Schools

Scarberia Study Guide

The Scarberia study guide was written by Lois Adamson and Mitchell Allanson with contributions from Victoria Cutler, Rebecca McCowan and Allyson Yates, Dr. Debra McLauchlan’s Pre-Service students at the Faculty of Education at Brock University.

If you wish to create your own lesson plan from the study guide copy, we have created a lesson plan template for your use. We hope you will find this guide to be a useful resource. Should you have any questions or feedback or have inquiries about the use of this guide (which is copyright protected), please feel free to contact Karen Gilodo, Associate Artistic Director, Education at kgilodo@youngpeoplestheatre.org.

Playwright’s Note

Scarberia takes its title from the nickname given to the Toronto municipality in the 60’s because of its seeming distance to downtown – and like its other nicknames – Scarlem, Scartown – remains contentious. At the heart of the play are questions about how much young people are shaped (or not) in the image of where they grow up. The characters have conflicting relationships to their spaces – pride, ambivalence, indifference. How much are our futures shaped for us by the environment in which we grow up or how much do we lay our own path?

It’s a play about friendship, about loyalty, about love, and the difficult, dangerous, complex decisions we often have to make in the name of them.

Thank you to all the young people from Pindar and Manor schools in the UK, and RH King and Earl Haig in Canada, who took part in the development, sharing their hopes and their fears with me. I am also indebted to the young people in prison and the ex-prisoners I’ve worked with over the years whose stories continue to drive and inspire me, and whose influence is certainly stamped on this play.

Despite the prominence of location, it’s important to state these characters by no means represent a wider picture of all of their peers in either Scarborough, or even a small percentage of them. Like the young people on both sides of the Atlantic who helped bring this play to fruition, they are individuals. They are Scarborians. But they don’t embody all of Scarborough. As ever, this is a work of fiction.

EVAN PLACEY

Synopsis

Scarberia follows the stories of four boys: one pair knows a drowned girl and must manage the fallout of her disappearance while the other pair searches for the cause of death of a stranger. As each teen tries to navigate out of his increasingly troubled situation, he finds his city and its poor reputation refuses to release its grip on his future prospects. Each must make a decision to change his world or be imprisoned by it.

Curriculum Connections

  • The Arts (Drama)
  • Language (Poetry, Shakespeare)
  • Science (Physics)
  • Geography (Sense of Place, Changing Populations, Travel and Tourism)

Character Education Connections

  • Fairness
  • Respect
  • Integrity

Themes

  • Overcoming stereotypes
  • Owning your own fate
  • Interconnected experiences
  • Friendships in conflict/maturing at different rates

Curriculum Expectations

This study guide responds directly to the following curriculum expectations as outlined by the Ontario Ministry of Education. By participating in the pre-show and post-show discussion questions and exercises, students will:

The Arts

  • use the creative process and a variety of sources and forms, both individually and collaboratively, to design and develop drama works.
  • use the critical analysis process to reflect on and evaluate their own and others’ drama works and activities.
  • identify knowledge and skills they have acquired through drama activities and ways in which they can apply this learning in personal, social, and career contexts.

English

  • use speaking skills and strategies appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.
  • recognize a variety of text forms, text features, and stylistic elements and demonstrate understanding of how they help communicate meaning.

Science

  • demonstrate an understanding of the evidence that supports the basic concepts of quantum mechanics and Einstein’s theory of special relativity.

Geography

  • identify factors that influence the demographic characteristics of settlements across Canada.
  • analyse impacts of selected agents of change on society and quality of life.

Pre-show Unit

Pre-show Discussion Questions

  • What contributes to someone’s identity?
  • How does where we come from affect who we are?
  • What does “identity” mean in relation to teenagers?
  • How does stereotyping affect identity? Do people become their labels?
  • Can people change? Why or why not?
  • Can we choose our own path or is our destiny shaped by factors beyond our control?
  • What makes someone feel like they belong?
  • What makes a good friend?
  • How does what we value in friendships change as we grow older?

Warm-up: “What If?” – Exploring Many Worlds

Objective

  • Students will contemplate the notion of alternate realities while becoming familiar with the basic concepts of quantum mechanics, a theory explored in Scarberia.

