Lauren Johnson

Creative Arts 176

Creative Leadership
Tuesday 3-5:45
Spring Semester 2014

Perspective Essay I

R. Keith Sawyer describes group flow as an experience where the group becomes lost
in their project or task, when the group feels like they belong to something greater than
themselves. At the beginning of the semester I disagreed with Sawyer. How can his claim of
group flow be true in a classroom environment where everyone in the group just wants to make it
out alive with an A? After working semester after semester in school on group projects I believed
it to be impossible to have a positive group experience. Last semester my studies focused
primarily on individual, introspective work. At the end of last semester I finally thought, Yes
solitary work is for me! However, I never expected to click so well with my group mates. I
never expected to be able to learn my lines so well. And I certainly never expected to have so
much fun practicing and performing our play. Working with my group in this class was the most
positive group work experience I have had in a long time. At the beginning of the semester I
disagreed with Sawyers belief of teamwork being the best tool to foster creativity because of
how attached I had become working individually. But working with my group on our play
Broken Hearts changed my perspective, and allowed me to understand that some projects are
best worked on by a group. I believe this positive experience with my group was achieved by
harnessing some of the factors Sawyer attributes to attaining group flow. Four factors my group
harnessed most that inspired our group flow include: having a goal, close listening, equal
participation, and communication.
From the first time we met as our defined group, our goal was already formed for us by
the anxiety of performing in front of people. We wanted our final performance of the play to be
filled with clarity and meaning, achieving this by performing well and entertaining our audience.
By having this goal we were able to shape how we rehearsed. For examples, the way we
structured our stage layout, cutting out and adding lines, and the deliberate use of minimal props
were all results from our goal. The interesting development of our goal, however, was not
intentional. Our director did not have us sit in a circle to brainstorm what our goal should be. Our
goal was found unconsciously, only defined by the results that sprang from it. We found our goal
within reading the lines, finding our characters, and falling in love with the message of the play.
One of the most positive ways our group worked so well with one another was our ability
to listen closely to each other. Sawyer describes close listening as the ability to naturally work
and adapt. He believes innovation is blocked when one or more participants already has a
preconceived idea of how to get to the goal. Our group benefited by having no experience in
acting because we were not bound by a belief of how we should be with one another and how
acting should be executed. For example, there was a part in our play where my character is
describing her unfortunate death of slamming through the windshield of her car. The line says,
BAM, right through that windshield! Our director stopped me after I was finished and said
there was something a little off about the diction of the delivery, as if the fact that my character
going through a windshield is not horrifying because of how sarcastic she is in her recount. Our
director told me to say the line again but to add an action with it. Without thinking about it as I
said the line again, I slapped my hands together when I said BAM. This modification eventually
became the knocking together of two crocket needles. Modifications like this existed throughout
our rehearsals with each actor and added something special to our rendition of the play. In the
time period of practice we were able to focus in on our material as well as one another, and so
quickly time passed and we were on our way back to reconvene with the rest of the class.
Equality played an important role to the functionality of our group. Each members
minimal acting experience not only benefitted our ability to closely listen with one another but
also removed the pressure of performance in front of each other. Although one group member
had the least amount of lines, she was never made to feel outside of the rehearsal or removed
from discussions about parts of the play where her character was not present. Even though our
group had a director, she did not create a dictatorship, but rather a democracy where everyone is
free to contribute and that contribution is valued. If we took a minute to joke around with each
other, it was not detrimental to our project. Small breaks to pull away from the material
ultimately added not only value to our experience, but benefited the overall health of the
production. Our equal participation had created an environment where it became fun and stress
free to work with one another.
Communication was such an important role to our group flow. Effective communication
allowed our group to bond with each other. Communication is the best tool when working within
a group. If communication is not effectively used, meaning in actions and words can be lost and
misinterpreted, which can lead to resentment. For example, one day before practice I was
extremely tired and hungry. I asked all the members of the group if it was alright with them if I
could eat some lunch before we started rehearsal. If I had not effectively communicated that I
needed to refuel, it would have seemed rude to the other members of the group that I would
rather eat than get started on rehearsal. Communication exists not only verbally but non-verbally
as well. All members of our group attended class rehearsals. This sends the message that
everyone was willing to participate and make an effort to achieve our goal.
I never expected to have such a positive experience with my group. When it was
announced on the first day of class that we would be practicing and performing short plays in
front of the class, I turned to stone in my seat. My first thoughts were, I have no acting
experience I have to memorize lines Another group project? The day we heard what the
different plays were about, I walked up to where the director was for the play that intrigued me
the most. I never expected that one action to open several doors this semester. I would have
never known I am able to memorize lines. I would have not adjusted my negative perspective of
group projects. I would have not made new friendships with the people in my group had it not
existed. Group flow was interwoven in all aspects of our play, from the first reading of the script
to the day of performance. By harnessing R. Keith Sawyers factors of having a goal, close
listening, equal participation, and communication, we able to become lost in the material and
ultimately performed excellently. Group flow not only helped in terms of class participation but
our group made me feel like I was a part of something greater than myself.