Indigenous Australian Dreamtime Stories Group Performance With Scripting!

The Dreamtime According to Aboriginal belief, all life as it is today (Human, Animal, Bird and Fish) is part of one vast unchanging network of relationships which can be traced to the great spirit ancestors of the Dreamtime. The Dreamtime is the Aboriginal understanding of the world, of its creation, and its great stories. 

The Dreamtime Families and communities would regularly sit under the stars at night around the campfire – following their evening meal – and listen to storytellers unfold the stories from the Dreamtime, or tell of daily happenings, such as hunts, battles, etc. The written word was unknown to these people, and that is why the tradition is a spoken one. The storyteller’s role was not just to entertain but to preserve their culture, while educating the growing generation of children and young adults – in the history, traditional values and lore of their people.

The Dreamtime Dreamtime stories are traditionally shared in the spoken form, however, they are also shared through: Art, Customs, Dance, Music, Totems, Lore and Lands. ART CUSTOMS DANCE MUSIC TOTEMS LORE LAND

Your Task Today we will read through a selection of Dreamtime stories. Your job will be to work in small groups to bring the story to life, THROUGH MIME. Using well-rehearsed movements, gestures and facial expressions, you will tell the ancient story to the rest of the class.

Dreamtime Stories

Step One In your groups, one person must be chosen to be the team leader. This person will make sure the team are staying on track and sticking to the storyline. Another person should be appointed as the scribe. This person will write down the plan for the group mime in their drama journal. (This can be in dot points). All group members will participate in the planning stage!

Step Two Read your Dreamtime story. Plan the plot of the story and decide how you are going to show your audience what happens in the story using only movement and facial expressions.

Step Three The scribe will plot out the story line of your group’s chosen Dreamtime story in a list format. NOTE: Don’t stray from the original storyline. The story should be as clear as possible.

Step Four As a group, decide who will play each of the characters in your Dreamtime story. NOTE: Everyone in your group must play a part; some may need to double up depending on the story.

Step Five Now that you have your mime script planned, it’s time to get miming! Your group needs to effectively communicate your Dreamtime story to an audience through mime. TIP #1: Make all movements and facial expressions exaggerated so that they are clear to the audience. TIP #2: When miming the use of objects, consider their weight, size and texture. TIP #3: Stay focused. Try not to laugh if you get nervous.

Plan Practice Perform