Here is a huge list of drama games and theatre activities that are perfect for teaching drama to kids and teens. Use in your classroom or drama club as warm-ups, ice breakers, or as fun activities to start any class!
Are you teaching drama? Use this collection of drama games to help your theatre students feel more confident onstage. If you need more, inside of Drama Notebook, you will find a huge collection of well-organized drama lesson plans, royalty-free play scripts for kids and teens, and 50 drama activities on video. New material is added every month. If you are teaching theatre, this site will be a godsend. Save countless hours of planning time while delivering engaging lessons that your students will love!
Warm Ups
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Boppity Bop Bop Bop
This fun and fast paced drama game sharpens listening skills, reaction time, and focus. It is warm up game that will keep players laughing as the game speeds up and becomes more complex by adding animal shapes.
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Catch and Clap
In this lively warm up drama game players work together to build coordination and rhythm within the group. Players toss a ball while clapping in sync in a fun challenge that improves focus and flow.
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Zip Zap Zop
This energetic drama warm-up boosts focus, reaction time, and coordination. It’s excellent for engaging all group members through active participation and quick thinking.
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Energy Ball
This is a classic theatre warm up game where players create an imaginary ball of energy which they practice sensing and exploring together in a playful way.
Focusing and Listening
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Change Three Things
This icebreaker drama game will get participants using their observational skills, attention to detail and memory. How much can you remember about your partner´s appearance?
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Kitty Wants a Corner
This drama game promotes teamwork and non-verbal communication, with the ‘kitty’ needing to think and move quickly to find a corner in the circle. It’s high-energy and engaging!
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Memory
This memory game activates participants’ brains as they recall random items from a tray before it’s removed. A flexible activity that can change with each play!
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Mine Field
This game builds trust and communication as blindfolded players navigate a minefield of random objects, following their peers’ directions carefully.
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Pass the Clap
This fun drama warm-up is great for medium to large groups. Players form a circle and pass a clap around, building awareness, coordination, and engagement.
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Wink Murder
If you are looking for a game that enhances improvisation skills and encourages social interaction, then this icebreaker drama game is for you! Perfect for medium to large groups.
Movement
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Environments
This movement focused fast paced drama game has players quickly create a scene based on an environment using their bodies to form objects, the weather or characters.
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Give and Take
Giving and taking sounds and movements is the focus of this game. Players practice imitation and develop spontaneity by acting out evolving sequences together.
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Lead with Different Parts of the Body
This movement exercise helps actors explore character development by leading with different body parts. Players walk in a circle, shifting focus to various body parts and reflecting on the impact.
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Machines
In this classic drama game participants build an imaginary machine, which players connect to one at a time adding another sound and movement to the machine. Great for creativity and awareness.
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Mirror
In this partner drama game players build awareness and teamwork as they mirror each other´s actions. This game is a fun way enhance focus, teamwork and body awareness.
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Shrinking Box
This pantomime drama game will have participants thinking of creative and unique solutions for how to escape an imaginary box. Great for small or large groups.
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Space Walk
This activity helps actors explore space and movement. The leader gives instructions as they walk, such as pretending to walk in space.
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Tug-of-War
This hilarious drama version of tug-of-war allows participants to practice their pantomime skills while working together as a team. Great for big groups.
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Yes, Let’s!
This is a very simple, yet effective drama warm-up that sets a positive tone for the day’s activities. This drama game is great for big or small groups.
Ensemble Building
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Big Wind Blows
This drama game gets participants listening, thinking quickly, and sharing about themselves. It’s great for promoting connection and inclusivity in medium to large groups.
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Circle Sitting
This warm up game will have participants in a circle that continues to get smaller and closer ending with everyone sitting on the knees of the person in front of them. Fun as an icebreaker warm up.
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Group Juggle
This game is a great playful way to increase focus in participants. The participants form a circle and begin a simple ball tossing game which increases in complexity as rules to the game are added.
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Group Stop
This ensemble building drama game helps participants to become aware of other participants in the game, as they must match their behaviors to other players in the game.
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Human Knot
This drama game will have players reaching across a circle and grabbing hands with other random players forming a human knot that they will have to undo without letting go of the other´s hands.
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The Line Game
This silent lining up game has many variations that will have participants lining up in the right line and right order without speaking, while at the same time learning more about each other.
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Name and Action Game
This is a classic drama game used for memorization. Participants will get to know each other better sharing about themselves through physical movements which they then memorize and perform as a group.
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People to People
This playful drama game has participants moving around the room until they receive an instruction such as “elbow to knee” and which point they rush to another participant to complete the action.
Imagination & Creativity
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Categories
This game has players sitting in a circle and creating a rhythm by slapping their legs. Players must stay in rhythm while thinking quickly to come up with a word that fits in specific categories.
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Gibberish
Gibberish is the art of using sounds and utterances in place of normal speech. Participants will have practice having conversations with each other in an unknown language.
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Hot Spot
This classic drama game teaches quick thinking. Participants make a circle and one person enters the center and begins to tell a story or sing a song, others may step in and take over if inspired.
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Slide Show
This hilarious drama game has participants creating a slide show scene of another members story or adventure, such as taking a vacation and being on a bumpy flight. Great for medium and large groups.
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Space Objects
This drama game is great for developing imagination as participants act out the shifting of one object to another, such as a ball transforming into a pen. Great for small or large groups.
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Statue Maker
Perfect game for partners in big or small groups, this Drama Game will have participants using their creativity and imagination to create human sculptures.
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Two Sticks
This drama game will get participants coming up with new uses for a wide variety of objects. Great for small or large groups this drama game can be played over and over as new objects are introduced.
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Two Truths and a Lie
This is a great bonding activity for new classes and for students who already know one another. Participants will share 3 things about themselves, but one of them is not true – can you guess what?
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What are You Doing?
In this game participants are standing in a circle while a person in the middle pretends to do an activity such as brushing their teeth, when asked what they are doing they must say something else.
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Yes, And!
This is a classic improv game that teaches the value of accepting each others ideas and cooperating with one another. The game may be played in pairs onstage or with the whole group in a circle.
Characterization
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Continuing Emotions
This game is excellent for coaching participants to express different emotions while re-enacting a scene. A simple scene, like returning an item in a store can be acted out with many emotions.
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Hot Seat
In this classic game, a student goes up in front of the class and assumes the role of a character or a famous person while the audience players interrogate him/her. The actor must stay in character!
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Park Bench
This drama game for older youth and adults is a great way to encourage the acting of different characters, while leaving others guessing who it is, but not in an obvious way.
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Sit-Stand-Kneel
This drama game is excellent for coaching actors in how to work with position during the a scene. The game has rules, such as one person must be sitting, one standing, and one kneeling.
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Inside Drama Notebook, you will find a huge collection of well-organized lesson plans, scripts for kids, drama activities, 50 drama games on video and more! Join today and dramatically reduce your planning time while delivering fresh, innovative drama lessons to your students! If you are new to teaching drama, this site will be a Godsend! You will immediately feel confident about teaching drama like an expert. The site guides you step-by-step and provides you with materials that you can use right away with your students.
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