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A THOUSAND SLIMY THINGSTEACHER RESOURCE PACK

BY TANGERE ARTS

unicorntheatre.comA THOUSAND SLIMY THINGSFOR AGES 10+ | WED 30 JAN – THU 7 FEB

CONTENTSA THOUSAND SLIMY THINGS TEACHER RESOURCES

Page 1 Introduction

-3 Summary of the play

Page 4-5 Context

Page 6-8 Making the play – an interview with the Director Lewis Gibson

Page 9-14 Drama Activities 1-7

Page 15-22 Activity resources & text extracts

Welcome to the resource pack for Tangere Art’s production of A Thousand Slimy Things - an entertaining and imaginative dramatisation of Coleridge’s poem ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’.

Tangere Arts create small-scale plays that aim to stimulate young people’s imaginations through the power of simple storytelling and poetic language, without extensive visual stimuli. Their shows are normally made with one or two actors at a maximum and have minimal set and props. The actors are often accompanied by live music on stage.

For English teachers the production brings the poem to life in a gripping and engaging way. If you are bringing students who are studying the poem then this is an accessible way to connect with Coleridge’s epic poem..

UNICORN THEATREA THOUSAND SLIMY THINGS

TEACHER RESOURCE PACK

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INTRODUCTION

SUMMARY OF THE PLAYA THOUSAND SLIMY THINGS TEACHER RESOURCES

While Coleridge’s poem forms the main substance of Tangere Arts’ script, the company have made a few significant changes in the transfer to the stage. The most significant of these changes is that the narrator of the story becomes the Best Man at the wedding and the Mariner, no longer a strange guest, becomes the Groom - who halts the proceedings and insists on telling the assembled guests his terrible story.

In Coleridge’s poem, we, as readers (or listeners) along with the wedding guest, are transfixed and mesmerised by the Mariner; forced to imagine and relive his horrific ordeal with him. In the play, the audience become guests at the wedding - compelled to listen to the Mariner’s story; the wedding will not proceed until he has shared his “ghastly tale”.

The Best Man at a wedding attempts to give his speech and move to a toast when he is interrupted by the Groom (the Mariner) “There was a ship…..There was a ship.” The Best Man tries to stop him, but the Mariner insists.

The Mariner’s story begins when he and two-hundred sailors set sail for the South Pole. At first the ship sails well with a good wind, but then the wind builds into a “tyrannous and strong” storm and the ship is propelled along “with sloping masts / and dipping prow”.

The storm calms and they find themselves surrounded by ice “as green as emerald”. In the sky the mariner sees a huge bird; an albatross. The sailors watch as the bird, “our lucky charm”, follows the ship, steering it through the dangerous ‘Rime’ (a thick mist) and the icy waters. For seven days the bird guides the ship and lands on deck where the crew feed the bird and make friends with it.

At this point the best man tries to stop the groom, the Mariner telling his story, but he insists on continuing.

The Mariner reveals that he took his bow and arrow and shot the albatross. No explanation is given for his action. The sailors turn angrily on the Mariner, why would he shoot their lucky omen? The mist clears and they sail safely out of the icy waters. Perhaps it was good luck after all to shoot the albatross?



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“Until my ghastly tale is told, this heart within me burns.”

“Our hearts and homes we’d left behind / were now so far away”

‘With my crossbow I shot the Albatross’

SUMMARY CONTINUED

As they sail into the Pacific Ocean the wind drops and it gets very hot. Without the wind the ship cannot move; it is becalmed. Day after day the ship cannot move. Water becomes scarce and the sailors ration it carefully.

Without water the sailors begin to hallucinate. When they look into the sea they see terrible things. The sailors turn on the Mariner and hang the dead albatross around his neck.

Out to sea they spot in the distance a ship sailing towards them. On the ship they see two terrible figures: Death and Life-in-Death. The two figures play a game of dice; they are playing for the souls of the sailors. Death rolls the dice and wins the sailors and each one drops down dead. On the last roll of the dice Life-in-Death wins the soul of the Mariner.

Back at the wedding, the Best Man fears that the Groom is a ghost.

The Mariner continues his story. He is left all alone with the two-hundred dead men for seven days and nights “All I could hear were mine own cries”. Under the water he sees the slimy things again, but this time he sees the beauty in them. The albatross falls from his neck and sinks into the sea.

Finally sleep comes and rain falls. When he wakes the sailors are possessed by spirits and begin to sail the ship. The ship begins to move, “yet never a breeze did breathe”. Angelic spirits are all around, beautiful sounds fill the air. The dead men stare at him with “stony eyes” and begin to move towards him and once again he is filled with “fear and dread”.

