· *We all kept up a good pace; nobody stalled on
lines or stalled.
· *We used the physicality well in characters, if
we kept something up (e.g. a mannerism, etc.) we still used them.
· * The lines were confidently spoken and not
stuttered on much.
· * There were hardly any pauses with problems with
lines, etc.
· * Costumes worked really well to make sense with
the play, they looked the part and when making costume changes they were easily
changed too.
· *The set was greatly presented and was set out
really well in my opinion, it left enough space for the characters to move
about when interacting and also could be used well too (e.g. climbing the
stairs, wolves jumping down, etc.)
· * The projection worked a lot better in the
performance, it looked a lot more real in the performance and I think that it
is because of the lighting. In tech, the projection looked good but didn't too
in different ways such as it didn't hit the whole of the pieces of card so didn't
look right, or wasn't the correct image for the scene, etc. but for the final
performance it worked so much better.
· * The choreography improved for the final
performance from rehearsals, it could still have been better but worked more in
the final performance.
· *‘SLAP!’ worked a lot better in the performance
from rehearsals, the fact that it was a real slap made everything work a lot
better with the reactions and movements.
*Mrs Brisket had a lot more energy which was
great, it was more natural of a character and came out a lot more simpler too.* A lot more things worked much better in the final performance than the rehearsals. This is because we had practiced each scene so much we all knew it very well.
S Improvements:
Making it more realistic in the way that if
there was a pause we could improvise with a line that still worked with the
era, for example in the performance there was a pause but a line could of
easily been thrown in that would still make sense and not have any pauses. To
improve this, we could think of lines to say beforehand for different scenes just
in case there is a pause, etc.
Physicality in some scenes could have been
better, for example when Bonnie and Sir Willoughby play around it could be a
lot more movements. To improve this, we could simply rehearse over this scene and
decide on more actions to use and more smoothly.
We could of improved the energy (especially
for my character) to make it a lot more lively and more involved with each
characters and to improve this we could just throw in a lot more running
around, being over excited, etc. Also we could change things up such as the
tone in voice (going high to low and vice versa) or making new entrances by
coming in differently from the other side, or from underneath the set, or from
behind a curtain.
Remembering the line that comes before you
because there was one more line of chorus left and I had already started my
line before letting them finish. To improve this I will just keep going over my
lines and pick a key point in the last line before mine and remember it to know
when to come in.
If there was a pause, not wait for the next line to be said. Just to jump straight in and not worry about if you are going over somebody else lines as it is more realistic and if somebody did start their line while another person is still finishing theirs they should of just acted like it was supposed to happen whereas in the play if that happened we all looked a bit scared and didn't really know what step to take next. To avoid this we should be more prepared for future performances in case anything like that happened, to make sure you have a back up for any problems, etc.
Final evaluation:
I would say that we all pulled off the performance really well. There were areas for improvement but from the change from rehearsals to the final show I seen a great change in the way that we did things such as there was a lot more energy present in the performance, everything was at a better pace, etc. The play was about story telling and I think that we all did that really well. We tried to make our voices quite naturalistic in some ways so that it sounded just like somebody was reading a story out to the audience. I really like this aspect of the play because it all then made sense and the audience could follow it along and connect with characters and story lines. It is a children's story of course, but I would say that it was for an adults audience too. For example when Mrs Brisket is flirting with Simon and making sexual innuendos, children wouldn't understand that joke but adults get it. That is another reason why I really enjoyed it, it was for all age groups and everyone should of found something that they really liked.
The design of costumes, props, set, etc. for me all worked excellent. Every prop that was brought to the set was used, every costume worked well with each scene and the set was laid out great so that everyone could still move around and then also use the set to their advances such as the wolves jumping off them from a higher level to the ground. The set had levels to it was I really liked because of that. They created more of an atmosphere to the play and more to look at. It didn't make the small stage cramped either, I would of actually said it made the stage look a lot bigger in a way. The costumes were also really good, for each scene also sometimes they were changed to make more sense to the play (e.g. when Simon comes to help the girls escape from Blastburn, Sylvia returns in a different outfit from her dress to boys clothes when they are getting away which makes a lot more sense.) I liked this change in costumes because it changed up they play a bit, it gave more things to look at for the audience and was a change of scenery. Finally, the props were great! I brought in some props that were used (some were not because I realized we didn't need them in rehearsals) such as when I go to make breakfast with Mr Wilderness, I get out a pan and wooden spoon which worked really well and when I give Emma the key to the cheese cupboard I gave her a key that I had made out of tinned foil so that it looked more shiny in the light and you could see it a lot more clearer than if it it was a real key.
