Day 1 (31/03/2022)
Today was the first day of performing the final version to the Revue Sketches to an open audience. I was nervous that I would forget my lines. I felt very focused and I went around organising anything I could see, such as props and costume. We had time to help each other relax and practice the few bits missing. I paid attention to script details that I had got wrong, such as at the beginning of B+W and Trouble in the Works. Even if I made a small mistake, it was important that I stayed somewhere within the script.
By the time I had got into costume , I did not feel so nervous. When putting on costume, I felt vulnerable and exposed. This started with close shaving my facial hair and then with costume and makeup. This vulnerability was created from the removal of the masks masculinity. I also found I had become focused into the character and their situation when entering stage. By being able to recall the script without thinking, I found the performance was fluid and natural. The main problem was that the soup I purchased was a different colour to what I had seen. This meant a last minute change was required to reflect the change in prop food. This made me realise the situation has even less to do with food, or the characters relationship, its simply the passing of time.
For Black and White, Jessi and I were able to help each other if we missed parts. For the back and white, I felt this was the most challenging role, due to the character I was playing, so I used parts of my self as the main basis for this character, playing on my personal and physical characteristics. Therefore, I felt this created more authenticity rather than imitation of a woman. I found the situation, such as when my character is called an 'old piece of boot'. I felt because I am a male playing a female part, it makes the situation funnier than if it had been played by a female student.
I am not sure I was 100% convincing as this character, but I believe that at least for a time the audience may have believed I was a female. If I am able to mask my masculine features I am possibly able to pass as a female than a lot of other males. I feel I was able to avoid stereotype because I used myself in the character. The character is a person who gossips, who wears feminine, over the top clothing to gain male attention. Her red lipstick shows she is looking to attract a mate. This is the truth of the character.
Out of the two performances on the day, I felt the 2nd performance was better, as I was more prepared and also because the dialogue was more fluid.
Jamie and I had spent time working on the fight choreograph for trouble in the works. It was important that we made this natural and fluid. Although we are using realism, as it is live performance, some elements of theatre are added. On the day, I was able to remember the lines for my script. I used pauses naturally, I did not need to think of the words. As I had taken the script to heart, it meant I was able to allow emotions to be expressed through the character. I am able to get angry at will, but I had in the past found it difficult to become angry during performances. I feel I have now been able to fully tap into the anger and allow it to be unleashed. After the scene, I have been able to move on from the anger without issue. I feel this is because the anger is through the character and belongs only in that situation. Once the scene is over,t he moment is gone. It is also naturally for catharsis or to feel sombre after an argument. Jamie and I also play off each other. The angrier or more stupid my character is, the more intense his reaction. We have good chemistry in both 'That's your Trouble' and Applicant.
The Applicant was the scene where I felt most comfortable with the dialogue, but the choreography of the scene is challenging I believe this is because of the characters mentality. I have been able to become a dominant character with this scene and use my characters prowess to intimidate the applicant Lamb (Jamie). This character is massively different to First, because this is a dominant, career woman in the 50's. I decided she has more masculine traits, so I was able to put some masculinity into the character. During the performance I did not have to think of the lines now as they have come natural to me. I was able to recall the longer section fluidly, but I did miss "unable to eat', during the 1st performance. During the 2nd performance, when I clicked for the electrodes, their was a delay with the LFX. I clicked again and nothing happened. Then Jamie (Lamb) turned and laughed. I looked at him with concern and clicked again as the LFX kicked in. I then responded more gleefully than normal to his punishment. We were able to work with the moment and just went with it. This showed how much we had got into the moment and stayed true to character. I felt this moment enhanced the performance, but unfortunately, it may not be possible to repeat. Despite the hiccup, or because of it, I preferred the actor perspective result of the 2nd performance. It encouraged us to think on our feet, impro and act completely in the moment. For Lamb its funny, for Piffs, concerning. I felt genuine concern when the LFX failed and I reacted to this moment.