At last he sees land and a rowing boat approaches. On board there is a rower, the rower’s boy and a hermit. The rowing boat goes under the prow of the ship, the ship splits apart and goes down in a whirlpool. The Mariner is saved by the hermit (who goes mad) and is returned to dry land.

The Mariner is compelled to tell his story to the hermit: He recaps the story in a song, which ends with a message about redemption and learning from our mistakes.

But the Mariner cannot just tell his story once, he must tell it over and over again in order to be free from its burden. The play finishes with a toast to the Bride and Groom and the guests leave the wedding “a sadder and a wiser lot”.



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“A thousand slimy things did crawl with legs / upon the slimy sea”

“Life-in-Death - who thicks man’s blood with cold”

“I fear thee and thy glittering eye, / Did your soul fly, did you too die?”

“I saw them in a fresh new light: / As though my life were yet to start.”

“The ship went down like lead”

“Which forced me to begin my tale; / So I could then be free.”

“Water, water, everywhere, / Nor any drop to drink.”



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CONTEXTA THOUSAND SLIMY THINGS TEACHER RESOURCES

Coleridge was born October 21st 1772 the youngest of 14 children.

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner was published in 1798 in a collection called Lyrical Ballads which included poems from Coleridge and his friend and collaborator William Wordsworth. Coleridge and Wordsworth were prominent members of the Romantic Movement, a group of poets who reacted against the Enlightenment and emphasised emotion and the individual experience over science; sensory experience over intellect; and the power of the imagination in perceiving the truth.

The poem utilised archaic language which he revised in later versions as it seemed to work against what the romantic poets were striving for with contemporary, unrhymed, straight forward language. However Coleridge maintained the old ballad form to give a classic or timeless quality to the poem. This ballad form also served the story of a great sea journey well:

The poem tells the tale of the ancient Mariner, a man who is compelled to tell the story of his terrifying journey over and over again in order to be free. The story begins when he, with his fellow sailors, set sail on a great sea journey that will take them to the South Pole, round through the Horn and northwards to the Pacific Ocean.

The central act of the poem is the killing of the Albatross by the Mariner. Coleridge does not explain the Mariner’s actions. Sailors on long voyages may quite naturally have killed birds for food, but Coleridge deliberately leaves the motive open and unexplained. What we learn from the poem is that he has killed the bird that the sailors regarded as a good omen. It is a senseless act, but one with great consequences.

What follows is a tale of natural and supernatural occurrences. Eventually all on board the ship perish, apart from the Mariner who continues in a kind of ‘Life in Death’. UNICORN THEATRE

A THOUSAND SLIMY THINGSTEACHER RESOURCE PACK

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“In a kind of mimetic music, the scheme reproduces the fevered, fitful movement of the Mariner’s ship, now skimming swiftly along, now swerving back, now driven suddenly this way and that.” Marina Warner - in her introduction to The Rime of Ancient Mariner

“Coleridge’s compulsive story unfolds a marine geography of terrible extremes and fabulous wonders”. Marina Warner.

“By shooting the bird the Mariner transgresses against the harmonious wholeness of creation, and the vitality that must be respected in every living thing...” Marina Warner.

COLERIDGE & ‘THE RIME OF THE ANCIENT MARINER’

CONTEXT CONTINUED

A THOUSAND SLIMY THINGS TEACHER RESOURCES



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It is only when the Mariner can see the beauty in everything in the natural world, even in the thousand slimy things he sees in the sea, that the curse on him is lifted and he begins his journey to redemption.

The son of a vicar, Coleridge was ambivalent about Christianity and was more interested in locating the spiritual and sublime in nature rather than in institutions like the church. It is a poem about the natural world and the unnatural world, the physical and the metaphysical. When the albatross is killed strange, hallucinatory and ghostly visions appear. Coleridge was fascinated by the supernatural and the liminal; the boundary between reality and the imaginary, between God and nature.

Coleridge had become addicted to opium, as a result he became interested in hallucinatory experiences. He describes dreams and visions he experienced himself.

“Frequently have I (half awake and half asleep, my body diseased and fevered by my imagination) seen armies of ugly things bursting in upon me, and in these four angels (by his bed) keeping them off.” Maria Warner

This account of his dream echoes the battle in the poem between the terrible figures of Death and Life in Death and the voices and spirits that demand penance and eventually release him from the seas.

Darren Lawrence (left) and Gary Lagden (Photo - Jonathan Keenan)

“When he is able to see the wholeness in creation, the curse on the Mariner is lifted.” Marina Warner.