Materials

Directions

  1. Ask students to watch the video and take note of the concept of Multiverses and “Many Worlds” in particular.
  2. Allow students time to reflect on the video and to contemplate the question, “what if?”
  3. Begin exploring the concept of “what if” through some simple questions about our present day. As an example, ask students, “What if there were no cars in the world?” As a class, discuss the implications of this world.
  4. Brainstorm other “what if?” questions together (e.g., What if the internet was never invented? What if there were no countries? What if everyone had enough money?)
  5. Divide students into groups of 3-4, and ask them to formulate their own “what if” question and resulting scenarios and discuss their implications.
  6. Then, have them develop a short scene that explores a few resulting scenarios and perform it for the class. Let students know the following parameters:
    • Their performance should begin with their question phrased as a sentence (e.g. “If the internet was never invented…”, “If there were no countries…”, etc.).
    • What follows should be two or three short scenes that take the audience through a few situations showing what the world would be like if their statement were true.
    • For each of these short scenes, students must build text using the Unfortunately/Fortunately model.
    • Between each scene, they should repeat their opening sentence.
  7. After each performance, have students discuss their chosen “what if?” question.

Debriefing Questions:

  • What do you think about the theory of Multiverses?
  • Which of the three theories seems most possible to you?
  • Why do you think there is still no evidence to support these theories?

Exercise 1: Insiders and Outsiders

Objective

  • This in-role exercise will take students through being on the “inside” and the “outside” of a group as a way to think about the experiences of each.

Materials

  • Space in which to move
  • Performing In-Role Assessment Tool (Appendix A)

Directions

  1. Invite students to walk around the room.
  2. As they move, have them decide whether they are an “insider” or an “outsider” and to move accordingly.
  3. Pause the group and ask students to notice and talk about the following:
    o The body language of members of each group
    o How their movement changed depending on which they chose
    o Their relationship to other group members
    o How they feel
  4. Invite students to move around the room again, this time gradually changing to become a member of the opposite group.
  5. Pause the group again and have a discussion using the same questions (above).
  6. Now give students examples of social settings, and instruct them to take on the role of the “insider” or “outsider” characters they have been given. Examples may include a school cafeteria, the mall, a party, downtown, an airport or a locker bay.

Debriefing Questions:

  • Where do you see “insiders” and “outsiders” in society?
  • How does place affect belonging?
  • Is it important for there to be boundaries in the world? Why or why not?

Exercise 2: Characterization through Laban’s Effort Actions

Objective

  • This exercise takes students through a series of Laban’s effort actions. Students will engage with this theatrical movement technique as a way to develop and analyse characters and their relationships.

Materials

Directions
As a whole class, discuss how we communicate without using words, particularly in theatre.

  1. Explain that students will be using movement vocabulary from the chart below, created by Laban, to communicate different character types.
  2. To begin, have students standing in a scattered position, with as much space between them as possible. Review weight, space, time, energy/flow and have students briefly explore the two contrasting types of movement in each of these categories.
  3. Now, let them know that you’ll be reading a scenario for them to respond to through movement around the room.
  4. For each character type, read the script provided below the chart. Students will perform the appropriate actions.
  5. Pause the group again and have a discussion using the same questions (above).
  6. Then, provide students with these given circumstances: there is one chair and both characters want to sit in it. Have students improvise short, wordless scenes between two characters around this scenario, each taking on one of the effort actions as their key physicality. Give students time to perform the same scene but with different effort actions as their key physicality.

Debriefing Questions:

  • Ask students to think about how they could use the language of Laban’s Effort Actions to develop physicality for different characters.
  • How could they be useful in differentiating characters?
  • How can they be employed to communicate relationship and power?
  • What characteristics or emotions might we associate with different actions?

Culminating Exercise: Writing & Responding to a Sense of a Place

Objective

  • This exercise invites students to think about their home and the different perceptions they have of various places. They will have an opportunity to connect descriptions of different places to their expected physical reactions through Laban’s Effort Actions.

