People watching

Task

- We were asked to observe people as an actor
- We were not allowed to act suspicious or be noticed by the person we were watching
- Felt like either a spy or a stalker
- Had to disappear into the public without being seen
- Had to free ourselves from any judgement we may make of the person we observe- get rid f any prejudice or presumptions you may have
- Looking for a natural/real person
- Seeing how normal people interact with other people/their surroundings
- Had to take written notes about the person we observed including time/place/surroundings etc
- Had to think of back story/given circumstances for individual e.g. objectives/motivation/obstacles/age/occupation/social life etc.

My individual- Man in suit on the phone

- Floppy hair
- Mid twenties
- Smart blue suit
- White
- Around 6 foot tall

- Pretentious
- Formal
- Antisocial
- Workaholic
- Secretive

- Frustrated
- On edge
- Annoyed
- Always looking around
- Not moving
- Talking on the phone
- Constantly mentioned "codes"

Objective: Wants a promotion- went to uni to study business- wants to make money/build his way up in the business

Obstacle: Others want a promotion too- they're battling for it- he dislikes most of his other colleagues (quite antisocial)

Will go the extra mile- working through his lunch break- workaholic or ambitious?

Surroundings: High street/ leaning against a shop window/ lots of people walking past/ sunny/ cold

Performance

- Had to do an imitation/representation of the person we observed in front of the class
- Stood next to the wall, talking on the phone- looking frustrated
- Tried to remember small details
- Thought about reasons/motivation behind what he was doing
- Did this well- audience could tell emotions I showed/activity I was doing

Response to exercise

This was a very interesting exercise. It made me realise that every character we play is a real person with real feelings/objectives/back stories/personalities. It made me think that I should really focus on honesty and naturalism in my performances in order to portray real/genuine people. It felt slightly odd to follow/watch people and felt like we invaded their privacy. However, it gave me a new perspective on how to create truthful characters in my performance.

Project lessons

Grounding

We often use this exercise in our lessons. It is about finding our roots in order to ground ourselves. Handsour centre, breath into our find and fire our cord of energy. It goes up through our torso, neck and head. It goes into the sky above so we can look over the whole of Southend. It can be any colour you like, mine is usually bright orange. We have to feel, see and hear our surroundings, heightening our senses and imagination. We take in specific details such as how the sea moves and how different people walk. After this, we activate our vocal vibrations and stand on the edge of a sea of water. This has an effect on our breathing and makes us feel calm and relaxed. We then walk around the room, feeling grounded and relaxed. This prepares us for the lesson.

Timeline

This is a very useful exercise for going into detail. This also gives makes memories a lot clearer and makes it feel real. We create a timeline on the floor and decided which direction our past/future is in. We step into the exact moment in our life the memory happened. We tell our peers where we are/what is happening as if it is happening in the present. They ask lots of questions in order for everyone to have a clear/detailed understanding of the setting/emotions you are experiencing. This really helps me connect to a place/memory and brings the world of the play to life.

Passion

We were asked to talk about something we feel passionately about. This could be anything you want, from a hobby to a life motto. I created a mind map and wrote down various things such as friends/family, football and making the most of everyday. I chose to talk about mthe most of every day because it is such an important thing in life. We were asked to included the sense to talk about how this affects you. I spoke about how we should take all the opportunities that we get and how we should have no regrets. This worked well because it is a wide topic and I could talk about it for ages. I felt happy and confident to express how much it meant to me. It was lovelyinteresting to see what everyone was talking about. It was a great bonding exercises and also helped us become confident performing around each other. Furthermore, it allowed us to become loud/clear when speaking to everyone. Eye contact and pace were hugely important when trying to engage with everyone.

East 15 experience

-Asked to discuss time at East 15, present in any way you like

- Limited time- think quick on your feet

- Include senses/how these effect your time here

- Decided to present in the form of an advert

- Talked about lessons/town/uni square

- Made it comedic

- Presented it confidently

- Making eye contact/being relaxed gave me status/ made it easier for others to connect/put audience at ease.

- If something is original/creative, it can be risky but it can be very interesting to watch

Inner/outer characteristics

- Worked on our inner/outer characteristics

- Walked around the room in character (John), interacted with others/chatted to them

- Thought about how we present ourselves on the outside/want to be perceived (outer) compared to how we feel on the inside/really are/what we think (Inner)

- Discussed how these characteristics affected the character we portrayed/how well they were shown.

- Showed shyness/politeness/snappy attitude when talking to others/head in the clouds

- Hard to show inner characteristics- want to make them hidden to others, yet allow audience to see them

- Need more character research- find the depth to the character/motivation/inner characteristics.

