The lovers meet at a dance fairly near the beginning of the story, a whole company dance no. I though would give a fun, upbeat mood that gives some light-hearted sections to the piece.
Now I know most of the company aren't trained dancers, yet a simplified routine consisting of unison, partner work, different pathways etc would be suitable for people's abilities and still look effective.
I researched into the types of dancing that was around in the 1930s/40s, and the Charleston was still around, but it had developed in style from the 20s. Then, it was very flash, placed, hands flexed, exaggerated in both facial expression and moves itself. The 1930s/40s Charleston was more partner work, a lot more relaxed in the steps and consisted of more turns and kicks.
Researching on youtube, I found a choreographer named Tom Richardson, a current choreographer who usually does contemporary, yet I found a dance involving moves from the 30s/40s that has a modern feel to it.
The dancers are professionally trained, yet there are moves that could be adapted and simplified, and the general mood that he captures I thought could be very fitting with the dance scene we could create.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ov02ImwiL58
The dance that I choreographed consisted of a sequence of movements performed in unison that were then repeated in partner work. By repeating the same movements, for those who had never danced before, repeating the sequence they already learned and knew gave them more confidence in the routine. I then gave everyone two counts of 8 to improvise any dancing they like, this gave people free range to do what they pleased, so they didn't have to learn a full routine which could have taken longer to rehearse, and the time frame we had to get it up to standard was short. The improvisation section was then brought back to unison with a simple sequence that everyone did again in partners before finishing centre stage in a last pose. Because the routine was fairly simple, it needed to have an burst and eruption of energy that was sustained throughout. It's set in a vibrant dance hall, and in the 30s, spending your evenings in a dance hall was the height of entertainment and exciting to all those who attended, so the atmosphere we created vocally and physically needed to compliment the setting we were in.
What also helped with a simpler routine was the ability for people to add characterization without stressing and over thinking the movements themselves, when watching the footage back of the dance, those glimpses of conversation between characters and expressions are what enriches the routine from being a routine to a movement sequence grounded in just as much acting as moving.
Thursday, 27 November 2014
Devising hospital scene
With our structure in place, we then split into three groups and chose a section of the story to explore. Harry, Elsa, Megan and I chose the hospital scene, where the two lovers meet after he gets injured.
It was popular amongst us to use movement here, where perhaps words wouldn't be able to express what we wanted to convey, and movement requires no words, where the littlest movement can mean a lot.
'Lovesong' by Frantic has been a big inspiration for our piece, and a scene occurs with a young couple on a kitchen table. The actors was continuously in motion, doing circular pathways around/over/under each other with a constant point of contact, it was intimate with a affectionate quality that was beautiful to watch. We took inspiration from this and created a duet on a table.
*Video is on company blog*
Music was added over the top to bring another dynamic and provide an atmosphere, just piano, which to me, has a delicate quality to it, which fitted with the soft reuniting scene we wanted to create, 'I Giorni by Ludovico Einaudi' being careful yet loving out of disbelief that they have met again after such a long time.
When we came back to this scene after a break, we developed it from the present into the past. Elsa played the old lady, sitting at a desk that we decided the duet would happen on, that makes less set to cart around then getting a bed, and a desk is multi-functional. Harry wrote a brief script to provide some context, and linked the past and present together.
We thought it would look effective having the old lady reading, then the past appearing and happening around her. Having the two ladies on stage at the same time. To make it clear that the ladies are the same, we added a mannerism of gently pulling our hair in exactly the same way, a mannerism that would be repeated throughout the show to make it clear to the audience.
Again this developed with the older lady performing some of the actions as if remembering the memory, and speaking through months as the duet went on, to signal that the couple were together in hospital for a substantial amount of time as the man healed. It just added another layer to the scene, it gave the movement more context.
It was great to split into small groups, as we each got our ideas across equally and it was far easier to devise than having 12 people's ideas thrown in at once. It also gave 3 of us a chance to play characters we would potentially play.
