Workshop (06 April 2009)
At first, I was skeptical to whether this workshop was something that I would enjoy. Also, this would be the first time doing something with the J2 seniors.
The instructor, Kristina, came into the black box with poles and a kompang. We were all interested in what they would be used for. Then, she introduced herself and told us what we were going to do and why. As it turns out, we were to be more exposed to the art of physical theatre, in which, the emphasis would be more of the movement of our body, rather than our voices. This, to me, was quite interesting as I was intrigued to how physical theatre like mime was about and how people actually train for it. We then went on to do some stretching. It was so painful! At first, I thought we were going to do ordinary stretching but boy was I wrong. We learned that the most important part for physical theatre was actually our torso area or “the core” as she called it. An actor must be grounded so that his movements would look fluid and natural so we established the zero position, with feet, knees and tailbone parallel and relax the tension in the arms and neck. This was further proved to be useful when we watched the play of “7 boards” and saw how easily the actors moved what looked like super heavy boards. It was effortless and Kristina told us how the zero position actually helps in the moving of the boards.
After the awesomely painful stretching, we were treated to “catching the fly.” When Kristina hit the kompang, we were to jump and catch the fly, thereafter, come back to our zero position. I realized the impact of our stretching when we were able to execute a ¾ jump and back.
Moving on, we then practiced with the space in the black box. The objective was to focus on a specific object and walk towards it while at the same time use our peripheral vision to avoid clashing into one another. Also, when the kompang is hit, we had to stop and immobilize ourselves. This was not so much of a challenge than the next part of the exercise, in which we had t stop and start by ourselves. Without anyone telling us when. At first, it was very jerky, with people hesitating over when to stop and start, however, I realized that everyone of us had sort of a routine where we just instinctively knew when to move and stop. I realized that as an actor, be it physical theatre or not, the ability to “sense” other people on stage is crucial to make the play better and more fluid. We then had to walk vertically and horizontally, and make turns at a 90 degree angle. Then, we had to move in an arc and then a mixture of both. I did not get this exercise but maybe this can help us with the way we use the stage, how it is important to know exactly how you move and where so that it does not look disorganized or unsure on stage.
Then, the “moving between 2 people in a fishbowl” exercise. This was seriously hilarious as there was always a “traffic jam” in the middle of the bowl and also, finding 2 people to go through is really tough as everyone wanted to move, but no one wanted to give space for others to move. After 2 rounds, we got better, I admit, but to me, it was still a mess. This teaches us that we have to be considerate of the space on stage that we have to use and how our movements can affect other people and as a physical theater actor, awareness of the space and the people in it needs to be evidently there in our actions and body.
We then had to do the thing where she told us a number and body part and were had to find ways of achieving it. This was a prelude to the real exercise in which we had to find a partner and use our bodies to show the space that we have, for example, making your body as big as possible while still remaining in contact with your partner, also, twisting your body in many interesting ways. This exercise I think helps us understand that we do not really need to be acrobats to be good physical theatre actors, but it’s how we use our body to convey the message across to the audience.
Kristina had us follow her in an isolation exercise where one part of the body was isolated but the rest is moving, this I think, is the basis of most mimes. It was very interesting. Some of the actions I could follow but some just too difficult to emulate. This shows again, the importance of our core and how the core is useful in doing many different actions.
Following that, we were split into 3 groups and had to do a tablo with an abstract theme, I think this was because she wants us to use our bodies to show our message rather than words. It was particularly challenging to pick out a theme but we decided on “dreams.” So, I had totally no idea what I was going to do because I thought that the scary element was more than enough and adding more to it would just be redundant. The problem was solved when I became the person sleeping and WZ was my shadow. It was great as we all had fun playing our scene but it ended up being more of a “nightmare” theme. The other groups also did well but I think that Kristina misunderstood us, we did not jeer our friends, rather, when the group with the title “nightmare” came out, my group was like, crap, it’s the same thing. So, we were disappointed in ourselves for doing the same thing and not being bad audiences to the other group. However, there were differences and I think that as a whole, we did good.