John- 'Cock' by Mike Bartlett- inner/outer characteristics

Inner: Anxious/confused/frustrated/broken/insecure/sensitive/romantic/bored/dependent/vulnerable/imaginative/friendly/outgoing

Outer: Kind/friendly/romantic/short-tempered/optimistic/on-edge/polite/shy/snappy/blunt/calm/defensive/comforting/warm

Violence and Son

- Chose scene to work on/perform

- Me: Liam, Elysia: Jen

- Discussed play/scene/context/circumstances/characters/atmosphere

- Read through/discussed thoughts on scene

- Interesting to see different interpretations/perspectives- makes scene feel more real/honest/interesting to play around with

-Showed to class- good feedback:

- Comedic opening

-Clear/shocking contrast/beat changes

- Castable/suitable character choices

- Needs polishing

- Needs character research

Circles/status

- 1st circle = Shy/timid/struggles to get a say/doesn't want to talk
- 2nd circle = Middle- talks/listens
- 3rd circle = Doesn't listen/acknowledge what other people say- maybe rude/obnoxious/in your face

 Performed improvisation exercise based on circles
- In partners, one person is first circle, one is third cicle
- Improvisation with stimulus of returning a kettle to a shop
- Interesting to create a character/see how their circle effects how they interact with others
- Often difficult as it restricts the dialogue used in the scene
- First circle was shy/quiet/low status
- Third circle was annoying/obnoxious

Second improvisation

- Scene about returning hoover
- I played a third circle/low status character
- Was rude/bored/lazy/didn't want to listen

Circles have a big effect on how we interact with others, often we can switch in between circles depending on the given circumstances/ who we are with. It is useful to create a back story to explain why you are in that circle.

Improv exercise- news presenters- job interview

- Got into groups of 5, had to create a short improvisation based around a job interview

- Each person must have their own individual status/circle/character/relationship to others, these must be made clear

- Set as an interview for a news presenter

- I played a third circle/mid-high status/ arrogant & rude TV presenter

- Made this clear

- This was a fun exercises- could be good stimulus/ a good base for a play

Whispering

- Whispering helps us find the truth in what we are saying

- Strips away all the 'acting' to make it honest and believable

- Feels more personal/direct/important

- Got into pairs, whispered monologues to each other as if we were having a casual conversation

- Extreme naturalism

- Made me rethink the way I perform my monologue/experiment of new ways to perform it

- Gets us out of the pattern of performing a speech rather than delivering words for the first time.

Theatre Practice- Evolution

Put into groups of 4

-Decide a theme/style/objective
-Present idea to Adrian/Ramiro
- Not straight acting- show off other skills.

Our idea

Physical theatre/masks/poetry
-Physical story of life- growing up/first love/ mid life crisis/ death- make these effective/clear/flusent/contrasting

Affect of music on mood- need to select sutiable songs
Masks- show emotion through body language/movement- usually rely too much on facial expression
Poetry- passionate/ play with words/ powerful/ stimlus for movement

Rehearsal process- improvise around objective/basic storyline- find movement which works well/has power behind it. Ensemble piece- strong/effective.

First section- Growing up/childhood

- Shows heartbeat/being in the womb
- Struggling for first steps- support from others juxtaposing people wanting you to fail
- Being lifted up- support from others/big dreams

Second section- First love

- Three males mirroring one female, copying her exact actions
- One male in front, in love with her
- Female chooses someone else, leaving him heartbroken
- Two different scenes at once- showing contrast between how situations effect us
- Relationship turning sour Vs Upset person needing help/support from others

Third section- Mid life crisis

- Everyone suddenly/randomly turns on me
- Get into triangle formation
- Aggresivley close in on me in tribal like routine
- Trap me, arms lock round me/start turning
- Try to escape, get pushed back always
- Lifted up as I struggle to escape- being controlled by others
- Pushed backwards/into someone
- Lowered onto floor- helpless

Fourth section- Old age

- Old man can't move without others
- Pushed upwards
- Being fed
- Being showered
- Brought flowers
- Dies

Beginning/ending

Evolution freeze at beginning/end of piece- before/after effect

My thoughts on our piece

Positive

- Clear/interesting piece
- Fluent transitions
- Good use of levels
- Some good characters

Constructive criticism 

- Needs more emotion behind movement
- Objectives need to be clearer
- Use whole bodies- be free/loose
- Be more original- maybe use props or tech
- Think of more original/creative story line for piece

Global Theatre

12th October

Warm Up

- Stand in neutral

- Walk around the room

- Smile 

- Make eye contact with each other

- Shake hands

- Whisper your name in their ear

- Grab as many hands as possible

Foi

- Everyone stands in a circle

- Person in middle throws a ball to someone on the outside

- Person on outside throws ball back to middle person

- Middle person throws it to someone else

- Keep the throwing in rhythm

- Person in the middle can't stay for more than 4 throws- someone must run in before 4 throws are up.

- The game is over and you start again if the ball is dropped or the person in the middle is there for more than 4 throws or someone runs in the middle before the ball has been thrown.

- Helped us foucs, work on teamwork, work on timing, work as an ensemble.

Dance

-Split into 2 groups of 10 people.

- One person goes in the middle, does a dance move, everyone copies them accuratley

- When everyone is doing the exact same movement, person in the middle steps out.

- Repeat until everyone has performed move in the middle

- Create routine with 10 movements.

- Present in original/creative way.

Feeback from dance

- Energetic/wild/fun

Needed to be more slick

- Needed a clearer structure

- Great commitment

-Good use of space

- Facial expressions are key- relax/enjoy it

- Be enthusiastic

- Pretend to know what you're doing, even when you don't

19th October

Warm up 

- Stood in a big circle, had to all jump at the same time- worked on focus/eye contact

- Had to jump 10 times, turn around and jump 10 times facing the other way

- Repeated 9 times/8 times/ 7 times etc.

