JAN
22

Memorization and the Old Schoolmarm

By Alexi Alfieri 

Alexi Alfieri began writing plays for her middle school class to perform.  This led to writing holiday show scripts that incorporated every student in the school.  And soon enough, she was writing fractured fairy tales, old-fashioned western melodramas, mystery dinner shows, and comedies of all kinds.  Now a professional playwright and director, she believes the most important thing a great production should start with is a great script. 

I once observed a middle school drama director who was completely stressed out in rehearsal because her cast didn’t know their lines.  In spite of this, she seemed to feel lecturing them about memorization would make her sound like an old schoolmarm, so she chose to encourage them to ad-lib instead.  Whenever anyone forgot a line, she’d call out, “Somebody save it!”  Unfortunately, I never, ever saw this technique work.  One kid would forget their line or fail to give a correct cue, and in the awkward silence that followed, another cast member would jump in with something completely unscripted.  Everything went downhill very quickly from there.  Whole scenes were getting skipped over in some instances, and there was nothing but confusion for everyone in rehearsals.  By showtime, the whole cast was a nervous wreck.  Some were in tears from the stress of not knowing their lines and now facing an audience.  Needless to say, the show was a bit of a disaster.

Frankly, as a drama mentor, I’ve learned it pays to be an old schoolmarm.  I don’t hesitate to lecture my cast of kids on the importance of memorization.  I take time to explain specific memorization strategies, and I encourage them to share their own techniques with each other.  With middle schoolers, I like for us to choose a memorization deadline together, so I have their buy-in.  I cheerlead, coax, and cajole everyone until they are off book.  And I’m certainly not above bribery!  Pizza parties, homemade cookies, an hour of extra recess — I’ve offered any number of rewards to casts who successfully meet a memorization deadline.  In my mind, it’s worth it for the success of the show and my own stress level!

I’ve found that just saying “Memorize your lines!”  on repeat doesn’t seem to do the trick.  Explaining the “why” seems to be much more effective.  So, I’ll share my tried and true “memorization lecture” that I give to my cast early on and return to as necessary.  Feel free to set a pair of eyeglasses at the end of your nose and blow a whistle to start.

The Schoolmarm’s Memorization Lecture

Do it for the team!

It’s important to every cast member that everyone memorizes their lines so everyone is getting their correct cue.  A cast is essentially a team on stage, and it’s only fair to the team for everyone to know their part.  When everyone knows their lines as written and is delivering them at the appropriate time, a feeling of security will settle in during rehearsal.  Everyone will feel part of a team that’s destined for great things!

Do it for yourself!

No one looks good when they’re scrambling to remember their line.  It’s stressful and embarrassing.  However, solid memorization can save anyone from that particular suffering.  Anyone who knows their lines cold will definitely feel more prepared for showtime...  not to mention have a much lower blood pressure.  Nervousness and anxiety are bound to still be there for the final performance, but they will be at a much more reasonable level and for the right reasons.

Do it for the show!

When everyone has their lines memorized, then any ad-libbing that happens — either out of fun or out of necessity — will not de-rail the entire performance.  If everyone knows their lines, it’s much easier for a scene to keep rolling if a line is dropped accidentally, a prop is missing, or a piece of scenery falls.  Everyone is secure enough in their own part and with each other to handle anything which may come up unexpectedly.

Do it for the fun!

The sooner everyone knows their lines, the sooner the performance is going to feel much, much more fun.  This is because once everyone has stopped wracking their brain to remember their next line, they’ll be able to concentrate on more thrilling stuff like stage voice, tone, pacing, expression, movement on stage, using props, etc.  This is when the show comes alive.  When memorization work ends, the fun begins!

Now, don’t put down that ruler just yet!  There is no magic trick to help your cast members easily learn their lines.  It requires effort with lots of repetition, so it also takes time.  As you make this clear to them, share with them some of these basic strategies for how my young actors have memorized their lines over the years.  Have them commit to which ones they’re going to try, and develop a real plan for carving out the time to make it happen.

Memorization Strategies

• Reading from your script, recite your lines aloud at every opportunity.  Say them on a walk, while soaking in the bathtub, on the school bus, when you go to bed, when you wake up — you get the picture.
• Practice with someone every chance you get.  Grab a parent, a sibling, a friend, your grandma, a teacher, or even the neighbor next door and ask them sweetly to read lines with you.  Then give them the script so they can give you your cue for each line and provide you feedback if you missed any words.  Sunday dinner with the family coming up?  Guess what the activity should be!
• Look at the line, put your script behind your back, say the line aloud, and then look at the script again.  How’d you do?
• Find a space that can be your stage:  your backyard, an empty classroom, an aisle in the grocery store, etc.  Walk, look, and gesture just as your character would while reciting your lines.
• Create a set of flashcards for practicing your lines on your own anytime and anywhere.  On one side on an index card, write the cue for your line.  On the other side, write the line.  Do this for each and every line and make sure you number your cards so they stay in order.  (It might be a good idea to also put the act and scene in the corner for each one.)
• Write all of your lines out on paper.  Repeat.  (Or repeat this by making yourself the set of flashcards mentioned above!)  Now try writing out all of your lines without looking at your script.
• Record cues on your phone (or Grandpa’s old-fashioned tape recorder) and test yourself.