Then, we watched 7 boards and I was really fascinated with this play as it is so physical and abstract. There were absolutely no words uttered and a different style of theatre that I was used to.
Overall, this workshop was a useful one in helping me and most of the J1s to be exposed to the different aspect of theatre and extend our repertoire of knowledge. Thumbs up and hoping for another one like this!
afiqah
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Movement of Joints Workshop
Theatre Studies Workshop Reflection: Introduction to Movement of Joints.
The workshop conducted on that day was really enriching in my opinion. It was aimed at exposing us to the mechanism of the joints and to help us understand certain things about ourselves hitherto unknown. So we started off by playing a simple game, ‘Simon Says’. I thought this game was actually a good precursor to the work that we were going to do that day, because the game of ‘Simon Says’ requires one to follow instructions.
Now it sounds simple but in actuality this isn’t the case. Sometimes we might want to move our bodies in one way to express an emotion, but perhaps due to the incapability of our bodies, we are unable to do so. So while playing that game it started to dawn on me that discipline of the body is crucial in theatre. One has to be in complete control of his body, because after all he is its master.
Shortly after the game concluded, our instructor introduced us to a few types of puppets, namely the finger puppet, the mouth puppet, the glove puppet, the puppet that is controlled by rods, and string puppets. He showed us a few techniques of a puppeteer and demonstrated to us certain concepts of puppetry that could also be applied to that of theatre. I think this was really enriching as well because I myself don’t have a lot of exposure to the technicalities of puppetry, but it was really amazing to see him move these puppets and “breathe life” into them. While he demonstrated moving the puppets, he then related concepts of puppetry, such as energy, to all of us. One has to mimic life, and transfer that into the puppet, or the movements would just look jerky and artificial. Similarly, an actor needs to be precise in his movements, and know exactly how to move and speak to achieve desired effects and emotions.
We then watched a few videos of interesting pieces that used puppetry. These people did not use elaborate puppets, or elaborate props. Simple things like Styrofoam balls and a doll can already be used to create beautiful art. He also told us something important: “If one does not appreciate art, one would not know how to create it.” A lot of theatre is about feeling. There is no “right” or “wrong”, but everything is again dependent on the audience receiving your piece.
The workshop conducted on that day was really enriching in my opinion. It was aimed at exposing us to the mechanism of the joints and to help us understand certain things about ourselves hitherto unknown. So we started off by playing a simple game, ‘Simon Says’. I thought this game was actually a good precursor to the work that we were going to do that day, because the game of ‘Simon Says’ requires one to follow instructions.
Now it sounds simple but in actuality this isn’t the case. Sometimes we might want to move our bodies in one way to express an emotion, but perhaps due to the incapability of our bodies, we are unable to do so. So while playing that game it started to dawn on me that discipline of the body is crucial in theatre. One has to be in complete control of his body, because after all he is its master.
Shortly after the game concluded, our instructor introduced us to a few types of puppets, namely the finger puppet, the mouth puppet, the glove puppet, the puppet that is controlled by rods, and string puppets. He showed us a few techniques of a puppeteer and demonstrated to us certain concepts of puppetry that could also be applied to that of theatre. I think this was really enriching as well because I myself don’t have a lot of exposure to the technicalities of puppetry, but it was really amazing to see him move these puppets and “breathe life” into them. While he demonstrated moving the puppets, he then related concepts of puppetry, such as energy, to all of us. One has to mimic life, and transfer that into the puppet, or the movements would just look jerky and artificial. Similarly, an actor needs to be precise in his movements, and know exactly how to move and speak to achieve desired effects and emotions.
We then watched a few videos of interesting pieces that used puppetry. These people did not use elaborate puppets, or elaborate props. Simple things like Styrofoam balls and a doll can already be used to create beautiful art. He also told us something important: “If one does not appreciate art, one would not know how to create it.” A lot of theatre is about feeling. There is no “right” or “wrong”, but everything is again dependent on the audience receiving your piece.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Day FOUR
REFLECTION
DAY 4
Morning- waking up exercise- clapping. We all stood in a circle passed the clap around, getting faster and faster. Basically he was trying to wake us up and test or reaction skills.
