barmy_charly (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} barmy_charly) wrote,@ 2007-05-14 07:48:00 |
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Perfomance
Date
Venue
Director
: Katie Mitchell: The Lyttleton, National Theatre: 30th April 2007Characterisation
Scene
Performers
Accused: Jonah Russell
Lawyer: Liz Kettle
Interigator 1: Zubin Varla
Interigator 2: Michael Gould
Description of Scene
Actor’s Performance
Proxemics
Physicality
Gesture
Facial Expression
Vocal Techniques
Scene
Description of Scene
Actor’s Performance:
Proxemics
Physicality
Gesture
Facial Expression
Vocal Techniques
Scene
Description of Scene
Actor’s Performance
Proxemics
Physicality
Gesture
Facial Expression
Vocal Technique
: Monotone, high-pitched, intending to sell, despite language barrier.: Constantly smiling, trying too hard to sell. Eventually, seems unnatural and has opposite effect.: opening and welcoming (Throwing out her hands dramatically). Glamorous feeling important technique in advert.: confident and appropriate. Important to appear this is the way to do her job.: Isolated, middle of screen, advertising a car - independance and strong character.: [Dina Korzun]: DK standes alone, in front of screen displaying car as if sitting in front seat.: ‘Car Senario’: Rased pitch = pace of scene, until hysterics. High-pitched, breathy and quick = franticness.: 1st neutral and emotionless, became angry and frantic, then scared and upset (tears): 1st calm, as scene progressed, became more uncontrolled and manic.: Strong posture, shoulders back. Weakened as pace rose.: Alone, could be indicator of feeling alone. End - lay shoulder to shoulder with other dead people = lose of identiry in death.[Katie Dunchene]: War-torn city, woman fleeing. In backseat of car is her child, in two plasic bags.: ‘Child in Two Bags Senario’: 1st, slow paced, questioning technique, tention building. Confident. Scene progressed, pace increased.: 1st, ZV=relaxed, naturalistic facial expression. Tention builds=shows on his face.: Lack of gesture from ZV = not wanting to give anything away, keeping pressure on defendant. Immovible object - rases tention.: Contrast: ZV attemp to look calm and relaxed, leaning back, and him tensed and curled over when there is tention in the scene.: Tug of war effect, back and forth. ZV leans formard, trying to inerrogate and intimidate JR. Battle of wills, trying to break the other’s resolve. Relationship established.: [ZV]: USL, four performers around a table, 2 facing 2. Police Station. JR being questioned about Annie: : ‘Dectective Senario’
Use of Forms
Costume changes on stage
Direct Address
Ensemblement Playing
Multi-role
: Used throughout. Again, actors working together, instead of leading and supporting. Made the scenarios feel separate from each other, only linked by subject matter.: Used throughout. Again, improvised feel and the actors are all working together, instead of leading and supporting.: Used during first senario [“The Pitch“]. Made the audience feel involved, and that the piece is directly at them.: Used throughout, mainly by acteress changing into red dress. Gives the performance an almost improvised feel, making the audience believe the piece is tailored for themselves.Director’s Aims/Exploration of Ideas
‘To explore the extent to which our identities are broken down, impacted upon and filtered through media representations.’
Idenities
No particular actress played Anne - view of her is always fluid, always changing. See her as a concept, not a character.
Consumer Culture:
Terroism and Violence;
Tention between illusion and reality:
Media representation:
Celebraty obbsession:
Porn Star Senario - celebraties v. different from what they seem. Controlled by press and fans.
Suicide Artist Senario - see above.
House set at beginning - shutting out reality.
Seems unrealistic - full of underlying means and messages.
‘Child in Two Bags Senario’ - violence described v. matter-of-fact. Recorded vioce = lack of emotion.
Annie as a terroist - treated as a joke by her family - Terroism is something to laugh about.
Anny the car - example of advertising. Multinational.
:Suicide Artist Scenario [Artist’s main art form is recording all her suicide attempts] - seen throught the media’s eye as a bold new art form from a rising new star, instead of something sick and perverted from a troubled young woman.
Use of Screens - eye was always drawn to them, so audience always saw what cast and crew wanted them to see. Mirrors RL - we ‘see’ what the media want us to, as they are our main way of gathering information.
Charactisation
Main Genre: Pantomime
Form/Convention | Moment in the action | Quote | Intended effect/meaning for the audience |
Aside | |||
Direct Address | |||
Song - example 1 | |||
Song - example 2 | |||
Gender Role Reversal | |||
Double Entendres | |||
Audience Participiation | |||
Context
Euripides
V. modern for his times - vaue of war, nature of the gods, and distinction between people v. common themes in his works. Lso used socratic philosophy.
One of the first playwrights to write women as real people, istead of 2D heroines.
Production:
Our Eu. uses references to the gods v. light handedly, such as dismissive promises (‘I swear by the gods‘). Enphasised by Chris’s dismissive hand gestures.
Also uses the gods to exagerate (‘Oh Zeus, oh Zeus, what shall I do this day?’). Parody of real Eu.’s beliefs. Emphasised by Chris falling to his knees, CS and raising arms to the heavens.
Athenian Women
Rich women expected to stay at home all day, v. fircely protected by husbands. Poor women, not so much, and might have t work if to needed.
Performance - Positive Role:
CL’s speech - basic underliying message, esp. the end comparison - women can do anything a man can do, sometimes even better.