- Tiring/hard work

- Helped us all work as an ensemble. be in sync.

- Walked around the room finding space

- One clap = Freeze/Go

- Two claps = Jump

- Three claps = Raise hand/shout 'Me'

- Had to focus/listen/be spatially aware at the same time

- Became difficult/confusing

- Helped me really listen for specific details

- Repeated 'Foi' game, beat our record because we were focused/prepared/in the zone.

Dances/Routines

- Went over sequences from last lesson- remember movements

- Split into groups of 5

- Asked to create short story using our movements from last lesson

- No dialogue/other movement allowed

- Story must be clear/entertaining

Piece 1

- Caveman dancing

- Girl comes along

- Guys walk over to girl

- Try to impress/seduce her with dancing

- Girl chooses favourite

This piece was effective/clear. We kept the story line simple and precise. The story was also comedic with bold/energetic characters.

Piece 2

- Given a title to base our story around.

- Title was 'Castle of Wonders'

- Two people go into a castle with large doors made from people, get followed by a creepy man, everyone takes drugs, has hallucinations, weird/crazy movement.

This story was less successful as it was slightly too immature and unoriginal. It was hard to make the story line clear, however the audience guessed our title so it must have been clear in some ways. It is easier to work with limited movement/stimuli as it stops us procrastinating or coming up with too many ideas. It allows us to get straight to work and start blocking. Often, we over complicate theatre which can make the audience confused or think that the piece is pretentious. Theatre really works when is is kept simple, yet effective.

26th October

- Repeated game of Fui 

- Beat our record

- Great concentration/focus/encouragement from others

- Good teamwork

Blinded

- Get into partners

- One person closes their eyes

- Other person guides them round the room, making sure they don't bump into anything or anyone

- Start with two hands, push/guide them the way you want to go

- Change to guiding with just one hand

- Start jogging

- Let go of partner, only touch them to stop them crashing

- Switch partners without them noticing

- Game was heavily focused on trust

- Had to have faith that your partner

- Became scarier as you got quicker/ had more freedom

- Easy to trust partner- strongbonds

- was difficult when partners switch- not used to movements of new person

- Have to rebuild trust with them

Eye contact

- Everyone ran around the room, making eye contact with someone as you pass them

- When Ramiro claps his hands, everyone has to freeze

- If you are making direct/ reciprocated eye contact with someone else, stay frozen

- If not, carry on running around the room, trying to steal eye contact

- Was difficult to steal eye contact, people already have that relationship/trust with the person they're looking at

- Feels like you're an outsider, they don't want you to steal it

- Eye contact is very powerful/strong- creates a clear bond between two people

Finding partners

- Similar exercise to physical theatre

- Everyone gets in a line with someone in front of them

- Feel that person/see key features

- Everyone gets moved around

- Try to find that person

Murder 

- Everyone forms a large circle, holding hands

- 7 people go into the middle

- Everyone on the outside is 'Heaven'

- Everyone in the middle is on 'Earth'

- Everyone in the middle closes their eyes

- Ramiro taps one person on the shoulder, who becomes the murderer

- That person must hug everybody to murder them

- Everyone must try and avoid/escape the murder

- When someone is hugged, they go to heaven, on the outside

- The outer circle will close in at times to make the arena smaller, making it more difficult to escape

- Game ends when everyone is murdered

- Was intense/scary in the middle

- Became very aware of other senses e.g. sound/touch

- Sight being taken away is very restricting

- Was very fun/competitive

- Was interesting to see different tactics

Freezes

- 7 people at the front

- Given scenario ( Location/time/circumstances)

- Had to create 3 images based on this

- Images have to tell clear story

- Had to create bold/over the top images to make it clear

- Didn't have any time to discuss what freeze we would do

- Some freezes contradicted each other- everyone has different interpretations on the scene

The Road of life story

Reflected on life- made road map showing life events- helped me think about what has changed/affected my life in positive/negative ways- significance of certain life events

3 key moments- noted down details- why it was important/interesting story- one age 7, one age 12, one age 18.

All told stories in front of class- emotional/powerful/interesting.

Got into groups of 5- used timelines to explore story in detail- asked loads of questions e.g. surroundings/senses/emotions experienced- helped visulaise the world of the play/become engaged in other stories- more detail/description = more exciting/believable stories.

 chose a story (Ella's counselling story)- find orginial/creative way to present this

Consider objectives/units/characters/story telling.

Rehearsal process- justify choices/blocking/strenghts & weaknesses.

Outcome of first piece- evaluate

Second story

New groups- with Gabriel/Poppy/Lottie

Each had childhood stories relating to teeth (my story age 7)

Made each story short/snappy/clear- using lots oh physical movement/enegry.

Need to break into clear objectives/units/what we want to portray.

Second story- changed

New idea- Dad's leaving daughters.

Disappearing act- Magic/comedic effect- Magician does magic trick to make dad disappear, can't make him come back. Slap & tickle effect.

Repeat phrases from timeline, showing what happened straight after. I repeated 'Silence.'

Phrase accompanied by physical movement in a set pattern, building up in canon.

Sound bulit up, tension rose until Poppy screams, becoming too much for them.

Repeat Lottie/Poppy's thought process- added power/meaning to words.

Ring tone- build up- canon- build up on tension/shows how frustrating it is.

