Doing Reader's Theatre - three 'how to' essays

“Until you experience it, it’s hard to see how you can use it. Once you’ve experienced it, the power of engagement it creates will surprise and move you.”

Presenting Readers Theatre and Engaging Your Community
Essays and tips explore the whys and hows of readers’ theatre and its use for community engagement

• How it Works: The Power of Engagement
• “The performance psychology works simply enough. The person reading is someone you know. They are not actors, and they are reading, so there is no danger that these are outsiders coming to teach you something. . . “


• “Whatever group gathers, the leadership should dive in and be part of the reading. . . . It also works best when you know there is controversy represented in the reading group and the audience. The more difference of opinion present, the better the event will play out.”


• Performance Essentials: How to Make a Good Show
• “The piece was always imagined as performed with scripts in hand. The performers would be members of the audience community. Sometimes the performers would be their own audience.


• "This is not a conventional play, where the actor hides behind the character and pretends to be someone else. Here the person speaking lends some of their own credibility to the language because of who they are in their own community.”


• Little Tools: Sharpening the Performance -- 7 quick tips