Materials

  • Writing utensils
  • Paper
  • Space in which to move
  • Laban’s Effort Actions (Appendix B)

Directions

  1. Distribute paper to each student and ensure that they have a writing utensil.
  2. Ask students to write a letter to someone who has never been to their hometown before. The goal of this letter is to welcome and guide this new person into your hometown.
  3. Guide the students’ writing by asking them to describe their hometown in a general sense, and to continue by describing in detail, places in their town that people enjoy going to and places in their town that people try to avoid. Have them end by describing one particular place that they feel really captures the essence of their home.
  4. When students have completed their letters, form student pairs and invite students to share their letters with their partners by reading them aloud. Instruct students to respond using the Laban Effort Actions, moving in response to the descriptions of the town.
  5. Pause the group again and have a discussion using the same questions (above).
  6. Give students time so each member of the pair can share their letter while the other walks through it.
  7. Invite pairs to perform their journeys through the town in response to the practiced circumstances.

Debriefing Questions:

  • What kinds of characteristics of a place change the ways that people react?
  • Does where we live affect who we are? Does it matter where we come from?
  • Many of you described the same town. Were you surprised at all by your classmates’ descriptions? Why or why not?
  • Why are there so many different perceptions of the same place?
  • In what ways do we see Laban’s Effort Actions in real life circumstances?

Post-show Unit

Post-show Discussion Questions

  • How did the friendship between Simon and Craig compare to the one between Simian and Craven?
  • What did each pair of friends value most in one another?
  • How did the actors change their voices and physicality in order to embody and differentiate the two characters they played?
  • What parallels can you make between the two Scarboroughs in the play: Scarborough Canada and Scarborough UK?
  • Why do you think the playwright decided to combine poetry and prose?
  • In what ways were the characters shaped by expectations about where they come from?
  • Did any of the characters challenge the stereotypes associated with them? If so, how?
  • Do you think Simon really believed in the existence of “Many Worlds”? Why or why not?
  • Where were the adults in the play? How did the presence or absence of adults affect the action of the play?
  • What do you think of the ending of the play? What do you think happens next?

Warm-up: Newspaper Article

Objective

  • Students will reflect and expand on the events and issues explored in Scarberia through creative writing and tableau. This exercise will encourage students to consider different perspectives within the play and in the media.

Materials

  • Computer
  • Paper
  • Writing utensils
  • Writing In-Role Assessment Tool (Appendix D)

Directions

  1. Have the class brainstorm the events of Scarberia and record them on the board in chronological order. Remind students that the events of the play include more than what they saw on stage — also what was talked about (e.g. the fight in the girls’ washroom, Simon’s mother’s death, etc.).
  2. Individually, the students will select an event from the play and write a short newspaper article about it. The article can either be a news report (recording facts of a news story), or an editorial piece (giving the writer’s opinion on a community or social issue). The article should include at least one quotation from a character that the writer would have interviewed.
  3. Next, organize students into groups, and ask them to choose one group member’s article.
  4. They will look at which perspectives are missing from the article. Students will brainstorm what other characters’ voices or quotations from the play should be included and will record them.
  5. The author of the chosen newspaper article will then become the sculptor of a tableau that will represent a picture for the newspaper article entry from Scarberia. The other students in the group will be the actors in the tableau.
  6. They will each choose a selected piece of text from their brainstorming to speak when they share their tableau.
  7. Give students time to rehearse their piece and then have each group perform what they have created for the rest of the class.

Debriefing Questions:

  • Is it important to pay attention to the news?
  • Should we trust the media? Why or why not?
  • Whose stories do we usually hear in the media? Whose stories are missing?
  • How does the media help us to understand other places?
  • Where do you learn about what’s happening in your community?

Exercise 1: Poetic Writing and Performance – Interpreting Marisha’s Words

Objective

  • This exercise explores the poetic language that Marisha speaks in Scarberia and invites students to look at the effect of poetry in performance. Students will analyse, interpret and perform particular passages from the play.

