OCO. This was followed by a circus style /political cabaret prologue, as the audience were greeted by two larger than life MCs, namely BEd2 students Megan Laverty and Chloe Mangan. They engaged in a playful routine involving a globe and between them delivered a spoken word rap about 'The Lottery of where you Live', inferring some of our key themes. This is concluded by dividing the audience into two halves using a lotto selection process and inviting them to enter the world of a child somewhere on the globe. Each group get an opportunity to visit two worlds where they meet a child called Leah (played by Leah Fox) from the 'developed world' and a child called Raj (played by Feargal O Donoghue) from the 'developing world'. Once the groups visited both worlds, they were invited to participate in a post show workshop & discussion facilitated by OCO and assisted by the two key 'child' characters from both plays, who were hot-seated by the children to help deepen their understanding of the characters circumstances. The aim of the discussion was to understand individual and collective responsibility for children's rights and how to ensure that children everywhere can have rights and safeguards to help them through both the huge social inequalities of the world and also the smaller but important domestic and everyday issues they face.
The event concluded with a note from Phil Kingston, Abbey Theatre Community and Education Manager and Drama Author, Sarah Fitzgibbon who spoke to the school group about the 'Act your Rights' Arts program created by The Ombudsman for Children's Office and the Abbey Theatre and was launched last month to mark the 25th Anniversary of Ireland ratifying the UN convention on the rights of the child.