Next, we played the same game we played the day before. One person walks towards their chair with knees together while the others try to stop him/her.
Exercise to demonstrate what an action is. It was done 4 at a time.
Each one imagines the other 3 are characters from the book- Olivia (shows favor to the person), Cesario (puzzled, unable to understand expression) and Toby (detest). The person is Malvolio. This way, the audience can see how personalities clash. All of them are Malvoilio’s, and they all treat the other person differently, according to what they had previously tagged them. So while one of them might favour the 2nd, the 2nd might show detest to the 1st. We also had to include actions, like being at a launderette, or Horse riding. No need for expressions and words that were obvious signals of who the person was to you, mere slight signals and light expressions should be used.
Walk around in our own spaces, stop. Imagine and act out how Malvolio would have prepared to go to bed. While sleeping, dreams of past (childhood), an incident 10 years after incident during childhood, and a dream he has (recurrent). Go back and share with group.
My childhood- He was dressed in shabby dirty clothes and his Mother was scolding him for being irresponsible and lazy while actually he wasn’t. He was down cast and angry for being falsely accused. He vowed to prove him mother wrong and do the best he could to rise above his lowly status.
In University- He was constantly being bullied and teased for being such a geek. He was the top in his class, the best he could be. He had finally proved his mother wrong.
Dream- He dreams that the people under him and around him (Maria, Toby, Andrew) will turn into the bullies who made his life a living hell when he was in university.
Around table, read suicide note aloud. Some of them cursed and vowed to be revenged, while others had a sad and hurting tone to them. Most of them were angry though, and there was even one which classified Mal as a psychopath and a mad man.
I took a more revengeful, why do you hate me tone…
I never made you play the part of a fool; I never harassed you physically or emotionally; I never caused you to feel shameful in front of others; and I never played a heartless prank on anyone; I never demanded anything from you except respect, nothing else. All I did was create an environment of law and order, a place where my lady could find rest and happiness. And yet you treated me so. You shall be punished, but not by me, but a higher power, one that is so much greater than you and everyone else. I put the blame of my death on you. On your shoulders I place the blood I am about to shed. It shall taunt you endlessly, never shall you rest, and never shall a day go by without you looking over your shoulders with fear and regret. NEVER, I TELL YOU! NEVER! I on no account did anything wrong or anything that deserved the treatment you all gave me. You tricked, deceived and lied. No you shall be repentant, petrified and taunted till the day you all shall cease to exist once and for all.
Ma’am, everything I have ever done was done to please and provide for you and this is how you treat me? Did you never think of your servant which I was in that hell hole? Do you hate me so much that you left me in the “care” of your drunk cousin, the one you know I do detest. I feel cheated, abused and used. If for loyalty and execution of ones duty one gets repaid with hatred and persecution, then this is not what I want any longer. I was treated unjustly but no one cared. My life means little to anyone, so why live it? Now I give up the last thing left that I truly treasured. My life.
LUNCH
In pairs, one tried to persuade the other to stop drinking, turn down the music and stop chewing gum. There were many methods that were used, most commonly of course threatening. Unfortunately physical violence was not allowed. (:P) There was also persuasion, and sometimes though rare (since the persuader was to be Mal) there was the act of pleading, black mail was also used, and the use of things close to the one being persuaded heart. This exercise3 was done to show us just how hard it is to get someone to listen to a higher authority. We were paced in Mal’s shoes to see why he acted the way he did. It made us pity him and see the ligher side in him. Done in prep for the next writing exercise.
One person out of the group. The rest are rowdy teenagers. Lone person tries to control the rest- Silent treatment, shouting, screaming, switching off the lights, taking away one by one (isolation). Silent treatment and isolation worked the best. It showed us the power of a person when they are not saying anything at all. The power of just being there, the power of silence, the power of the glare.
Writing, Malvolio married to Olivia and tour of his mansion. Him in happier days, his imagination.