How the table duet turned out in the final show was slightly different. Transitions changed and had text added that meant Evie no longer started at a table but was sat in her chair upstage. The librarians performed a transition with Alfie where they bandaged him up and spoke dialogue that informed the audience of Alfie's admission to the Queen Victoria Hospital where Evie was working. There were debates as to whether the scene was based around Evie discovering her patient was Alfie or whether she already knew. But it was agreed that we preferred Evie's surprise, and that gave the table routine a real intention and purpose, the movement happening through a result of delight that they were reunited. The movement sequence ended with the two lying on the table, then with a lighting cue to signal night and day, a passing of time, they wake up and their location is a bedroom instead of a hospital.
When rehearsing the sequence, Nick and I developed it and added moves to make it longer. Because there were lifts that would be performed on the table, we rehearsed it on the floor to make sure we got the technique correct, otherwise performing straight on the table with little rehearsal increases the chance of it going wrong and badly injuring yourself! Once we felt comfortable, we practiced on the table and taught Harry and Mandi. What was critical for this sequence was not to rush it, and there was a certain dynamic quality needed to turn the sequence from what had the danger of being 'corny and cheesy' to something very touching. Movements like how we stroked the others face or how the boys span us round on the table were details that gave an emotional depth to it. Nick and I made sure we gave good amounts of rehearsal, coming in early or staying late if needed, to add recognize and add where those moments should and needed to go, so hopefully when we perform it, its that much more meaningful than just a sequence.
*Video footage of the duets developments can be found on the Level 4 Facebook page, the final sequence seen on the tour performance dates*
It was popular amongst us to use movement here, where perhaps words wouldn't be able to express what we wanted to convey, and movement requires no words, where the littlest movement can mean a lot.
'Lovesong' by Frantic has been a big inspiration for our piece, and a scene occurs with a young couple on a kitchen table. The actors was continuously in motion, doing circular pathways around/over/under each other with a constant point of contact, it was intimate with a affectionate quality that was beautiful to watch. We took inspiration from this and created a duet on a table.
*Video is on company blog*
Music was added over the top to bring another dynamic and provide an atmosphere, just piano, which to me, has a delicate quality to it, which fitted with the soft reuniting scene we wanted to create, 'I Giorni by Ludovico Einaudi' being careful yet loving out of disbelief that they have met again after such a long time.
When we came back to this scene after a break, we developed it from the present into the past. Elsa played the old lady, sitting at a desk that we decided the duet would happen on, that makes less set to cart around then getting a bed, and a desk is multi-functional. Harry wrote a brief script to provide some context, and linked the past and present together.
We thought it would look effective having the old lady reading, then the past appearing and happening around her. Having the two ladies on stage at the same time. To make it clear that the ladies are the same, we added a mannerism of gently pulling our hair in exactly the same way, a mannerism that would be repeated throughout the show to make it clear to the audience.
Again this developed with the older lady performing some of the actions as if remembering the memory, and speaking through months as the duet went on, to signal that the couple were together in hospital for a substantial amount of time as the man healed. It just added another layer to the scene, it gave the movement more context.
It was great to split into small groups, as we each got our ideas across equally and it was far easier to devise than having 12 people's ideas thrown in at once. It also gave 3 of us a chance to play characters we would potentially play.
How the table duet turned out in the final show was slightly different. Transitions changed and had text added that meant Evie no longer started at a table but was sat in her chair upstage. The librarians performed a transition with Alfie where they bandaged him up and spoke dialogue that informed the audience of Alfie's admission to the Queen Victoria Hospital where Evie was working. There were debates as to whether the scene was based around Evie discovering her patient was Alfie or whether she already knew. But it was agreed that we preferred Evie's surprise, and that gave the table routine a real intention and purpose, the movement happening through a result of delight that they were reunited. The movement sequence ended with the two lying on the table, then with a lighting cue to signal night and day, a passing of time, they wake up and their location is a bedroom instead of a hospital.
When rehearsing the sequence, Nick and I developed it and added moves to make it longer. Because there were lifts that would be performed on the table, we rehearsed it on the floor to make sure we got the technique correct, otherwise performing straight on the table with little rehearsal increases the chance of it going wrong and badly injuring yourself! Once we felt comfortable, we practiced on the table and taught Harry and Mandi. What was critical for this sequence was not to rush it, and there was a certain dynamic quality needed to turn the sequence from what had the danger of being 'corny and cheesy' to something very touching. Movements like how we stroked the others face or how the boys span us round on the table were details that gave an emotional depth to it. Nick and I made sure we gave good amounts of rehearsal, coming in early or staying late if needed, to add recognize and add where those moments should and needed to go, so hopefully when we perform it, its that much more meaningful than just a sequence.
