Peer&Self Observation Sheets 13.12.12

These were from 13.12.12.

Evaluation!

I thought our final performance was out best run-through yet! The energy was the highest it had ever been and you could tell everyone was very high on adrenaline which gave the performance that edge that we needed. Everyone was focused throughout and no one stepped out of character. I thought the changeovers were slick and the characterisation was excellent. Little things that certain people did to bring their character to life really made the whole piece so believable and entertaining.

I was very pleased with my monologue because I felt flowed naturally and I stayed in character mentally the whole time. In my head I just thought about my relationship with Phil and what I wanted to get out of saying all of this to him which resulted in me not over-thinking what I was saying and how it sounded. It was the first time I completely forgot where I was and it just felt it was me and Phil alone. I felt that my relationship with Phil (Chem) came across well because of the subtle eye-contact and physical contact we had in scenes. In the group scene I felt that the audience could feel a sense of Phil's dominance over Leah and Leah's desperation which is what I wanted to achieve.

One of the actor's that really stood out for me was Ben (Mark). His monologue was incredibly effective for many reasons. His facial expressions showed a deeper layer to what he was saying because it gave an insight into what he was really thinking which made his performance very convincing as well as upsetting. His body language changed from being fairly open and relaxed to being on his knees and tense as he explained what had happened to Adam. This made the audience feel on-edge and gripped because of the raw emotion that was being showed through his body as well as his facial expressions. It was also so natural because of the pauses he took and the pace variation - he sped up when it was a climax and slowed down just before he said critical words. Overall he was very convincing and had developed a completely believable character.

I think the set was a crucial factor in making our piece so successful. It was so simplistic yet had a story behind it. Personally, I thought that the swing represented a sense innocence and childhood which contradicted the storyline in a very eerie way. It proved that less is more because of how easy it was to imagine the rest of the environment even though we just had a bench and a swing. I thought it was really effective for us to all be in uniform. Again, it made you realise how young all the characters were and that they were all part of a group. It also made all the characters on an equal level which made characterisation even more important. Daniel's costume was shocking and authentic, with dirt covering his white shirt and scratches down his arms - it made him seem like even more of an outsider. I thought the music at the beginning was very effective because although it was fairly upbeat, the lyrics were dark and quite depressing. This reflected the whole piece in a way - everyone tried to put on this upbeat act but if you looked deeper everything was falling apart. I thought the music in-between scenes kept everyone on-edge and had an exciting sense to it to keep the audience intrigued and entertained. I thought the props were also very useful because they were all used in a very effective way and made the piece even more believable.

I think the performance had many different strengths but predominantly I thought how effectively we worked as an ensemble really made the piece successful. In most scenes all the characters bounced off each other with their lines and it was clear of what relationship they each had with each other by subtle facial expressions or body language. We were all so engrossed in the story that if someone missed their que or said a line slightly wrong it wouldn't matter because we were all so in the moment. This resulted in the piece being realistic and entertaining to watch. I also thought the majority of the cast had developed their characters so well that there were interesting contrasts which made our piece strong. Everyone was so individual even though people were playing the same character and everyone took a different look on their particular character.

I think everyone could have developed their characters even more. Subtle traits for each character could have been more obvious and I think if we all developed the background of our character then it would of shone through in our performance resulting in each and every actor having a memorable individual character. Overall though, I think everyone did an amazing job and it could not have gone better!

Final Rehearsal!

Today we did our final rehearsal in costume. Romy Eloise and I decided that the character of Leah should be in uniform because we can make subtle changes to each of our outfits but still look the same. We are wearing - grey skirt, white shirt, black tights and a green tie to show we are from the same school. Each of our shoes are different to show that although we are the same character we have different styles and characteristics.

Our run through today was the best-yet because only a few people needed prompting with lines and everyone had energy and enthusiasm. We had all the sound effects and the projections of the text messages worked really well. The only thing that I think would improve our performance is if the opening sequence had more pace but on the night because everyone will be high on adrenalin I think it will look very effective.