INTERVIEW WITH THE DIRECTOR - LEWIS GIBSON MAKING THE PLAY

‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’ is a strange and beautiful poem full of very powerful images and striking metaphors. The narrative has a peculiar shape, weaving back and forward (sometimes looping around endlessly) and is a story within a story. For a poem this is fine as one can read and re-read at any pace you like. For a play this could be a problem as we are constricted by the physical laws of time, direction and space. We can only perform to one audience at a time, and they cannot pause us or rewind us as they might do with a film. The language is very archaic (Coleridge was using old fashioned language on purpose to try and give the poem more of a serious and ancient quality) and there is quite a lot of religious philosophy that seems strange to us now, and is possibly alienating to lots of people.I had to consider the age of my audience, and we had to think hard about what sort of issues we could discuss, how scary the piece could be, how complicated the moral dilemmas could get and finally how to stay true to Coleridge’s language and narrative whilst keeping our guests entertained.

The first job was to break the poem down into its fundamental building blocks, to try and identify the core of the story. Many lists were drawn up including order of scenes, number of characters and locations / times of day / weather. We then distilled this to much simpler lists, and this was our structure to follow.

Our play is set after a wedding at the reception (party). The best man is about to give his speech when he is interrupted by the groom (our mariner) who cannot continue with the day unless he tells his story. He needs to unburden himself before he can move on. We then pretty much follow the original story, with a few spirits and a couple of characters chopped out.

The text had to be changed so that it made sense when one or the other of our actors was speaking. One actor stayed as the mariner throughout, whilst the other played all the other characters and a narrator.

The poem is, amongst other things, about guilt, remorse and suffering for one’s actions. It is very much wrapped up in concerns with Christian notions of right, wrong, heaven and hell. I wanted to explore these complex ideas of self and responsibility. We have all done things that we regret, that we cannot explain. If one is to grow as a human, then we must not let these actions define us. I hope this is something all of us can relate to.



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1) What were the challenges of transforming Coleridge’s epic poem for the stage?

2) What was most important for you to convey in the play?

Before we began rehearsals we had a working script (which was edited as we went along) and a loose musical score. So it was not a ‘devised’ piece of theatre, but it did have quite an open rehearsal process with ideas coming from everyone. As with a lot of creative environments, exciting ideas come from the trying out of things and often change in unpredictable ways. Often we do not know what something is ‘about’ until it has been made. That is why we enjoy making theatre so much - it is a collaborative way of making something.

I had a very clear idea of how I wanted the play to look and sound and behave before we started. We spent a lot of time reading through the text as if it were a radio play. I wanted the show to work in the dark, for the language and the music to convey enough to carry the meaning. This way, our physical world could be used sparingly, to enhance the aural.

We would often spend hours rehearsing a short section, adding in lots of movement to get the right sort of energy and atmosphere and supportive music, and then we would simplify the movement, often have stillness, whilst keeping the vocal energy and music from before. Sometimes, we would just keep the music and allow the text to be read without too much ‘acting’. These techniques seemed to work well.

Another simple way of finding playing styles is to try reading the text at various speeds and volumes. It is amazing how powerful a quick whisper can be or a really slow bellow. Sometimes just doing the opposite of what feels natural can conjure up interesting textures.

Most of my work is as a composer and sound designer, so the music was very important to

me in this piece. Christopher, our musician, had to fulfil quite a few roles. The music had to help tell us where we were (stuck in ice / in a storm / under a hot copper sun etc), help with the emotional storytelling and sometimes tell the opposite of what the actors were saying (creating subplot tensions). And the music had to make sense within our wedding party frame; Christopher had to look like a one man wedding band.

We used a drum kit, a bass organ, a glockenspiel, a ukulele and lots of other percussion sounds. We also used wine glasses filled with water to create all sorts of sound textures. All of these sounds were processed through a looping box and a pitch shifting box that allowed us to layer up sounds and music to generate a soundscape.

As the text is in verse and has its own rhythm, we thought of it as part of the band. Sometimes the text would be the lead instrument or singing the tune, sometimes it was driving the rhythm along like the drums. The music could also be seen as another character, commenting on what is happening on stage.



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3) How did you work with the actors during rehearsals?

4) How did you weave the music into the narrative?

INTERVIEW WITH THE DIRECTOR CONTINUED

INTERVIEW WITH THE DIRECTOR CONTINUED

The distinction between ‘music’ and ‘sound’ is very blurry in my opinion. There is melody and rhythm in all sorts of sounds. Sometimes a really simple scratching sound on a piece of wood can be as effective as a whole orchestra scraping away. If it works, we keep it.

This story involves ships and storms and ghosts and a huge dead bird, so trying to represent all this in a physical way seemed crazy. All aspects of the show were designed to allow the imagination of the audience to roam and create whatever it liked.