There were also some 'representative props', for example when Simon says about a "goose feathered quilt" for Sylvia, he gives her a rug that was also her rug from the train journey that Mr Grimshaw had given to her and also Aunt Jane's at one point too. However this was a representative prop so the audience would not of even questioned it. They would of just thought of the line as that he has brought a blanket for her to keep warm, not too much into detail.
The design and style of the play was very useful in how it was set out, for example when I put random props into a chest like the lantern, my dress when I have gotten changed, the key to give to Emma, etc. the audience knows that I am not carrying a big wooden box with me everywhere, they sort of forget about the fact that it is there and I am just moving things out of the way. The fact that the chest was always there in the same place each time and it could fit lots in was useful for me to just throw everything into and where it was was also very handy as it was sort of centre stage too.
I would say that the physical theatre and the physicality that we used was great! We could have easily used animation, but we used elements of physical theatre and this to me worked really well because it created more of a show. Without the physicality (especially in quite grotesque characters such as Slighcarp and Grimshaw) the show would not of been as interesting as it was to the audience. I loved the physicality in the play, it gave it more to look at and it was a lot more interesting than it would of been if we had of just put a video up of wolves running, etc. It did work really well, it could however have been improved though such as more physicality in bigger scenes like when Slighcarp and Grimshaw burn the will, they do an evil laugh at the end but that could have been bigger and more of an extravagant scene.
Some parts however were expressionistic. They stood out to be not natural at all and nobody would move in them ways in day to day life. When the wolves are looking all hangdog, gruff, hunched over and hungry in real life nobody's posture or mannerisms would naturally be like that. I think that being like this in the play however worked really well because if they were acting normal as wolves then it wouldn't of been as convincing or really very interesting to actually watch either. So in the play it worked out well to be expressionistic, without being this way the play could have been really boring to watch and not great at all. Also the body language with this is very intimidating (for wolves) and over the top. I loved this aspect because it adds a layer to the meaning of what is actually being said, e.g. chorus adds more meaning "wolves are here", if that had just been said it can be scary but not that much but by being expressionistic it makes it a lot more of a statement and you become more wary and more involved with what is being said personally. It is basically what is being said but with more physicality involved too.
Gestus= "is an acting technique developed by the German theatre practitioner Bertolt Brecht. It carries the sense of a combination of physical gestures and "gist" or attitude. It is a means by which "an attitude or single aspect of an attitude" is revealed, insofar as it is "expressible in words or actions."
"Gestus, as the embodiment of an attitude, carries at least two distinct meanings in Brecht's theatre: first, the uncovering or revealing of the motivations and transactions that underpin a dramatic exchange between the characters; and second, the "epic" narration of that character by the actor (whether explicitly or implicitly)."
We actually used a lot of gestus in our performance with defiantly the dramatic transactions and also the epic narration too. The play could be summed up with this word, Brecht's techniques were mostly used in the play apart from this one too such as breaking the fourth wall. This occurred when Sir Willoughby is talking about Sylvia and he goes over to were her and Mr Grimshaw are sat and sort of plays around with them even though they do not move at all. We did use epic theatre in a way but not completely, we didn't use it n the way that the audience would be confused when they left the play but we did use it in the way that we used minimal props, we got changed on stage sometimes (when the girls change into boys clothes) and this technique also broke the fourth wall between the audience and stage because Brecht did not want his audiences to feel comfortable, he wanted to mess with them and for them to judge what was going on too. Getting changed on stage is also the 'alienation effect' because it makes something strange and something the audience has never seen before, getting changed on stage is probably a first for most of the audience. Back to the technique of Gestus, Brecht invented this. It is about the movements, sounds, and more that the characters take part in. The movements that are portrayed show the audience what is trying to be shown at that moment, for example when Miss Slighcarp gets shoved and her wig comes off she screeches and darts about quite a lot showing her emotion of anger because the audience would pick up on that she is angry from her body language too.
We also used some mime with things such as when Simon gives Sylvia medicine, he hands it to her and she drinks it, gives it back to him and he puts it in his back pocket. If that was done incorrectly such as he then (once it was handed back to him) just let go of his clasp, that would not of looked real because if that had of really happened in real life the people wouldn't just carry on something would be done such as moving out of the way or cleaning up. There was also some improvisation mime in the performance too with me and Emma. When I hand her the key, I couldn't find it in the chest so I simply mimed it to her to not stop the pace and to keep it going by thinking on the spot quickly. It worked and still looked like I was handing her a small key too.
