General
Nope! Not in the traditional sense. PowerPlay's experiential workshops utilize a wide range of theatrical tools depending on the goals of our session. With the exception of our Equitable Hiring Lab which begins with a 20-minute "activation play" (The Search), most of our programs are comprised of a handful of brief, 1 to 5 minute scenarios that act as a catalyst for interaction, conversation, and reflection.
Good news: We’re very good at creating an environment that makes it difficult for that to happen. Trust us! Roleplaying with your colleagues and peers can be an uncomfortable and ineffective experience. The core of PowerPlay’s work is about providing you with dynamic, experiential learning with no emotional risk. It’s our actors’ jobs to bear that burden so you can look at and interact with workplace challenges in a safe, objective way.
Our programs are designed for Scientists, Teachers, Administrators, Committee Members, Municipal Workers, Executives, Managers, Sales Reps, and any person who interacts with other people over the course of their day. We call our workshops Interactive Labs because they give us a chance to observe and experiment with human behavior. Instead of mice or petri dishes we experiment with actors. You get to ask “What if?” and then see what happens.
Our current offerings range from 90 minutes to 3 hours. We are, however, happy to work with you to suit your time restraints or needs. We currently do not half a full-day offering but if you’d like to discuss possibilities drop us a line via our Contact page.
Booking
You can start a conversation with us via our Contact page or my emailing powerplay@unh.edu.
We’d love to work with you as soon as possible and will do our best to accommodate any and all requests! However, to give you the best possible experience we suggest reaching out 5 months in advance for programming requests between September and May; 3 months in advance between June and August.
PowerPlay programs can scale to any size. We’ve worked with groups as small as 6 and as large as 300. Our recommended workshop size for most of our programs is around 25 to 50 people per session.
Believe it or not, we do our best work in ‘un-theatrical’ environments like conference rooms, lecture halls, or classrooms. We don’t want to create an invisible wall between our actors and our participants. It’s important to us that we keep our approach relaxed and natural. Most of our Labs can be facilitated with 4 – 5 chairs, a table, and 30 minutes of set up time.
Access to a projector or video monitor is preferred for most programs. Microphones may be required depending on the size of the room and number of participants.
We love to travel. Our Team has performed and presented all over the country and we’re ready to roll.
The base fee for most of our single programs “out of the box” is between $3,000 - $5,000. Considerations for packages are then made for travel, workshop duration, number of sessions in a day, use of special facilitators, etc. We’re happy to talk with you about your goals and put together an estimate.
Miscellaneous
Currently, we do not license any of our material for use without PowerPlay actors and/or facilitators present. In fact, most of our work is what we call “rehearsed improvisation” and varies a great deal from client to client.
We’re always looking to expand our team!
Actors: If you’re interested in applied theatre and have a knack for non-comedic improvisation drop us a line at powerplay@unh.edu. We hold introductory training sessions a few times a year for new recruits.
Facilitators: We’re currently looking to bolster our roster of dynamic presenters, coaches, and facilitators to help lead our Interactive Training Labs. If you have experience or expertise in the areas of Interpersonal Behavior or Institutional Culture (especially within academia) please contact Program Manager CJ Lewis at cj.lewis@unh.edu.
