Ah,
Edinburgh Fringe. So close, yet so
far. 6 days until my show opens, and
here I am. Furiously learning new
poems. Nothing ever changes, and I’m
sure I’m not the only one.
I
have probably annoyed my housemates (and neighbours) in jabbering around the
front room, paper strewn around like litter, trying to get those words off the
page, onto my head and onto my tongue.
Nevertheless
I thought I’d take a break from pouring over poems to just give some quick
thoughts on Learning Poems.
Normally
my advice for people learning poems is, unfortunately
you just learn them.
But
here’s some handy tips in that process.
1. Stand up.
Wander around. Move your
feet. For me, it gets the blood moving,
gets a little bit of a beat. You find
the highs and lows of the poem, where the energy hits certain beats. I’m a fidgety person, and I like to use that
habit in learning by getting moving.
2. Break down the poem into sections. This helps if you have verses, or a repeated
line. Find the checkpoints, where you
need to get to, where you’ve come from.
3. Keep having a go at it without the page. Don’t glue yourself to it. If you’re getting it wrong, check rather than
constantly stare at the infuriating page.
4. Intense bursts. Go over and over it, but then take a good
breather. Let it sink in, let it cement.
Go make some food, read a book/magazine.
Have a dance. Write a blogpost.
5. Don’t panic.
If all else fails, turn
the page into a prop.
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