How Berkoff inspired our Greek Theatre piece

Nearly all aspects of our Greek Theatre piece were Berkoff orientated- with the majority of our movements being very grotesque and Berkovian as a result.

The Oresteia- Greek Theatre Chorus work

As a group, we were given a choice to what extract of the Oresteia script we wanted to do and as a result we were divided into 3 groups- with mine focusing on the chorus persuading Orestes to kill his mother in revenge.

For this, we decided it appropriate to base the piece in a modern day school, therefore fit for contemporary use. This theme, we thought, had lots of potential as we could make it dark and sinister or jolly and fluid (despite it's intentions, they could be perceived as fake or 'plastic happy'; a forced happy with a hidden agenda). The target audience therefore would be young teens (13-15) as it would have to be clear what we are doing as then the audience would have a vivid vision surrounding the themes of the piece. It is also a very mature performance so we were reluctant to speculate going anywhere north of 13.

The text began with 'Let all who have prayed for Justice'- with our focus on 'justice' as we collectively thought this was the main pointer of the text. We discussed about basing the text around the deluded idea of justice and how it is misconceived, where in this case us being the chorus would act as Orestes' conscience and the battle between what is 'right' and what is honourable. Of course, with the chorus being such a major influence there would only be one outcome in the end, for Orestes to murder Aegisthus and Clytemnestra as 'justice' for his father Agamemnon.

Later in our rehearsal period, we thought it appropriate to incorporate some Berkoff-esque clockwork movement going into the scene, humming “ring a ring a roses” in a very sinister tone. Of course, this would be after we came into the setting in role as school kids, putting on a sort of Cockney accent to add to the grotesqueness of the piece, linking even heavier with Berkoff.

'See the throne of Argos today'

I wanted to adopt the idea that the throne should perhaps be the main focus point in this piece of the extract as it shows all the characters involved are almost all in for themselves, besides Orestes, and that is why the chorus play such a major part in this scene- they persuade Orestes to become as dishonourable as everyone else as he rises to his Mother's taunt. How we would present this in a physicalistic manner was easy as throne was seen as the word with the most physical potential. We went straight into position for this line as we wasted no time to really get into the scene.

'Return to the rule of justice.'

As I was seen kneeling in the first two lines, I thought it was time for my role in the chorus and with a powerful line there was no better time to do this I thought. As we planned for me to 'rise up' and everyone else fell below me, addressing the audience would be a key factor at this point as it would further engage them into the piece during a dramatic opening. At first, I was not physical enough in my movement to really add any effect, so Karen suggested to perform the line in a Berkovian manner, therefore I added a more grotesque tone to my voice and swayed side to side (whilst keeping my focus on the audience).

'Be strong, Orestes'

For this we introduced a strong, prominent stance as the rest of the chorus circled around me, with I centre stage.

'When you drive your sword into your mother'

This line my group discussed in depth as we had many ideas surrounding it. Firstly, we had to get me from the centre stage to joining the rest of the chorus, therefore the idea was that I am dragged towards the back on 'When you drive' and would then use Becca as a protagonist and would use the rest of us as 'swords' as we threw our arms forward in rapid motion in the underarms, shoulders and legs. And, as soon as I had the longest arm length and it was easiest for me as I stood at the back, I threw both arms on top of Becca's shoulders. Later, to ensure there was soundscape in the piece, we made the 'sharp sound' as we threw our arms forward and grunted when we took them back.

'With the death-cry of Agamemnon'

We saw it as essential to make the girls lower than the guys as we transition into this line; with every time they repeated 'With the death-cry' (x3) they would hold their stomachs (supposedly in pain/ acting as Clytemnestra) and drop to the floor, with us guys towering over them saying 'of Agamemnon' in canon to perhaps indicate our togetherness- or lack of it. Then, we thought a scream towards the audience would suffice thereafter.

'When she wails 'Orestes my child''

James firstly improvised this line with a dramatic swoon; however most of us thought this too good not to incorporate into the piece as it shows an understanding of melodrama and therefore can be connected with the likes of Jacques Lecoq and Steven Berkoff. After this, James would drag Becky after he is caught with his long swoon and cast her aside.

'Deafen yourself to her voice'

James again acted as the commanding voice on this line as it was almost as he was telling Becky that she should 'deafen herself', with the rest of us acting as the commanded, covering our ears in despair. Then, we would go on to introduce slow-motion into the scene as Becky makes her way into the centre, gradually being surrounded by everyone. Next, we decided to add more sound scape as James starts to pound on his chest with his fist and then I would join in on time, then Pau. This would provide a different tone to the scene as slow-motion can bring quality to a scene if it is done with accuracy and timing- therefore it was essential for us to be moving at the same pace.

'And shout: I belong to my murdered father'

Keeping Becky central, everyone looked down upon her as she rises up and we fall- her acting as Orestes rising up against his Mother.

'Kill her and be done with it'

Becky kneels back down as we whisper, coming to a standing position.

'Your sword is the tool of fate'

Us five swing our fists just before Becky's head...

'You cannot be blamed'

...and we fall around her, caressing her hair saying the line gently...

'Harden yourself, Orestes'

...then Pau, James and I come to standing quickly, dragging each girl with us as we go.

