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In the middle of playing, oblivious to the rest of the world, intensely centered on the reality of their imagination, children have entertained better than some of the most gifted actors. Then why, when you cast them in a play or musical, do they clam up, move stiff as a board, and speak like a computer short-circuiting? Where is that same energy, that same expressiveness, that wonderful childhood abandon you wish to harness through drama? It's lost somewhere between the excitement of being in a play and the monotony of rehearsing it. It's lost when you have to tell children to stop playing around and start practicing. It's lost when the black and white words on a page stay there and children simply memorize and follow directions. It's lost when children step into a role like they put on a coat, mindlessly, without imagination. Can it be found again? Yes. That's what this book is all about: involving children in drama...Just for the Play of It.
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