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A tableau is a stage picture created by a group of actors in frozen poses. (The plural of tableau is pronounced the same, but spelled tableaux.)

• Ask for a group of volunteers to stand on stage.

• Remind the students that–in order to create a tableau–an actor must first know how to hold a freeze on stage. This involves assuming an active pose and making sure one’s eyes are focused on a single point. Ask the students to strike a freeze and hold it for ten seconds.

• Next, explain that good stage pictures or tableaux usually include the following two elements:

1. First, the actors in the picture are interacting with each other in some way, e.g,. one might be whispering in another’s ear, or two might be in the middle of reaching for a handshake or going for a “high five.” Every actor should be connected to another, suggesting there is a relationship between them. Give the students a count of five, and tell them: “This time when you freeze, you have to be connected to another actor in some way.”

2. Second, in order to be more interesting, stage pictures should have levels and a variety of body positions. If one actor is standing, the actor next to them might be kneeling or sitting. If one is sitting, someone next to them might be lying down or standing on a box or chair. If one actor is leaning left, the one next to them might lean right.

• Place several chairs or blocks on stage and tell the students: “This time, when I count to five, I want you to freeze on a different level and in a different body position than the person next to you. But remember–you still need to be interacting with the other actors in some way.

• After practicing several group freezes with the volunteers, spread the chairs and/or blocks across the playing area and invite the entire class on stage. Tell them, “Now I’m going to count to ten. In that time you need to gather around one of the chairs or blocks with three or four other students, and settle into a tableau with interaction and levels.”

• Play several rounds, letting the students switch from one group to another. Stress that everyone in the pictures must be visible, and no one should have their backs to the audience.

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Curtains Up Curriculum by Friends of the Groom Theater Co. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Curtains Up is a training program designed for young actors sponsored by Friends of the Groom Theater Company.
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