I have been cast as the character First, in the sketch 'Black and White'. THis is a female character, so there will be challenges involved when trying to play a female character as a male. I have not played a woman before so the role could be fun to play with. From a 1st glance at script, the character is elderly and homeless. She appears to be a gossip and has simple pleasures such as tomato soup. She seems to be a person who 'watches life go by', hence a connection to watching buses. The aim is not to become sterotyped character but form a character. Though First is not an outwardly hostile person, she is defensive and probably a liar. She is a mouse like character, who is anti social but likes to be in public places.
THis was a opportunity to read the scripts through. At this time, as I do not have a clear idea of the character or the script. I feel that the character can be a little bit spikey but is mostly caught in her own objectives. SHe is interested in what is happening around her, looking out for certain members of society. I need to build this into the character. The script is almost alien to me, so I need to form an understanding of a character or person who would talk like this.
Jamie read through the direction for this performance. It was usual as it provided visual queues in which to play of furing the performance. It also provided some actions to work with.
Hot Seating
The hot seating session was useful as it provided me new incite into the character. I also felt I was put onto the spot which allowed me to be more decisive with the character. Jessi and I were also able to agree to backstory and also make sure our characters are in line with each other. THis is important for rehearsal and developing characters, as it ensure each actor character is built to work with the background story, the situation and other characters. An actor my have developed their character for a different place, or
Communal
Before hot seating, Jessie and I were able to discuss our characters back story. We decided that our names would be Mary (Jessie) and Doris. Our relationship was formed when we met in the cafe. We have some similar tastes in food and locations hence why we become acquainted. Mary is more outgoing and is of a travellers background. She has been all over the country and different places in Europe. My character, Doris, is envious of Mary's lifestyle and despite having the freedom, she is reluctant to leave London. Mary looks after Doris but despite their relationship, Doris does not really want to be there (at the cafe with Mary). She is focused on her objective of trying to meet someone. Doris was originally married but being a house wife left her with few skills and the mental competence to living an independent lifestyle. Being unable to hold down a full time job, she was unable to pay bills for her flat and eventually end up on the street, In Mary, she has been able to stay safe and persist despite her own lack of street smarts. Doris is very naive and puts herself in potentially dangerous situations, particular with men. She does not have the nous or authority that Mary possesses. They are almost polar opposites, with Mary being strong, but Doris is more like a mouse. Doris likes quiet places and is generally anti-social. She likes to observe from a distance without engaging with the world. To Doris, Mary is very interesting and also open minded. Mary and Doris are both tolerant and accepting of different cultures, but they have their own perspectie on how to egage with it. Mary would be out there living it. Doris however, is more likely to listen to it on the radio in a quiet cafe, in her home town.
As a class we went through some of the scenes. At this moment I see First as a depressed person with no drive. She will watch buses go past as if she is watching time go passed, so she is like a back seat passenger in her own life. She is also stubborn and does not want to go along with 'Seconds' (Mary) suggestions. First seems to be suffering from a sense of malaise but them perks up when she sees one of her buses or receives the soup. AT the moment, I am still not able to develop the character, as due to her nature, it's difficult to avoid stereotype. It's possible that I can identify within myself similarities with the character and use this as a basis for her persona. This approach is more naturalistic as I am using my own characteristics and emotions to relate to and represent the character.
I am still finding it difficult to express my idea of this character, but I do feel I now have a better understanding of the script. I realise that it may be useful to use something closer to my natural voice rather than putting on an perceived accent that I imagined for this character. The reason is it further allows me to naturalise the character and move away from stereotype. I also find it is helpful for vocalising the subtlety's between the various emotions in the script. I see that yes this character is a passenger, she is also delusional and imagines fantasy situations. I also see that First is very spiky and has a lot to hide. She is defensive and she does not want Mary to know that she is meeting men. Even though my performance is still off, I feel I am getting to the point where I now understand the script and how to communicate the characters feelings.
Character Monologues
I used character interview monologues to help me establish characters. For First (Doris), the questions were evolved around her routine and living on the street. I also asked questions of her marriage, the divorce and her alcohol addiction. These questions allowed me to build facts on the characters background from simple questions. The monologues also helped me enter into character and see things from the characters perspective. I often recorded the monologues in bed and I could imagine where would Doris be right now? Under a bridge, on a bench, in a bus shelter? For First, when I started revealing her routine during the day, initially I thought her routine was bus watching and soup. The interview monologue actually took this into a different direction, that she was opportunistic and that she was actually trying to meet men on the various buses. Although techniques such as around the table and hot seating are useful for gathering facts on the character and backstory, the monologue was useful for searching deeper within the character and to find out what was happening within their internal world.