'Like the polished shield'

The girls stand in front, striking a strong pose with their arms

'That reflected the face of the Gorgon’

…then Pau, James and I come up behind them using our fingers as snakes- then all lean into Becca as she says…

'Do it for those who depend on you'

…

'For justice’

We all prop ourselves up at this moment, standing proud and bold as the word ‘justice’ would suggest.

'For the living and the dead'

For this, we presented the living as rising (Katrina, Becky and Becca) and through the gaps between them, the rest of us would fall through representing the dead.

'Do it for the house of Atreus'

James leads again as we all say our line in canon…

'With one twist of your blade'

…and the girls turn us round so they are facing the audience once again

'Dig out the root of the curse'

And then we stretch over the girls until our hands meet…

'Cut through the taproot of the vendetta'

…and James and Pau swing their arms down to mime an axe cutting down on them

'That opens deadly flowers at our doors and windows'

I say this, in the most grotesque manner as we all sway up and down to form a flower- until everybody creates an archway for me to go through and speak up to the audience.

'Split the source of the seed' 

With all of us lined up, we say this in canon…

'With your blade’

…and together we fade back into clockwork and then act as schoolkids enjoying a break until we line up to pull up a chair- then form a row of chairs in front of the audience as if we were in lesson (almost like Forced Entertainment in ‘Bloody Mess’). We would then return to humming “ring a ring a roses” one-by-one to get a very sinister feel at the end as then we would look up to the audience and drop at our final chant.

PERFORMANCE NOTES

- Our first performance was made immensely difficult by the absence of Pau at such short notice that we almost panicked, however recovered  very well as lines such as ‘Cut through the taproot of the vendetta’, I had to quickly join James into whatever the action was he would usually do with Pau.

-Our last performance was again difficult as Becca was made absent, however we had more time to incorporate ourselves into some scenes such as ‘drive your sword’- where Katrina had to step in for her.

Jacques Lecoq and his works

Jacques Lecoq is regarded as one of the twentieth century's most influential teachers of the physical art of acting. He was born in Paris on December 15, 1921, and participated and trained in various sports in his youth.

During World War II he began exploring gymnastics, mime, movement and dance with a group who used performance to express their opposition to the German occupation of France.

After the war, Lecoq then studied mime with Jean Daste, (a former pupil of the acclaimed teacher of mime, Jacques Copeau- perhaps his most treasured influence) who introduced him to masked performance and Japanese Noh theatre.

He left Grenoble and spent six months teaching mask work in Germany, before accepting another teaching position at the University of Padua in Italy. He spent eight years in Italy teaching and working as a creative practitioner and discovered the traditional and popular Italian theatre style of Commedia dell'Arte as well as the tradition of masked chorus work developed in Ancient Greek tragedy.

He opened his own school, the Ecole Internationale de Mime et de Theatre when he returned to Paris in 1956, which has had many homes in Paris over the years and has continued to attract large numbers of students from all over the world.

Lecoq also toured with demonstrations of his physical art of the actor and periodically conducted classes in Britain that had an enormous impact on the development of British theatre as well as influencing comedic acts such as Lee Evans and Michael McIntyre- with both have very similar physical approaches when it comes to their work

Lecoq's work and research has mainly been disseminated through the training he has conducted with the many students who have attended his classes and demonstrations overseas or his classes at his school in Paris. This may be why a myth is often circulated that suggests his methods were somehow secretive or reserved only for his students.

However, he has published numerous articles and interviews, edited a text in French entitled Le Theatre du Geste and his book, The Moving Body outlines a number of his philosophies and approaches. The texts he has produced also indicate why it is so difficult for students to pass on his teachings.

They explain that the training is very practical and very specific for each student because every actor's body and mind has accumulated different tensions and conditioned responses.

Lecoq's training methods therefore focus on releasing preconditioned views of acting and bringing an actor's attention back to ‘playing.'

In his last publication he explained that: “There is a huge difference between actors who express their own lives, and those who can truly be described as players…They have learned not to play themselves but to play using themselves. In this lies all the ambiguity of the actor's work.” The strong emphasis on improvisational activity at the school reinforces the central significance of play and students are introduced to physical exercises, masks and popular theatre that reinforce the distinction between playing and being.

Lecoq and those who now direct training at the school work on the premise that: “A true understanding and knowledge of theatre inevitably requires a profound experience of play”.

Like Konstantin Stanislavski, Lecoq created a place to teach what he believed were important principles of acting. Lecoq described his research into the human body and its movement as his ‘passion' and he pursued this work throughout his life. 

He saw his teaching as ‘a path to his own greater knowledge and understanding of movement' and said that his work with students helped him to discover that ‘the body knows things about which the mind is ignorant'. 

Masked work had a powerful influence on Lecoq's approach to performing (perhaps inspired by his time in Italy from when he discovered and studied Commedia dell'Arte) and he was intrigued with the simple and direct way masks could amplify the physical aspects of a performer and be used to communicate with all kinds of audiences. 

His research and analysis of masks, movement, body language and gesture has had a huge impact on the development of contemporary theatre and his work has popularised genres such as the clown, Commedia dell'Arte, tragedy, and melodrama.