We reduced our setting of a wedding party to the simplest form we could, so we had two chairs, a table, a tablecloth, two champagne glasses and some flowers; enough to suggest a wedding and a party. Our wedding party was, in our minds, happening in a working mens’ naval club in South Wales (both of the actors are from Port Talbot).The actors and the musician are all wearing ex servicemen smart attire. They even have a crest on their jackets from a real naval ship in Australia called The Albatross. Then there is the wedding band. Even the lights follow this idea, with a fluorescent tube, a mirror ball and a smoke machine all being part of the wedding party world. .

Then the table was specially made so it looked a little like the deck of a boat and it had wheels, as did the two chairs allowing us to move the furniture around easily with actors on top of them, and to glide in a ghostly fashion.

The great thing about theatre is that it is a real-time event in front of people. When things are not working it is obvious and they can easily be changed until they do work. It is a conversation between performer and audience.



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5) What aesthetic and design decisions did you make?

DRAMA ACTIVITIES

A THOUSAND SLIMY THINGS TEACHER RESOURCES

These activities can be done separately as one-off explorations of the poem, or in order over a number of lessons. It may be useful to do activities 1-6 as a way of preparing for the longer devising activity 7. The activities can be done as preparatory work or to follow up the theatre visit. We hope there is enough information so that they can be run by both Drama teachers or teachers with no experience in using Drama.

The following activities link to the KS3 English and Drama Curriculum through:

• Using different dramatic approaches to explore ideas and texts. • Using different dramatic techniques to convey action, character, atmosphere and

tension. These could include: varying volume, tone and pace, use of pause, gesture, movement and staging, choral speaking, monologue and dramatic irony.

• Exploring the ways that words, actions, sound and staging combine to create dramatic moments.



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DRAMA ACTIVITIES

AimTo introduce the idea that the Mariner is compelled to tell his story; that he mesmerises or has power over those he tells it to, they cannot break free from him.

OrganisationLarge, clear space. Pairs

Timing15 mins

Running the activityRead and discuss the following line to the group: I hold him with my glittering eye / He cannot choose but hear.

One person holds up their hand, fingers upward, about 12 inches from their partner’s face. They start moving their hand about slowly, while their partner tries to keep their face at exactly the same distance from their hand, like their hand is controlling their partner’s movement. The movement should be slow and controlled, ensuring that the partner is able to follow. Swap over after a couple of minutes and feedback - did you prefer leading or following? What made the activity easy/difficult?

AimBuilding upon the idea of being compelled to tell a story through improvisation.

OrganisationPairs

Timing10 mins

Running the activityAsk each pair to imagine that they have been seated together at a wedding reception and have never met before. Person A really wants to tell person B a story that they think is very important/interesting. (This could be any story that they know such as a fairytale, or a description of a film/TV show they like). Take the pairs through the following stages:

Stage 1) Person A starts to tell their story, person B listens politely but is aware that the wedding speeches are about to start. Stage 2) Person A continues, but person B tries to find excuses to leave/stop them telling their story. Person A insists they stay and listen.Stage 3) Person A continues, person B becomes compelled by the story and is under the spell. They cannot leave.

Watch a few pairs improvisations and feedback.



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ACTIVITY ONE - “I HOLD HIM WITH MY GLITTERING EYE”

ACTIVITY TWO - YOU MUST HEAR MY STORY

DRAMA ACTIVITIES

AimTo give the class a shared overview of the narrative of the ‘A Thousand Slimy Things’ OR Coleridge’s original poem ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’ through a series of briefly created freeze frames.

OrganisationWhole class in a circle

ResourcesCopy of the story-circle script for either the poem or the play (scripts in the resources section of this pack.) It is important to familiarise yourself with the main points of action before leading the activity.

Timing20-30 mins

Running the activityThe teacher, as narrator, reads out the pre-prepared script and as each event is told the students (in turn around the circle) represent the action in the middle. When the performing space becomes crowded or the story moves on to a new episode, the actors are ‘whooshed’ out of the way and the story begins with the next actors in turn in the circle. Asking students to follow the order they are seated in the circle prevents losing the pace of the narrative and allows for a natural flow to develop.

Students can speak lines of the text from within the image if appropriate, either by repeating after the teacher/narrator or by reading pre-prepared lines of text handed out when the image has been created.



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ACTIVITY THREE - STORY CIRCLE (for the play or poem)



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DRAMA ACTIVITIES

AimTo investigage a specific moment in the play/poem in order to develop character.

