Kabuki actor Matsuyo Onoe (website in Japanese only) visited my school to talk to students regarding Kabuki theatre, make-up, acting skills, abilities and character transformations. Kabuki actors usually play women roles as “femininity can only be expressed well by men.” During a one month performance, Matsuyo stated he often loses 5-6 kilograms due to the weight of the costumes. The wigs themselves can be up to 10 kg alone! Here is a clip of Matsuyo demonstrating speech to the students.
Below is an example of Kabuki theatre.
If you’re a teacher, Japanese Bunraku puppets would also make a lovely art and cross-curricular topic involving story-telling, theatre and performance.
I couldn’t help it. I know I am on holiday. I promised myself not to use a computer. Having drafts available was just too tempting.
Here are some articles that may be of interest.
Data Visualization Is Reinventing Online Storytelling
Today’s consumer seems to have an insatiable appetite for information, but until recently making sense of all of that raw data was too daunting for most. Enter the new “visual scientists” who are turning bits and bytes of data — once purely the domain of mathematicians and coders — into stories for our digital age.
Wikipedia: Exploring Fact City
“Contributors to Wikipedia have wondered aloud lately if — perish the thought — they are running out of topics.”
And have a look at SearchCube. It is a “…visual search engine that presents web search results in a unique, three-dimensional cube interface. It shows previews of up to ninety-six websites, videos and images.”
Lurid.com has an all-new series with acclaimed illustrator P. Craig Russell discussing graphic storytelling and sequential art. In the debut installment, he looks at the opening page of his comics adaptation of Pelléas & Mélisande. Check back for a new segment every Monday!
When students retell a book, their words are captured in Comic Life. In a guided reading group setting I want students to be able to reflect on and see their retell in a tangible way. Typing the retell words a child says into a Comic Life document helps them see their thoughts and reflect on them. It gives the teacher the opportunity to revisit what they said, to notice their strengths in the retell and point out and train the student in the areas where they are weaker. The Comic Life retell is sent home with the student so the child’s parent can be informed of the retell skills their child focused on that day and to continue practicing those skills at home.
I use ComicLife all the time with my elementary students. Have a look. There is more to do than the above.
Kabuki actor Matsuyo Onoe (website in Japanese only) visited my school to talk to students regarding Kabuki theatre, make-up, acting skills, abilities and character transformations. Kabuki actors usually play women roles as “femininity can only be expressed well by men.” During a one month performance, Matsuyo stated he often loses 5-6 kilograms due to the weight of the costumes. The wigs themselves can be up to 10 kg alone! Here is a clip of Matsuyo demonstrating speech to the students.