*Video footage of the duets developments can be found on the Level 4 Facebook page, the final sequence seen on the tour performance dates*
Sorting the storyline
Abby's lesson had the aim to get a 'hanger' in which a basic structure was set. The beginning of that week had involved a lot of discussion around the narrative of our piece, but not enough decision making, so the afternoon provided a substantial amount of time to get a structure down that flowed well and everyone agreed on.
We wrote down all the stories we wanted to include from the people in Age UK and picked the main parts that were of most significance and that would link well.
- Henry jeweler
- Roy War
- George prisoner of war
We wanted to interlink all the stories, adapting and slightly altering them so they all became life events for a couple, we felt this would enable an audience to grow more attached to them as they got to see their whole lives unfold, the good and the bad, instead of snippets of many different people.
We wanted to base the piece around a couple, starting the piece when their old in their home, and go back in time to where they first met, and you watch their lives unfold, to portray the message that behind the person there is a great story.
The original structure was: evacuation, couple meet at a dance, drafted to war, love letters, hospital and reunited, re drafted to war, prisoner of war, no memory section, remembering and ending.
We hadn't discovered where we would flick between the past and the present, but we all agreed that we'd add and integrate as we went along. Everyone pitched in their ideas and we made sure everyone's were considered before we wrote them down. It allowed everyone to voice their opinions and made the structure a collaboration of all of us.
After a long afternoon, we finally came to our decision of the basic section, where it became far easier to begin devising, being able to pick a section, whichever we wanted.
The order of the piece changed dramatically from this which I will discuss with other sections of the process. But we discovered very early on, within the next two rehearsals really, that the evacuation was going to be removed from the story, it didn't fit with the rest of the play and we only had forty five minutes to fit our story in. So we decided to scrap the evacuation firstly, and start the past at the moment the couple first met, which meant we could start acting the ages of late teens, instead of children.
We wrote down all the stories we wanted to include from the people in Age UK and picked the main parts that were of most significance and that would link well.
- Henry jeweler
- Roy War
- George prisoner of war
We wanted to interlink all the stories, adapting and slightly altering them so they all became life events for a couple, we felt this would enable an audience to grow more attached to them as they got to see their whole lives unfold, the good and the bad, instead of snippets of many different people.
We wanted to base the piece around a couple, starting the piece when their old in their home, and go back in time to where they first met, and you watch their lives unfold, to portray the message that behind the person there is a great story.
The original structure was: evacuation, couple meet at a dance, drafted to war, love letters, hospital and reunited, re drafted to war, prisoner of war, no memory section, remembering and ending.
We hadn't discovered where we would flick between the past and the present, but we all agreed that we'd add and integrate as we went along. Everyone pitched in their ideas and we made sure everyone's were considered before we wrote them down. It allowed everyone to voice their opinions and made the structure a collaboration of all of us.
After a long afternoon, we finally came to our decision of the basic section, where it became far easier to begin devising, being able to pick a section, whichever we wanted.
The order of the piece changed dramatically from this which I will discuss with other sections of the process. But we discovered very early on, within the next two rehearsals really, that the evacuation was going to be removed from the story, it didn't fit with the rest of the play and we only had forty five minutes to fit our story in. So we decided to scrap the evacuation firstly, and start the past at the moment the couple first met, which meant we could start acting the ages of late teens, instead of children.
Thursday, 20 November 2014
Meeting with Oathall
After organising a meeting with the head teacher of Oathall, Harry and I visited the school on the 19th November. It was a great time to really sell our company, our mission statement and impress a figure of authority outside of college.
An issue we faced was wanting to peform our show to year groups that were studying for their GCSEs. The prospect of having our preferred year groups as an audience lookef problematic. However, we sold the show as an extremely accessible performance for all students as well as subjects not only in subject content but also dramatic style. We agreed that english students would benefit from the script writing as well as story telling, music students with the live musical accompaniment and musical eras, dance students with the physical theatre and pure dance scenes and PSHCE students with the community outreach and topics addressed throughout. The response was extremely positive and the vast amount of options we gave didn't restrict the school.