So basically, we , as Malvolio, take the rest on a tour of our house…
Hello! Welcome Ladies and Gentlemen to the guided tour of the “MaOli Mansion” As you can probably tell, the house was named after me and my wife’s names, three letters of each, what balance and perfection! I must tell you, that you are indeed a very special group. I don’t usually give tours of the mansion, but I have made an exception since I had some spare time. So yes, here we are in the garden. You should have seen it before I arrived! What a horrid state in was in! Oh my! But now, as you can see, it has been restored fabulously. I saved it of course, with some famous gardener guy called Jean… something. The plants come from various countries from all over the world of course, very high class indeed wouldn’t you say? I hire about 50 gardeners, all of them are graduates with honors from the ‘Gardening Institute of learning’ very very prestigious school you know. I hire only the best.
Lets walk in now. As you can see the living room is very bright indeed, because of the reflection of the mirrors which cover the walls. Oh how beautiful they look and how good they make you look. There is this fascinating thing with the windows, they are made out of this material which allows the person on the darker side of the pane to see themselves, it magically turns into a mirror! I don’t know what its called, but then again, who cares!
Further down, we have the display room; it is the most precious room in the house to me at least. Here, the first item seen is my most precious, valuable and loved object, my yellow stocking. It was while wearing these that I feel in love with Olivia’s and she with me. Ill let you in on a little secret; I wore it for our weeding, underneath my pants. Here are Olivia’s jewels, most of them obviously bought by me for her. She is so lovely that one just has to buy her the best and most beautiful of gems. And I have my own collection of jewels. Here is my magnificent ring that I wear on special occasions to denote my authority and position in society. Also, this watch which was designed by the late Antonin Stanvarkski of Germany. Very precious, valuable and a treasure I must say. Ah yes, Maria, I was just bringing the guests around. Everyone, this is Olivia, the head of the servants, with the head of the house obviously being me. You may go along now. Yes, she is in charge of all the servants, all 200 or so of them. So many, I just cannot keep track of them. What’s that you say? Why I need so many? Well of course I need that many! They are experts in their own fields, there are the gardeners, chefs, maids, toilet specialists, master of the art at washing laundry, sweeping, and you get the point don’t you?
Well here we are at the dining room, I know, big isn’t it? Well me and Olivia dine here with the 6 children everyday. Yes, I have six of them, theyt are all with their tutors right now, so unfortuanteky you will not be able to meet them. The china as you can see is just fabulous. Not from China, no no, that would be just way too common. They come from Italy, Greece, Venice and all those cities who make treally good glass and pottery ware. Beautiful, fragile, special, and bloody expensive as well, but what is the money spent comopared to the satisfaction!
Come along now; let me take you to the Master bedroom! The second favorite room on my list of favorite rooms, since I spend lots of time here with my love, Olivia. Oh, yes, this long staircase has numerous portraits hung on it. There is one of me, and another, Myself, I, yes that is me when I was younger, see how different I look in that one, that was before and after the haircut, don’t I look different? Oh yes, and me and Olivia, that’s us again, and again, the two of us with the Queen of England, yes that was on the occasion of her birthday. There are lots more, but I’m afraid that I will have to hurry you on, as there will be no time to see the rest of the house, and trust me, you do not want to miss that. So here we are at the master bedroom. Please, do take your time to admire the doors. They are made out of the most expensive and fragrant wood in the world and have been exquisitely carved out. They cost me a lot, not a fortune of course, but a lot. It carpenter spent 40 years at it, and was actually made for someone else, but I bought it over. Oh my, look at the time, dear me, I’m sorry but I will have to leave you in the care of by trusty servant to show you the rest of my palace. I have to run, Olivia is waiting for me, were flying off on a business trip, see you!
Write a text with 26 letters. 1st word start with A last word with Z, etc. This exercise was used to show us just how useful restrictions can be. If he had asked us to write something, anything we would have been so confused. But, when you give someone restrictions, it really makes them think and shows their creative side. It helps to bring out the best work.