Poppy/Lottie ask questions- reply with automatic reply- voicemail- shows how they don't care/ are never there for them.

Great British dad off- play cheesy/ordinary Dads- show how they are normal people with normal lives- not villains.

Send text without glasses/dance off- comedic & fun atmosphere created- juxtaposes how they never had this and wished they had- idealistic family

Sudden/shocking contrast- life is hard.

Needs to be shorter/more polised.

Voice

3rd October

Vocal warm up- helped us get focused/ready

- Talked about aspects of the voice e.g. articulation/tone/pitch/pace- what they all mean

- Discussed our own voices- strengths/ weaknesses/background/accents

- Posh/cockney- depending who I'm with- accent got lazier over the years

- Miss 'Ts' e.g. 'chatting' = 'cha'in'.

- Can't differentiate between 'f'' and 'th' sound.

-Strong/powerful voice- good pace- good expression/emotion

- Need to vary tone/pitch in monologues

Helped me see what I need to imrpove in my voice

Helped me trasnfer voice qualities to characters- voices for each character are different

Relaxation/focus exercise- feel relaxed/out of it/focused- really concentrate on specific things/features in detail- no distractions- mind won't drift- very effective

10th October

Get into partners- place hand on their coxic bone (bottom of spine)- walk around- see effect on movement/posture.

One person becomes like puppet- lets partner take control- move them around like a ragdoll- release any tention/nerves in their body.

- Move arms/flop

switch arms- repeat

lift shoulders/rop

arms on knee- they control your hand/ you control their knee

rub/dry legs/arms

back massage/rub shoulder joints

put body pressure on feet

switch A/B

Made me feel relaxed/warm/tired- weird not having control over our bodies

Wasn't clear how this related to our voice- confsuing

Daddy bear- low/slouched

Mama bear- medium/ open arms out

Baby bear- High pitch/looking up

Make noises for each, see how body language affects our voices for characters

17th October

- Worked on breathing- lying on the floor 

- Partner places hands on our coxic bone- moves a lot when breathing

-Lies across our backs- restricts our breathing- painful/difficult- helps us notice breathing patterns

- Swapped round

- Looked at areas of the body affected by in-breath/out-breath- bones/muscles

- Breathing quick = angry/stressed

- Breathing slow= Happy/relaxed

Articulation- Tongue twisters- helps emphasize vowel sounds/brings colour to our words

Posture affects how open we are/physicality- helps us create a character

Good posture = Loud/ good breath/ open

Contemporary monologues

General advice/feedback from others pieces

- Stillness/breath/thought bt thought process = Truthful/honest performance

- Has to flow naturally

- New thoughts = in the moment

- When talking about something or someone, really picture that in your head/imagine them

- Clear/bold decisions = Powerful impact on audience/other characters

- Play with your monologue- moment to moment

- Underline key lines/phrases, experiment with different ways to say it, change your tone of voice

- REALLY ask a question- rhetorical or actual questions- makes the audience think about this

- Find an objective, work out what you're going to do to achieve this.

- Whisper your speech, this strips back the 'acting' and adds truth. This stops you pushing the emotion and makes it more personal.

My feedback- Cock monologue

- Good choice of speech- suitable/castable for me, show a range of emotion/depth.

- Don't scrunch face- added too much tension/hides emotion from the audience- only happens when I'm pushing the emotion too much.

- Let new thoughts/beat changes sink in- show how they effect what I'm saying

- Whisper when rehearsing- find truth/subtlety  in what I'm saying.

- Really ask questions- show inner battle/confsuion

- Don't treat it like a speech- let it flow naturally.

- Don't ACT it, let emotion come naturally.

Physical Theatre

11th October

What is physical theatre?

We began the lesson by discussing physical theatre and what it meant to us. The general idea was that it was a form of story telling, mainly told through psychical movement. The official definition is: 'A form of theatre which emphasizes the use of physical movement, as in dance and mime, for expression.' We then discussed physical theatre companies such as Frantic Assembley, DV8 and Complicite. Its interesting to think about how each company uses physical theatre in different ways and how each technique is effective in different ways. 

Warm up

We began by all walking around the room and finding space, we were then told to walk with purpose which increased the energy and concentration in the room. We then added instruction such as jogging, high knees, heels to bum, making eye contact and physical contact with others as we walked past them. We had to do a few things at once which was difficult as it meant we had to become highly aware of the people around us and this heightened our senses.We began to run to help us become more spatially aware and to get us to concentrate more while also become more physically warmed up and ready for the lesson. 

Instructions:

Right= Touch the floor with out right hand, then change direction

Left = Touch the floor with out left hand, then change direction

Sides = Run to the nearest wall or window

Centre = Run to the middle of the room, put your shoulder on someone's head

Speaker = Run to the speaker, sit down and point at it.

Look = Stop, stare at someone in the eyes.

Person = Hug someone

Favourite = Point to your favourtie object in the room in an energetic and dramatic fashion.

This game really helped me to focus on specific instructions. Concentration and listening/reacting are very important parts of acting. This helped me think about these aspects in detail and practice them. It also helped me to get in the zone and become spatially aware. 

Games

- Zip Zap Boing: Energetic/bold movement required along with a lot of concentration. 

