Activity: I'm not the giant you think I am

This activity was originally designed by the fine folks in our Education department for classrooms, but it is appropriate to any fairly large group (you probably want at least six to eight participants to make the activity work).

I'M NOT THE GIANT YOU THINK I AM

In The Big Friendly Giant, several actors play multiple roles, and they change their voices to show that they have become a different character. Try your hand, or rather mouth, at becoming a different person by changing your voice.

1. As a warm up, sit in a circle and talk about vocal disguises - ways to disguise yourself by changing your voice. Each participant should try experimenting with different voices before you begin.

2. Once everyone has warmed up and stretched out their voices, choose one participant to be the guesser and have them sit in a chair facing away from the rest of the group.

3. Choose one participant to disguise his/her voice and say the sentence "I'm not the ginat you think I am!"

4. Have all of the participants say to the guesser, "Come on back!" The guesser then rejoins the group and has three tries to guess who the disguised speaker was.


This activity helps develop listening, focus and concentration skills, and encourages vocal participation. For those interested in performance, the activity helps to teach them to make strong and specific vocal choices.

HSM at the Key

On Tuesday October 23rd, the cast of SCT's production of Disney's High School Musical hit the hardwood at Key Arena to provide halftime entertainment for the Seattle Sonics. They performed the basketball-dance number "Get'cha Head in the Game," and were fantastic. The entire routine had been re-tooled that day to fit the venue.

Photos by Khanh Doan (Sharpay Evans in High School Musical) and SCT's Production department.

10 Questions for... Mickey Rowe

Mickey Rowe currently appears on the SCT stage in Disney's High School Musical, and he kindly agreed to be the first of our artists to face 10 Questions.

What were you doing before being cast in High School Musical?

Before being cast in High School Musical I was a full-time student. When I found out that I might get to do the show, I had a long conversation with my mom about whether it would be okay for me to stop going to school for a few months to get to be a part of the Musical. Now the set of East High is my school. Instead of learning by sitting at a desk and listening to lectures, I get to learn by watching the older actors in the show and experimenting on stage. It’s a really wonderful experience.

How did you get cast in this show?

This summer I auditioned for a class at the Seattle Children’s Theatre and they asked me if I would like to be considered for High School Musical. I just checked the “yes” box not really thinking that anything would come out of it. A while later I got a call from SCT and they invited me to come in and audition. At the audition there were a lot of kids my age and we got to learn a dance combo and sing one of the songs from the show. Then they picked which kids they thought would be a good match for the show. I was terrified during the auditions because I had convinced myself that I couldn’t dance. I would have never believed that now I would be doing some of the dances from the show everyday.

Be honest – had you seen the movie when you auditioned for the role?

Haha, I had not seen the movie until I found out about auditions.

Who are you in this play? Tell us about your character(s).

I am in the ensemble of this play, what that means is that I get to help fill the halls of East High and make it feel more like a real school. For a lot of the show I get to be a brainiac with Gabriella and then I also get to be a fun unicycling character during the audition scene.

What kind of artistic training & experience have you had?

Besides doing shows at my high school and around the community, I have also taken a lot of classes at the Seattle Children’s Theatre. Last year I spent the summer at SCT’s Young Actor Institute where I learned how to “act better” from Rita Giomi (Director of SCT's production of The Big Friendly Giant). When the show is over, I will be studying drama at the University of Washington.

What is it like to work with a cast this large and with so many people close to the same age?

Just like a real high school. We have a very diverse cast so its always fun to get to have so many different people to act with on and off stage. Its nice because everyone knows that there is always someone who has their back, no matter what happens. This is the largest cast that SCT has had before, so there are a lot of people backstage. It is like a party every day.

How does East High compare to your own high school experiences?

East High is a lot like my high school. We had all the same cliques. I was definitely a thespian at my high school. I was always in the drama room, either in class rehearsing or helping to paint sets after school. My high school was also much different than East High because the cliques did a lot of things together. There were quite a few jocks and cheerleaders who would do plays with me in the Drama department… haha, and EVERYONE was in the band. (Even skaters)

Why do you do what you do?

That is a hard question to answer… Why does a Business Man do what he does? Well, I’m not in it for the money. I guess I do theatre because it is what I am passionate about. It makes me tick. I like people, and theatre is people collaborating ideas with each other and coming together to create a story to tell to other people and hopefully through that story I can share some insight on life with the audience. It makes me think of the quote, “Art is much less important than life, but what a poor life without it.” -Robert Motherwell

Where do you see yourself in ten years?

In ten years I see myself still doing theatre. Who knows, maybe I’ll get another chance be in a show at the children’s theatre. : )

You have the audience’s ear – what would you say to them?

Keep seeing shows (or taking your children to see shows). Allow your own ideas and way of thinking to be questioned, step out of the status quo and do things outside of your comfort zone that you usually wouldn’t do. That’s how we grow.

Activity: The Dream Jar

In The Big Friendly Giant, the BFG has an interesting hobby: he collects pleasant dreams in jars to deliver to sleeping children. SCT's Education department has developed the following activity, The Dream Jar, based on The BFG and his favorite pastime - perfect for family game night.

The Dream Jar

Part 1 - Create a Dream Jar

Take a clean, empty jar and decorate it in a way that reminds you of a dream

Write the following words on small slips of paper and put them in your dream jar. Some of these words might seem a little out of the ordinary, but they are the BFG's favorites.

friendship
scuddling
giant
hero
snozzcumbers
dream
moonbeam
yodelling
twinkling
frobscottle
adventure
escape

Then, add some words of your own!


Part 2 - Create a Story

Roll a die. The number that you roll is the number of words that you should pull out of your jar.

Create a story using the words from your jar and some of your own words. For a different challenge, act your story out or write it down. Be sure to include all the words you drew from the dream jar!


If you'd like, you can download a pdf of this activity.

Our first staff interview

This is something we'd like to feature regularly on Behind the Curtain - video interviews with members of our fabulous staff.

And it just made sense that the first interview we would share is the first face you would see as you walk in our office door. So, without further ado...

Introducing SCT Behind the Curtain

Welcome to SCT Behind the Curtain!

We created this blog because we love where we work. We love the artists and staff, the productions on stage, the kids that see our shows and enroll in our Drama School. And, we wanted some way of sharing what goes on behind the curtain with you.

Our plan is to fill this blog with interviews with staff and artists, photos of set and costume production, games and family activities, and educational materials to enrich your visit to the theatre. All that, and anything else we can think of along the way.

But, we also want this to be a place that works for you, where you can find not only what we want to share but what you want to find. So, we welcome comments and suggestions about content you’d like to see.

Rest assured that this will always be a kids-safe zone. Comments are moderated, so all content will be reviewed before it's published. Still, we envision this as a place kids and adults will visit together to get the best experience.

So, take a look around SCT Behind the Curtain, and welcome to the theatre!