The music that was used for the performance was great, but I would of preferred more music throughout. For reasons such as when there were dramatic scenes the music would of made the scene a lot more intense or it would of been a lot more sad if there was sad music playing as music has such a powerful effect on people which has been proven in movies. Overall for music I would of liked a bit more but then there are still negative impacts with more music as in a play it can take away from the acting ad also sometimes it could be too over powering for lines not too be heard so I would say more music to be used but at the right moments too because then it could conflict too. For example when Miss Slighcarp and Mr Grimshaw tell my character that her parents are dead, if sad music was to be played that would work but then it would lower Miss Slighcarp down too. She wouldn't look as powerful if nice music was playing and you can also get the mistake of making it more cheesy and it looking less sad and a lot more daft overall. So I would say more music, but only at certain times too.
For timing, I would say that it could have been improved for specific moments. E.g. when Simon draws his bow, aims it at the wolves and shoots, the timing could have been a lot better because they didn't go down and back away when it happened. It still worked really well how it was but just could of been improved. This would have been by possibly making a noise to let the wolves know that the arrow had been fired like a stomp or jump that would make a loud noise, etc. More moments like this needed improving in ways such as this like the slap scenes but they all still worked really well too. Improving on things like this would simply tighten up bits of the play but were not major, we got most of the timing right in my opinion and the audience didn't notice anything big either.
The pace worked really well. When we first started to rehearse we were going on for sometimes more than two hours but in the end we averaged the timing out to be around 1 hour and 15 minutes. This is all because the pace was so steady and not too fast or slow. If things were needed to be said in a hurry they were said fast but with a purpose and vice versa if it was meant to be slow and sad for example. I thought that the pace could not have been improved it was great how it was, the only thing I would suggest are things like some characters slowing lines down because they just want to get their bits done, so to enjoy it more and then it would come out more natural and at a steady pace for each scene. Also to keep the pace going another improvement could be that instead of waiting to say your lines by doing an action, just start saying the lines as the actions are taking place. This makes it a lot more interesting to watch in my opinion and there are a lot less gaps and again the pace keeps up. The dialogue should have started as soon as the character is in visible sight to the audience, this keeps the pace up and is more realistic and natural too. Another improvement for the pace of the play could be that the entrances and exits could of been more dynamic so it would keep the pace up and would not have to keep stopping every time somebody leaves or comes in. I could of improved from this because when I find out that my mama and papa are dead, my next line is that it isn't true, etc. but I usually wait for Slighcarp and Grimshaw to leave which does create a pause. To improve on this I should of just gone straight into my line whilst they were leaving because in reality them types of people wouldn't care if I said something like that anyway.
From what I was told by my friends and family who came to watch the show, their reactions and responses were positive. They obviously understood what was going on throughout the whole play and had their favorite character moments. Mostly the favorite being the grotesque characters such as Miss Slighcarp and Mrs Brisket, even though all of the characters were enjoyed too. Asking some of them what was their favorite scenes, it was mostly the school scene and also the scenes like the story telling moments, etc. The things that they thought could have been improved on were mainly things like more energy, more things going on on stage just to keep the atmosphere up but they did like the idea of projection as they thought that it still kept an interesting background for each scene to look at and also gave them an idea of which scene was which and whereabouts in the story they were at that moment in time. Overall it was positive feedback with some pointers of what to mix up a bit next time.
My overall judgement on this play therefore was very positive! I thought that everything mainly went according to plan and it all came together nicely. It was simple to watch and understand, and everything looked great for the props, set, costumes and all of the characters had come out for the performance night. For me, I really enjoyed participating in the play and would gladly do it again because of how fun I thought it was and hopefully that came across for the audience too! In addition, some things still could have been improved and worked out slightly more but what we pulled off was great for me. I thoroughly enjoyed it and think that everybody else did to including the rest of the cast and also the audience. There were obviously positives and negatives too but I would say that everything came together in the end from all of our rehearsals and practices at home, the hard work payed off!