OrganisationIndividual work

ResourcesPens and paper

Timing20-30 mins

Running the activityLead the story-circle activity (activity three) up until the line “Without the wind the ship cannot move, it is becalmed”. Ask the students to imagine that they are sailors on board the ship at this moment, and to take up an image that represents this. Explain that the Mariner has shot the albatross and they have since been becalmed - stuck in the middle of the ocean - for 4 days now, water is scarce. Ask students to think back to the start of their journey - who did they say goodbye to at the harbour? What has happened onboard since? What do they think is going to happen?

Still in position, thought-track the students - when you tap them they can speak aloud a couple of lines that their character is thinking at that moment.

Students can then write a message in a bottle to someone at home, drawing upon their character’s thoughts and feelings.

You could then extend this activity into monolgue-writing/performing.



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ACTIVITY FOUR - MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE

DRAMA ACTIVITIES

AimTo work together as a whole group and develop a sense of ensemble through physical exploration. To become familiar with key lines of text from the poem.

OrganisationLarge, clear space

ResourcesLines from the poem

Timing15 mins

Running the activityStart by walking around the space, trying to find an even and regular pace as a group. Try to cover all the space and leave equal gaps between everyone. Practice stopping all together on the word ‘stop’ and starting together on ‘go’ – finding a sense of working as one, being really aware of each other.

Add in the following instruction/responses – so that when you say the line from the poem, the group respond with the corresponding action/image. Emphasise the importance of responding in unison. Give the instruction ‘go’ after each response – or ask the group to sense the right time to start walking around the room again.

You: “Alone on a wide wide sea”Response: Individually create an image of the Mariner alone on the ship looking to sea

You: “Each cursed me with his eye”Response: all look towards me (teacher/leader) as if I am the mariner and you are the dead sailors, slowly walk towards me until I clap

You: “He cannot choose but hear”Response: the group follow your slow actions as precisely as they can – it can be as simple as lifting a hand – as if they are mesmerised

You: “There was a ship”Response: “Unhand me you beardy loon!” (Say this angrily to the nearest person to you with a gesture)

You: “Nor any a drop to drink”Response: Create image of the sailors on board the ship with no water

Once the group know the response for all 5 prompts, begin to call them out in any order and repeating some. Ask the group to keep a feeling of ‘readiness’, so that they respond to each number together; efficiently and with a sense of purpose. How does the look/feel of the activity change if we imagine it is a performance with an audience watching? Half the class could watch whilst the other half participate.



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ACTIVITY FIVE - CREATING AN ENSEMBLE

DRAMA ACTIVITIES

AimTo improvise in pairs as wedding guests - recounting and interpreting dreams they’ve had after hearing the Mariner’s story.

OrganisationPairs. This activity is predicated on students knowing the basic story/having done the Story Circle activity.

Timing15 mins

Running the activityExplain to the students that they were guests at the wedding yesterday. Last night, after they’d got home, they had unusual dreams after hearing the Mariner’s story. Ask students to imagine the dream they had - it can be loosely connected to or inspired by the Mariner’s story in someway. They can spend some time drawing the dream on paper to help visualise.

Working in pairs, imagine it is the day after the wedding and they have met up to talk about the wedding. They share their dreams and try to make sense of them.Watch the improvisations back.

AimTo take students through a devising process using lines from the poem as the stimulus. To read a section of the text closely and to imaginatively transform into theatre/drama.

OrganisationSmall groups of 4/5

Timing30 mins

ResourcesSections of text - each has 2 stanzas. (in the resources section of the pack), possible music to underscore.

Running the activityIn small groups give students a section of the poem. Their task is to turn their section into a piece of physical theatre.



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ACTIVITY SIX - AFTER THE WEDDING

ACTIVITY SEVEN - DEVISING FROM TEXT

DRAMA ACTIVITIES

Stages for each group to work through:

• Start by reading the section of poem and sharing first thoughts/feelings and impressions. Remind students to read the poem aloud and to listen to the rhythm and sounds of the words, what does this tell you about the meaning of the poem?

• Each member of the group to underline a line or phrase that they like the sound of/connect with. One person in the group re-reads the poem aloud, the others echo their underlined sections as the poem is read.

• Create two freeze frames - one for each stanza of their section. Try to capture the essence of each stanza in the image.

• Find a controlled way of moving from one frozen image to the next - this could be through slow-motion or any other way they choose.

• Add dialogue or narration – this must be taken from the poem. This could include speaking in unison.

• You could underscore each piece with music.

Optional ideas for each group to incorporate into their pieces: moving in unison, a repeated action, a moment of stillness.

When the students have created their pieces they can then think about design, lighting and any other effects they might like to include.

Run the scenes in chronological order to see the narrative through-line and create an extended, whole-class performance piece.