How it relates to our work

Jacques Lecoq was very 'Over the top' physical when it came to portray an emotion- links to our work as, for example, in our piece, there was a section where you could clearly see Katrina, Becky and Becca were distraught as they lowered themselves into an almost foetal position to present their grief. Another example would be when James says 'When she wails 'Orestes my child'' as he over exaggerates portraying the same emotion, however at a more drastic scale.

Lastly, I think our experimentation into placing tights over our heads for effect was done very much in the style of Lecoq as he too loved to play with how he would present a mask. Despite this experiment being unsuccessful in our quest for effect, we are glad we tried this out.

Devised work

THE STIMULUS/ RESEARCH

As a group, we listened to our stimulus 'Let me off Uptown' by the Gene Krupa Orchestra and Anita O'Day to provoke an initial response- collecting ideas to build upon in attempt to make a piece of physical theatre lasting around 30 minutes (5 minutes of physicality for each 10 members of our group). We listened to the track three times; 1 for our first response, 2 to get ideas flowing and to become more familiar with the piece and 3 in order to interact with others and see what the music makes us want to do (so most of us wanted to dance as we felt the urge to).

My first ideas revolve the thought of the Great Depression and the small joys provided by jazz/blues. In addition, the piece reminded me of gangsters of New York in early/mid 1900s as the tune is upbeat and swingy, a popular type of music for the time. We then researched our initial and developed ideas- jazz roots and The Great Depression being my first thoughts.

JAZZ ORIGINS

During my research, I found that Jazz originated in African American communities in late 19th/ early 20th century USA, emerged in the form of independent traditional music and popular music styles. These all linked by common bonds of African and European American musical parentage with a performance orientation. Jazz also spans a period of over a hundred years, encompassing a range of music from ragtime to jazz-rock fusion of the 1970s and 80s, and has been proved to be difficult to define.

STYLES OF JAZZ

New Orleans Jazz began in the early 1910s, combining earlier brass band marches, french quadrilles, ragtime and blues with collective polyphonic improvisation.

In the 1930s, heavily arranged dance-orientated swing bands (much like the Gene Krupa Orchestra) evolved and Kansas City Jazz (had a hard-swinging, bluesy, improvisational style) and Gypsy (a dark, chromatic style of jazz started by guitarist Jean "Django" Reinhardt) were the prominent styles.

Bebop emerged in the 1940s, shifting jazz from danceable popular music towards a more challenging "musician's music" which was played at faster tempos and used more chord-based improvisation.

THE GREAT DEPRESSION FACTFILE

The first thing that came to mind when listening to 'Let Me Off Uptown' was the time period- the 1920s and 1930s coming to mind as the music reminded me of John Steinbeck's novella 'Of Mice and Men' as the song came across jolly and playful yet I couldn't think that there wasn't a deeper hidden meaning behind it (as Of Mice and Men told the story of two friends during the Great Depression and weakness was a reoccuring theme that was expressed in the characters and locations). I say this because, as well as it is a dated song, it came across a tad eerie and creepy. However, I persued My Great Depression idea and found some key facts:

- The Great Depression played a key role in the lives of those in 1930s America as a severe economic depression hit and Unemployment rates rose rapidly, with a quarter of the country out of work.

- It started on September 4, 1929 in the US due to a fall in stock prices

- A stock market crash followed on October 29, known as 'Black Tuesday'

-Primary and Secondary industries such as mining and logging suffered the most

- Itenerant workers roamed America in search for a job and would earn low wages (normally just to be spent on prostitutes)

- Not all countries recovered quickly from this worldwide economic downfall (as most did by the mid-30s) and took until the beginning of the Second World War to achieve economic stability.

CATHOUSE POTENTIAL SCENE

Collectively, my group came up with a range of weird and wonderful ideas ranging from a 1940s cat house to a mental asylum; both of which we put into practice. We started improvising a strip joint/cat house scene where Yasmin came up with the idea that each male (seated) would be allocated a girl and we should start trying with some round-by-through or chair duets (but in this case chair solo as, rather than two chairs put together with the two interacting, this involved only one person being seated and the other being put more in control) but at the same time make it look as if a strip dance is occurring for each of the boys. To ensure this, I stated that we could all change our physicality to match our feelings toward the other person (eg. More abrupt movements, change in facial expression) as I thought it may appear more affective. Furthermore, we had spread out the chairs in order to make greater use of space and in doing so widened the performance area, providing us with more room to experiment in.

MENTAL ASYLUM POTENTIAL SCENE

The second scene idea was led by James and involved mental asylum inmates responding to the stimulus playing in the background. I thought maybe we could then set this piece at the time of the music, however made a group decision that it would provide a more eerie atmosphere if it'd been set in a modern day asylum as the music serves as a dark pointer as it symbolises that we are almost "behind times" and scared of change.

Each person created their own character with a disorder so that  we could improvise how the scene would briefly pan out; for example, I developed a character touching on bipolar disorder/ schizophrenia and would, during our first run, change the way I felt towards the music using facial expressions and abrupt movements.

