In each issue of D&T we bring you a page-to-stage focus on a play for performance with your students, written by someone who has directed it themselves. Here, Ali Warren considers the one-man musical comedy Drip, a charming monologue piece with an interesting approach to teenage self-esteem
It's that time of year again, with Drama teachers up and down the country on the hunt for material for their classes to perform for their performance assessments. Will they go with old favourites? Will the old favourites work with the learners in their class?
One particular challenge is finding a monologue for boys, particularly for those boys who may not be the shining stars of the class but who still need a challenge. In this instance, Drip could be a good option.
Drip is a sweet little musical comedy with 15-year-old Liam at the centre. Liam's best friend Caz recruits him to help her with her enthusiastic desire to win the school Project Prize. The trouble is, she has decided on synchronised swimming and Liam can't swim … but he doesn't want to let his friend down.
Opportunities for students
Through the short play, we watch Liam tackle his fears and deal with trying to overcome his insecurities as he keeps his promise to his friend, learning something about himself along the way. The entire play is a monologue from Liam's point of view – providing a wealth of extracts for individual students to perform – with the conceit that this story is his presentation for assembly. There are appropriate sections that could be used by students for exam work, but indeed the whole play could make an interesting and provocative stimulus material for a devised piece.
There is a significant amount of audience interaction – there's a scene in which Liam gives out pineapples and toy sharks to a teenage audience as part of his preparation, which would be hugely fun to see in person. As a whole, Drip holds a strong appeal for the kind of students who are into their stand-up heroes.
The music
What's more, this is a musical, with guitar tabs and notation included in the text. This allows the integration of the music to be considered as part of the piece overall, especially as Liam refers to the songs in his dialogue. But they don't need to be used as part of a monologue approach.
nickhernbooks.co.uk/drip