TW not being taken in by Mn. and Eu.’s deception - not stupid. (‘You can’t fool me by talking Egyptian’)
Negative Role:
Woman’s religious ceremonies - v. long and OTT - parody of men’s ceremonies. Also take the god’s v. seriously, unlike the men (Esp. Eu. and his light handed treatment to them)
Mn.’s speech, with his beliefs that women are uncontrollable, deviant, thieving sexual maniacs. Mn. def. thinks these are true, emphasised by his smirk.
Religious Ritual:
Religion v. important to Anicent Greeks.
Parodied in Act 1, Scene 2, w/ women being over soleme w/ their prosesstion (Ryan and ’Love Train’ = comical moment) and comical movements for the prayer to the gods (Fish-filled frenzied sea). Kept quite simple and soleme in contrast to Mn. Busterling about, pretending to know what to do.
Song and Dance:
Used familer tunes (Vinderloo, All That Jazz, Supercalyfradulous, Do, a Deer), recognisabe to the audience.
All That Jazz - added by us at beginning to end-of-Act-1 speech by CL - set tone for speech.
Super… comical tune, fitted the words really well.
Interpretation of Character
Sc. - v. racist and stereotypical character, pervertedness emphasised by phallus.
Cl. - v. stereotypically gay.
Mythological characters - Eu. as Menelaos and Perseus + Mn. as Helen and Andromeda.
Stage Machinery
Wheeled Rostera - Used for Ag.’s enterence, parodying Ancient Greek dramatic enterences.
Rollerskates - Unable to use traditional flying machine for Eu. as Perseus, so used modern rollerskate - more comic for a modern audience.
Aristophanes
Audience Response
R
Compared to orginal productions:-
Much smaller, much more interminate (Inside v. outside, smaller audience v. bigger.)
Would have been completely male audience and cast - jokes abour women and their beheavour would have been much more accepted and found much more funny. Joke with characters being played by opposite genders makes it more comical.
Costumes - Original would include masks, platform shoes and hde robes, (Makes acteres easier to see and recognise in huge ampitheatre) Ours felt much more personable.
Social, Historical and Cultural Events
- v. little rights, couldn’t vote, nor represent them in court. Not Athenian citizens. However, held equal roles w/ men when religion was concerned.- 484-406BCE (Aprox) - Greek playwright. 92 plays believed to be writen by him, 19 survive.Arytypical characters;
Exagerated both physically and characterly: e.g. Cleistenes [Cl.], a transversite, v. OTT, v. camp, and Agathon [Ag.], v. snobbish and pretentious;
Slapstick humour, e.g Euripides [Eu.] trying to shave and singe Mnesilicus [Mn.]
Key themes:
Sexual Ambiguity: Three male characters who dress as women, either for disguise or enjoyment (Mn., Cl. and Ag.) Several male characters played by females (Ag., Eu., Scythian [Sc.] and Magistrate [Ma.] and one female characters played by males (Third Woman [TW.].
Used costume and physicality to emphasis the humor of these gender swaps.
Rehursal Exersises:
Short play based around a moral theme, using pantomime skills.
A rolling stone gathers no moss.
Don’t count your chickens before they’ve hatched.
Use of sterotypes (Bratty kid, teacher)
Audience participation.
Use of songs (Another Brick in the Wall, Pink Floyd)
2. Use of immagenry weights on character. (Immagenry Bodies)
Ag.: All on one leg, slightly behind the other. Swing hips, arms v. light, but smooth, graceful. Makes the character look and feel more sophisticated and model-y.
3. Act II, pg 136-8 Reality and Illusion.
Used ‘I Close My Eyes…’ From Joseph.
Chrous using the Ah-ah instead of wailing.
Chrous starts of umipressed, gradually getting more and more involved, until acting like proper back-ups with dance moves.
Used similer technique in actual perfomance w/ the same scene, just different song (Super…) and the chorus hidding behind pillars.
Performance:
Dancing Girl [DG] - Gap during two dances.
Stayed raised on my toes at all times, trying to create a sense of grace and weightlessnesss.
Tried to stay light on my feet at all times, even when sitting.
Slid my arm aroung Jenny, trying to press up against her as much as possible.
Flirtisious looks at Jenny - head tilted slightly, small smile, fluttering my eyelashs.
Tried to keep beat of music even when not playing.
Ma.
Loud, dreep voice - manly.
Stood w/ feet astride - power, status
Spoke at quick pace - authority.
Angry facial expressions - disaproval of those who break the law.
Gestures to reinforce instructions.
Sharp hand gestures.
Communication of Ideas
Aristophanes - 5th century BCE - Theatre Festival - Commedy.
Thesomphoria Festive - All female festival.
Apears just a simple comedy to start, but does contain several key themes::
Women
It portrays women as v. OTT, esp. religious rites.
Women - alcoholics. Toned down in our production due to the cutting of the wine-skin scene.
Contexually, v. critical. Our performance, much more modern light, showing the positive and the negative.
Disguese and Sexual Ambiguity:
Genre
Pantomime
Uses forms:
Exageration
Sterotypes
- Sc. - Dirty old man
- Cl. - effeminate tranvestite
Asides
Audience participation
Theatrical Forms and Conventions.
- Used by Sc. When tying Mn. Up ‘You want I screw him tighter?’- Mainly used by Mn. when is major trouble.- V. regoniseable character types.- Almost all characters were OTT.- Modern genre, v. comedicThree main characters - Ag., Mn. And Cl.
Also Eu. In his various diguises
Used as humor, esp. exageration (Mn. Being OTT on purpose as a character.
: Attemps On Her Life (Martin Crimp)
