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'Dramatic poetry' takes center stage
(by Sue Hoffman - March 26, 2009)
'Dramatic poetry' takes center stage
By SUE HOFFMAN
Poetry reading can be an exciting, onstage performance, students at Timmons Elementary School in the Kenston School District learned from poet Ray NcNiece.
"We're going to take the words from the page to the stage," Mr. McNiece told a group of second-graders during his week at the school, which concluded Monday. Calling the resulting performance "dramatic poetry," the poet told students that he never reads any poem -- his own or others -- on stage. Poems must be memorized and performed with powerful voice, body motions and understanding of stage dynamics, he told them.
He told the students they probably were surprised when he did his poetry readings at kickoff assemblies without bringing a book. That would have been boring, he said.
Mr. McNiece, who has traveled the world with his poetry performances and workshops, gave the students ample opportunity during the week to learn the art of dramatic poetry. "We're going to learn a poem and each of you will get to perform it," he said.
Students quickly memorized a short poem called "Taking Turns," by Norma Farber, and then learned the techniques for presentation.
"It gets a lot easier when we add acting to it," Mr. McNiece told the students. First, find a "confident stance," he told a couple of students who volunteered to start the process. He showed them how to motion with their hands and fingers when reciting the line, "When the sun goes home behind the trees and locks her shutters tight."
Include "a yawn in your voice" to indicate the end of the day, he said, also suggesting that they put their fists together to show the closed shutters. Students were opening doors and outstretching their hands toward the ceiling when reciting the next line, "Then stars come out with silver keys and open up the night."
"Let's see some hands in the sky to show a big star stretched out at night," he told students. By the end of the session, all of the students were performing the poem by memory and with gusto.
In Mr. McNiece's enrichment workshops for first-graders, students learned to use imagery through metaphors in writing poetry. In responding to the question, "How are you feeling?" rather than responding "good," students learned to expand their vocabulary and describe their feelings through images.
"I am feeling like I have spring fever," wrote Anya Parsons. "Spring fever is green. Spring fever is a leaping jaguar. Spring fever is a short-sleeve shirt. Spring fever is a centipede. Spring fever is Mars."
"I am feeling fantastic," Claire Nidy wrote. "Fantastic is a cheer. Fantastic is sunny. Fantastic is 7 o'clock. Fantastic is an ocean."
Born and raised in Willoughby, Mr. McNiece has traveled to Italy, France, Singapore and several other countries to share his techniques for performance poetry. He said he utilizes kinesthetic learning through movement.
"Kids are natural-born performers," he said.
Mr. McNiece said he learned poetry from his grandmother. "I grew up in a household where my parents read to us. Grandma had the whole Book of Ruth memorized," he said.
The Timmons Elementary School PTO sponsored Mr. McNiece as poet-in-resident as part of the school's celebration of Right to Read Week, Principal Katie Poe said.
"Mr. McNiece conducts poetry residencies in many schools. Poetry residencies provide in-depth, hands-on opportunities for him to kindle, develop and foster a student's relationship with language in general and poetry in particular." In addition, the students improve their
communication skills, and build confidence through self-expression, she said. "Mr. McNeice's work with the students connected nicely with our other Right to Read week activities."
Mr. McNiece has written seven books of poems, including his most recent work, titled "The Road that Carried Me Here." He has won a number of awards, including the 2001 Hart Award from Kent State University, and has performed locally at the Cleveland Playhouse and the Cleveland Public Theatre.
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