I have not yet seen the video and I do not how truthful I was in performance, but I felt in the moment for each sketch. I felt like the character first in the Black and White. Someone who sits in a café, looking for opportunities, watching buses (time) pass. For 'That's your trouble', I felt like a temperamental man in the park, having a genuine argument. For 'Applicant', I felt like a dominant woman, intimidating and terrifying the applicant. I felt extremely focused on character and the situation, rather than my real world surroundings. This was able to take me away from my own thoughts, worries, concerns and inhibitions. It also meant that the only information available to me was the characters world. I would not necessary act, talk or dress like my characters in public, but as the characters, I do. Performing has allowed me to tap into parts of myself, in a safe environment. In performing, in theatre, its normal and acceptable for man to dress as a woman, because that's acting. Ideally, it would be the other way, but in certain roles, a man may be better suited. Males are also able to see the world, or a female character from their own perspective, which can add unique qualities to the character. For example, they may add positives or negative traits. I'm not sure if am a good performer, but I am proud that I have been overcome insecurities to be able to perform live. I am also proud of what we have achieved as a group. There has been challenges such as actors, including myself, missing rehearsals and workshops due to illness. We are each playing multiple characters and have choreographed routines as part of the performance. Despite these challenges, every actor has been able to perform their roles in each scene,, working of the other actor. We were able to keep the performance within the set time, which shows that we had been able to perform fluidly, within the script and direction. I did not feel any actor, in any of the scenes, needed time to think of their lines, the only pauses being natural pauses and the 'Pinter' pauses directed within the script, especially for the 2nd performance. They may have messed up a little, but it did not detract from fluidly and we each helped one another to get through the scenes.
I think can to improve in tomorrows performance. WE have two more shows and then that's it, so we can go more out if we need to.
Day 2 (01/04/2022)
In Day 2 performances, we were playing to a larger audience. Many of the audience understood the humor, such as the innuendo's. Some of the audience were also shocked by some of the content. Due to the audience, it made the theatre feel full and we were able to receive more direct feedback. Due to the proximity of the audience, I felt that the audience were not just watching the play, but were up front spectators of the events. The show was very fluid, but there was some hiccups during the plays. IN particular where Matt got tangled in the phone cord during 'T hats All'. However, this turned into a hilarious improvised moment. I know I mixed up some of the words in the longer dialogue for Piffs and also missed a small part in one of Firsts lines. However, I just kept rolling with it and they were not obvious. I felt tired on the day so this is what contributed to the mistakes. There were some other issues during the performance, particularly with my shoe when Performing as Piffs in Applicant. A shoe wasn't properly fixed and was loose during the performance. I just kept going and was able to manage it. I may have attempted to fix it during the performance and impro a line, but I was concerned that this would effect the flow. The Applicant was my favourite of the three scenes I was evolved with but I liked working on each character. I felt the performance was funny and I was able to produce a terrifying character. Jamie electrocution along with my robotic persona contrasted and created an interesting balance. Jamie an I improvised small moments in both of our scenes, where we play of each others characterises.
For 'That's your trouble', I was mostly happy with how the choreograph played out. I feel we had now came close to perfecting the routine, and the slap in particular had been well choreographed. It was fast as to not notice the hand go up and produced good sound. This scene required a lot of anger to be released so was a challenging scene in that regards. Eventually, this strained my vocal chords so it would be important to do more warm up exercises in future when doing anger scenes. There are possible certain techniques that are used just for shouting. Even though the fight scene is theatrical, it still feels painful. This is part of the process and I was willing to put my self where I am going to feel some pain as part of the performance.
For Black and White, I enjoyed playing the character. I felt some liberation from playing this part. It was interesting to explore the world as a female character. When I first looked at this character, I first saw them as someone alien to myself. But, as I studied the character and myself, I realised that their are some similarities. I may at times be like a back seat passenger in my own life, or I may be opportunistic. I sometimes go to cafes, or simply observe the world around me.
Playing this character as shown that I have been able to overcome many inhibitions and I am now confident to perform characters such as First. Therefore, the character has provided me with a statement of change. I have come a long way from when I first started at college, where I played along in class, but wasn't so confident to perform. I never imagined I would be able to overcome nervousness in order to perform to an audience. Even when I am not confident in life, I am confident to perform whilst playing in character. I am able to focus into the characters and the performance and put myself out of the way.
