‘Polyglot Theatre is Australia’s leading creator of interactive and participatory theatre for children and families. Our distinctive artistic philosophy has placed us at the international forefront of contemporary art experiences for babies and children up to 12 years, meeting with professional acclaim and recognition around the world. Inspired by the artwork, play, and ideas of children, we create imagined worlds where audiences actively participate in performance through touch, play, and encounter.
– Polyglot ( about us )
I did not really know what to expect going into polyglot. I thought it would be more of a demonstration, a play or a puppet show of sorts. But in the first 10 minutes, they briefed us about what the session entailed, It was obvious to me that this wasn’t any ordinary play. We were handed a bunch of sheets and told to let our imagination run free. The first thing the paper reminded me of was kung fu for some reason, and I thought it would be a really great idea to punch holes through it for some reason. I found it really satisfying to experiment with the different amounts of pressure and different techniques of punching through the paper. I also must mention that at this point I was completely lost, and had no idea what we were doing and why. After I was done massacring the paper, I decided to make it into an art piece. I took another paper and started tearing a circle in the top right corner. I then tore long shreds symbolizing the trunks of the trees, then tore circles in the shape of bushes on top of the trunks. I couldn’t finish the piece as we were told to run with the paper. After this, I started to gauge where the lesson was going, as they told the directors, who were my classmates, to choose any 2 actions, and we made an action sequence surrounding those 2 actions. It was really great as we had made a scene with an incredible amount of tension without having to use verbal expression and our acting skills. Finally, we repeated the creative process, and created a high tension scene by surrounding our audience, i.e the instructors/observers, and showering them with shreds of paper. I loved how both scenes relate to real life in many ways, as everyone tends to follow the norm nowadays, and everytime someone breaks through that it’s somewhat of a spectacle.
The session really influenced me to think beyond the limits of contemporary theatre, and the basic idea of what a play should look like.