The design of costumes, props, set, etc. for me all worked excellent. Every prop that was brought to the set was used, every costume worked well with each scene and the set was laid out great so that everyone could still move around and then also use the set to their advances such as the wolves jumping off them from a higher level to the ground. The set had levels to it was I really liked because of that. They created more of an atmosphere to the play and more to look at. It didn't make the small stage cramped either, I would of actually said it made the stage look a lot bigger in a way. The costumes were also really good, for each scene also sometimes they were changed to make more sense to the play (e.g. when Simon comes to help the girls escape from Blastburn, Sylvia returns in a different outfit from her dress to boys clothes when they are getting away which makes a lot more sense.) I liked this change in costumes because it changed up they play a bit, it gave more things to look at for the audience and was a change of scenery. Finally, the props were great! I brought in some props that were used (some were not because I realized we didn't need them in rehearsals) such as when I go to make breakfast with Mr Wilderness, I get out a pan and wooden spoon which worked really well and when I give Emma the key to the cheese cupboard I gave her a key that I had made out of tinned foil so that it looked more shiny in the light and you could see it a lot more clearer than if it it was a real key.
There were also some 'representative props', for example when Simon says about a "goose feathered quilt" for Sylvia, he gives her a rug that was also her rug from the train journey that Mr Grimshaw had given to her and also Aunt Jane's at one point too. However this was a representative prop so the audience would not of even questioned it. They would of just thought of the line as that he has brought a blanket for her to keep warm, not too much into detail.
The design and style of the play was very useful in how it was set out, for example when I put random props into a chest like the lantern, my dress when I have gotten changed, the key to give to Emma, etc. the audience knows that I am not carrying a big wooden box with me everywhere, they sort of forget about the fact that it is there and I am just moving things out of the way. The fact that the chest was always there in the same place each time and it could fit lots in was useful for me to just throw everything into and where it was was also very handy as it was sort of centre stage too.
I would say that the physical theatre and the physicality that we used was great! We could have easily used animation, but we used elements of physical theatre and this to me worked really well because it created more of a show. Without the physicality (especially in quite grotesque characters such as Slighcarp and Grimshaw) the show would not of been as interesting as it was to the audience. I loved the physicality in the play, it gave it more to look at and it was a lot more interesting than it would of been if we had of just put a video up of wolves running, etc. It did work really well, it could however have been improved though such as more physicality in bigger scenes like when Slighcarp and Grimshaw burn the will, they do an evil laugh at the end but that could have been bigger and more of an extravagant scene.
Some parts however were expressionistic. They stood out to be not natural at all and nobody would move in them ways in day to day life. When the wolves are looking all hangdog, gruff, hunched over and hungry in real life nobody's posture or mannerisms would naturally be like that. I think that being like this in the play however worked really well because if they were acting normal as wolves then it wouldn't of been as convincing or really very interesting to actually watch either. So in the play it worked out well to be expressionistic, without being this way the play could have been really boring to watch and not great at all. Also the body language with this is very intimidating (for wolves) and over the top. I loved this aspect because it adds a layer to the meaning of what is actually being said, e.g. chorus adds more meaning "wolves are here", if that had just been said it can be scary but not that much but by being expressionistic it makes it a lot more of a statement and you become more wary and more involved with what is being said personally. It is basically what is being said but with more physicality involved too.
Gestus= "is an acting technique developed by the German theatre practitioner Bertolt Brecht. It carries the sense of a combination of physical gestures and "gist" or attitude. It is a means by which "an attitude or single aspect of an attitude" is revealed, insofar as it is "expressible in words or actions."
"Gestus, as the embodiment of an attitude, carries at least two distinct meanings in Brecht's theatre: first, the uncovering or revealing of the motivations and transactions that underpin a dramatic exchange between the characters; and second, the "epic" narration of that character by the actor (whether explicitly or implicitly)."
We actually used a lot of gestus in our performance with defiantly the dramatic transactions and also the epic narration too. The play could be summed up with this word, Brecht's techniques were mostly used in the play apart from this one too such as breaking the fourth wall. This occurred when Sir Willoughby is talking about Sylvia and he goes over to were her and Mr Grimshaw are sat and sort of plays around with them even though they do not move at all. We did use epic theatre in a way but not completely, we didn't use it n the way that the audience would be confused when they left the play but we did use it in the way that we used minimal props, we got changed on stage sometimes (when the girls change into boys clothes) and this technique also broke the fourth wall between the audience and stage because Brecht did not want his audiences to feel comfortable, he wanted to mess with them and for them to judge what was going on too. Getting changed on stage is also the 'alienation effect' because it makes something strange and something the audience has never seen before, getting changed on stage is probably a first for most of the audience. Back to the technique of Gestus, Brecht invented this. It is about the movements, sounds, and more that the characters take part in. The movements that are portrayed show the audience what is trying to be shown at that moment, for example when Miss Slighcarp gets shoved and her wig comes off she screeches and darts about quite a lot showing her emotion of anger because the audience would pick up on that she is angry from her body language too.