We didn't get a date set, however, they are forming a meeting with heads of department and years to organise what they will choose, so a date shall certainly be booked!
It was a great experience liasing with people outside of college, it helped that I had known the headmaster so the atmosphere was very relaxed. Also having the responsibility to sell our company in a professional manner was really enjoyable and greatly grew my confidence.
An issue we faced was wanting to peform our show to year groups that were studying for their GCSEs. The prospect of having our preferred year groups as an audience lookef problematic. However, we sold the show as an extremely accessible performance for all students as well as subjects not only in subject content but also dramatic style. We agreed that english students would benefit from the script writing as well as story telling, music students with the live musical accompaniment and musical eras, dance students with the physical theatre and pure dance scenes and PSHCE students with the community outreach and topics addressed throughout. The response was extremely positive and the vast amount of options we gave didn't restrict the school.
We didn't get a date set, however, they are forming a meeting with heads of department and years to organise what they will choose, so a date shall certainly be booked!
It was a great experience liasing with people outside of college, it helped that I had known the headmaster so the atmosphere was very relaxed. Also having the responsibility to sell our company in a professional manner was really enjoyable and greatly grew my confidence.
Tuesday, 18 November 2014
Relaxation: Voice 1
Relaxation
-Lying on the floor eyes closed
-Breathing just raising tummy, not chest
-Imagining lying on a favourite beach (Nahoon South Africa)
-Tensing pairs of muscles from feet upward, tense x3 then relax
-Music playing in the background
-Imagining holes in heels filling you up with water from the feet up
-Imagining the water draining out again from the head down
Helps voice:
It gets rid of tension around the core muscles and torso, where the organs and muscles you use and control your voice are,. This ridding of tension allows you to use them to its full potential, also decreasing the risk of damaging your voice as you should then be using it properly.
Helps body:
Releases unnecessary tension, mine particularly in my shoulders and upper back. By focusing on parts of the body instead of all at once allows you to focus in on specific muscles to relax them, taking this extra time shall be far more worthwhile, and is a more thorough relaxation technique than speeding through to save time. It also lets you become as neutral as possible, really being a blank canvas for new characters, who shall hold tension in other parts of their body that are different from yours. As well as this, if you are aching anywhere, it should ease that and your muscles should hurt far less or even not at all afterwards.
Alignment:
Task 1
In a pair, watching how the other person stands, where they hold tension, where they lead from, how they place their feet and how the body stacks on top of it etc. Analysing is lots of detail. Then we had to stand as that person.
Mandi: Feet are always turned out, knees slightly outwards also, torso is slightly forwards at an angle, making her shoulders lead and curve in. This makes her chest sink inwards, and makes her torso look smaller than it is.
How I stand:
Feet in parallel with knees unlocked. My shoulders are back but my arms are quite far forwards, my hands fall in front of my body instead of hanging down the sides of my body. I stand with my bum very much tucked underneath my body, so my core is usually always engaged so that my bum isn't stuck out overly arching my back.
Task 2
When we changed each others alignment, my lower torso was lengthened and my head from my shoulders, which let my arms fall back down the sides of my body instead of in front of it.
Flop and drop:
-Flop down, swooping from side to side to rid tension out of the arms and let the head fall heavy
-Someone stands behind and runs their fingers up your vertebrae on your back, as they do you uncurl up to standing, trying to uncurl each vertebrae as your partners fingers pass them. the head the last thing to come up as it is the heaviest. It allows you to focus on how the body uncurls to standing by going through each vertebrae instead of going straight to standing, which can sometimes be damaging to your back. It also can contribute to alignment, with letting your shoulders slide down your back and not be raised.
Pulling shoulders:
-In pairs, one takes the arm of their partner and stretches it by pulling slowly, as to release tension from their shoulder. Choosing the one that is higher than the other until they are equal
Mandi's shoulders:
As they are curled inwards, it curves the vertebrae at the top of her spine, making her look slightly smaller than she is, so trying to get them pushed back out so the shoulder blades are forwards but down the back was challenging! It wasn't so much the releasing tension of the shoulders, it was trying to get the top of the spine lengthened so her shoulders fell down properly, opening out the chest, making her broader which made her look taller.
