UNIT 8

Unit 8- Personal project and presentation 

Context
In to progress student needs to have a clear information about their progression needs. This assignment will look at recognising the needs of the industry and building relevant materials to support that progression.

Planning
As a class we had a discussion about what skills we have developed and progressed in and why these skills are important to have.
-Confident
-Maturity
-Punctual
-Motivated
-Teamwork
-Eye Contact
-Respectful
-Body Language
-Professionalism
-Dedication
These are some of the many skills we had all come up with.

Evaluation
 I have learnt many new techniques throughout this course and I have also learnt many new skills which have helped me to perform well on stage. Some of the skills which I have used in my performances and have improved my acting are, projection, confidence, creative insight, team work and motivation. These skills and more have helped me when I have performed and rehearsed. To be an actor requires many skills and you will need to have the dedication to perform. When rehearsing I will always give my ideas,thoughts and opinions to contribute in a group. It is important that we all share our ideas and listen to one another.

 I have progressed to a great extent from the beginning of my acting course up till this point. I have used creativity in rehearsals and devising plays which I have performed, such as Identity, Dumb Waiter and The Container. When devising the plays and being in rehearsals, I have stayed motivated and full of energy. When I  step into another role when performing, I have stayed committed to that role and resilient. Whenever I have faced any difficulties, I have always overcome them and have remained positive. I am always capable of  working in a team and engaging with others, as I enjoy being sociable. I have been able to learn how to put myself into the characters I play and engage an audience. For example when performing 'The Container' I had the role of Fatima a Somali woman in her late forty's. I had studied the accent and had used the accent for when I performed my character. This had helped me to  study my character in detail and get into role.

UNIT 9- UBU ROI

                                         Unit 9- UBU ROI

Context

This unit represents the culmination of your work on the course. You should be looking now to build on the previous terms work and direct yourselves to working in a disciplined and focused manner, as we put together a performance for an outside audience. As well as a performing role, you will have to work with others in your group to complete both roles on time for your performance

Planning

We have now moved on to Unit 9 which is the play Ubu Roi by Alfred Jarry. When we had been introduced to this play my first initial thoughts were that it seemed quite strange and exaggerated. The language which was used was quite unusual and bizarre. The characters also have a very peculiar name. I do not fully understand what the play is about, but I am intrigued and willing to research more into this play.  I will read through the script so I have more knowledge on what is happening in each scene. Some of the characters which are included in the play are:

Pa Ubu

Ma Ubu
Dogpile
Billikins
Queen
King
Barmpots
Guards
Soldiers

Peasants

I have been given the role of Billikins and Nick Nackerly. Now that I know which characters I will be playing, I can rehearse through my lines and study my character.

Before we begin acting, as a class, we had sat in a circle and discussed in detail the themes of the play, accents that could be used and different dictators in the world; as Pa Ubu's character is presented as being a dictator. The dictators we then began to look at were:
-Vladimir
-Hitler
-Kim Jong-II
-Donald Trump


Some accents we had all come up with which we may use were,  Liverpool, Birmingham, Scottish or a strong cockney dialogue. We had also agreed that Ma Ubu should have a very strong posh accent. Pa Ubu and Ma Ubu have some similarities towards Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Macbeth and Pa Ubu are both greedy and ambitious. Lady Macbeth and Ma Ubu are both quite controlling and also ambitious. Dogpile is a good friend of Pa Ubu so as Banquo is to Macbeth.

Now, everyone has a been given a role, we have begun to read through the script from the beginning to the end. We have not started acting just yet, as we need to understand the play and analyse each scene before we begin to start blocking this performance. In a circle, as we read through the script, Monique told us to think about how we are going to portray our characters and what techniques we will use to help us. I have not got much of an understanding of my character, but I do know he is the son to the King and he is quite young.

Instead of playing the role of Billikins, I will now be playing the role of the King. Cinzia who was the King will now be playing Billikins. We had switched roles because Monique (our teacher) had thought I would suit the role of the king best. I am very happy with this decision as I also think it is a better-suited role for me.
We had started acting and blocking each scene. So to begin we had all the actors from act one to go to the centre of the class and read through their lines. When we are acting and devising this play we have to think about where we are, what we are doing and our surroundings. This will make the acting easier for us.

As I will be playing the role of the king I will need to think about what skills will help me portray my character well to the audience and how will I use these skills. I would like to portray my character as being self absorbed, bold and witty.
We had discussed how the play has similar themes to 'The Great Gatsby' and 'Peaky Blinders'.

 Research

We were shown a video from the Ubu Roi play, so that we all can get an idea of how the play should be performed and also to see what the set is like, costumes, lighting, props etc. The costumes that had been worn in the play were quite bizarre and certainly different. However, it does attract you to the play more and catches your attention, which is important.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35lf_dc_SRM

I had done my own research based on the play so I could use the information to help me during rehearsals. I had looked at some pictures of the characters in the play so I could visualise the costumes which were worn and have an idea of what the setting was like.

https://www.dramaonlinelibrary.com/plays/king-ubu-iid-139323

Ubu Roi Is a play by Alfred Jarry which debuted in Paris 1896. This play was translated to English and then had gone under a variety of names. It is believed to be very wild, wacky and bizarre. Ubu Roi is a parody of many of Shakespeare plays such as Macbeth and Hamlet. Alfred Jarry is a french symbolist writer know very well for his play 'Ubu Roi'. The play was first performed in Paris at the Théâtre de l'Oeuvre. Jarry merges parodies on many Shakespeare plays; Pa Ubu and Ma Ubu being the ambitious Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. The play displays themes of power, absurd-ism, corruption and greed.