We also used some mime with things such as when Simon gives Sylvia medicine, he hands it to her and she drinks it, gives it back to him and he puts it in his back pocket. If that was done incorrectly such as he then (once it was handed back to him) just let go of his clasp, that would not of looked real because if that had of really happened in real life the people wouldn't just carry on something would be done such as moving out of the way or cleaning up. There was also some improvisation mime in the performance too with me and Emma. When I hand her the key, I couldn't find it in the chest so I simply mimed it to her to not stop the pace and to keep it going by thinking on the spot quickly. It worked and still looked like I was handing her a small key too.
The music that was used for the performance was great, but I would of preferred more music throughout. For reasons such as when there were dramatic scenes the music would of made the scene a lot more intense or it would of been a lot more sad if there was sad music playing as music has such a powerful effect on people which has been proven in movies. Overall for music I would of liked a bit more but then there are still negative impacts with more music as in a play it can take away from the acting ad also sometimes it could be too over powering for lines not too be heard so I would say more music to be used but at the right moments too because then it could conflict too. For example when Miss Slighcarp and Mr Grimshaw tell my character that her parents are dead, if sad music was to be played that would work but then it would lower Miss Slighcarp down too. She wouldn't look as powerful if nice music was playing and you can also get the mistake of making it more cheesy and it looking less sad and a lot more daft overall. So I would say more music, but only at certain times too.
For timing, I would say that it could have been improved for specific moments. E.g. when Simon draws his bow, aims it at the wolves and shoots, the timing could have been a lot better because they didn't go down and back away when it happened. It still worked really well how it was but just could of been improved. This would have been by possibly making a noise to let the wolves know that the arrow had been fired like a stomp or jump that would make a loud noise, etc. More moments like this needed improving in ways such as this like the slap scenes but they all still worked really well too. Improving on things like this would simply tighten up bits of the play but were not major, we got most of the timing right in my opinion and the audience didn't notice anything big either.
The pace worked really well. When we first started to rehearse we were going on for sometimes more than two hours but in the end we averaged the timing out to be around 1 hour and 15 minutes. This is all because the pace was so steady and not too fast or slow. If things were needed to be said in a hurry they were said fast but with a purpose and vice versa if it was meant to be slow and sad for example. I thought that the pace could not have been improved it was great how it was, the only thing I would suggest are things like some characters slowing lines down because they just want to get their bits done, so to enjoy it more and then it would come out more natural and at a steady pace for each scene. Also to keep the pace going another improvement could be that instead of waiting to say your lines by doing an action, just start saying the lines as the actions are taking place. This makes it a lot more interesting to watch in my opinion and there are a lot less gaps and again the pace keeps up. The dialogue should have started as soon as the character is in visible sight to the audience, this keeps the pace up and is more realistic and natural too. Another improvement for the pace of the play could be that the entrances and exits could of been more dynamic so it would keep the pace up and would not have to keep stopping every time somebody leaves or comes in. I could of improved from this because when I find out that my mama and papa are dead, my next line is that it isn't true, etc. but I usually wait for Slighcarp and Grimshaw to leave which does create a pause. To improve on this I should of just gone straight into my line whilst they were leaving because in reality them types of people wouldn't care if I said something like that anyway.
From what I was told by my friends and family who came to watch the show, their reactions and responses were positive. They obviously understood what was going on throughout the whole play and had their favorite character moments. Mostly the favorite being the grotesque characters such as Miss Slighcarp and Mrs Brisket, even though all of the characters were enjoyed too. Asking some of them what was their favorite scenes, it was mostly the school scene and also the scenes like the story telling moments, etc. The things that they thought could have been improved on were mainly things like more energy, more things going on on stage just to keep the atmosphere up but they did like the idea of projection as they thought that it still kept an interesting background for each scene to look at and also gave them an idea of which scene was which and whereabouts in the story they were at that moment in time. Overall it was positive feedback with some pointers of what to mix up a bit next time.
My overall judgement on this play therefore was very positive! I thought that everything mainly went according to plan and it all came together nicely. It was simple to watch and understand, and everything looked great for the props, set, costumes and all of the characters had come out for the performance night. For me, I really enjoyed participating in the play and would gladly do it again because of how fun I thought it was and hopefully that came across for the audience too! In addition, some things still could have been improved and worked out slightly more but what we pulled off was great for me. I thoroughly enjoyed it and think that everybody else did to including the rest of the cast and also the audience. There were obviously positives and negatives too but I would say that everything came together in the end from all of our rehearsals and practices at home, the hard work payed off!
