WHAT IS THE LOS ANGELES DRAMA CLUB?

For a child, to discover the world of theatre is comparable to stumbling upon a Magic Kingdom. The Los Angeles Drama Club first began as an informal gathering of young children at the historic Brookledge Theatre in one of the older neighborhoods of Los Angeles. What evolved from this is a program that introduces children to self-discovery and exploration via the best tools and techniques theatre has to offer.

VIOLA SPOLIN and AGOSTO BOAL – OUR TEACHING TOOLS

We learn through experience and experiencing and no one teaches anyone anything.
Viola Spolin
Founder, American Improvisational Movement

Our purpose is to invoke creative spirit that exists in every child.
The work of Viola Spolin in the late 1930s with the children of the HUD program proved to do just that, becoming a groundbreaking discovery that would profoundly affect the world of theatre, psychology and education.

Theater is a language through which human beings can engage in active dialogue on what is important to them. It is a lab for problem solving, seeking options and practicing solutions.
Agosto Boal

Meanwhile, around the same time in a small village in Brazil, Agosto Boal began working with indigenous people of the Amazon, teaching them theater techniques such as Forum Theater – to resist a German company who had designs on their land. Boal empowered the common man everywhere to stand up against oppression. Thus, the Theater for the Oppressed movement was born. Boal has been all over the world, he has worked with the Royal Shakespeare Company as well as African tribes.

The tools from both Spolin and Boal are cherished and invaluable for anyone, not just actors, but all people. The games and excercises of Boal and Spolin are used by educators, psychologists and drama teachers to this day.

At the Los Angeles Drama Club, we dedicate a big portion of our session to the works of Boal and Spolin. The games are used and ice-breakers, brain stimulators, as a means to develop teamwork, fair play and total immersion in the “moment” - they are a great gateway to Shakespeare.