Targets-

1. Make sure all lines are learnt!

2. Que-bite to make the scene flow and seem natural

3. Analyse script fully to develop the character to its full

Rehearsal 6

Today we did another run through and focused mainly on one of our scenes -the suffocation scene. We are using a real plastic bag and JJ's head is completely covered which makes it look incredibly realistic. We tried to build a climax in the scene with me repeating the word 'Phil' getting louder and more desperate until he finally let go of the bag. The scene defiantly improved but was slightly hindered by some people not knowing their lines.

The group of Leah’s also had to come up with a text they would send to another character that would come up on the projector during the opening sequence. It was an obvious choice that Leah would send her text to Phil. We made sure it sounded clingy and on-edge resulting in the audience immediately getting that impression of the character Leah. Even the little detail of having a heart next to Phil's contact name shows the relationship between the two characters.

Our Text Message:

Rehearsal 5

Today we did a staggered run through and thought about the changeover moments change. I think Leah's changeover looks very clear and effective because we can use the backpack's straps to quickly swap and then walk off stage left and stage right so it shows the characters have changed. The audience will understand that we are the same character because we have the same object as well as remembering that we were in the same group for the opening sequence.

The run through was very good practise but it lacked pace and energy because some people did not know their lines well enough. It is clear that once you have learned your lines, it will benefit not only you but the whole scene.

Targets-

1. LEARN LINES and ques

2. Make sure I stay in character on stage even if I am not speaking

3. Develop character even more - subtle characteristics, costume?

Rehearsal 4

Romy, Eloise and I developed our introduction piece by thinking about Leah's day to day life and what she cares about the most. We came to the conclusion that she did care a lot about her image and what other people thought of her resulting in her spending a lot of time on her appearance. This resulted in most of the sequence being based around Leah's every day make-up routine and the different products she uses each lasting 3 beats. Then it moved on to her picking up her phone and checking it several times before tapping her knee to show impatience and tension.

We want the audience to understand that Leah is a complex character that is very insecure about herself. They will be able to tell this by our facial expressions as well as the actions. It is clear that she is slightly looks-obsessed because of the amount of make-up actions shown.

We have decided to use a back-pack as the prop that is significant to the character of Leah because it is easy to hand to the next Leah in the changeovers as well as it being a tool to portray her character. It shows that Leah carries around a lot of things with her and is always on the go. It is used in each of our monologues and in the changeover scenes it looks swift and efficient due to using the straps.

I can improve my character further by learning my lines more thoroughly as well as writing down stage directions on my script and writing the subtext of each line. These all will enable me to gain a deeper understanding of the character and connect with it more.

Rehearsal 3

I thought the entire run through was a huge success. Everyone was very focused on stage as well as when they were observing other cast members. I learnt more about the character of Leah by discussing her character in more depth with Romy & Eloise (other Leahs). We explored the different ways the character of Leah could be portrayed and certain elements of the character that we could all keep the same.

I think the play looks very good so far and it was clear that everyone was very passionate and excited to work on their scenes and character development. Once every is off-script it will be easier to work on the small details and it will come more naturally to every cast member.

Ben and Ursula impressed me because of their enthusiastic approach as well as adding new ideas to their characters and scene. They talked to each other about what their two characters' back-story’s could be and what their relationship might be like and why. It was clear that they wanted to gain a deeper understanding of their characters and discover more about their back-story.

I learnt many things from watching my peers act as well as learning more about their characters. I learnt that it is incredibly important to stay in character at all times when you are not speaking but you are still part of the scene. When everyone was engaged and was still in role, the scene was a lot more powerful and realistic. They did this by using facial expressions and interacting (making eye-contact) with other cast members that were part of the scene. I also learnt that you do not always have to move around when saying your line because it can be distracting and unnecessary. The line is more effective if the actor is standing still with their feet planted on the ground because it is more realistic.