Lesson 2

Playing games is what theatre is all about and so playing duel in the dark reminded me of the need to play in the rehearsal room. The game: two people are blindfolded and two rolled up newspapers are placed around the room. The aim- find the newspaper and hit your opponent. Watching this game unfold is very amusing because the audience are given the power of watching the game knowing the vital piece of information that the players are scrambling for. This sense of power in turn creates a sense of dramatic irony- when the audience know something before the actors. Involving this switch of power is very appropriate for experimental as it changes the goal posts completely especially in terms of the actor/audience relationship. Having fun with a piece is important to remember; true passion cannot be faked.

Today we did an exercise that investigated how a sequence of movements can be supported through breath and a specific emotional journey. The sequence consisted of 4 moments: bending your legs and slowly raising your arms as if your were about to jump on a trapeze, swinging your arms backs like you are skiing, swinging your arms back forward and then using this momentum stab yourself in the chest and then finally slowly release your hands from your chest and examining them looking at the blood until they are raised again to repeat the movement. I really enjoyed doing this exercise, mainly because it was so simple. It wasn't a piece of complicated choreography and yet it still carried a lot of emotion within 30 seconds worth of movement. Finding simplicity in movements can be so effective when portraying emotion to the audience. In this exercise I felt more emotionally rooted than I may have in a 10 minute piece of physical. As I knew what I was doing I could experiment further and find my own interpretation, supported by the foundations that had been laid for me.

One of the favourite skills I accessed today was the ability to create a sound scape with the class. We made the sound of different environments starting with a wood. The sounds that were created included birds tweeting, tress blowing in the wind, the crunch of leaves, the drip of rain and the rushing of a stream. It created such an atmosphere and accessed a sense that is often forgotten about- sound. It really touched me; this orchestra of nature created in a rehearsal room in Selhurst. It was beautiful. Then we contrasted this with the sound of the end of the world and immediately we started screaming, making the sound of bombs, evil laughs and crying babies. When the only experience of such a scenario comes from futuristic zombie movies, it is no wonder this reaction was created. The two reactions taught me a vital skill; being delicate and careful with a piece is important. A world and appearance can shatter like glass if not cared for. By listening to peoples contributions you can decide if and what is needed to add to the atmosphere. This tool is something that can add a third dimension to a piece by simply using our mouths.

This idea of listening and responding was continued in the grieving mother portrait. In a circle myself and Eve went in the middle with Eve lying on my lap as my dead child and me, her mother, mourning her passing. My starting point was crying and then slowly the circle around me created the sound scape of a mourning mother. Someone vocalised my internal screams, the laugh of a child and the most eerie, someone sang twinkle twinkle little star slowly and quietly throughout. Being in the centre of this bubble of sadness really begins to crack through your barriers and touches your emotions. I think this has shown me that creating a true reaction can come from something very simple- less is more essentially.

The last exercise we did was similar to the passing emotion exercise last lesson, but instead we passed a cry down a line. Starting with the initial holding back of tears to the final tear being wiped away. When my group performed we did it three times through and each time it intensified and then we started doing the different stages randomly creating an opera of sobs and cries. It sounded strange, but at the same time was very clear in its portrayal of emotion. I already believe that a sound scape can be very emotive, but switch up the sounds and it becomes this waterfall of emotion that washes the audience from head to toe.