In order to emulate our enthusiasm towards this scene, we included the energy states and how we could all have different methods of dealing with them according to our chosen "illness". We could incorporate this into the  energy states by how our character would react in the location; I would show this from changing how I would react towards the others and repeat these actions, steadily building up to standing in unison to the sudden halt of the music- replaced by static as we all stand with our heads down.

We made great use of proxemics as we spread out in the space we provided ourselves with to reflect how "apart" and "disbanded" we felt from society and one another. However, we felt that we should not portray these characters in time to the music as it felt too long- so we started from a minute towards the end and provided a more visually satisfying result. In addition, we received constructive criticism from Karen   involving the build of tension- stating that we should collectively make a build up to the static clearer and more defined so the audience could follow the vague storyline.

THE GREAT DEPRESSION POTENTIAL SCENE

Our next idea put into place was based around my idea of the Great Depression. Pau led the idea with me as we thought he could also bring his initial thought of the mafia/ gangsters as they were around the same time period. We admittedly struggled trying to adapt this into physical work so we attempted to tell a basic story of the Great Depression through a series of tableaux (with one person going into the performance space initally with people then joining them, improvising a freeze frame); each one establishing the everyday struggles of those affected by it.

Our first tableau included Logan standing tall in a pivotal position; holding a coin with others circling around him- in awe of just the sight of money as it was harder to come by during that point in time. The second involved James in the foetal position on the floor with Pau standing over him (perhaps to represent the metaphoric power the rich had over the poor) and the rest of the group had a choice whether to stand up to or join Pau to take their place in the social hierarchy- also making great use of levels as the higher you are, the higher your status. Finally, our third tableau saw Pau sit, clicking his fingers with James and Logan happily standing with him doing the same- linking to my other initial thought of Jazz roots as well as representing the (forced?) happiness during this time period, no matter how miniscule it may have realistically been. In contrast, Chloe and Mike in the scene are perhaps seen as the realism behind the 'mask' of fun- the fact that people are still living hopelessly without money and are unable to hold down a job. This we thought was effective as it shows the divide of how people responded to something so clinical in their lives.

SECOND RESPONSE/ GANGSTER BAR SCENE

Prior to our next session our group were paired up to create a mimed physical piece to your second response to the stimulus. For this, I was paired with Becky and we created a small piece based around the antics of the character Arlecchino from Commedia dell'Arte to capture the fun and light hearted side of "Let me off Uptown".

The short sequence saw me in action as Arlecchino (in mask) and  Becky as my dance/ fitness instructor; presenting classic slapstick as Becky would provide various moves in time with the music and I would do my best (worst) to reciprocate these.

I felt our scene was enjoyable to watch judging by audience reaction and feedback as I especially thought that we provoked the response at the correct moments (for example when the conflict between mine and Becky's character heightened to the point of us swearing at each other).

We then reassembled as a group and tried to create an original scene inspired by this activity; my first thought was that we  could use Pau's previous idea of an idea around the Mafia/Gangsters of the 1930s/40s and set a scene in a typical 40s bar (perhaps with the stimulus in the background serving as a reminder to the audience that these are stories from the piece of music AND is also relevant to the setting).

Pau led the idea that the guys should take part as the mafia (besides James as he is treated as an outsider in the scene- to show the brutality and dirty habits of the mafia) with the girls as waitresses; this is shown through the use of masks- with Logan, Mike, Pau and I wearing what we would percieve as 'strong' and 'physically capable' trestle masks to emphasise our togetherness and authority over the rest of the characters as they show high status.

The idea was that James, an innocent man, would walk into the bar which is "owned" by the mafia and how the mafia would react to this with him almost "waltzing" into hostile territory- with a build up of tension through movement into Berkoff-esque Clockwork in attempt to broaden our group's use of practitioner-based work and to provide the scene with quality in the pivotal moments. Our first thoughts were that 'The Mafia' would gang up on James and have a fight scene between the five of us; however we did not have enough time to put this in action and it is likely that we will come back to it in the near future...

LECOQ INSPIRATION/ FORCED COMMEDIA POTENTIAL SCENE

Before our last session of the week, we were thought the 6 energy states of Mime Practitioner Jacques Lecoq, which included:

1. Exhausted (limited body movement, close to the floor/laid down)

2. Neutral (walking normally without telling a story- no facial expression or funny movements)

3. Alert ( likened to the characteristics of a dog- very high energy and aware of surroundings and use of facial expressions should reinforce this)

4. Tragic (as if the worst thing possible had happened- melodramatic approach to this scenario/ distraught shown through rather over the top or minimal movements)

5. Laid back ( "hippie" like movements- loose and fluid with no real purpose or inhibitions)

6. Passionate (walking with purpose and pronounced posture to a distinct place in the room, likened to lovers from Commedia dell'Arte)

This helped me understand more about mime techniques and how to put them in action. We then decided that we would create a scene incorporating this idea and combine it with Commedia dell'Arte as it links in Lecoq's states and is very similar in the aspects that they are both creating comedy through physical theatre. Therefore, we improvised using different Commedia characters in the style of Lecoq to immerse ourselves in performance. Firstly, it started with James addressing the audience of the 'Murder Mystery' genre we were also keen to explore and thought it the perfect time to establish this, where the others (in character) would approach and correct him about his statements. However, James felt this awkward and that it would be hard to convey the characters due to this. So, we then tried combining Lecoq and Commedia with Forced Entertainment as it would then enable us to experiment with more improvisational skills and could perhaps interact with the audience. This worked well besides a few hiccups during our first few runs, however, after setting the basics on storyline, this changed as events in the piece became more fluid and Karen praised us on our efforts in managing time well around our newly developed idea.