DAY 4
Morning- waking up exercise- clapping. We all stood in a circle passed the clap around, getting faster and faster. Basically he was trying to wake us up and test or reaction skills.
Next, we played the same game we played the day before. One person walks towards their chair with knees together while the others try to stop him/her.
Exercise to demonstrate what an action is. It was done 4 at a time.
Each one imagines the other 3 are characters from the book- Olivia (shows favor to the person), Cesario (puzzled, unable to understand expression) and Toby (detest). The person is Malvolio. This way, the audience can see how personalities clash. All of them are Malvoilio’s, and they all treat the other person differently, according to what they had previously tagged them. So while one of them might favour the 2nd, the 2nd might show detest to the 1st. We also had to include actions, like being at a launderette, or Horse riding. No need for expressions and words that were obvious signals of who the person was to you, mere slight signals and light expressions should be used.
Walk around in our own spaces, stop. Imagine and act out how Malvolio would have prepared to go to bed. While sleeping, dreams of past (childhood), an incident 10 years after incident during childhood, and a dream he has (recurrent). Go back and share with group.
My childhood- He was dressed in shabby dirty clothes and his Mother was scolding him for being irresponsible and lazy while actually he wasn’t. He was down cast and angry for being falsely accused. He vowed to prove him mother wrong and do the best he could to rise above his lowly status.
In University- He was constantly being bullied and teased for being such a geek. He was the top in his class, the best he could be. He had finally proved his mother wrong.
Dream- He dreams that the people under him and around him (Maria, Toby, Andrew) will turn into the bullies who made his life a living hell when he was in university.
Around table, read suicide note aloud. Some of them cursed and vowed to be revenged, while others had a sad and hurting tone to them. Most of them were angry though, and there was even one which classified Mal as a psychopath and a mad man.
I took a more revengeful, why do you hate me tone…
I never made you play the part of a fool; I never harassed you physically or emotionally; I never caused you to feel shameful in front of others; and I never played a heartless prank on anyone; I never demanded anything from you except respect, nothing else. All I did was create an environment of law and order, a place where my lady could find rest and happiness. And yet you treated me so. You shall be punished, but not by me, but a higher power, one that is so much greater than you and everyone else. I put the blame of my death on you. On your shoulders I place the blood I am about to shed. It shall taunt you endlessly, never shall you rest, and never shall a day go by without you looking over your shoulders with fear and regret. NEVER, I TELL YOU! NEVER! I on no account did anything wrong or anything that deserved the treatment you all gave me. You tricked, deceived and lied. No you shall be repentant, petrified and taunted till the day you all shall cease to exist once and for all.
Ma’am, everything I have ever done was done to please and provide for you and this is how you treat me? Did you never think of your servant which I was in that hell hole? Do you hate me so much that you left me in the “care” of your drunk cousin, the one you know I do detest. I feel cheated, abused and used. If for loyalty and execution of ones duty one gets repaid with hatred and persecution, then this is not what I want any longer. I was treated unjustly but no one cared. My life means little to anyone, so why live it? Now I give up the last thing left that I truly treasured. My life.
LUNCH
In pairs, one tried to persuade the other to stop drinking, turn down the music and stop chewing gum. There were many methods that were used, most commonly of course threatening. Unfortunately physical violence was not allowed. (:P) There was also persuasion, and sometimes though rare (since the persuader was to be Mal) there was the act of pleading, black mail was also used, and the use of things close to the one being persuaded heart. This exercise3 was done to show us just how hard it is to get someone to listen to a higher authority. We were paced in Mal’s shoes to see why he acted the way he did. It made us pity him and see the ligher side in him. Done in prep for the next writing exercise.
One person out of the group. The rest are rowdy teenagers. Lone person tries to control the rest- Silent treatment, shouting, screaming, switching off the lights, taking away one by one (isolation). Silent treatment and isolation worked the best. It showed us the power of a person when they are not saying anything at all. The power of just being there, the power of silence, the power of the glare.
Writing, Malvolio married to Olivia and tour of his mansion. Him in happier days, his imagination.