I felt I could have performed this show several more times, over a period of weak, as I felt I was still developing on each performance. There were also moments of impro and play on mishaps, that made each performance unique. It would have been interesting to have seen the variation in each of the performances and if improvised moments became part of later performances. These were my favourite moments, as they created awkward situations and allowed us to react in the moment. As an actor, they are also most memorable to me because I have seen how its supposed to be, seen the performances many times, and see how the improvised moment has enhanced the moment. For my own particular self, I enjoyed where the LFX did not activate during the electrocution. I felt this added to the performance and allow Jamie and I to improvise a small moment outside of the original script and choreograph. Due to the effect, it could have been added to further shows to grow on the original. Overtime, the improvisation and change the performance, which is especially important in repetitive, short sketches. I can take a lot from these performances, as it was the first time I had performed to an audience outside of the bubbles I am involved with. The material was also different, so there was the challenge of bringing the script and making an audience be able to relate to what is happening. It's possible they do not understand the situation. We did not introduce each of the plays, and some audience members were uncertain if the characters where related or part of the scene. It may have been useful to use an Narrator to introduce each new scene. However, I liked the approach that we used, where we linked plays together and set up scenes to create a fluid show.
After the performance, I received some positive feedback from some audience members, who particularly enjoyed the Piff's character.
Overall the process has been positive and I enjoyed performing. I found studying the characters has gave me a better understanding of myself and helped me develop new skills. From studying 'A' (Barry) in 'That's your trouble', I see that I can at times could angry at the smallest things. It showed me how stupid this is, that's its a waste of energy.
First (Doris), showed revealed to me within myself that I can often be like a back seat passenger in my own life. I can be passive and go along with things. Particularly when I am not feeling confident, or feeling depressed. However, being a passenger in your own life, means you are not living your own life. The character also reveals I can be opportunistic, as in they are hoping to meet a person in a certain place, even though they have not made arrangements.
Piff's revealed to me that I have the potential to intimidate and dominate if I allowed myself. Piff's is also the efface of efficiency. I discovered this to mean she likes to mix business with pleasure. Although Piffs has her own 'objectives', I see this within myself,. I like to enjoy the work that I do, I like to socialise with people I work with. I like to work with friends. I am focused on study outside of groups.
360 Review
It has been fantastic to be able to have the opportunity to record the performance using 360 camera. The camera picks up a wider area of the stage and any viewers can track the movements of the actors. The quality of recording is also higher than a camera and the audio is clear. It also allowed an operator to sit in the audience and not need to move around and block peoples views.
Black and White:
This was the fist time I had been able to fully observe this performance from an audience perspective. We had recorded rehearsals, but the recording was usually done on a fixed cam. We are also in full costume and using relevant props (soup). I feel I am able to play the role without becoming stereotyped in my actions. My character has very particular movement, such as looking away when offended and losing focus during conversations. The voice is close to my natural voice, not an imitation of a female accent, so I am able to use subtlety when expressing the words. This is important because the words have emotions attached to them and using a natural voice allowed me to more freely express the emotion. I felt it was important to put something of myself into this character because it allowed me to relate to the character and also not fall in stereotype. From the film I feel I have develop enough of a character where it is not obvious, at least at 1st glance, that I am a male actor. Jessi and I have been able to capture some gossiping women type characters and created a fluid performance. There are funny moments, but mainly its the situation and the people that are absurd. It's absurd that people may spend their time getting angry over someone asking them for the time. Its absurd that a person may go out of their way to hopefully meet a random stranger on a bus, or even just to see a bus. The characters in the scene do not even want to be their, they are from different backgrounds. Their meeting is just an act of passing time.
Before the performance I needed to also bring the table cloth on as part of my stage management crew role. For this scene, I was able to remember to bring on the cloth during every performance.