CATHOUSE SCENE PART 2

Today we began to revisit there being included a 'Cathouse' scene- except with a more choreographed approach. Yasmin again led the session and thought we could develop the physicality in the scene and the character connections, suggesting the girls this time could go from one seated guy to another to implicate that it is in fact a strip club and character connection is minimal. Furthermore, this gave the group the idea that we could create our own couple scenarios and stories between us as we had five of each gender, which made this a likely storyline.

In addition, this gave us a basis to work on in this scene as the connection between James and Yasmin as a couple could seem strenuous in it as they could explore the sadder aspects of love. Therefore, we thought it suitable for the guys (besides James) in the scene to wear masks to show their unison perhaps against James or the fact that he has a connection with an 'object' in their eyes. On top of this, we also felt very awkward and restricted in what our reactions could be when the girls perform their erotic dances around us, so we thought it safe as we could also play off the masks and infuse with character.

'TAG' BASED SCENE

Next, we experimented with games in order to give us inspiration for a scene. Therefore, we played the traditional children's game 'tag' as it requires high energy to play right in my opinion. The idea based around it was that we could perhaps tell the story of lovers from when they were little to present day. However, we thought this cliché and decided against it. Additionally, we thought this would introduce the performance well as it would immediately gain the attention of the audience and interest them in the rest of the performance.

PAIRED WORK

As our group decided to divide into pairs, we challenged ourselves to create a scene about the different aspects of love; and with two couples already covering affairs and unrequited love, I wanted to do something on the darker spectrum of love. Domestic Abuse sprung to mind when Becky and I were first put together as I thought we could easily adapt the subject to make it physical as it is physical in itself- combined with the fact that we are both strong performers and work well together. Initially, we thought that we could have a transition into the scene where I would drag Becky on to 'I don't care' by Fall Out Boy as it has an upbeat tempo, which would match the tension entering the scene. My first idea for the actual scene involved playing it naturalistically, therefore creating a major contrast towards the rest of the performance. I thought this would be effective as it would serve as a shock to the audience- both visually and in resonance (thinking we could include some harsh lighting to complete the full contrast between the other scenes). However, it came to my attention that many spectators saw it as too much of a contrast and would, as a result, drag the piece down. Therefore, Becky and I changed the tone of the piece to match the rest of the performance; dropping the transition and performing simply through movement.

COURT SCENE

For our last scene, my group and I wanted to leave the audience in suspense and therefore required us to accommodate a significant ending to the Mafia after their capturing in the last scene. In order to create the tension we wanted, we thought it best if the scene did not include any sound effects or music as it simply makes it us facing the audience. Additionally, to symbolise how members of the Mafia are now disgraced, we showed their significance and authority through the use of masks- and when the charges are read out, they are taken off depending on which one applies to them (this is decided on what their character has done throughout the duration of the performance). For example, as I fought with Becky in our paired scene and helped do the same to James in the clockwork scene, my mask was taken off when the assault charge was read out.

Furthermore, to apply greater intimacy between us actors and the audience, the idea was that the girls would disappear with the masks and then return to just beyond the stage and look outwards, saying 'guilty' whilst doing this. Us guys then draw the curtains, enclosing the space between performers and audience, then we bond hands in unison until James says 'guilty' out towards the audience, triggering the rest of us to exit through the theatre doors. However, this idea was changed as we felt something was too awkward about it; this time the girls drawing the curtains (leaving the guys behind) and lining up through the theatre stairs. Next, each member of the Mafia is then shown to be forced from the curtain into the enclosed performance space, taking a stance to represent our crime (Logan and James separated yet looking for each other, Pau looking disturbingly at audience members with Mike and I clenching our fists menacingly). The girls would then demote this sense of pride by 'getting their own back' as it were, and slap us; this creates a powerful atmosphere as it seems the Mafia have lost all that they had at the start as the audience witness a dramatic fall from grace.

PERFORMANCE NOTES

We were able to perform our piece to the rest of the class and acting year 2's and their responses included positive feedback along with some constructive criticism; they said:

• We had a great opening scene as it was lively and would engage any age group due to its constant energy and focus
• The 'Slip' couple scene between James and Yasmin was excellent- described as 'beautiful' to watch, however mixed opinions followed as it was said to be 'clunky'
• To tidy up fight scene as it looked to all be set in one small part in the stage whereas we could use the whole thing in future
• We could adapt the club scene so that it appears Berkovian as it may bring more meaningfulness to the scene as it lacks it slightly
• To choreograph clockwork scene to make it less reliant on music (change walking pattern an option)
• Match each others speeds when it comes to slow motion- otherwise it looks badly rehearsed
• Fight scene intro and movements were outstanding and provided a good transition into the Benny Hill chase scene
• Overall, that we had utilised a full range of materials based around the stimulus and made good use of provided examples given in class

Business- My Own Theatre Company

BREIF

I have been tasked with creating a theatre company that will perform at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2016. In order to do this, I must cover the basic aspects on how to create such a company and to establish a company structure that explains job roles incorporated in the business.

