Acting:Twelfth lesson

Tuesday 20th January

This week in acting we were carrying on with our group working on our scene. This week we
work better as a group because we work outside which mean we weren’t distracted by the
other class members. We go through the scene and came up with some great ideas which
includes when Adzio and Stephanie’s kiss and when they dance together we have made it so
that they dance to Macarena this takes the emotions from the play. This play is a upsetting
piece of theatre so making some parts humorous will remind the audience that they are in a
theatre and won’t get draw way from the real life. We came up with using music in the last
monologue that called "bang bang" which will work well with the monologue we are using
because it relates to the words that are said to build on this idea we are going to look really
happy and dance in the background.

We had a rehearsal on Thursday which work well an till other people started to come in the
room, the group members became distributed. I feel that the group has a hard time
focusing. I think next time we work in a grouping felt i want go with people who work and
not get distracted easily.

My strengths from this lesson is that I was ready to work and didn't get distracted with
other members class an d come up with some good ideas. My weaknesses from the lesson
was that I couldn't get the group to work. 

Acting: Lesson eleven

Tuesday 13^th January

This week we carried on with working on our scene for berth’s Dr Korczak’s Example. The group I’m working with are hard to get working they keep going off topic and it’s getting annoying as we only have two weeks to finish our scene.

 I thought we can use the songs I need a dollar for when the musician comes in, thinking that if we have an upbeat version of this song. Using this juxtaposition distances them from the play. We were going to have signs on the musician saying I sing for my supper and have one Adzio saying something an along the lines of being unable to trust or I’m going to fight as long as I can to show the rebel that he is growing up in to. Stephanie could have a sign on her that is reliving her thoughts or personality to remind the audience that they are in the theatre.

When Adzio and Stephanie are slow dancing someone could put the dolls in the front of the stage and the dancers can slow more backwards they speak they lines but it only the dolls on the stage it help create less feeling for the audience. We haven’t thought a song to dance to yet but we are going to use dramatic music when we are change characters with revolves around the apple.

Our first scene we are going to use our bodies to make a table to set the scene for Stephanie and Dr Korczak so then we will going to the front of the stage and talk to the audience so we can break down the fourth wall.

My strength for this week’s lesson are the ideas I had but my weakness what that I could get my group to work so I feel we did get much done.

Next week I think we need to plan out our scene and put in to action the new ideas we have come up with and then keep going over it and then have an extra rehearsal. 

Acting: Lesson Ten

Tuesday 9^th December

This week in acting we start coming up with ideas for our 3 scene we have to do. We also made dolls to use in our scenes. We made the dolls look really unrealistic so the audience know that it a doll. We are did this to keep the audience so focus on what’s happening in the play and not wind up in the feelings about what happening in the play.

The ideas with came up with of our scene was we would use the dolls for the kissing scene between Adzio and steff as we want to distance the audience for the play. We also decide to swap characters at different sections of the scene and find we change when characters handed over an apple so we thought we could do a movement piece to change out characters and use the apple to move around. We are going to have different objects to show the different characters like a flower for steff and a cap for Adzio and a white coat or a something that a doctor would wear for Dr Korczak. We would all so talk to the audience instead of looking at the other actor to bring the audience back to know they are in a theatre. 

My strengths for the lesson were that i came up we some good ideas to help distance the audience but my weakness for the lesson was that I couldn't really remeber the technique he uses. I am going to bring in a lit of all his techniques that we could use in the play which well help me feel more confident in getting my idea.

Acting: Lesson Nine

Tuesday 2nd December

We read though the rest of Dr Korczak’s examples. Here are some of the techniques we find and the notes we made in class about the play.

As the story goes on Steff begins to turn against the resents the restriction lace on her by the government but she’s still attached to the orphanage where she lives and understand Dr Korczak’s points he makes. Steff is more practical minded, which prove that she’s the selfless and understanding young lady she  was  before Adzio come long, thinking about providing for the community whereas for Adzio is materialistic and selfish even though he has change Steff, she hasn't seem to change him to become more selfless.

Information is given out to the audience in scene21 by the actors not the characters, they talk about the orders given and it is also setting the scene of Cerniakov and his plan to help the orphans, how it fails which leads to his suicide. The dolls are used consistently as a distancing device e.g. the doll is broken before the character takes cyanide and dies, the benefit of doing this, is that the audience knows it about to help so they have no reason to feel sad and shocked. Playwright points out the humanity of the soldiers even though they are dolls. This shows how solider are as human as any of us. They are just following orders and know in their heart or head that they are doing wrong. The actors come out of the story to remind you it isn't real, it takes you out of the emotion, but somehow it is more emotion as it’s happened in real life and it just a remind of what happen to the children in times and how the right for children can about with the sacrifice and selfless of one man and his dreams. Korczak talks about being equal to children but can’t be honest with them about death at the end, which goes against one of the his right for the children which is “the right to desire, and claim, and ask” but he is being kind to the children and letting them have hope and dreams till the very end. Summary of political message at the end, a reminder to be thankful for Korczak, it’s relevant to a modern audience. Audience given the manifesto at the end as Brecht wanted the audience to actively think about messages of the play. This is a good idea as it keeps reminding the people in the audience of what happen and how they felt about this play.

