Exercise: Six Impossible Things Before Breakfast

“I’m just one hundred and one, five months and a day.”
“I can’t believe that!” said Alice.
“Can’t you?” the Queen said in a pitying tone. “Try again: draw a long breath, and shut your eyes.”
Alice laughed. “There’s no use trying,” she said: “one can’t believe impossible things.”
“I daresay you haven’t had much practice,” said the Queen. “When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.”

What does it take to be creative? Not talent, not drive, not even imagination. It’s the suspension of disbelief. If you believe you can solve a problem in a new way, regardless of what other people think, that’s being creative.

Try this “Impossible Things” scene exercise with your students. How far can they suspend their disbelief? This may be hard for many students! Their school life is so often determined by facts, what is right and wrong, and what they can and cannot do. If you have students who are struggling with the wider boundaries of drama class, creativity, imagination, or simply thinking they can do something (how many of you have heard someone say “I’m not creative.”), try this exercise!

1. Divide students into groups.

2. Each group is to create a scene. In the scene, everyone is part of a family, or visiting the family. (For example, Jane’s friend comes to pick her up before they go to school). The scene takes place in the kitchen before breakfast.

3. In the scene, six impossible things have to happen. The catch is that no one is allowed to treat the impossible as a joke. It is part of their world. No winks to the audience, no breaking character. In the world of the scene, the impossible is part of the everyday world.

4. Start off with a class discussion on what “impossible” means. What’s impossible in today’s world? In any world?

5. Then groups use the provided brainstorm sheet (download it below) to get creative. They must come up with at least 20 impossible things. The only caveat is that they have to be school appropriate. Emphasize that they must brainstorm without judgement. Write every idea down. Don’t worry about whether or not it’s doable in the confines of the classroom.

6. Groups use their brainstorm as the jumping off point for their scene. An outline sheet is provided (download it below) if it will help students gather their thoughts. And if they come up with new ideas as they work on their scene, that’s fine too.

7. Give students 20 minutes to decide on their impossible things and incorporate them into their breakfast scene. They may have to get “creative” with how they present some of their impossible things. For example, no one is really able to fly so how will they present flying if that’s one of their six things?

8. Groups share their scenes.

9. Afterward, discuss the impossible with students. What is it like to act as if the impossible is part of your everyday world? Has anyone ever told you something is impossible?