Final evaluation - 12/2/15

Today we performed East End Tales, and after 17 weeks of rehearsal, I was very pleased with our performance. We were being assessed on our storytelling, physical and technical skills that we used to bring the play to life. The play itself was very physical and the director aimed to have everyone on stage at all times and for the actors to create the set to give the play a minimal look. The only props used were torches, red stools and umbrellas.

We used many improvisations to develop our characters and understanding of the script. In some rehearsals we'd take sections of one tale and have to give it a new meaning, or stage it with just a few lines. For example Susanna and I created a scene where the mother was trying to contact her daughter in America. Because there wasn't much information on these characters, we had to create a past for them. Other times, we chose a character from a tale and created a monologue about a time in their lives. We also looked at how the script created atmosphere, which helped us when we came to say them. I also think that being given a tale to direct ourselves, allowed us to take all the creative choices we'd learnt from the improvisational exercises and put it into one tale. It also showed our skills in adapting to a style, the director gave the play a specific physical style and we were able to adapt that into the pieces we did ourselves.

Thinking back on the play, our relationship as a cast was very strong. We were able to cover each other when we had forgotten our lines and were also comfortable with each other to have fun with the piece and input ideas into the staging. Moments that worked really well, were ones which included lights. The lights would emphasise the drama and directed the audience's attention to different parts of the stage which would engage them and keep them guessing. I think we worked particularly well in tale 4, where most of the cast created the surroundings of the scene. It helped the audience have a feel for where the characters were. I also really enjoyed tale 5, where we almost created a soundscape. The scene had Harmony as the tv and Jake and Shareen as the fighting couple with everyone saying their lines on top. I think it was effective because it showed how crowded life was for that family and also how desperate they were to block out the abuse rather than deal with it. I think the cast worked well for that because those who weren't speaking, were reacting to the sounds around them.

My favourite moment was when Roseby went under the sheet in tale 3 and she was lit by mobile lights. The darkness gave the tale an eerie feel and the fact that Roseby was the dead body from the past and Matayo was looking down on her. It was as if we were seeing into his mind, and it suggested that every day he has to deal with seeing this dead body because he can't shake the guilt.

A moment that another actor created, was when Taffie was carried across the stage as the dead woman. It was effective because it allowed the audience to think about how serious the situation is and also how real it is. That people do die from domestic abuse and there are witnesses that refuse to help in fear of making it worse. It was probably the most emotive part of the play because this tale follows this women through her relationship and you become quite attached and sympathetic for her.

I think the main weakness of the play was the transitions and also where we performed. The actual tales, I am really proud of but the transitions could have been smoother and quicker. The pauses between tales made the play look less professional and if we had worked on them more the play would have been slicker. Because we performed in such a small space, there was no backstage and the cast hung behind the audience. It made it quite cluttered and also made it a struggle for people to get on and off stage. Because of the thrust staging, when a character couldn't get off stage it then distracted the audience or even blocked their view of what was going on, on stage.

This term, I really improved on my vocal skills and also my creative staging. I feel as if because I only had random lines that were dotted throughout a tale, it challenged me to add character and objective to that line which I feel as if I for filled. When we were directing our own tale, I feel as if I contributed to the physical theatre and felt more comfortable suggesting ideas for the tale. I became more comfortable to make my movements more animated when I had to present the feeling of the piece through physical theatre. I need to improve on my character development, especially in tale 4 when I was the girl with the umbrella, I felt as if I could have pushed myself further. Looking back, I should have concentrated on the objective of each line and thinking about how my character felt and what she was thinking at that time.

To conclude, I have really enjoyed doing the play and I think my imagination confidence blossomed during the development of the play. Whilst i still need to improve on my characterization, I feel as if i have developed as an actor during my time learning the play.

29/1/15 - Lesson Evaluation

a few of the blocking notes i made in my script

22/1/15 - Lesson Evaluation

Lesson Review - 15/1/15

Today we finished tale 5 and continued the work we're doing on tale 6. As tale 5 is quite long, it did take us a while to get through but now I am confident with the blocking and the atmosphere that needs to be created. There is still quite a lot left to do on tale 6. Everyone has lots of ideas, we just need to put them in and polish them.