You could experiment with linking the group’s pieces together by adding extra narration or movement.



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ACTIVITY RESOURCES

SCRIPT FOR A THOUSAND SLIMY THINGS STORY CIRCLE • Our story begins at a wedding. The guests are mingling with drinks ready to toast the bride and groom. The

best man begins his speech but is interrupted by the groom (the Mariner) saying “there was a ship”. The best man says “not here, not now”.

• The Mariner grabs hold of the best man with his skinny hand who says “unhand me grey beard loon” but he fixes him with his glittering eye, the best man is stunned, almost hypnotised. The Mariner must tell his story “until my ghastly tale is told, this heart within me burns”.

• And so he begins to tell his story…

WHOOSH

• The Mariner’s story begins on board a ship; he and the sailors on board head for the South Pole (look out, coiling ropes, in the rigging, pulling up the mainsail).

• The ship sails well with a good wind, which builds into a storm. (All students could contribute sounds of the storm here).

• The storm calms and they find themselves surrounded by icebergs - “ice mast-high came floating by as green as emerald”. “The ice was here, the ice was there, the ice was all around.” (line could be whispered by all).

• In the sky the Mariner sees a huge bird; an albatross. All the sailors watch as the bird follows the ship for a while, and finally lands on board.

• For 7 days the bird lands on the ship where the crew feed the bird and make friends with it.

WHOOSH

• Back at the wedding, the Mariner stops the story as if remembering something terrible. The best man asks “what’s wrong? Why do you look so horrified?”

• The Mariner answers “ with my cross bow I shot the Albatross.”

WHOOSH the best man away, the mariner stays in place.

• On the ship all the sailors turn to look at the mariner - he has shot their lucky charm. • But then the mist clears and they sail safely out of the icy waters. Perhaps it was good luck to shoot the

albatross? • As they sail into the pacific sea the wind drops and it gets very hot.• Without the wind the ship cannot move, it is becalmed. • Day after day, day after day the ship doesn’t move. Water becomes scarce and the sailors ration it carefully. • Finally their water runs out. “water water everywhere nor any a drop to drink”. • Without water the sailors begin to hallucinate “death fires and spirits .....”



15STORY CIRCLE - THE PLAY

STORY CIRCLE - THE PLAY CONTINUED

• The sailors turn to look at the Mariner. • They pick up the dead albatross and hang it around his neck.

WHOOSH

• So they are onboard the ship; the Mariner with the albatross around his neck, the parched sailors. • Looking out to sea they spot in the distance a ship sailing towards them. • On the ship they see two terrible figures. • Death - like a skeleton “the sun shines through her ribs”.• And Life-in-Death “her lips were red, her looks were free / her locks were yellow as gold / her skin was white as

leprosy” • The two figures play a game of dice; they are playing for the souls of the sailors. Each time death rolls the

dice she wins one and a sailor drops down dead - each one looking at the Mariner as they drop with a cursed eye.

• On the last roll of the dice Life-in-Death wins the soul of the Mariner.

• The Mariner is left alone with two-hundred dead sailors - “and a thousand, thousand slimy things lived on and so did I.”

WHOOSH

• Back at the wedding, the best man is scared of the mariner. He thinks he is a ghost. “Did your soul fly, did you too die?”

• The Mariner replies “fear not, this body did not drop”.

WHOOSH (the best man leaves, the Mariner stays)

• The Mariner is all alone with the dead sailors with “their cursed eyes open staring” for seven days and nights. • Then under the water he sees the slimy snakes again, but this time he sees the beauty in them “no words can

describe their beauty right” and is transformed. • The albatross falls from his neck and sinks into the sea. • Sleep comes. • And rain falls.

WHOOSH

• When he wakes the sailors are possessed by spirits and begin to sail the ship. • The ship begins to move, despite there being no wind. • The sailors turn and look at him with their stony eyes, the Mariner looks away.



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• The spirits fill the air with beautiful sounds. • The ship sails on “moved forward from beneath”. • They all sleep.

WHOOSH

• When he wakes the dead sailors are still sailing the ship, they fix their eyes on the Mariner and begin to move towards him. He cannot look away.

• The Mariner is excited to see land. The ship drifts into the harbour. • Approaching the ship is a boat, on board the boat a rower, the rower’s boy and a hermit. • The rowing boat goes under the prow of the ship. • The ship splits apart and goes down in a whirlpool. • The Mariner finds himself onboard the rowing boat and is returned to dry land.

WHOOSH • The Mariner is compelled to tell his story to the hermit. • He must tell his story over and over again to whoever he meets. He is forced to tell his tale so that he can be

free.• Back at the wedding, the Mariner tells the wedding guests they will leave him a sadder and wiser lot. • The play finishes with a toast.