- Name game: Everyone stood in a circle, one person (A) looks at another person (B), B says A's name, A walks towards B, B makes eye contact with someone else (C), walks towards them, this repeats until everyone in the circle has had their name said and walked towards someone else.

- Animal Game: One person stands in the middle and points at someone, while saying a command. The commands were: Elephant, duck, rabbit, bouncer and boyband, each required different resposnes and actions. The person pointed at performs the suitable action, with the two people either side of them joining in.

Grandma's footsteps: We played this normally, then added an objective in order to make not being caught more important.

These games helped build up my energy and concentration. They also helped me loosen up and have fun/ be silly. Working with an objective was very useful as this affects how we treat certain situations and increases the stakes, therefore making a scenario more exciting or interesting.

18th October

Warm Up

We began the lesson with the same warm up as last time, however we found that the energy was lacking because a lot of us were ill/tired. Simon told us that there's no point going into things half-hearted as you won't learn or improve anywhere near as much as when you put 100% into what you do. This struck me as it made me realise that I need to stop preserving energy or commitment and try my best in everything I do. This really helped me to focus and get in the zone while warming up.

Jumping

We stood in 4 horizontal lines. We had to jump up 8 times before turning around and jumping another 8 times. After this, the next line had to start jumping, this was done in canon. We then repeated this 6 times, 4 times, twice and then once. This was complicated as we were always kept on out toes and had to be very alert. This was an exercise Frantic Assembley often use in their warm ups, which shows its very professional and useful. It helped us focus on timing and watching/reacting to those around you. This is very important in physical theatre as everything has to be fluent, have ergonomic flow and have emotion behind it. We then added a clap on the second jump and a kick on the fouth jump, we had to also raise our arm when turning around. 

Potato/Blood

In this game, everyone had to spread out and close their eyes, we had to put our hands out in front of us and make them limp, in order to protect ourselves/not harm others accidentally. Everyone in the game was a 'Potato', and had to walk around saying 'potato.' Simon squeezed someone's neck, this person then became 'Blood.' This person would walk around saying 'blood', and had to try and find everyone. When 'Blood' touches a 'potato', the potato turned into blood, and had to help the other people who were 'blood' find/hunt down everyone else. It was like 'It build-up', but much scarier and more intense. The senses were heightened because our eyes were closed, we had to focus on what we could hear and touch which was very interesting. We were working with clear/strong objectives which had a big effect on us. This game was very fun to play. 

Eyes closed- identifying

- Everyone closed their eyes and got moved into position by Simon.

- We were moved into a circle, where we were facing someone's back, we were all very close together.

- We were asked to feel the person in front of us, we felt their head/shoulders to look for specific or identifiable features. We had to remember what they felt like.

- We got moved around again, while keeping our eyes closed throughout.

- We were asked to walk around and find the person from before, and place our hands on their shoulders.

- We walked around, feeling everyone's shoulders until you found your original person.

- I found the person from before because I felt them in detail, looking or key features which I could remember, others were less successful.

- This helped you analyse people and think about small, detailed features.

Eyes closed- Guidance

- We got into partners

- We were told to come up with 4 random noises, which we could both do

- We were told that each sounds must correspond to a movement, this included moving forwards/backwards/left/right

- We had to guide our partner round the room, using these sounds

- We had to guide our partner from one side of the room to the other

- We added obstacles(people)which our partners must avoid.

- Managed to successfully/ quickly guide Lois to the other side of the room without hitting any obstacles.

- Had to work on trust/ confidence in our partners.

- Loud/clear instructions were the most effective

- Distinct/easy sounds were the most successful/easiest.

- Works on listening/projection/clarity

- Thinking quickly on your feet

25th October

Warm Up

- Similar to last lesson

- 4 lines/jumping

- Jump 1/2 = Lunging/switch legs

- Jump 4 = Double clap

- Jump 6 = Kick

- Jump 8 = Turn with your hand in the air

- Became like a dance, was much easier after rehearsing it a few times

- Timing/energy was crucial

Following someone round

- Walked around the room in a pattern

- Found partner of similar height

- Followed them as closely as possible

- Footsteps had to be completely in sync

- Pay attention to details- how far they step/arm movement/timing etc

- Comedic/effective when done well, can be used in old fashioned/slap stick comedy

- Person in front doesn't notice how close you're getting to them

- Turned into routine- 8 steps/ back forwards back (like a musical)

- Head turn- comedic/subtle

- Was very difficult to get right timing, kept stepping on each others heels

- Must keep stride length/timing equal always

Imitating walks

- Everyone walked around the room as themselves
- Became difficult to act naturally when being watched- became very aware of awkward habits/posture/enegry
- Had to observe other people/how they walk
- Everyone walks differently- may effect their mood
- Different physicality tells us something about their personality/how they are feeling at the time
- Had to imitate someone's walk- copy them exactly
- Repeated this for 3 people
- Someone stands up and walks in front of the whole class
- Someone walks behind them, imitating their walk
- Next person walks behind, exaggerating their mannerisms/physicality/ how they walk
- Third person does extreme exaggeration
- Became comical/over the top/amusing
- Was very interesting to empathize mannerisms, makes us more aware of small details/features
- Made us realize that everyone walks/looks different- interesting when taking on/becoming a character
- Posture has a significant effect on us/ our status/energy

Mock auditions

General feedback

- Have a clear/confident introduction to your pieces, appear professional from the start.

