Support: A Theater Exercise in Balance and Trust

Children support one another during a theater exercise in trust and balance.

OBJECTIVES

Balance, trust, and body control.

At first glance, this game appears to be purely physical. In reality, from three points of contact onward, when it begins to grow more complex, it offers an opportunity to reflect on a kind of balance that is not merely physical: it becomes a concrete example of what it means to support the other members of the group.

AGE

6 and up.

SAFETY RULE

The space must be free of obstacles, and all movements must be controlled. No pulling, pushing, or placing your body weight on others. Every point of contact must be light and must not put pressure on the neck or joints.

The workshop leader decides how far the group should progress based on the participants’ age, the size of the group, and their movement abilities.

RULES

Participants walk freely around the space. At a predetermined signal, they must, as quickly as possible:

• touch one other participant with one hand or one foot;

• touch two different participants using two different limbs: both hands, one hand and one foot, or both feet;

• touch three different participants using three different limbs;

• touch four different participants using all four limbs;

• touch five different participants using all four limbs and the head;

• touch six different participants by adding one knee.

If the group is large enough, the other knee can be added, followed by both elbows and finally the buttocks, bringing the total to ten points of contact. From the fifth point onward, however, the exercise becomes genuinely difficult.

PLEASE NOTE

Do not move on to the next level until everyone has completed the previous one successfully.

From the third level onward, the group must correct several recurring behaviors before it can continue:

• children attempting impossible splits to reach the others. There is no point in making an easy task difficult: simply move closer, get comfortable, and find a more balanced position;

• children making contact only within small, separate groups. This makes everything more complicated: it is better to move closer to the others and form a larger group.

It is also useful to think together about the order in which the different parts of the body should be used. It is best to use the feet to touch the people closest to you, even though participants will initially tend to use their hands most of the time.

Our legs are longer, but they also have to keep us standing. Stretching them out to reach someone makes it harder to maintain our balance. It is better to place the feet first in a comfortable, stable position and only then reach out with the hands.

If someone places too much of their weight on the others, risking bringing everyone to the floor, I stop the exercise and introduce the following reflection:

“In this exercise, there are three ways to make contact with another person. Two are wrong and one is right. I will demonstrate them by leaning against the wall.

The first wrong way is to shift our body weight onto the other members of the group. Why should we do that? It is as though we were saying: ‘I’m throwing myself at you; it’s up to you to keep me standing.’

This is a selfish way of being part of a group: there is no reason why others should have to carry our weight.

The second wrong way is to make contact without offering any support. This is an uncaring attitude, as though we were saying: ‘I won’t lean on you, and you won’t lean on me. Everyone should think only of themselves.’

The third—and correct—way is to make contact with the other members of the group while positioning ourselves to support them, ready to help if they lose their balance.

It is like saying: ‘I know you can stand on your own, but if you need me, I am already here, ready to help.’”

This explanation is the heart of the exercise and helps the group reach four and five points of contact more easily.

To demonstrate in concrete terms that the principle works, once everyone is connected through four or five points of contact, I tell them what I am about to do and gently shake the group. If they are supporting one another, they can feel how solid and stable the structure has become.

From the sixth point of contact onward, the exercise becomes very difficult. One participant can then lie on the floor and make the task easier for everyone. If too many people lie down, however, the benefit disappears.

The group must work out what it needs to reach the goal, moving beyond individual self-interest. It is at this point that the game stops being merely physical and becomes an exercise in mutual support.