That's Your trouble
That's your trouble shows a good contrast between between our characters that we have been able to create. Its ironic that initially, Jamie and I and auditioned for each others characters in this scene but it ended up in reverse. I did not have no issue and developed my character as the dumb, but very reactive Barry vs Jamie's intellectual, gradually builds in tension and trying to apply logic to an argument, Allen. This scene added a lot of energy and tension to the performance. When performing I felt reactive to what Jamie was saying and was able to apply this when performing. Barry becomes a character that can not be reasoned with, so when Allen tries to convince him of is ignorance, it is creating an absurd situation. I feel that we have been able to play of each others characters performances, where our actions effect the reactions of the other character. For his scene we worked hard of choreography of the fight scene. This was important to create a realistic but theatrical performance. We needed to make the scene fluid and shocking. There needed to be more sound, screams of pain. I needed to be able to react on queue, to every time I was 'hit'. I think we were able to perform a well timed fight scene and achieve a realistic looking slap. This scene was challenging on the body and voice. I would need to do more warm up techniques before performing in future. I also feel I did not fall into type of playing a older man. I saw this character as being strong and active. They are keen cricket player and also a manual worker. I know males in their 60's who are still physically strong (do weight training or work in construction) and I based the physical strength on those people. If they fell, they would probably get hurt, but they would pick themselves up and get on with it. I know old men who are still temperamental and challenge someone to a fight. I feel I have been able to create a character that represents the angry, temperamental, reactive and strong, older male.
Applicant - Piffs
This was my favorite scene to perform because of the content of the scene. It was almost like an Artaud pay than a Pinter Play. Jamie and I have formed good chemistry through both of our performances. The role is almost a reverse of 'That's your trouble' and I was able to take my memory of the beating into this performance. As Jamie's character 'Lamb' was suffering during the scene I found I was able to develop satisfaction from the punishment. I also played an emotionless character who creates a false sense of security by initially appearing friendly. The character receives most of their satisfaction from torture and manipulation of men. I was also able to create genuine feelings of unease within Jamie which he was able to use to enhance his performance.
I was playing a female character for this role, so again it could have been easy to fall to type. I saw this a dominating female character, who walks in a military but dance like manner. The movement is probably most similar to the waltz.
IN terms of costume and makeup, the costume appears to be too bright. It may be that the lighting needed to be changed to avoid this and it's only something noticeable on camera.
Final Note
It has been interesting to watch the performance of the sketches from an audience perspective. It not only allows each performance to be re-lived or analysed numerous times. It also offers an incite into the audience reactions, which is something I had blocked off during the performance.
I believe moments of my performances are memorable such as when the lights go on in 'Back and White', the anger and fight scene in 'That's your Trouble' and my leg from 'Applicant'.
We received a lot of positive feedback and some audience members becoming very engaged in the performance. We have been classed as 'rock stars' by one of the classes that attended and this is a sign that we have been influential through our performance. I believe that because we went all out in some of the sketches, we set an example of the attitude that needs to applied to performing. You have to be prepared to do ridiculous things, such as gender switching, being beaten up, torturing people. Several members of the audience were most fascinated with my portrayal of PIff's due to the movement I used, the ritual and the scene context. MY favorite personal feedback was that I have 'beautiful ankles'.
I feel I have formed a good working chemistry with Jamie from our two scenes. In each
scene we played together, are roles were reversed. He gets to steal 'That's your Trouble' but I made 'The applicant' work in my favor. We both played in roles that require some form of physical harm from the other character and play the character that has to go along with the abuse.
Overall, I am proud of what I have been able to achieve with my performance. I have already overcome many challenges in order to perform and now becoming a lot more confident. Although sometimes I can be quiet and reserved in life, when I am performing I feel I have a different confidence. Playing characters and the 4th wall also help with this. It was fun playing female character as it was liberating and I saw that I have a lot of feminine characteristics. When performing I am much more comfortable, this is because of my work in college and other performance groups I am associated with. It seems daft to get nervous when just being watched by some people, doing something I choose to do. Although I have some social anxiety, I now see myself as no different to the audience when performing. We are all people in a room or at venue. I have faced some difficult personal challenges and even if I fail the course, I am proud that I have been able to analyse the scripts, create character backgrounds, remember the lines and perform effectively. The term has not just been one of studying characters, but also searching deep within myself. I needed to to different emotions within myself to be able to use them with character. I feel I am now a more capable performer and focused into working within the performance arts industries. Even if I do not perform as a career, I have many new hobbies and interests that I can carry into the future.