- You are being assessed from the moment you walk in, make a good first impression.

- Present yourself well in terms of your attitude/clothing etc.

- Acknowledge/respect all members of the audition panel, each member has a say in your outcome.

- Have clear transitions/beat changes in your monologue, this is what keeps it fresh and exciting.

- Consider the given circumstances in significant detail, this gives detail about what the character has just experienced before speaking, thus affecting their mood/thought process throughout the speech.

- Fill in the silences, think about the effect of silence and why it is used/how it affects the monologue.

- Live in the moment, experience the emotions as they happen.

- Think about hoe to show fractured/new thoughts, there may be a vocal or physical change.

- Don't make it sound like a rehearsed speech, make it natural/act on instinct.

- Control your breath, this puts the audience at ease and helps you relax on stage.

- Think about who you are speaking to, consider your relationship/attitude towards that person.

- Keep energy up.

- Find depth/range of emotions in the character.

- Give a beat before starting to speak.

- Find subtle choices rather than choosing the obvious.

- Find pieces/ characters you could easily be cast as.

My feedback

- Hamlet is a bad choice for auditions. Everyone has their own interpretation of how he should be portrayed. He is an extremely complex and famous character. It is incredibly difficult to please everyone with your personal interpretation of the character.

- Good sense of location/given circumstances.

- Don't push the emotion too much, let it come naturally.

- There was a lot of tension in my voice/face when performing.

In conclusion, I feel like I should choose a more suitable classical speech for later auditions. This was a huge problem during the audition. I will look for speeches which are more age appropriate and less popular. 

Singing

3rd October

(Note form- write in full later)

We bad the lesson by discussing our musical experience e.g. performing in musicals/instruments/ ability to read music. This gave our teacher an idea of our current level/ability. I have been in a lot f musicals before, however I am not a confident singer and can't play any instruments. I can vaguely read music but I am quite slow at doing it. I believe I am experienced in acting through song which is the most important factor, however it might help if I was able to sing in tune.


 We practiced singing a few scales in order to help us warm up. We sang an 'Ah' sound up and down the scales. We then added our harmonies to it. I think this was useful as it helped us to work as an ensemble and see how well our voices work together. After this, we all sang 'Happy Birthday' together. We then repeated this individually. This gave us and our teacher an idea of our vocal groups. I was told I was a baritone, even though previously I've been told I'm a a bass. I'll soon see which of these vocal groups suits me more comfortably. This helped us become more confident singing around each other too s everyone was in the same boat. She could test our confidence in singing/support of our voices and our pitch. I was told that I have good support/pitch in my voice. However, I need to open up my voice more in order to sustain notes.

The next song we sang was 'Everybody say my name.' This helped with ensemble work/choral singing. We sang this a few times together, then everyone had to sing their name in unique/jazzy way by themselves, the class would then repeat this. This helped us unwind and feel more comfortable/ confident in singing around each other. It allowed us to open up and experiment with our voices. Finally, we were asked to bring sheet music in for next lesson. This was for potential audition songs, either contemporary or musical theatre.

10th October

During our warm up, we worked on our breathing. We would breath in, and on the outbreath, we'd make a 'V' sound and hold this for as long as possible. We did this 5 times and then switched positions between stretching our right/left arm up, stretching both arms up, reaching downwards and reaching outwards.It was interesting to see how our physicality and the positioning of our bodies affected our breath. Some positions made you feel enclosed which made it difficult to sustain a note. Also, it became more difficult as we progressed as we were running out of breath. This exercises helped us focus on our breathing and sustaining notes. After this, we repeated the scales exercises from the previous week. This became much easier as we weren't as breathy and could open up our bodies to producer clearer, sharper notes.

We performed an exercises in which we repeated the phrase 'Ta, Te. Tee, Toe Ta.' We then used double/triple speed. For example, 'Ta Ta, Te Te, Tee, Tee, Toe, Toe, Ta.' This became very difficult as it was very quick which meant we had to really wrap our tongues around each sound in order to make the sound clear and precise.This helped improve our articulation, diction and breath. Finally, we sang the alphabet in different tune in order to see how this affects our brains. It became very confusing as we are so used to singing it to the theme of 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.' Therefore, our brains couldn't comprehend the change in tune. This meant we had to really focus on what came next and think about the lyrics on the song even though they were simple, This helps us as we can transfer looking at the details in lyrics in order to make us think about the story and message behind a song.

The song choices I considered were:

- 'It's hard to speak my heart'- Parade

- 'Anything worth holding on to'- Scot Alan

- 'Only you'- Jeffery Austin
- 'Creep' - Radiohead

We discussed our song choices and thought about what would be most suitable for an audition. Some factors to consider were:

- How famous/popular is it?- Not too overdone- can get boring/compared easily/ expected to be performed in a certain way

- Lyrics- how much do they mean to you?

-Story/dialogue- like a monologue- journey/emotion behind song

- Vocal range- can you hit the notes?

Our teacher decided that 'Only you' was the most suitable as it was most in my vocal range and had a clear, powerful narrative behind the lyrics. I agreed that this song was effective because I felt an emotional connection to it when I listened to it.