My shoulders:
With carrying a heavy bag on my shoulders most of the time, my left shoulder was far higher than the right. As it was pulled, I could feel the tension out from my shoulders across and up my neck, and it was a lot of relief! Then my right was higher and the exercise had to be repeated on both shoulders twice before they were even. It showed there's a lot of tension in both shoulders, and getting someone to do that exercise for me releases. It opened up the gap between my shoulders to my head, again letting me appear taller.
-Lying on the floor eyes closed
-Breathing just raising tummy, not chest
-Imagining lying on a favourite beach (Nahoon South Africa)
-Tensing pairs of muscles from feet upward, tense x3 then relax
-Music playing in the background
-Imagining holes in heels filling you up with water from the feet up
-Imagining the water draining out again from the head down
Helps voice:
It gets rid of tension around the core muscles and torso, where the organs and muscles you use and control your voice are,. This ridding of tension allows you to use them to its full potential, also decreasing the risk of damaging your voice as you should then be using it properly.
Helps body:
Releases unnecessary tension, mine particularly in my shoulders and upper back. By focusing on parts of the body instead of all at once allows you to focus in on specific muscles to relax them, taking this extra time shall be far more worthwhile, and is a more thorough relaxation technique than speeding through to save time. It also lets you become as neutral as possible, really being a blank canvas for new characters, who shall hold tension in other parts of their body that are different from yours. As well as this, if you are aching anywhere, it should ease that and your muscles should hurt far less or even not at all afterwards.
Alignment:
Task 1
In a pair, watching how the other person stands, where they hold tension, where they lead from, how they place their feet and how the body stacks on top of it etc. Analysing is lots of detail. Then we had to stand as that person.
Mandi: Feet are always turned out, knees slightly outwards also, torso is slightly forwards at an angle, making her shoulders lead and curve in. This makes her chest sink inwards, and makes her torso look smaller than it is.
How I stand:
Feet in parallel with knees unlocked. My shoulders are back but my arms are quite far forwards, my hands fall in front of my body instead of hanging down the sides of my body. I stand with my bum very much tucked underneath my body, so my core is usually always engaged so that my bum isn't stuck out overly arching my back.
Task 2
When we changed each others alignment, my lower torso was lengthened and my head from my shoulders, which let my arms fall back down the sides of my body instead of in front of it.
Flop and drop:
-Flop down, swooping from side to side to rid tension out of the arms and let the head fall heavy
-Someone stands behind and runs their fingers up your vertebrae on your back, as they do you uncurl up to standing, trying to uncurl each vertebrae as your partners fingers pass them. the head the last thing to come up as it is the heaviest. It allows you to focus on how the body uncurls to standing by going through each vertebrae instead of going straight to standing, which can sometimes be damaging to your back. It also can contribute to alignment, with letting your shoulders slide down your back and not be raised.
Pulling shoulders:
-In pairs, one takes the arm of their partner and stretches it by pulling slowly, as to release tension from their shoulder. Choosing the one that is higher than the other until they are equal
Mandi's shoulders:
As they are curled inwards, it curves the vertebrae at the top of her spine, making her look slightly smaller than she is, so trying to get them pushed back out so the shoulder blades are forwards but down the back was challenging! It wasn't so much the releasing tension of the shoulders, it was trying to get the top of the spine lengthened so her shoulders fell down properly, opening out the chest, making her broader which made her look taller.
My shoulders:
With carrying a heavy bag on my shoulders most of the time, my left shoulder was far higher than the right. As it was pulled, I could feel the tension out from my shoulders across and up my neck, and it was a lot of relief! Then my right was higher and the exercise had to be repeated on both shoulders twice before they were even. It showed there's a lot of tension in both shoulders, and getting someone to do that exercise for me releases. It opened up the gap between my shoulders to my head, again letting me appear taller.
Sunday, 2 November 2014
Speed dating
Evaluation:
Overall, I found the experience really enjoyable, keeping up the character consistently was challenging, but keeping that inner monologue going and constantly talking or listening to other characters made it much easier to stay in role.