We all defiantly had a lack of focus when working on tale 6 so it didn't develop as much as it could have. After going over what we had done last lesson, we then carried on up to the line, "guess thats my round then". We decided to split of into partners to become the tired women and sly man. We do need to go over that section because we haven't gone over it many times.

In tale 5 we continued from where we became animals in a zoo. Once everyone exists, the stage becomes a cafe where Ella bumps into the last who is played by Taffy. Taffy walks around the stage with an empty plan whilst everyone narrates. Towards the end, when the women dies, Taffy is carried by 10 people as if she's in a coffin being carried to her grave. I think that fact that Taffy is circling the stage makes it very real. It really digs in the fact that this women is being abused and has lost her children because of that. When Taffy's being carried, there is silence which defiantly has an impact because it doesn't allow anyone to be distracted by someones voice. The focus is soulless on the women. 

Lesson Review - 6/1/15

In tale 1, I need to make sure my lines aren't monotone. Each line needs to have the same amount of energy and continue the story. Through the christmas holidays, I think I successfully learnt my lines and crew for this tale. I also think, especially in tale 6, I need to work on what I'm doing when I'm not talking because to continue my characterisation and to make the setting of the pub look realistic, I need to be doing something whilst another person is speaking. I need to look like I'm an average person having a drink in the pub.

My group were doing tale 6. We began by deciding that everyone who was speaking was the same person, we portrayed this by having a cup.  When speaking, the person will have a cup and then pass it onto the next person speaking. When not speaking, everyone is standing at the bar, drinking, as the scene is set in a pub. When Jake starts to describe the warm tired women, we go into two diagonal lines to form a pyramid, with Jake at the top. We all then become the characteristics that Jake is describing, this carries on till Taffie finishes speaking. We then separate and go back to drinking at the bar. On Alex's line, "but then a scuffle makes me look up", we all look up to the back of the room. At the back there will be a sheet with two people behind it. We all then say the line "shit", and on that line, the lights turn off and lights are put on behind the sheet to show the silhouettes of the two people who are playing the women and the man. Alex continues speaking whilst Jake beatboxes in the background. When Oliver starts speaking, Jake's beatboxes turns into a heartbeat. Gradually everyone joins in by beating on their chests, we get faster and faster until Oliver says the line "like one big creature". At that point we all huddle in the middle to become the monster and shout, "she looks like your fucking mum".

To develop our tale, I think we need to work on out timing so that we all know exactly what to do and what at what point. As we rehearse more, we will become more confident with the blocking and our lines which will make the scene look better. 

18/12/14

For the prologue, I'm a headlight which doesn't need much characterisation, although I do add to the staging as I am creating the taxi. In retrospect, it is important because I am how the protagonist makes a living.

Because in tale 1 we are creating a character with our lines, I am an average teenage girls who maybe spends a lot of her time on her phone and is on social media because each line I say is either a phone call, tex or selfie. I could be referring to past relationships I've had and how I my dream boyfriend would be. But also what the east end is like and how girls imagine it to be.

For tale 3, I have 3 different characters. At first, I'm in the pub having a drink with friends and then I become a painter where I then sell my trade to someone in the audience. Toward the end i become a witness to what Jack does, as I'm the one who covers the body with a sheet. We are also watching over Jack, he feels guilty because of what he's done and its as if we are constantly watching over him and we know what he's done which makes him feel worse.

In tale 4, I am the girl who helps the old women with her shopping, making me quite an aware and caring person as I take the time to look for her groceries. She steps out of her comfort zone and also doesn't conform to the stereotypes of her generation. Most teenagers would just rush past whereas she decideds to take them time to help this lady with her shopping. It shows how we could all do this and it doesn't take much just to help a woman cross the road and get her shopping for her. Towards the end it shows the loneliness of my character as she comes home and sits by herself. It also shows how what she has done is an award to herself, and her dad shouts at her for forgetting his fags but he doesn't know what good she's done and how she has helped someone in need.