17th October

Our warm up included various exercises from last week such as the breathing exercises, scales, alphabet and 'ta te tee to' exercises.We were told we would be singing 'Silent Night' in a street performance at the end of term. This sounds exciting, yet quite challenging as the people of Southend may not like this. We sang through the song after getting split into our vocal group. This went quite well and sounded nice. The song isn't too difficult and we already knew most of the words. However, it was occasionally hard to hit the right notes as we weren't given a demonstration of the note we had to hit, this is how I usually learn which notes to sing. I think it sounds nice, however it needs more work in order to make it sound softer and more powerful. We had a brief summary of sight reading and how sheet music works. She spoke to us about vocal groups/bars/notation/length of notes, this was a recap of what I already knew. I'd like to go over this in more detail as I am still very slow at sight reading and it takes me a while to work out what the note we need to sing is. 

Leigh-On-Sea

We were told to get into groups of three, walk to Leigh-On-Sea and do an activity such as going to the pub. We had to explore the five senses and write down what we noticed on the way. We then had to work out a way to present our journey to the class, focusing on our five senses. It was a very long walk down there, however there were lovely views and it was a nice, quiet area which made the journey rather pleasant. When we arrived, we went to a pub called 'Ye Olde Smack' where I had garlic bread and cider.

When I rived home, I made a mind-map of the senses we noted on the way, such as the smell of fish and chips, the feel of the cold breeze and the taste of the warm garlic bread. We tried to think of interesting ways to present this, we considered performing a sketch based around an interview or a 'good cop/ bad cop' police interrogation.' However, we dismissed these ideas and decided to write a comedic rhyming poem. We each wrote a few lines and we chose the best ones to go into the piece. In class, we were told to make our presentation more short and snappy in order to make it powerful. This meant we decided to present out trip in the form of a slam poem which was successful as it was snappy, informative and comedic.

Overall, I think this trip was successful because it helped me explore the idea of the five senses in greater detail. This was great as it helped me really think about a location or setting and how this affects my mood and attitude towards something, someone or somewhere. I can use this in my performances as I will be able to visualize a setting in great detail and imagine I'm there. I can also think about my relationships to my environment and how this makes my character feel. I am now able to think about the world of the play in more detail and depth which will help improve my performances.

Audition Technique

3rd October 2017

In our first audition technique lesson, we started by discussing our plans and aspirations for what we wanted to do after we've finished our course at East 15. The majority of the class all said that they hoped to get onto a BA course next year, either at East 15 or at another top drama school. Personally, I'd like to get onto a BA Acting course at either RADA, Centeral, Mountview, Guildhall or East 15 as this will push me one step further towards my dreams by helping me improve my acting and gain experience in the world of theatre. The rest of the class wanted to go to a huge variety f places and also felt passionately about their plans for the future. I like to think I have the right mix of anticipation and excitement about what it may bring. We were told that as we progress through the year, and after they've seen our acting styles/ability, approach/attitude to work and our personalities in greater detail, they will be able to give us a greater idea of which places we'd be most suitable for. This will depend upon the strengths and weaknesses of each drama school e.g. success rates/how much students improve/how highly looked upon the drama school is. 

We  also discuss what each drama school is looking for in an individual. If we find out this, we can adapt ourselves for each audition in order to become for suitable for them. Some of the main features which came up were talent, experience, confidence, personality, attitude to work, being able to adapt your acting to a directors liking, how you take criticism, potential and originality. This was very interesting as it helped me evaluate myself and look at my own strengths and weaknesses. If I can acknowledge my weaknesses and be able to work on them and improve them, it will make me a better and more rounded actor. 

We discussed which audition speeches are most suitable to choose. Personally, I like to make my speeches and performances original and take on the character from a unique angle. This can be very risky, however I believe that it is important to take risks as this is what can make you stand out from the crowd. It was interesting to discover that some drama schools don't like you changing a character or making it more unique, especially in classical speeches. Some places prefer you to stay as true to the original way it was supposed to be performed. This may affect the way I take on a speech when auditioning at certain drama schools. We were also told the importance of making our speeches age appropriate and contrasting. This is helpful and important because it helps you relate to the character, helps make your performance believable, and helps show your diversity and range as an actor. I need to work in making my speeches more contrasting as I often use a similar style of acting in speeches, I'll need to take the characters on from a new approach to find more differences between the ways I can portray them. Some other advice they used was not to worry if you think a classical speech may be overused, this is because they have seen thousands of speeches so it is almost impossible to perform a speech they haven't already seen. They told us the most important features of choosing a speech are choosing one which excites you, takes you on a journey and shows your potential/range as an actor. You must be able to relate to the speech in order to make it truthful and entertaining. Furthermore, we must perform them in our own accents so that they can see who we are, as actors. 