I went in fully with the intention that my character was just going for a bit of fun and wasn't interested in any serious relationship. But as the 'speed dating' went on, and she got to chat to all different types of people, I found that she started to doubt her previous intentions, and what if she found a man she really liked?
I had decided to have Polly out drinking on a wild night out the night before the event, so she was still trying to battle with a hangover to be able to endure the whole event. With make up creating big bags under my eyes I hoped would aid that, as well as trying to appear a bit exaggerated and words slightly elongated a bit too much.
It was interesting to see how she reacted to different people, so with Graham, the relief of finding he liked drinking, and that he wasn't too serious and could have a laugh fitted, and his obvious intentions of 'fun' fitted with her motto perfectly, so she found it very easy to chat away and not really feel any emotion. Yet when people like Derek and Peter came along, who took a real interest into her work, asked her questions and even offered to read her column provided a new emotion for her, where someone who took a genuine interest into who she was gave her some hope that the life she originally wanted could still be available. It was that mix of feelings, whether she followed her new life motto she'd worked so hard for, or to go back to what she secretly always wanted that contradicted it. This all started to unfold as the event went on which I didn't originally expect. It was very fun to see how it developed, being instinctive and spontaneous with decisions gave me a chance to really let go and have fun. Not overly pre planning allowed for things to happen/emotions/character decisions that wouldn't have happened otherwise.
Watching the video back that was taken, I saw that I could have worked more on her physicality. I think the reason being that when I saw how I sat/walked, it resembled more of how I do it normally than a new character. I think working on that physicality, though it may not be exaggerated or big due to being an ordinary person, but it would help with how she would change posture etc. to different reactions or how she was feeling, perhaps giving her that more 3D character.
*Video footage of Speed Dating link below*
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E53SZR_7dzU&list=UUMFDVfFL_3pZ5xmNQdjwo4w
Overall, I found the experience really enjoyable, keeping up the character consistently was challenging, but keeping that inner monologue going and constantly talking or listening to other characters made it much easier to stay in role.
I went in fully with the intention that my character was just going for a bit of fun and wasn't interested in any serious relationship. But as the 'speed dating' went on, and she got to chat to all different types of people, I found that she started to doubt her previous intentions, and what if she found a man she really liked?
I had decided to have Polly out drinking on a wild night out the night before the event, so she was still trying to battle with a hangover to be able to endure the whole event. With make up creating big bags under my eyes I hoped would aid that, as well as trying to appear a bit exaggerated and words slightly elongated a bit too much.
It was interesting to see how she reacted to different people, so with Graham, the relief of finding he liked drinking, and that he wasn't too serious and could have a laugh fitted, and his obvious intentions of 'fun' fitted with her motto perfectly, so she found it very easy to chat away and not really feel any emotion. Yet when people like Derek and Peter came along, who took a real interest into her work, asked her questions and even offered to read her column provided a new emotion for her, where someone who took a genuine interest into who she was gave her some hope that the life she originally wanted could still be available. It was that mix of feelings, whether she followed her new life motto she'd worked so hard for, or to go back to what she secretly always wanted that contradicted it. This all started to unfold as the event went on which I didn't originally expect. It was very fun to see how it developed, being instinctive and spontaneous with decisions gave me a chance to really let go and have fun. Not overly pre planning allowed for things to happen/emotions/character decisions that wouldn't have happened otherwise.
Watching the video back that was taken, I saw that I could have worked more on her physicality. I think the reason being that when I saw how I sat/walked, it resembled more of how I do it normally than a new character. I think working on that physicality, though it may not be exaggerated or big due to being an ordinary person, but it would help with how she would change posture etc. to different reactions or how she was feeling, perhaps giving her that more 3D character.