Stage Manager (http://www.aact.org/stage-manager)

The role of a typical stage manager involves giving organisational support to the director. They also give practical support to actors, designers and stage crew during rehearsals- ultimately making sure the production that they are working on runs smoothly.

During a production, a successful stage manager would also be seen as an assistant director due to the amount of support he provides to the director, making the job role one of the most important during performance. In addition, they would keep track of logistical and scheduling details in order for the director to focus more on their job. Furthermore, they would record notes from actors, communicate events and ensure all sets, equipment and props are ready for use during rehearsals. To enter the field as a stage manager, many begin and train as an assistant and progress- if they have suitable stage work experience going into it (for example working as a stagehand or an actor/ performer of any kind) however, most entry requirements for even smaller scale companies include a minimum of a Level 4 HNC Diploma in Performing Arts (Production) and foundation degrees in theatre practice, technical theatre or stage management.

To train for this job role, it would be suitable to attend Birmingham School of Acting (BSA) and taking a three-year BA Honours degree in stage management. Alternatively, a stage management course (from 1-3 years- depending on how much training is needed) at Edinburgh Stage Management School could seem more compelling to any post-graduates looking to pursue a career as a stage manager.

The average income for a stage manager working in the UK stands at around 27,000 per annum, however a heavy 49% of these are self-employed- suggesting that you need not always need to look for work in this particular industry but provide yourself with it instead by perhaps starting an independent small-scale depending on funding.

Personally, I would find this role restricting as I love to be on stage and perform. In addition, I think the average pay for a Stage Manager is shocking compared to how much work they have to put in to a production.

Director (http://www.aact.org/director)

The director is a vital part in any production and mostly involves bringing together the script, the set, actors, costuming, lighting, sound and music. In order to achieve this, a strong director needs to interpret the script, cast the production they are staging, collaborate with designers, plan rehearsals and guide the actors in their work during rehearsals- which usually sees the director work very closely with the actors.

The role of Director would interest me as it involves being a very creative and imaginative individual who works well with others however maintains a high work ethic and thrives on pressure.

Marketing Officer (http://www.aact.org/marketingpublicity-director)

Being a marketing officer involves managing or assisting in promoting the productions, services and public image of the theatre company they are representing. However, it is not always straight forward as responsibilities would differ according to the company that has employed them. But most marketing officers would be involved in the advertising side of a company/production.

During production, you could have many marketing officers with separate instructions/roles depending on how large the production. For example, if it were for the West End, there could be marketing officers with roles including; advertising, publications, public relations and media relations. In the case of advertising, a marketing officer would consult with an artistic director in order to capture the artist idea of the production's public image as well as the marketing officers' research behind it. In addition, a marketing officer may be tasked with organising promotional events and conferences or arranging media interviews- again depending on how the company divides up responsibilities.

Actor (https://www.prospects.ac.uk/job-profiles/actor, http://www.aact.org/actor)

An actor communicates a character or situation to an audience through speech, body movement and language. This usually involves having to work closely with the director in order to interpret his insight on a scene to perform it in the way they have envisioned it.

Various Careers include being involved in radio, theatre-based work, television and film.
Typical work activities include liasing with an agent, job seeking and networking and discussing interpretation with his/her peers.

Sometimes an Actor could face a lengthy spell away from work, therefore need to occasionally work for free in order to get recognition and stand a better chance for work in the future. Therefore, an Actor would need to be patient and professional; especially at the worst of times.

To train as an Actor, you would benefit from training at drama schools such as the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA), the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA) or Guildford School of Acting (GSA) to name a few.

Professional Stage and film/television actor Danny Sapani states "The big challenge as an actor for me has been to convey the full force of the character from behind a bear’s head mask." as he says how he is typecast as a 'noble warrior' and recalls how in rehearsals, he learned to use the mask as a way of amplifying what he does rather than as a shield to hide behind. Danny attended the Central School of Speech and Drama, graduated in 1992 and has barely been out of work since

Wanting to become a Professional Actor myself, I am aware how strenuous this role is and how hard it is to 'make it' in the industry as it is such a broad market- however this I believe will only make me work harder to achieve my goal.


Choreographer (https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/advice/planning/jobprofiles/Pages/choreographer.aspx)

In order to pursue a career as a professional stage choreographer, you'll need to achieve a high level of dance training and experience. To make a start in the profession, many train as professional dancers and later combine this with the cheorography (especially in smaller companies). Most start this process at a young age, frequently taking graded exams then moving on to a vocational dance school in order to attend a three-year degree or one-year post graduate diploma in professional dance or musical theatre.

In my opinion, the role of Choreographer does not interest me as I am not dance-orientated, however, I very much appreciate the role they play in a production.


DATABASE


Equity
tel:02073796000, email:info@equity.org.uk

The UK's trade union for professional performers and creative practitioners and are known for their professionalism nationally and are a respected leading industry organisation. Equity generally do work with, an on behalf of, their members working across all areas of the entertainment industry- supporting a range of cultural community of members negotiating their terms and conditions including fee structures. They also provide a team of well trained, experienced full-time staff when it comes to advice and representation.

