Unit 6 - Performance workshop

Tuesday 6^th May

Today we were focusing on practicing through all of the scenes for the performance next week.

Before half term we were given the full script for the whole show and we then had to learn these lines over half term. I tried my best to learn as many lines as I could over the break but I still had revision for exams and also practicing dances for the dance performance which is this week. However, I did manage to learn most of my monologue and phone call which were the easier pieces to learn by myself.

The main thing that we needed to look at in this lesson was the setting of the monologues. We had discussed many ideas for how we were going to deliver our monologues but we never came to a conclusion. We had a group discussion in the session today and we all decided that after we have completed the scene before (our day part 2) which ends with all of the characters in a line downstage, we will walk through the grid. When each character delivers their monologue, they will enter the lift and all the other characters on the grid stop moving. Once the character has delivered their monologue, they will head back to their box which is located up stage and the rest of the characters will carry on walking through the grid. Each character has their own block which we will then be sticking pictures and items which represent the character, on the wall behind it. For example, my character has a butterfly obsession so on her wall she will have pictures of different butterflies.

Half way through the session we were joined by some visitors. One of the visitors was Bernie who is one of the directors of UCAN productions. He was visiting to see how we were progressing with the performance in preparation for next week. Because this was the first session back after half term, most of us didn’t know our lines because we had been unable to practice much over the break. I find it difficult learning lines by myself when I am part of a larger scene. I find practicing with the other people in the scene a lot better because I can then learn what my cue line is.

We managed to find some masking tape which we used to mark out the lift. This was very helpful as it gave us an idea of how much room we are going to have when carrying out all of the scenes as they all involve the lift. Next week we will have more tape so that we can mark out the grid. Each different character will have a different coloured tape which will have a different pathway, however they will all lead to the entrance of the lift. Danielle will have a line of string under her tape as she was very little sight and can use this to feel her pathway.

When running some of the scenes, Bernie gave me and the others some feedback on how we could improve the scene. In my monologue, the main priority is to learn it first and be secure with it because as soon as I am confident with it, I will be able to start acting it and getting into my character more. Also, in the doctor’s scene where I play the doctor and Danielle who is playing Felicity plays the patient, Bernie told me to be really sarcastic doctor as Felicity keeps coming to visit me. I am currently finding this difficult but I will keep practicing it over the next week and hopefully I should have improved by the next session.

My target for over the next week is to keep on practicing and running through my lines. We have organised to have another rehearsal this Saturday and our lecturer, Alys is also going to come in and help us rehearse. Alys said to us that we must be off script by the Saturday rehearsal. I think this is possible because once we have done the dance performance we can concentrate on learning the lines for this performance next Thursday.