So basically, we , as Malvolio, take the rest on a tour of our house…
Hello! Welcome Ladies and Gentlemen to the guided tour of the “MaOli Mansion” As you can probably tell, the house was named after me and my wife’s names, three letters of each, what balance and perfection! I must tell you, that you are indeed a very special group. I don’t usually give tours of the mansion, but I have made an exception since I had some spare time. So yes, here we are in the garden. You should have seen it before I arrived! What a horrid state in was in! Oh my! But now, as you can see, it has been restored fabulously. I saved it of course, with some famous gardener guy called Jean… something. The plants come from various countries from all over the world of course, very high class indeed wouldn’t you say? I hire about 50 gardeners, all of them are graduates with honors from the ‘Gardening Institute of learning’ very very prestigious school you know. I hire only the best.
Lets walk in now. As you can see the living room is very bright indeed, because of the reflection of the mirrors which cover the walls. Oh how beautiful they look and how good they make you look. There is this fascinating thing with the windows, they are made out of this material which allows the person on the darker side of the pane to see themselves, it magically turns into a mirror! I don’t know what its called, but then again, who cares!
Further down, we have the display room; it is the most precious room in the house to me at least. Here, the first item seen is my most precious, valuable and loved object, my yellow stocking. It was while wearing these that I feel in love with Olivia’s and she with me. Ill let you in on a little secret; I wore it for our weeding, underneath my pants. Here are Olivia’s jewels, most of them obviously bought by me for her. She is so lovely that one just has to buy her the best and most beautiful of gems. And I have my own collection of jewels. Here is my magnificent ring that I wear on special occasions to denote my authority and position in society. Also, this watch which was designed by the late Antonin Stanvarkski of Germany. Very precious, valuable and a treasure I must say. Ah yes, Maria, I was just bringing the guests around. Everyone, this is Olivia, the head of the servants, with the head of the house obviously being me. You may go along now. Yes, she is in charge of all the servants, all 200 or so of them. So many, I just cannot keep track of them. What’s that you say? Why I need so many? Well of course I need that many! They are experts in their own fields, there are the gardeners, chefs, maids, toilet specialists, master of the art at washing laundry, sweeping, and you get the point don’t you?
Well here we are at the dining room, I know, big isn’t it? Well me and Olivia dine here with the 6 children everyday. Yes, I have six of them, theyt are all with their tutors right now, so unfortuanteky you will not be able to meet them. The china as you can see is just fabulous. Not from China, no no, that would be just way too common. They come from Italy, Greece, Venice and all those cities who make treally good glass and pottery ware. Beautiful, fragile, special, and bloody expensive as well, but what is the money spent comopared to the satisfaction!
Come along now; let me take you to the Master bedroom! The second favorite room on my list of favorite rooms, since I spend lots of time here with my love, Olivia. Oh, yes, this long staircase has numerous portraits hung on it. There is one of me, and another, Myself, I, yes that is me when I was younger, see how different I look in that one, that was before and after the haircut, don’t I look different? Oh yes, and me and Olivia, that’s us again, and again, the two of us with the Queen of England, yes that was on the occasion of her birthday. There are lots more, but I’m afraid that I will have to hurry you on, as there will be no time to see the rest of the house, and trust me, you do not want to miss that. So here we are at the master bedroom. Please, do take your time to admire the doors. They are made out of the most expensive and fragrant wood in the world and have been exquisitely carved out. They cost me a lot, not a fortune of course, but a lot. It carpenter spent 40 years at it, and was actually made for someone else, but I bought it over. Oh my, look at the time, dear me, I’m sorry but I will have to leave you in the care of by trusty servant to show you the rest of my palace. I have to run, Olivia is waiting for me, were flying off on a business trip, see you!
Write a text with 26 letters. 1st word start with A last word with Z, etc. This exercise was used to show us just how useful restrictions can be. If he had asked us to write something, anything we would have been so confused. But, when you give someone restrictions, it really makes them think and shows their creative side. It helps to bring out the best work.
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