*Video footage of Speed Dating link below*
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E53SZR_7dzU&list=UUMFDVfFL_3pZ5xmNQdjwo4w
Character diary entries
After the exercise of 'character's favourite object' where we had to bring an object that was very close to the character's heart and had a distinctive meaning led to a new side of my character 'Polly'. I chose to have a mug that said 'make do and mend', with being a writer, endless amounts of caffeine to keep away the stress and aid creative juices was a necessity, so a mug seemed an obvious choice. However, as I began to explain the importance of it, I chose to give Polly a much more layered background. Her determination to succeed with being a rebellious 30something can't have come out of no where. So I chose for her to have had a previous long term relationship that ended badly. This then gave her a clear reason and motive to do something about it, to give her career choice a clear purpose and drive. Again it developed that she put alcohol into her mug mixed with her drinks as she continued her day, but brushed over the topic. A hint of a hidden alcoholic maybe? Her determination to pick herself up from her sudden end to what seemed to be a perfect life and break the stereotype as it failed her actually was the thing that she couldn't bare.
I didn't want the choices to be too overdramatic that they took her out of being an ordinary person. But the reason behind it was to make Polly a far more detailed person with all sorts of hidden traits and facts about her, a person isn't simple, life throws up all sorts of cards. And so I thought these decisions made her far more 3D, not being too obvious about her real self, putting on a front like most people do. And as I began to add things to her, it made her far more interesting to play, and hopefully more interesting to talk to and watch.
These decisions then impacted the trip out with the public. Again, I wrote down the experience like a mini monologue:
Well, today I did something different, went to a local supermarket with two ladies I'd only briefly met at night school, hooray. Charlotte and Violet. Both single, instant release of breath, so there wasn't any awkwardness having to be overly chirpy for someone else's blossoming love life. I didn't really go for any particular reason, it was just nice to have a day plan, if that even counts, not stuck in that studio flat surrounded by endless blank pages needing to be filled out. But alas, today provided me with a window of opportunity for my next column. Instead of continually having to rely on my own choices I can use theirs! Of all the isles to venture down, I knew I had to visit the booze section. Don't get me wrong, I'm totally about not caring of judgement, but that's when I'm in the comfort of my sofa, typing away on the laptop where my actions from the previous night are confined to a single page read by strangers probably on a moving train. But two women you've barely met seeing you increase in desperation to go to the alcohol section at just past 12 could throw up problems I don't want to hear or face. All of a sudden, Violet picks up a bottle of Smirnoff off the shelf, yes, with all the intention of buying it. Relief. Instant relief.
Again, when we were sat in the waiting room before the speed dating commenced, I wrote again Polly's thoughts before it started. I didn't have much time so only a little was written:
Well, here I am, waiting for my speed dating extravaganza to commence. Not entirely sure why I'm here to be honest, had a cracking night last night, running on two hours sleep. Was thinking, maybe this could be a new column? Yes! How to do speed dating half off your face. Oh crap, crap crap crap, bollocks and crap, we're being filmed...
I didn't want the choices to be too overdramatic that they took her out of being an ordinary person. But the reason behind it was to make Polly a far more detailed person with all sorts of hidden traits and facts about her, a person isn't simple, life throws up all sorts of cards. And so I thought these decisions made her far more 3D, not being too obvious about her real self, putting on a front like most people do. And as I began to add things to her, it made her far more interesting to play, and hopefully more interesting to talk to and watch.
These decisions then impacted the trip out with the public. Again, I wrote down the experience like a mini monologue:
Well, today I did something different, went to a local supermarket with two ladies I'd only briefly met at night school, hooray. Charlotte and Violet. Both single, instant release of breath, so there wasn't any awkwardness having to be overly chirpy for someone else's blossoming love life. I didn't really go for any particular reason, it was just nice to have a day plan, if that even counts, not stuck in that studio flat surrounded by endless blank pages needing to be filled out. But alas, today provided me with a window of opportunity for my next column. Instead of continually having to rely on my own choices I can use theirs! Of all the isles to venture down, I knew I had to visit the booze section. Don't get me wrong, I'm totally about not caring of judgement, but that's when I'm in the comfort of my sofa, typing away on the laptop where my actions from the previous night are confined to a single page read by strangers probably on a moving train. But two women you've barely met seeing you increase in desperation to go to the alcohol section at just past 12 could throw up problems I don't want to hear or face. All of a sudden, Violet picks up a bottle of Smirnoff off the shelf, yes, with all the intention of buying it. Relief. Instant relief.