Other Businesses involved
Spotlight, The Stage

Why Equity?
I have chosen equity because they offer several benefits for crucial roles of the company- including protection of their clients- meaning they discuss with Equity before signing a contract for any local or overseas work and advise members on non-Equity contracts.
They also reserve member's professional names as long as it is not in use by another member, as names are crucial for the distribution of royalties and other payments, credits and casting clarity. In addition, Equity offer Careers Advice, a Bullying Reporting line, Legal support and provide Accident and Backstage insurance along with on line directories to support their working life. Being a member makes a positive statement about your commitment to your possible career path and place in the industry. An Equity card is universally recognised as a symbol of a member's professional status.

Company Roles Involved
Actors, Stage Managers, Dancers

Musicians Union
tel:02078405537

A globally renowed firm that represents over 30,000 artists working in all the sectors of the business, Musicians Union provides a range of services to tackle the issues raised by musicians in and out of work. Its full time officials are available to assist its members with any immediate problems such as copyright protection, contractual advice or the recovery of unpaid fees to crucial work in health and safety.

Other Businesses involved
Equity- provides a similar service, however just for musicians. In contrast, a joint Actor/ Musician could benefit from both businesses by becoming a member.

Why Musicians Union?
I have chosen Musicians Union because they too provide a very good service to the crucial roles in the company- however more specifically the musical side of performance. Services include; Insurance guaranteees (2,000 of instrument insurance cover, 10 million public liablity insurance cover, professional expenses cover- help when dealing with tax authorities and personal accident cover), Legal advice (Contract advice and negotiation service, trade union representation for problems at work and partnership advisory service- when working with other musicians) and Artist/ Client recognition (will forward you to other unions to ensure as the artist, you are well known and are provided with a mixture of job oppurtunities, improves your musician rights).

Company Roles Involved
Composers, Musicians

Stage Style Costumes
tel:07739364911, email:stagestylecostumes@gmail.com

A quality local costume supplier with over 12,500 high range products, Stage Style Costumes are a dedicated business with 40 years of experience and service under their belts. They supply costumes for any event for their client.

Other Businesses involved 
BBC- Stage Style Costumes have supplied this broadcasting giant with many of their props and costumes.

Why Musicians Union?
I have chosen Stage Style Costumes because they have extensive experience in their field and always support their potential client's needs- working within their budget and will give you advice surrounding this. They also deal with outfitting both young and adult casts and have a large selection of youth production costume sets.

Company Roles Involved 
Stage Manager, Production Manager, Scenic Artists

My Vocal Development Programme/ Voice Work

MY VOICE- ANALYSIS

My voice is naturally deep and therefore I am restricted to a low (and perhaps trapped) voice; and am also vulnerable to mumbling as I tend to speak at a very fast pace. This affects my performance as I can come across as very quiet although what I would be doing physically might contradict that. In attempt to widen my pitch ability, I shall focus on a series or exercises to support my voice and strengthen my overall speech. These exercises include tongue twisters such as "Chuck a chop of chicken or chuck a chipotle chilli up" or "Round and round the ragged rock the ragged rascal ran". Tongue twisters are proved to turn our brains on to fully pronounce each letter of each word and as a result, speak clearly and fluently without any major struggle- avoiding the mumbling. In addition, to get my higher resonators in shape, I could try humming through the nose and head; however starting from the chest as that is where it sits comfortably and can progress from there. Furthermore, gently tapping the sinuses supports this exercise as you are then preparing your resonators for action

MONOLOGUE/ PROGRESS

For my monologue, I have decided to read the character 'Mum' in Steven Berkoff's play 'East'- segment 'Mum's Speech'. The passage explains the Mum's role in her 'run of the mill' family and her place in society as she talks fondly about her television programmes and moans about her husband and dreams of what her life could've been with her ideal partner-just to return to reality quickly with a groan from her husband. I have chosen this particular monologue to read as it really stuck out to me when we were doing research into Berkoff- and I thought the character interesting as well as complicated as she has so many dynamics to her- the most obvious being that she has to be played by a man. This would provide me a varied way of portraying her- I could go down the route of playing her as she was at the time of the original performance or nowadays- however not much different, the script and perhaps the character's mannerisms would change or be slightly altered. However, I did not want to focus on this now as it was the voice I am going to be marked on, nonetheless it may guide me to improve my performance vocally if I am fully embodied as the eccentric character.

This week I performed my monologue to Karen and the class. For my mini-performance I used Logan as the dad and therefore my husband in the scene; I thought this may bring the attention to my character's journey in the speech and how it is very mental and the husband is there as a reminder that it is not in any shape or form physical or realistic. He is also there as a physical reminder that she is trying to reach out to her dreams, but there he is on her shoulder- almost dragging her down.

However, I was not yet fully adjusted to the script when I performed and therefore struggled with presenting, faulting and stuttering at main points in the speech and as a result, the character and style of the monologue was not really put across to the audience. In addition, I felt incredibly awkward as it was mistake after mistake in my mind and, instead of the script acting as support, I completely relied on it and that really hindered my performance and let me down massively.