In tale 5, I am the child who hears domestic abuse going on in the house next to hers. I think my character knows whats going on but relies on her parents to know what to do, and since they decide to ignore it, so does she. Growing up in this environment, my character has learnt to deal with the anxiety of having abuse going on next door. The line "just a domsestic", said by Lloyd who plays the same character, suggest this is a normal thing and is something my character has grown up with and had to get used to.

I have chosen 4 lines to do the objective of:

He'd smile and say - I am saying this to explain to the audience what Jack would be like if you first met him.
But I go to my room and shut the door - my character has just ignored her dad and just wants to be by herself.
Being lonely - at this point in the play me and the old women are both on stage, by ourselves in our different houses. As we say this line together, it shows that even though we are of completely different ages we both are in the same lonely environment and feel the same way.
Against OUR wall - because the abuse is now effecting their wall and their house, it shows the responsibility they have for this women's livelihood.

13/12/14 - Lesson Review

An ensemble is a group of people working together to create something. For an ensemble to be successful, everyone needs to be focused and listen not only to the instructions given but also to each other as i one person messes up it has an effect on everyone's performance.

My favourite ensemble is tale 3 because I love the use of lighting and how Matayo is the character that's being described. I think because we're all the narrators it creates different dynamics as our voices are all different. My favourite part of the ensemble is when Matayo is in the middle spinning around and all our lights are facing towards him, I think it's clever because the audience can forget we're even there and feel as if it's just Matayo and our voices.

For tale 3 we have created a pub, where we're all drinking and laughing. Once the music tops we start  saying the tale, after the line "a bit of this, a bit of that", we go to a person in the audience and speak to them as if we've doing a job for them, for example I go up to someone and talk to them about how their paint job won't take long. Once Matayo slams his stool, we form a circle and light Matayo with the flashlights on our phones. We then continue to narrate the play and when the line "but his past is where it's really snowing", Roseby enters the circle and lies under a white sheet, acting as the guy he killed in the tale. On the line "the loudmouth routine is just a disguise", Roseby moves out of the circle and Matayo takes the sheet and uses it as a blanket.

At the beginning of the tale I am in the pub having a beer, talking to my friends and then I switch to a narrator along side everyone else. The atmosphere is light hearted but once we light Matayo it becomes quite eerie as the story talks about an accidental murder. What adds to the mysterious atmosphere is when Roseby lies on the floor covered by a sheet and acts as the dead body.

In tale 1 and 2, how we said our lines weren't really relevant for the tale, especially the girls tale when some are said as selfies. In this tale, we have created a character and atmosphere that tells the story, it's also the first tale where boys and girls work together.

For tale 4, it start with everyone walking around the stage with their umbrellas, they then assemble in the middle and crouch to the floor covered by the umbrellas. We haven't developed this scene any further. In this tale I am the person that goes to get my dad some fags and then ends up helping an old lady with her shopping. So far in this piece I've been outside what the ensemble is doing, for example, I am standing in the corner whilst everyone is crouched on the floor.

Over the past few weeks I have developed my skills in physical theatre because the play heavily involves this. I feel as if I can use my body to create staging and add interest to the play, I have also discovered that I can respond to instructions quickly. As we have set a lot of the scenes without knowing our lines, I can be given instructions do it fast enough for the scene to carry on with enough pace.

Lines that sum up each line:

Prologue: Knoworramean?
Tale 1: can stick up for himself
Tale 2: but works to live, doesn't live to work
Tale 3: you can see all of this if you look in Jack's eyes
Tale 4: nobody's ever helped me before

I chose the line from the prologue because it is the most repeated line in that tale and also shows how they're expected to speak, quite common because three words have ben merged into one. Tale 1, 2 and 3, they are all building a character during it, so the lines I chose explain that character. The first tale, shows the independence of this boy and how he doesn't rely on anyone but also doesn't really have anyone to rely on. For tale 2, it shows how she has to work to survive and has to put that before her happiness even though there is so much more she'd like to do with her life. For tale 3, I chose that lines because it shows how people aren't always what they seem, Jack may look like a certain person at first glance but if you look in his eyes you see something else. It also shows how he can't fully hide his past. For tale 4, I think this line shows how anyone can help someone and also how unhelpful society is to think in this women's whole life no one has ever helped her.