The main exercise we participated in was choosing the best position to start our speeches in. Immediately, I thought of the 'O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I' speech from Hamlet. I began to think of my characters relationship to his surroundings. For example, I set the monologue in a large eerie dining hall which brought back bad memories. I imagine is as being large, ornate and almost empty. This means that he would would be slightly hesitant and unhappy walking around the space. I also thought about the proxemics in the audition room. I wanted to stand in the centre as this would allow me to control the room, adding power to my words. Also, it makes it easier for my voice to travel around the room and makes it easier for the panel to hear me. Also, I stood slightly downstage in order to show my inner isolation and hesitance in the speech. Furthermore, it allowed me to run forwards in my speech as the emotions heightened towards the climactic moments in it. If I stood too far away, this may disconnect me from the panel and will make it harder to see my facial expressions. If I stood too close, this may come across as intimidating, arrogant or overwhelming for the panel. In addition, I chose not to use a chair in my speech. This is because, physically, I am awkward on stage. I have a lot of my own personal mannerisms and fidgets and I want to overcome this. I think a chair would be a safe option and would be too restricting in my movement. This would make it difficult for me to reach the extreme emotions my character experiences during the monologue. Furthermore if I was sitting in a chair, my speech may come across as more relaxed and contained, and my interpretation of the character is that he is stressed, melancholy and angry which juxtaposes the relaxed and casual approach of sitting on a chair.

In conclusion, I found this lesson very useful. It gave me a greater idea of which speeches and drama schools are most suitable for me. It made me think in greater detail about my interpretation of the speeches I have chosen and helped me know what I'm looking for when choosing speeches in the future. It was interesting to see how small and subtle things, like positioning, vary from person to person and can have a massive impact on our approach to an audition. We have mock auditions next week which I am nervous about because I want to impress people with my speeches. However, I am also looking forward to the feedback, deciding whether the speeches are suitable for me as well as how to approach them and improve them.

10th October 2017

In this lesson, we started with our new smaller groups for skills classes. I was in Group D. We all had to perform two monologues (1 contemporary/ 1 classical) in front of each other, in an audition style set up. It was very interesting to see everyone's speeches as everyone was very talented and there was a huge range of speeches performed. Some standouts were Will's and Grace's classical monologues. Will made the speech seem very natural and smooth, he didn't overplay the darkness of the character, while still maintaining a subtle evilness about him. Grace put a lot of emotion into her performance and it was quite moving to watch. Matt, Seisha and Chloe all had fantastic contemporary speeches. I think this is because they all really related to the character which added a real truthfulness to their performance which really engaged the audience. When I stood in during monologues and they were directed at me, it really helped me to connect to the character and become absorbed into the world of the play. It was great pick up tips from everyone's speeches, seeing what worked well and what was less effective, by watching other people perform, I can learn how to make my performances and auditions more effective and successful.

My first monologue was a speech from 'Hamlet' where I played Hamlet. I had previously worked on this with Anita in our Project lessons which helped improve my piece when performing in front of the class. I feel like this piece went very well, I put lots of emotion into it and really connected to the dialogue. I had great range of pitch, pace and expression in my face. However, I may have slightly overacted it and pushed it too much, I feel like my body language wasn't strong enough either. Moreover, I didn't portray the inner conflict he experiences as well as I'd have liked to. I will work on these notes to improve my performance for the mock audition. However, overall I was please with this as it went very well. My second speech was one from 'Cock' by Mike Bartlett where I played John. I feel like this contrasted to my Shakespeare speech very well and showed my diversity as an actor. I feel like my performance was strong and my words had real power and depth behind them. However, I wasn't able to connect to the speech as much and didn't have enough variation in pitch. This could have made it boring or unbelievable. However, I was still pleased with my contemporary monologue too. I would have liked to have got some feedback after the speeches but wasn't able to. I am feeling both nervous and excited for the mock audition tomorrow. 

17th October

A very useful part of this lesson was discussing various drama schools and seeing which places we liked most/are most suitable for us. Everyone had different experiences with different places. We discussed the quality of their training, their location and the type of person they look for. I want to audition for as many places as possible, however it is important to have preferences and to know what precisely each place is looking for. The notes I wrote were:

Drama Centre

- Focuses on method acting

- Creates work drawing on our own personal experiences- helps us relate to work/create truthful performances

- Part of a wider university- meet a variety of people/lots of people

- 4 stages of auditions

- Very harsh/rigorous/intense

Bristol Old Vic

- Make you feel comfortable/welcome

- Usually want older people

- Mainly classical training

LAMDA

- Great reputation- very famous

- Easily get jobs afterwards

- Great training

- Elite/pretentious

- Wide variety of training

- Cold/uncomfortable atmosphere

East 15

- Unique style

- Take who you are and builds you up

- Gives a lot of feedback/direction in auditions

- Large variety of people

- Focuses on ensemble work

RADA

-Known as best in country, one of the best in the world

- Fantastic/successful alumni

- VERY difficult to get in

- Look for certain type of person

- Train everyone to be the same

- Excellent standard if teaching

- Pretentious/elite

- All the same type of person

- Mainly classical

- Hard work- pushes to limits

- Easy to get jobs after- great contacts

- Character work- truly become someone else

Rose Bruford

- Focus on individuality

- Lovely grounds/ peaceful atmosphere

- Unique/original

- Good recalls- insight into training

- Bad vibes- teachers don't want you to do well

- Patronising

Mountview

- A lot of screen acting

- Versatile

- Huge variety of people

- Good vibes/fun

Guildhall

- Good vibes/comfortable there

- Look for truth/honesty

- Work you hard- push to your limits

- Strip you back- discover who the character is

- Great reputation

- High standard of teaching

- Want you to be succesful

- Mainly classical

- Pretentious

This made me realise how different each drama school is and how everyone is suited to different places in different ways.