Materials

  • Writing-In-Role Assessment Tool (Appendix D)
  • Scarberia excerpts – Marisha’s Monologues (Appendix E)
  • Choral Speaking Assessment Tool (Appendix F)
  • Paper
  • Writing Utensils

Directions

  1. Remind students that Marisha speaks in a poetic style. Ask what types of poetic writing they are familiar with (e.g. Shakespearean text, rap lyrics, etc.) and discuss what examples of poetry are popular today. (e.g., spoken word performances, slam poetry, rap lyrics, etc.).
  2. In pairs, assign students one of the selected excerpts from Marisha’s monologues.
  3. Give students time to read their excerpt and discuss its meaning. Instruct them to divide the excerpt between the two people in their pair. Tell them to share lines and words in whatever way they believe enhances the message. Give pairs time to practise the excerpt, focusing on the elements of choral speaking (i.e. voice projection, enunciation, volume, timing/rhythm, and emphasis.)
  4. Distribute paper to each pair. Instruct students to “translate” their excerpts into everyday speech or prose. What would Marisha’s lines sound like in prose?
  5. Instruct pairs to divide the speech between them, just as they did their original excerpt.
  6. Give pairs time to practise the common speech text, again focusing on the elements of choral speaking.
  7. Invite pairs to perform their text, followed by the original excerpt.

Extension

Give students the opportunity to create their own stylistic monologues, using Marisha’s examples as models.

Materials

  • Paper
  • Writing Utensils
  • Writing-In-Role Assessment Tool (Appendix D)
  • Scarberia excerpts – Marisha’s Monologues (Appendix E)

Directions

  1. 1. Instruct students to write a short monologue about something that’s happened in their day so far, using prose.
  2. 2. Ask students to rewrite their monologue using stylistic poetic devices, imitating Marisha’s text. Remind the class that stylistic text is written to be performed. Encourage students to take risks with their rewriting, and to speak ideas as they go, in order to hear what their new monologue sounds like.
  3. 3. Invite students to perform their poetic creations.
  4. 4. Ask students which version of their own monologues they prefer. Ask them to discuss the challenges they faced when writing in each style.

Exercise 2: “What If?” – Exploring Many Worlds in Scarberia

Objective

  • Students will apply the notion of alternate realities through characters in Scarberia, in reference to the concept of quantum mechanics.

Materials

  • Space in which to move
  • Paper
  • Writing utensils

Directions

  1. Review the concepts explored in the pre-show warm up.
  2. Similar to the pre-show unit, brainstorm “what if?” questions from Scarberia (e.g., What if Marisha had been born somewhere else? What if Simon and Craig had never found her body? What if Simon’s mother had never died? etc.)
  3. Divide students into groups of 3-4, and ask them to formulate their own “what if” question and resulting scenarios from Scarberia and discuss their implications.
  4. Then, have them develop one short scene that explores a resulting scenario in depth and perform it for the class.
  5. After each performance, discuss their particular “what if?” question.

Debriefing Questions:

  • Is it worth talking about what might have been?
  • Who is responsible for Marisha’s death?

Culminating Exercise: Changing Events

Objective

  • This exercise encourages students to explore how small actions can affect the overall outcome of a situation or decision. Students participate in understanding how different decisions may influence a person’s life.

Materials

  • Computers
  • Paper
  • Writing Utensils

Directions

  1. Ask students to recall an important incident from Scarberia.
  2. Then, in groups of two or three, instruct students to each take a role from the incident they’ve recalled and recreate the incident in their own words, mimicking as much as possible the actions of characters in the performance. Allow students to practise performing the incident two or three times.
  3. Now ask students to suggest one possible change of decision from one character in the incident. This change of decision should allow for an “alternate reality” that changes the ultimate outcome of the play.
  4. Ask students to work through the scene again, this time performing the change in decision rather than the original scripted version.
  5. Allow students to practise their altered scene two or three times.
  6. Invite students to show both versions of the scene to the class. After each group presents their work, discuss how a change in decision might affect a chain of events that alters the outcome of the play.

Debriefing Questions:

  • What prevents people from making change?
  • What helps them to change?
  • Does one person making a single decision in one specific time change the course of events for someone’s future in real life?
  • What is our responsibility to each other?

Appendices

Appendix A

Appendix B

Appendix C

Appendix D

Appendix E

Appendix F

Sources

Breaking the Cycle of Gang Violence

Drama Toolkit’s Unfortunately/Fortunately Exercise

Minute Physics

Prevnet

Prevention Intervention Toronto

Steering Kids Away From Gangs

Theatrefolk’s The Eight Efforts: Laban Movement