Hot seating involves a student or actor in ‘role,’ who are interviewed by others such as a class group, acting coach or teacher. The ‘character’ is asked questions which pertain to their role. The objective is for the actor to deepen their knowledge and understanding of their role within a creative context.
Why This Technique IS Important for Actors
A hot seated person portraying a role, usually responds with spontaneous improvisations to questions asked by others. The person becomes the interviewee and others (classmates, teachers etc) become the interviewer.
The performer is often asked questions which expand on and cement their character’s nuances, ideals and aspirations. And often questions encourage the performer to consider different points of view and angles to think about regarding their character. It can deepen the knowledge of a character, help anchor their thoughts and full understanding of their role.
The process can also help the actor define their character’s motivations and objectives in a scene, or the play as a whole. Instead of the director telling them their motivations, they can often find these for themselves as a result of this process.
Typically the audience, class or acting group ask the person questions about their lives, relationships, jobs, likes and dislikes so that they can get a more in-depth look into the character at hand. This process helps the interviewer expand on their relationship with ‘that’ character as well.
A typical scenario might begin with simplistic questions moving into more sophisticated questions such as ‘How old are you? How many siblings do you have? What was your first job? To – ‘What is one thing would prefer to change about yourself?’
Actors are encouraged to think and respond on a surface level to begin with and then respond more deeply.
Effective Questioning Techniques for Characters
A basic lesson plan might be:
Begin by asking students what H.S is and write down their responses so they can see their answers. Use a mind-map or brainstorm.
Explain what ‘H.S’ is and then ask for a volunteer student to sit in a seat at the front to answer questions.
The teacher or tutor can give the student their character or role to play, such as famous people. Some might include; Florence Nightingale, Nelson Mandela, Joan of Art, Harriet Tubman, Oprah Winfrey, Tom Cruise, Michael Jackson etc.
Choose a person who the students would know well.
Or if they are younger students, you might want to ask them who they would like to meet. Typically they would choose a sporting, music, social media or acting figure. So go with someone that everyone knows.
Questions to be asked could range from:
- What is your mother’s name?
- Where did you grow up?
- How many siblings do you have?
- What happens on a typical day of your life?
- What are you most proud of?
- What is your spouse’s name?
- Who do you admire in life?
- When did you find that you were famous?
- What special treatment if any do you receive?
- What achievement are you most proud of?
- What are you passions?
- What is your favourite thing to do when you are alone?
- What countries have you visited and why?
- Are you influenced by any other famous people?
These are a few questions you might like to ask students who need scaffolding to help them find meaning and depth to their characters. Many people find this type of exercise very helpful and even enjoyable. In Fact, it’s great to see the imagination of students who nail this exercise well.
Other Useful Ideas For Acting Students
Instead of having students/actors portray a famous or well-known figure, you could have them portray a loved one or close friend of the famous person. They could be their spouse, friend, sibling, or child of the person at hand.
This can make students think outside the box somewhat more. They will come from a unique perspective of them.
It’s more for the older students to adults to try out.
Another great idea is for students to take on the role of an inanimate object. This helps stretch the imagination. The class interviews the character who could become a phone, book, or a bag. Questions might be; ‘When where you last used.” What was the last thing you heard them say?” Would you consider yourself a status symbol for ‘x?’
If for example the H.S person becomes a cell phone, the students might ask them what their favourite photo or video was about and why. Questions such as where the phone had travelled to and what was its last favourite conversation, could provide in-depth insight into the character.
This can lead to some great imaginative responses, especially for those who love to explore their imagination. It is also an imaginative way to begin a story.
Literacy Comes Alive Using this Technique
You could introduce h.s, using characters from a book which the class is listening to as Read Aloud. Have students ask a range of questions, which pertain to the plot of the book and the intricacies of the character. The hot seated person would answer as a character and students would ask questions about their lives.
Another great literacy game could also be used where students choose a favorite character from a chosen book of their choice and the other students try to guess who the character is. This type of h.s will be a little shorter, but fun for Literacy students.
An in-depth character analysis could stem from this activity, a narrative could be written, or a description of the scene and or character could be developed.
There are literally endless activities that could stem from a good h.s exercise.
Professionals Can Use this Technique For Training Purposes
Professionals who wish to gain an understanding of their clients, patients and the publics perspectives, can try this technique in-house. it is already being employed by some professionals across the world with success, from psychologists, counsellors, teachers and even doctors and the police.
Some of these professionals elect to become a ‘client’ to see how they fare with their colleagues in positions of power and it can give them a perspective as to how effective their practices are with their targeted groups.
The benefits of Hot Seating
- Increases the imagination
- Cements the character in the psyche
- Increases spontaneous thinking and delivery
- Increases confidence levels
- Builds awareness of their own abilities to convince others of their character
- Builts a more rounded character from which to draw from
- Anchors the actor into their character and or scene.
- Gives participants and share the visual and aural idea of the character
- Gives the actor opportunities and purpose to practice answering questions
If you are interested in getting students into hot seating activities at a later point, this inexpensive game called 5 second rule would be a good segway into this topic.
It’s such a good game for younger and middle school students, to get them answering questions and trying to do so without getting tongue tied. This is an Amazon Affiliate link where I get about 0.32 cents for one sale.
In a Nutshell
Hot Seating in the classroom is a very valuable tool for both the actor, a student at hand who are trying to get to grips with the inner and outer thinking and actions of their character. It can cement ideas, character elements, and enable actors to fully explore the intricacies of the character’s motivations and objectives for the play.