17STORY CIRCLE - THE PLAY CONTINUED

ACTIVITY RESOURCES

SCRIPT FOR THE RIME OF THE ANCIENT MARINER STORY CIRCLE

• Our story begins at a wedding. The guests are mingling with drinks ready to toast the bride and groom. • When a strange man - a mariner fixes his glittering eye on one of the guests. • The Mariner grabs hold of him with his skinny hand. • The wedding guest says “unhand me grey beard loon” but the mariner continues to hold his gaze; the guest is stunned,

almost hypnotised. • The Mariner says “until my ghastly tale is told, this heart within me burns”. • And so he begins to tell his story.

WHOOSH

• The Mariner’s story begins on board a ship; he and the sailors set sail for the south pole (look out, coiling ropes, in the rigging, pulling up the mainsail).

• The ship sails well with a good wind, which builds into a storm.• The storm calms and they find themselves surrounded by ice bergs. “And ice, mast high, came floating by, as green as

emerald”. • Then in the sky the Mariner and the sailors see a huge bird; an albatross. • All the sailors watch as the bird follows the ship for a while, and finally lands on board. • The bird lands on the ship where the crew feed the bird and make friends with it. • The bird visits the ship for nine days.

WHOOSH

• The Mariner stops telling the story. The wedding guest asks “what’s wrong? Why do you look so horrified?”• The mariner answers “ with my cross bow I shot the Albatross.”

WHOOSH the wedding guest, leave the Mariner there and add in the sailors.

• On the ship all the sailors turn to look at the Mariner - he has shot their lucky charm.• But then the mist clears and they sail safely out of the icy waters. The sailors think perhaps it was good luck to shoot

the albatross? • As they sail into the pacific sea the wind drops and it gets very hot. • Without the wind the ship cannot move, they are becalmed:• “Day after day, day after day, we stuck nor breath nor motion; As idle as a painted ship upon a painted ocean”.• Water becomes scarce and the sailors ration it carefully. • Finally their water runs out. “ water, water everywhere and all the boards did shrink: Water, water, every where, Nor any

drop to drink. “• Without water the sailors begin to see “death fires danced at night; the water like witches oils, burnt green, and blue and

white.”• The sailors turn to look at the Mariner.• They pick up the dead albatross and hang it around his neck.



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STORY CIRCLE - THE POEM CONTINUED

• So they are on board; the Mariner with the albatross around his neck, and the parched sailors. • Looking out to sea they spot in the distance a ship sailing towards them.• On the ship they see two terrible figures.• Death - like a skeleton “the sun shines through her ribs”.• And Life-in Death “ her lips were red, her looks were free, Her locks were yellow as gold: her skin was white as leprosy, the

nightmare, LIFE IN DEATH was she.” • They play a game of dice; they are playing for the souls of the sailors. • Each time death rolls the dice she wins one and a sailor drops down dead - each one looking at the Mariner as they drop

with a cursed eye. • On the last roll of the dice Life-in-Death wins the soul of the Mariner.

WHOOSH

• Back at the wedding, the wedding guest is scared of the Mariner. He thinks he is a ghost.

WHOOSH the wedding guest - leave the Mariner and add in the sailors

• The Mariner is all alone with two hundred dead, each one “ their cursed eyes open staring ......” • But the Mariner lives on, ‘Alone, Alone, all all alone.’ Surrounded by the rotting sailors. He looks into the sea; “And a

thousand, thousand slimy things lived on; and so did I.”• He tries to pray, but cannot. • Seven days and nights he remains. • Then under the water he sees the slimy snakes. But this time he sees the beauty in them “Oh happy things! No tongue

their beauty might declare, A spring of love gushed from my heart” • And he is able to pray.• The albatross falls from his neck and sinks into the sea. • Sleep comes.• And rain falls.

WHOOSH

• When the Mariner wakes the sailors rise up and begin to sail the ship.• The ship begins to move, despite there being no wind. • The sailors turn and look at him with their stony eyes, the Mariner looks away. • Angelic spirits are all around, beautiful sounds fill the air, it is they who rejuvenate the sailors.• The spirit of the South Pole has let them go and they continue with their journey towards the equator. • The ship jolts forward, moving faster than physically possible.• The Mariner faints.

WHOOSH

• When he wakes the dead sailors are still sailing the ship.• He sees land.• The ship drifts into the harbour.