Again, when we were sat in the waiting room before the speed dating commenced, I wrote again Polly's thoughts before it started. I didn't have much time so only a little was written:
Well, here I am, waiting for my speed dating extravaganza to commence. Not entirely sure why I'm here to be honest, had a cracking night last night, running on two hours sleep. Was thinking, maybe this could be a new column? Yes! How to do speed dating half off your face. Oh crap, crap crap crap, bollocks and crap, we're being filmed...
Lonely heart - monologue
This exercise gave us a chance to write a monologue as our characters, about anything we wanted.
Evaluation:
I loved this exercise, as writing is something I really enjoy and hadn't really had a chance to have my own reign of writing a monologue. At first, I found it hard to pick what I would speak about, then I chose her to write a rant to the audience about her having to write another column to her magazine.
Once I'd gotten over the mind set of 'this would sound good, or this flows nicely' and getting into the mind set of my character, it got easier to write and phrases and its tone all started to fit together.
My monologue:
Well, here we are once again, sat in the office chair of rotating endless possibilities and opportunities to broaden the horizons of women hiding in what they believe to be a dark, lonely hole, repeatedly, no doubt with a tone growing ever closer to despair, lingering on the term, or should I say label, 'middle aged'. Urgh. Week after week, I take up the role of fellow middle aged companion, raising my sword of hope and attempting to slice society's stereotypical 30 something with a column or two at the back of a magazine. Probably covered in coffee, discarded under some overweight man's fat arse on the 7.39 to Brighton. I'm determined life can be fun. Waking up disorientated with a man whose face you don't recognise between your legs surrounded by countless empty bottles isn't reckless, why feel bad? No sudden inner turmoil of 'oh crap, I'm a slut' but rather a sense of achievement? I probably enjoyed myself, the room looks like we had fun. So what?
Evaluation:
The writing in the style of the character I found hugely helpful. By choosing a subject close to their heart, I found it increasingly easier to find and form opinions on topics, the choices of words they use and how they sound on paper. It also got me to think like her, with naturalism, the inner monologue is crucial, so having to think what to write down got me back into practicing and reciting that inner monologue. I took this form of writing down thoughts further, when having to get into the character for the speed dating task, I chose to write down her thoughts to help get into character, again, it got me to forget my thoughts and replace them with hers, a great way of focusing and getting fully into character. This worked for me, and I will definitely continue to use it in the future, and possibly think of ways to develop it in some form.
Evaluation:
I loved this exercise, as writing is something I really enjoy and hadn't really had a chance to have my own reign of writing a monologue. At first, I found it hard to pick what I would speak about, then I chose her to write a rant to the audience about her having to write another column to her magazine.
Once I'd gotten over the mind set of 'this would sound good, or this flows nicely' and getting into the mind set of my character, it got easier to write and phrases and its tone all started to fit together.
My monologue:
Well, here we are once again, sat in the office chair of rotating endless possibilities and opportunities to broaden the horizons of women hiding in what they believe to be a dark, lonely hole, repeatedly, no doubt with a tone growing ever closer to despair, lingering on the term, or should I say label, 'middle aged'. Urgh. Week after week, I take up the role of fellow middle aged companion, raising my sword of hope and attempting to slice society's stereotypical 30 something with a column or two at the back of a magazine. Probably covered in coffee, discarded under some overweight man's fat arse on the 7.39 to Brighton. I'm determined life can be fun. Waking up disorientated with a man whose face you don't recognise between your legs surrounded by countless empty bottles isn't reckless, why feel bad? No sudden inner turmoil of 'oh crap, I'm a slut' but rather a sense of achievement? I probably enjoyed myself, the room looks like we had fun. So what?
Evaluation:
The writing in the style of the character I found hugely helpful. By choosing a subject close to their heart, I found it increasingly easier to find and form opinions on topics, the choices of words they use and how they sound on paper. It also got me to think like her, with naturalism, the inner monologue is crucial, so having to think what to write down got me back into practicing and reciting that inner monologue. I took this form of writing down thoughts further, when having to get into the character for the speed dating task, I chose to write down her thoughts to help get into character, again, it got me to forget my thoughts and replace them with hers, a great way of focusing and getting fully into character. This worked for me, and I will definitely continue to use it in the future, and possibly think of ways to develop it in some form.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)