Problem-solving

There were a few problems I and my peers had faced throughout rehearsals and the process of devising and performing the play. A problem I had faced during the performance was that some people took quite long to get on to the stage, as they were missing their props and had problems with costume. So instead of awkwardly waiting onstage for them; me and others had to improvise and of course stay in role.  Attendance had been a massive problem throughout the process , as many people would turn up very late to rehearsals. This caused us to be quite behind in the play. However, we had spent a whole week having rehearsals everyday for long hours, and we all was able to be off script and ready for the performance. Me and Kaliyah had chose to work on the set design together for the play. We had come up with some ideas, but they were not used during our performance as Sheenagh, our teacher decided she wanted something different. However she did use our idea of having a castle as a backdrop for the scenes which were set in the castle. In tech rehearsals many people needed prompting with lines and help with costumes. This was a problem as it had slowed down the process of the rehearsals and gave us less time as the play was the next day.

Project Development-

For the production aspect of this performance, Rebecca had asked us all to pick a production role that we are interested in and we will be in charge of that role for our performance. I had picked set design and so has Kaliyah, so we will both be working alongside each other to create the set for our performance. I am very enthusiastic about working with Kaliyah to design the set. This task will be challenging, but it will be great to share our ideas and be creative.

For the production aspect of this performance, Rebecca had asked us all to pick a production role that we are interested in and we will be in charge of that role for our performance. I had picked set design and so has Kaliyah, so we will both be working alongside each other to create the set for our performance. I am very enthusiastic about working with Kaliyah to design the set. This task will be challenging, but it will be great to share our ideas and be creative.

Lighting, Costume, set, hair and makeup, marketing etc are all what makes a performance and it is very important that we all have ideas for our chosen productions roles, as this is going to improve the performance.



Evaluation

 On reflection of the week leading up to the performance we had many long hour rehearsals, as we were very much not prepared and had not gone through the play once, from start to finish fully. Attendance had played a massive part in being very behind in the performance. Many people did not attend rehearsals, so therefore it was very difficult to rehearse.The main characters of the play quite often would show up late to rehearsals meaning we had very little time to rehearse. Many of us had great knowledge of our roles and were comfortable with getting into our characters. The focus and effort given when acting within the group was not always there and made it hard for the actors and myself within the group. My first initial thoughts of the play 'Ubu Roi' was that it was a very absurd but a captivating play. I was not familiar with the strange language. I had been giving the role of King Wenceslas and a soldier. When playing both roles I have remained confident and full of energy on stage. I have been very dedicated towards both roles and have used body language well such as keeping a straight posture, staying in role when walking on and off stage while playing the King. 

On the day of the technical rehearsal we had all chose the props and costumes each of our characters would be using. The costumes and props we had all chosen for our role had helped with getting us actors into character and had given the audience an insight to our characters. On the day of the tech rehearsal a day before our performance, we ran through every scene on stage with props and costume. When rehearsing this time on stage, we had used lighting and sound.  I had worn a crown and king robe as I was the king. My costume had enhanced my role excellently and all costumes had given context to the story we had displayed. During our performance exits and entrances, when coming on and off stage had been a problem. Many were coming on stage from the wrong side or forgetting to prepare the stage in the blackout for the next scene. This would have made it confusing for the audience however, myself and the group did not let that affect our performance and acting. Lighting and sound during the performance had set the atmosphere for each scene effectively, although there were not many changes in colour for the lighting. The sound effect of Billikins and his guards chucking rocks through the window and the sound of the the bombs when there was battle helped to create the tension in each scene.

From the beginning of term 1 to now; I feel I have made great progression in theatre and acting. I have developed in many skills which I have applied to my performances.During the 1st term, I had struggled with confidence and when performing I could not step out my comfort zone, this had made it hard for me when acting and the way on perform on stage. My confidence has grown within me and I am able to express myself on stage and bring energy. I found that I feel more comfortable sharing my ideas and engaging with others whilst using my creativity. This has been beneficial when devising a performance as being able to work with people is a huge part of being an actor/actress. I was very unaware at the start of how to use the stage space, body language and keeping a good posture. During rehearsals I had practised repeatedly how to use the stage space when I am in role. I am now able to use body language when I am in character and engage with the audience. Being vocal and projecting my voice when acting makes it easier to develop my character and feel motivated. During my performance I had projected my voice and felt comfortable with using my voice to enter another character. Throughout this project, I have remained motivated and positive, even though there had been complications during rehearsals and people in the group had been quite negative towards the play. Communicating with others and learning from my peers has been very important when performing and rehearsing together. Although there were many negatives and problems devising the play, I have always been able to go into it with an open mind.

In rehearsals I had been given feedback from different teachers when acting and this has helped me during the performance and improved my acting skills. I had been told in rehearsals that I tend to speak at a fast pace and rush through lines. I have now learnt to slow down the pace when I am acting and in role, as this will give the audience a clear understanding of what I am communicating towards them. I have developed a wide range of skills and have made great progression through term 1 till this point. I have been able to use these skills to improve my performance.