Changing Atitudes Latin Percussion Scenario

Issue:
Respecting each other's space while riding the MBTA.

Characters:
Teenager on his way to school riding the bus
Businesswoman on her way to work riding the bus
Music lover (possibly teenager) riding the bus armed with iPod and loud headphones
Inebriated homeless man

Supporting Performers:
Three percussionists offstage

"STOP!"

By

Jabari, Jasmanny, Christian, Kit, Elian and Victor

ON AN MBTA BUS EARLY IN THE MORNING
The bus is empty and quiet.

1ST STOP
School-bound teenager boards bus.
Businesswoman boards bus.
School-bound teenager sits down towards back.
Businesswoman sits down towards the front reading her morning paper.
Both individuals are in their own world.

AUTOMATED MBTA VOICE (offstage)

Stop-requested.

2ND STOP
Music lover boards bus.
Music lover pulls out iPod and turns it on.
Percussion Performance Note (PPN): Supporting percussionists located offstage play beat as though its coming from the music lover's loud headphones.
Music lover turns iPod wheel for louder volume.
PPN: Supporting percussionists get louder.
Music lover sits down and starts dancing.
School-bound teenager looks over annoyed.
Businesswoman looks over agitated.
PPN: Businesswoman begins to adjust her newspaper in time with groove.

AUTOMATED MBTA VOICE (offstage)
Stop-requested.

3RD STOP
Inebriated homeless man boards bus.
Homeless man is stumbling while looking for seat.
Homeless man moans continuously.
PPN: Homeless man moans in time with groove.
Music lover is not phased by the homeless man.
Businesswoman becomes more annoyed by her surroundings.
PPN: Businesswoman adjusts paper more frequently creating a busier groove. Supporting percussionists get louder.
School-bound teenager looks around even more annoyed and is at a boiling point.
School-bound teenager stands up.

SCHOOL-BOUND TEENAGER
Stop!!!!!

END SCENE.

Art "Changing Attitudes" Scenario

There was a lot of discussion as to the role that art would take in the changing attitudes dialogue, and also how art would be used in the play. The nature of art is often solitary and withdrawn, as it is something that most people do alone. Yet art can also be something that many people see, as evidenced by political posters and famous works hanging in museums. I see art being mostly a support player in the production, with my class making the sets, but there are a couple ways we can incorporate art directly into the play:

With the use of a projector, artwork could be projected over people on the bus, or people doing an action. A poster which reads "THINK" and has an act of violence could be projected over someone right before they are about to make an important decision. In this sense, art can be used in a metaphorical sense to provide a look inside someone's head.

Another way art can be used is on the bus itself. I imagine a student riding the bus, astounded by what they see around them, but feeling unable to do anything. The student begins drawing and designing at home, making posters to put over the advertisements. At first, he just makes beautiful pictures to make people see something other than the gray city outside the windows. As he goes on, he starts to use the posters to change peoples' attitudes: he posts things about gang violence "Gang violence only leads to revenge" and warnings about guns and drugs.

These are silent actions, so there is no dialogue in these scenes. I feel that to create an entire scene where art is the only medium used would be a little bit forced. I think that art would work much more naturally in a support role, augmenting the other media.

Thank you to Casey and Stephen for some really good feedback and their help!

Our over arching theme is:

“To change the attitudes in, around, and towards the MBTA”

            -attitudes towards each other (peer to peer, stranger to stranger, customer to employee, etc)

            -attitudes towards the environment (trash, maintaining hope in change, overall outlook, etc)

Our next step/challenge:

Go back to your youth; explain the idea of “changing attitudes” on the MBTA. Talk about why that’s important and how it would be beneficial to all of us. With full participation and input from the youth, develop a scenario/situation on the MBTA that would benefit from a change in attitude of mentality, and figure out how your particular medium can be used as “the interpreter”, “the responder”, and eventual agent of change.