How Many Are Walking?

• Number of Participants: 8 or more
• Age Level: Any
• Source: Traditional Theatre Game
• Purpose: Cooperation, focus, teamwork, observation, give-and-take, nonverbal communication

Ask the group to spread evenly throughout the room. This will be a silent exercise. Ask one person to walk about the space without touching anyone. When the walker stops, another person begins to walk. Any one can walk, but no two people can walk at the same time. No talking is allowed, and no "signals" are allowed either.

When the group seems to have mastered the first part, introduce a second walker. Only two people can walk at a time. Encourage people who haven't walked yet to try it.

As people become more and more comfortable, increase the number of walkers. After you reach a number of walkers that is sufficiently challenging, decrease the number of walkers one by one, until finally there is no one walking.

Try variations on this exercise: let the walker decide when to stop, let group members decide to start (when someone decides to start walking, the walker must stop), or try both (anyone can decide to stop or start). Or try the entire exercise in reverse... at any time, X number of people are not walking. In yet another variation, have your entire group sit, and only one person can stand at a time (it is a good idea to limit the amount of time a person can stand to 10 seconds or fewer).

Ask the group about the skills they used in this exercise. Did you find yourself using subtle signals? Where else do the group members use these skills?