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• The angelic spirits leave the sailors bodies and they once again drop down dead.• Approaching the ship is a boat, on board the boat a pilot, the pilot’s boy and a hermit.• The rowing boat goes under the prow of the ship.• The ship splits apart and goes down in a whirlpool.• The Mariner is saved by the hermit, the pilot and the pilot’s boy and is returned to dry land. • And there he must tell his story to the hermit

WHOOSH

• So as the Mariner passes from land to land, he is compelled to tell his story. “That moment that his face I see, I know the man that must hear me: to him my tale I teach…….He prayeth well who loveth well, both men and bird and beast.”

• So when he finds himself at a wedding he finds a guest to whom he tells his story.• In the background they hear the wedding party; the bride and groom, the brides maids are singing, the bells are ringing. • And the wedding guest leaves him a sadder and wiser man.



20STORY CIRCLE - THE POEM CONTINUED

ACTIVITY RESOURCES

GROUP ONEThis is from near the beginning of the journey. The ship sails into the South Pole and the sailors see the albatross for the first time.

The ice was here, the ice was there,The ice was all around:It cracked and growled, and roared and howled,Like noises in a swound!

At length did cross an Albatross,Through fog it came;As if it had been a Christian soul,We hailed it in God’s name.

GROUP TWOThe albatross has been killed and the ship has sailed out of the icy waters, but they become becalmed - stuck in the middle of the ocean with the sun beating down and no water.

Day after day, day after day,We stuck, nor breath nor motion;As idle as a painted shipUpon a painted ocean.

Water, water, everywhere,And all the boards did shrink;Water, water everywhere,Nor any drop to drink.

GROUP THREEThe sailors spot another ship in the distance coming towards them, could it rescue them? The ship is sailing but there is no wind.

A speck, a mist, a shape, I wist!And still it neared and nearedAs if it dodged a water-sprite,It plunged and tacked and veered.

With throats unsealed, with black lips baked,We could not laugh nor wail;Through utter drought all dumb we stood!I bit my arm, I sucked the blood, And cried, A sail! A sail!

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ACTIVITY RESOURCES

GROUP FOURDeath and Life-in-Death have won the souls of the sailors through playing their game of dice.

One after one, by the star-dogged moon,Too quick for groan or sigh,Each turned his face with a ghastly pang,And cursed me with his eye.

Four times fifty living men,(And I heard nor sigh or groan)With heavy thump, a lifeless lump,They dropped down one by one.

GROUP FIVEThe Mariner now sees the ‘slimy things’ as beautiful - he becomes free. How do you show this is the moment of transformation? What are the terrible slimy things the Mariner sees?

Within the shadow of the shipI watched their rich attire:Blue, glossy green, and velvet black,Then coiled and swam; and every trackWas a flash of golden fire.

The self same moment I could pray;And from my neck so freeThe albatross fell off, and sankLike lead into the sea.

GROUP SIXThe sailors are possessed by spirits and come back to life to sail the ship.

They groaned, they stirred, they all uprose,Nor spake, nor moved their eyes;I’d had been strange, even in a dream,To have seen those dead men rise.

The body of my brother’s sonStood by me, knee to knee:The body and I pulled at one rope,But he said nought to me.



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ACTIVITY RESOURCES

GROUP SEVENThe dead sailors are sailing the ship. The Mariner sees land.

Swiftly, swiftly flew the ship, Yet she sailed softly too: Sweetly, sweetly blew the breeze— On me alone it blew.

Oh! dream of joy! is this indeed The light-house top I see? Is this the hill? is this the kirk? Is this mine own countree?

GROUP EIGHTThe Mariner sees the spirits (seraphs) of the dead sailors leave their bodies. Corse is another word for corpse.

Each corse lay flat, lifeless and flat, And, by the holy rood! A man all light, a seraph-man, On every corse there stood.

This seraph-band, each waved his hand: It was a heavenly sight! They stood as signals to the land, Each one a lovely light;

GROUP NINEThe Mariner’s ship has sunk and he is now on the rowing-boat with the hermit, the pilot and the pilot’s boy.

I moved my lips—the Pilot shrieked And fell down in a fit; The holy Hermit raised his eyes, And prayed where he did sit.

I took the oars: the Pilot’s boy, Who now doth crazy go, Laughed loud and long, and all the while His eyes went to and fro.



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ACTIVITY RESOURCES

GROUP TENAt the end of the poem, the Mariner wanders the land retelling his story over and over again.

Since then, at an uncertain hour, That agony returns: And till my ghastly tale is told, This heart within me burns.

I pass, like night, from land to land; I have strange power of speech; That moment that his face I see, I know the man that must hear me: To him my tale I teach.

TEXT EXTRACTS FOR ACTIVITY SIX



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a thousand slimy things - unicorn theatre theatre, slimy things... · the actors are often...

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