The techniques that Brecht uses are Stereotypes, multiroling acting, distancing with dolls, direct address, montages. These will be use in our scene in which we were put ourselves in groups of three with one boy in each group. My group got the scene 15-17. We have the scene where Steff and Adzio kiss, to distance and take feeling out of the kiss I thought we could use the dolls which we help us remind the audience that we are in a play. 


My weakness from this lesson, are not commenting as much as I should but I feel like I did comment of important parts which I think I am glad of. 
My strength for this lesson would  be that I have a couple of good ideas of when it comes to thinking of the techniques to use in our scene.

Acting: Lesson Eight

Tuesday 25^th November

This week we started looking at Dr Korczak’s Example. This is story about Dr Janusz Korczak, a polish educator and children’s author. Dr Korczak was an owner of an orphanage which was move to ghetto during the Second World War. Dr Korczak is trying to pursuit the idea of children having natural rights while holding count between children. The story is base around fictional characters called Adzio and Stephanie, two orphans who try to resist the Germans violently.

We started to read though Dr Korczak’s Example. Point out Brecht techniques. Here are the different techniques we find in the play. At the start a storyline is played out twice in 2 different ways to show different outcomes –“This is how it probably happens but then we wouldn't have a story so we’ll change it”. This helps distances the audience from the story.  The actors tell the audience that their version of the story is a lie because they tell the audience that they are changing the scene because one of the main character get shot at the beginning. The actors talk about their character because they not want the audience getting attracted to the characters and this helps separate the characters form the actors. The actors tells the audience it is a real story with a made up character who Represents any kid you might know (an Archetypes are characters that could represent any kid you know in your life) which is show by using dolls, that are there to represent characters this also detaches the audience from their feeling using David Grieg uses dolls to enact scenes that are spoken about. E.g actor of Adzio examines the Doll Adzio’s scars Adzio is very blasé about this scar, this helps to removes feeling from the audience. The doll is used as a border between characters and their emotions.  In the scene between Adzio and Steff, the dolls slap each other first, then there’s a real slap between the characters/actors this distance the audience as they know that slap is coming. Jews are never referred to with names and neither are the flies, the killing of flies’ ends up helping another character which happens when Steff needs the loo. This is a metaphor for the sacrifices in war. The audience have less sympathetic to a doll than to a human so we are listening more to the political message rather than having emotional sympathy.  

The political message of the fly that people in power kill the flies. Adzio compares himself to a fly because he doesn't have the power to kill it but later when he start understanding that everyone has the power to kill just some people not use that power but he does use that power so he kills the fly. Later he compares the flies to Germans and kills them. There’s a sense of community in the Ghetto though out the whole play with the children running the count if there is someone the same age as them. The children get to said who stay and who goes because they are the one living with the other children. There’s a lot of description about characters explaining what is going on. The soldier Korczak speaks to is a tool for Korczak to say what is on his mind outside of the scene. When Adzio tempts Steff with the apple it is a metaphor for the Garden of Eden with Adam and eve. Then the priest kicks them out of the garden like Adam and eve were kicked out.  Actors looking at each other, not characters, show it is a significant moment. Adzio leaves. His doll behind to show he is leaving his old self behind. 

I feel my strength from this listen was that I understand the play and what was happening but my weakness was that I was worried about reading the play so I didn't really look and the techniques which I should of done so next week I'm going to find more techniques that Brecht using in the play.

Acting: Lesson Seven

Tuesday 18^th November

We perform our small plays using Brecht techniques. We watched all the groups and they were really good but one of them stood out which was a group who did the injustice of the World war 2.

The things I like and though work really well in their plays, which were they change the lyric of a song called “read all about it” by professor green. their use the quote “See no evil hear no evil speak no evil” which they use to show that when they did something to someone they would get abuse but if some other ten they did it they would not get abuse.

I like how the fame the judge they talked about how some judge abuse their right and power for different people.

Our play was really good and we use lots of Brecht techniques so we all felt it was strong piece but I feel that we should of work out a better ending because we just seen to stop and it didn’t feel like we finish. Adding the pelts was a really good idea and everyone understands what we try to imply. I think adding in about the asylum seekers was really creative as we could tell the history of IS so show we researched and really at what has happened about IS and how many lives they have destroyed.

My strengths from this performs was understanding what we were doing because I was worried that it would be complex in how we came up with but I felt I understand that I could come up with ideas for  the play.

My weakness was that I couldn’t hold focus face like when I was in the game I could stop smiling and I could hold it for some moments so I am a little disappointed in myself because in other scene I was fine and perform really well.

Acting: Lesson Six

Tuesday 4^th November

This week we were focus on setting out our play and we work out a short dance piece to beginning our play and it goes like this

I feel this short dance piece shows the conflict and team work as when we all join hands it seem we are joining allies to defeat our emery. When we sway together it shows that we are stronger together than we are apart. The beginning I feel like we try to defeat the emery by ourselves but realise that we need to come together.

My strengths from this lesson were that I understand where we got the different movements in the dance but my weakness was that I didn't really contribute to coming up with the dance moves. Next week I felt we need to set out what we are doing and then go in to more detail after wards we have more of a play structure out because I feel like we spend too much time of the dance movement instead of getting the whole play plan out.

Life's like a play: it's not the length, but the excellence of the acting that matters

Lucius Annaeus Seneca