Activity

BODY AND VOICE WARMUP

Number of participants

5 to 25 participants

Objectives

● To awaken body and voice.
● To prepare for theatrical practice.
● To encourage participants to become more aware of their bodies and voice.

Where does the activity take place within the process

Beginning

Duration

15 to 20 minutes

Material needed

Preparation

Prepare the room/space so that it is as spacious as it can be, without obstacles.

Step by step description

1. Ask participants to form a circle.

2. Start by awakening the body from toe to head. Firstly, ask participants to make circular movements with one ankle, then with the other one, then with one knee and the other, move to the hips and continue the circular movements, then pass on to the waist, then the chest, then shoulders, then elbows, wrists, hands, and then arrive at the neck; For the neck, instruct participants to do a circular move and whenever they have their head going back, to open their mouth in order to fully stretch it. Instruct to make several movements with the head to the left, then centre and then to the right.

3. Pass to the breathing part asking participants to slowly breathe in from the nose and breathe out through the mouth. Ask participants to pass their tongue on all their teeth and mouth (from the inside) as if they are trying to clean their teeth from some food. Then ask them to imagine that they are chewing a gum and it’s really tasty.

4. Move on to the breathing vocal part; Instruct participants that they will breath in and when breathing out, they will expel the air with the sound of the letter M; repeat the same breathing process but then with the short syllable MA, ME, MI, MO, MU; do the same with the letters S, P, D, B, R, T, L and Z, firstly with only the sound of the letter and then the short syllables with vowels.

5. Move on to to the modulation part; Instruct participants to do the sound of a plane with their mouth 3 times in a row for around 15 seconds each; then ask them to put their face really tense, all the muscles really contracted and then release, repeating it 3 times; Ask participants to make the biggest smile possible, exaggerating it and then make a kiss with their mouth in the air, repeat 3 times; Finally, ask them to imitate an engine with their lips for several seconds and then with their tongue.

6. Finish the exercise by shaking their body, invite them to do some final stretching and prepare for the following part.

Closing up

Conclude the activity by asking participants:

● How was it for you?
● How did you feel during the process?

Resources

v

Comments / hints for facilitators

This exercise is very useful to prepare for a performance or get into acting activities, as it activates body, voice and mind. It can result in something very unusual and maybe even uncomfortable for some participants, so let them adjust to it and even skip some parts if needed.