Karen noticed that my performance was not up to its usual standard and said that I could really do with introducing the Berkoff-like movements and making sure that it is clear that the voice is actually in her head and she gets carried away.

I took the constructive comments and started to rewrite the script to contemporise it so that it would have the effect for modern audience as it did in 1975- when 'East' was first produced.

For this I firstly updated the television programmes that Mum talks of fondly; so that contemporary audiences would understand what the character was actually on about as the script has a tendency to jump from point to point as it is Berkoff and therefore very un-naturalistic. This entailed changes such as turning ‘On the Buses, What the Papers Say and Sunday Night at the London Palladium’ into ‘Downton Abbey, The X Factor and Poirot’; and then adding movements to the shows as Karen said it would make the piece less still and bring it to life. Therefore I would take my new additions and apply actions to represent the show; for example for Downton Abbey I would adjust my stance and poke my chest out and stiffen my lip to look ‘pompous’- the idea that that would be mum’s opinion on the dialect of the show as everyone is very well spoken. Then, for ‘Hawaii Five-O’ (which obviously wasn’t in need of changing as it is still on TV along with ‘University Challenge’) I focused on the action of the show and mimed drifting in a car- by placing both hands out and ‘steering’ frantically- then pretending to fire a gun. I plan to practice this piece to show to Karen next week.

This week I introduced my vocal exercise to the class and it was fair to say that most of the group struggled with the pronunciation of the ‘ch’ sounds in ‘chuck a chop of chicken or chuck a chipotle chilli up’- much like I did at first. However, during rehearsals for ‘Earthquakes in London’, I have noticed that I struggle with one line in particular that comes in Act Four when my character has his third and final encounter with Katrina’s character Sarah; it comes at the beginning of the scene where Katrina says ‘I’m feeling really good thank you’ after the character’s night out the day before, where they form a more than professional bond (as they meet through a business agreement). I respond to this with ‘Stronger constitution than the country you’re running. Not many people can say that.’ It is noticeable that I mispronounce the first line as it has been brought up that I say it too quickly and therefore I go back to my previous flaw of mumbling; as a result, I have been practising this line in order for me to execute it perfectly when it matters most- the performance. I can then ensure that I include a phrase like this in my vocal plan so that it can challenge me.

The build-up of phlegm and saliva in my mouth is a recurring problem when performing, yet it has got much better in time; ‘The Wardrobe’ and ‘The Cherry Orchard’ along with the Greek Chorus work provides a great example as I really struggled with‘s’ sounds put together in a line, especially noticeable when I attempted to speak Jewish in ‘The Wardrobe’. This may be because I have a slight lisp (perhaps caused by the build-up of phlegm and saliva in my mouth) which I had not noticed until recently, which would make sense as I am exploring my voice more compared to when I started the course. However, in ‘The Cherry Orchard’ it was diction that I struggled with as I was adjusting to a bigger stage space thus I had a tendency to be very quiet whilst upstage- above all when I had to engage in a kissing scene with Georgia; I felt it very hard to project whilst in such an intimate space.

On the other hand, during my Greek Chorus performance, I had none of my previous problems and spoke very clearly with great projection. This may be due to the fact that the piece was so grotesque that I grew into the bizarre and flamboyant nature of the characters that I was portraying at different times. As a result, I feel that my voice has strengthened both in diction and in clarity.

Physical Theatre- Frantic Assembly

'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time'- Choreography

Having seen 'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time' at the Gielgud Theatre, I have seen first-hand the effect Frantic Assembly have on a performance. The visuals were amazing as they transformed the hypothetical plan for main character Christopher to fly into practice and, with clever use of positioning and lighting, created a unique environment on stage and engaged the audience even further into the performance. To do this, they put one of their adapted techniques 'learning to fly', also touching on 'jet packing' as they had to create the effect that the character was floating in outer space. The positioning of Christopher also saw him above his peers and therefore higher in authority, giving him more control although he was heavily relying on the people holding him so far up.


This was also a heart-warming scene in the play as main character Christopher deals with his severe autism, and the challenges he faces in life after a dramatic turn of events at the start of the play. In many ways, this scene can symbolize the hope in the play and provides the audience with more of an insight on Christopher's intentions and how innocent the character is besides his annoying qualities.

In addition, Frantic's 'walking on walls' method was also used during the performance as the walls surrounding him throughout the play may represent inside Christopher's head as people on the autistic spectrum see things as they are and tend to be tidy and well-planned people. This is infused by the performance space being very simplistic and representing a box-like space therefore linking to how Christopher may see everyday life. 'Walking' on the walls told us that Christopher was confined only to his head and represents how he is unbound from society and usually left to his own devices. However, this says that, as the play goes on, Christopher becomes more socially understanding yet is perplexed by the very concept of it as he sees it nothing more than illusion and prefers the company of his train set.

Frantic's round-by-through was used frequently during performance to represent the obstacles Christopher had to overcome/ the things in his way or just simple as one person acting as a door to Christopher's house. However, this technique was also used effectively when Christopher would feel uncomfortable in social situations. For example, when he gets lost in London and is panicked at a train station, actors would close in on Christopher, effectively trapping him- reflecting his feelings of isolation and fear.