Off Script
I now feel I have a better understanding of the character for this scene. I have been able to work closer towards using my natural voice for the character and it is more realistic. I have been able to dissect the script and gain an understanding of the script from the characters perspective. This meant that the meaning and expression of the words became clearer and I was able to use this understanding in my performance. I feel I am able to relate to the situation and experience 'seconds' (Mary) words as if I am hearing them from my own perspective. I have been able to remain reactive to some of the script and feel the emotion that that character feels, like being degraded, vengeful or lustful. I have also developed a natural persona for the character where she is twitchy and eager to leave, disinterested. I have instilled within the performance, the vengefulness of the character. This is contrasting to the initial, depressed, mousey, still, version I had perceived for the character. This has putting me in a more comfortable position for the final performance, where I have been able to move away from a stereotyped elderly, homeless woman.
In regards to remembering the lines for the script, I am still finding it challenging, but feel I will get there. I have been able to remember the lines in solo practice. It's also been challenging not being able to rehearse with Jessi. The most difficult parts I find are at the beginning as some of the lines could be switched around. I am looking at a pattern to help me and the to consider the queue for each line. Although I needed some assistance, I was able to remember most of the lines with prompts. I have also been able to use the pauses as directed but still need to establish the subtext of each pause. Why is there a pause in this sentence? What is she hiding?
Tech and Dress
In class we went through a full dress/tech rehearsal. I like the costume as it is able to mask most of my masculine attributes. This costume is flamboyant and feminine, but also appears to consist of odd pieces of clothing. The bag is useful as it shows that this is potentially a homeless woman, In class, Ed who is a former student no studying at drama school, was on hand to preview our performance. For the role as First (Doris), he was able to assist me on refining the characters physical attributes. He helped me to practice walks, guiding me on subtle changes in the way I walk from normal to stereotyped, to character. This practice was useful as I was able to alter my characters walk and practice walking in women's shoes. The main focus was initially on the steep and gait of walking. Women generally tend to walk with one foot directly in front of the other. Also women have more movement in their hips, so Ed helped me create the hop movement. The movement is subtle and difficult. I was able to practice putting these together to create a more feminine walk. Ed also advise me on how to hide my shoulders. The character uses a hand bag so it helps to clutch the bad as this brings the shoulders forward and narrows them. Also generally just bringing the shoulders forward also has this effect but the bag is more natural. After some practice, I was eventually able to put all these together. It was important to practice saying dialogue in character or lines from the script. When doing the actions and the script together, the performance became more natural. During the performance I was able to integrate the practice in performance. Ed also provided feedback on the performance , that I had become feminised. Out of all the characters, I found this one the most challenging is the character is feminine and a gossip. She has some stereotypical characteristics, so its was important to build the character from the ground up. That this is a women in that situation, acts and dresses in a certain way. Has a routine that helps maintain or mental health. She is focused on achieving her small objectives. Although this character is not a 'street worker', she has no problems talking to men and trying to gain their attention. She is not looking for sex, but looking for a man, but she may come across differently.
On top of performing, I need to remember the production side, in this scene as a stage hand. My role is to bring on the table cloth at the beginning of this scene. The cloth needs to be ready to open due to its properties, which prevents it from opening freely.
Final Performance
I was nervous before the start of the performance, but once I entered the scene I felt comfortable and focus into the character's situation. This character had been challenging, mostly due to the script and that I was playing a female character. I found that I did not just full into cliché with character, but the character was someone who themselves is cliché. I was able to build a performance from the ground up. The character does not move a lot during the scene and isn't expressive. To achieve this I found stillness key. The character need to be still and then I needed to feel the characters emotions and feeling. The feelings of the character then changed the characters movement. The character had subtle mannerisms, such as she is shaky and nervous in public. I focused parts of myself, both physically and mentally. Although this character seemed alien, their were a lot of similarities that I was able to use to base my character from. I felt that feminizing's myself was essential for achieving a less cliché and more truthful performance. I feel I have played the role of the character I have created. When the lights come on and I am sat in the chair as Doris, I feel this is a memorable moment of the whole performance.
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