* 2008 -- acting2 Theatre UAF
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* 2009 : forms
* 2008 -- acting2 Theatre UAF
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Yes, ActHome!I. ACTOR'S HOME WORK
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1. PAPER ACTING
2007 -- google.com/group/acting2Students are expected to spend, on the average, two hours in preparation per each hour of course credit. Thus a course carrying 3 term credits should require six (6) hours per week of preparation.There are four (4) performance grade sessions in class: comedy and drama monologues, midterm scene, and (finals) Video projects and live presentations. Your dramatic piece must be memorized and "Actor's Script" of this material must be submitted before the presentation.
Actor's script includes: text breakdown (stresses, your stage directions, introduction of props), floor (ground) plan with your movement through the piece, and the character analysis (objectives, obstacles, character's history).
2. REHEARSALS
Rehearsing alone or with the partner guarantees you having good time in this class. Usually, most common complains that your partner didn't show for a scene work. Look for another one, make it her or his problem. Since this is a contact course, you can't sit through the class without participation. Missing a class without a good reason (emergency situation only, documented) is un-restorable experience. If you are not prepared for class, let your instructor know, don't skip the class.
3. NOTES ON GRADING (YOUR PROGRESS)
This is an acting class -- your progress, not your talent will be graded. Our time in class designated for exercises, not lectures: students expected to do text reading at home before each class, with reflections on reading in ACTOR'S JOURNAL. You have problems in class? Write about it.
II. JOURNALS
The goal of ACTOR'S JOURNAL is to develop your analytical skills of understanding acting -- speech, voice and movement. Because of the personal nature of such a discipline as performance, this journal should contain your reflections on your class and life experiences, your difficulties, problems, and confusions; you have to learn how to evaluate your weaknesses and strengths.In your journals I expect to see reflections on our readings and observations of public figures in our contemporary life, actors, your friends, etc. - what is impressive in their live presentations, why, when? If not on a daily basis, then at least three entries per week (300 words each) in your journal will give you a sense of progression in your performance. There will be three check point when your professor will read and comment on your journal. Your journal is a way to communicate with yourself and your teacher; it's confidential and won't be discussed in class. The first submission of this journal is before the break, second -- last day of classes.
Remember, this journal is your professional diary; use it as an important tool in self-improvement, as a working notebook and a true mirror. This is the place for questions and resolutions, for analysis and ideas. Your work on your projects should be written down in all its stages; from text analysis to the final script breakdown. Your journal is your "paper"; please write it in "readable" form. (the real winners are those who use computer!) In your observations of yourself and others, use our terminology as much as possible; try to be specific.
Make a habit of keeping this journal writing and keep this habit though your entire life.
III. CHECKLIST
Resume is your first assignment. You have to bring a draft of your actor's resume to class on our second meeting. After the corrections you still keep working on your resume which you submit (final draft) at the finals. This is a part of your actor's portfolio. In addition to resume you have to have two monologues (dramatic and comedy) and a scene (modern or classic). Also, you have to be ready for improvisational scene. After this class you should know the basics of Method Acting (Stanislavsky System).EXTRA WORK AND EXTRA CREDIT: Not happy with your performance in class and with your grades? Take on extra work; additional monologue, participation in extra scene with others, write a paper on acting (character study, play analysis, scene break down).
IV. TEXTBOOK
The chapters must be read before the class; we review your reading only. Ask questions, or write in your journal reflecting on reading. Read ahead, the best results you can get, if you complete the book by midterm and have enough time to apply the theory in your acting.
Check the catalogue for Acting Classes offerings: Theatre UAF.The secret of the great acting is simple -- HOMEWORK!
On the set you only SHOW what you labored behind the scenes!
Read "Actors on Acting"! (THR321 Textbook)
ACT: Hey, this is Stefanie. This is my first monologue about Bob the Duck. 1 Today for my show and tell, I'd like to introduce my best 2 friend. (Looks Off-stage Right.) Bob, get over here right 3 now…Bob! (To audience.) Excuse me, please. My friend Bob is 4 feeling a little self-conscious today. Bob, I told you not to wear 5 those bell bottoms. No, I have nothing against bell bottoms. 6 It's just that you legs are a little long or your pants are too 7 short. Actually, he likes to pull `em up under his armpits. 8 Sorry, Bob. (To audience) He's too touchy about his appearance 9 Sometimes. (To Bob) That's right. Come on over and stand next 10 To me. (Watches his/her imaginary friend cross the stage.) Boys 11 and girls. I'd like you to meet Bob…Bob, the duck. As you can 12 see, he's no ordinary duck. I know he wears his hair kinda 13 long. That braid in the back is especially nice, and he always 14 wears his little round glasses. John Lennon is his hero. He 15 reads a lot, and he's smart, too. Don't blush, Bob, you know it's 16 true. As I said, sometimes he's too self-conscious. Actually, he 17 wanted to be a hippie, but like me, he was born too late. We 18 both write poetry, but Bob can play the guitar. He knows all 19 The songs from the sixties. 20 (To Bob) What? No, Bob, you can't sing a song now. Don't 21 pout. You look stupid when you curl your bill like that, and 22 stop sticking out your tongue. (To the audience) Sometimes 23 Bob can be a real brat. I have to remind my mother that Bob 24 has a temper. Every time she raises her voice and gets mad at 25 me, he starts quacking at the top of his lungs. She also gets 26 mad when I feed Bob my broccoli and those little green peas 27 that make me gag. But he loves those things, so why shouldn't 28 he have them? 29 At night when I'm scared, Bob sleeps under my bed, for 30 protection, of course. We all know monsters hide under the 31 bed at night. But, not when Bob's around. Actually, he'd rather 32 sleep on the bed beside me, and most of the time I let him, But 1 when I'm afraid, he takes his place, no questions asked. Bob's 2 a friend that way. If only he didn't snore…(Looks at Bob.) 3 Sorry, Bob, I didn't mean to embarrass you again. 4 I think he might need his tonsils removed. In fact, when 5 they take mine out next week, I'm gonna make sure that he 6 gets his removed, too. But don't worry, Bob. They say we can 7 have lots of ice cream. No, Bob, really it doesn't hurt much at 8 all. They just take a pair of scissors and snip, snip…and it's all 9 over. A couple of stitches and…(Watches as Bob exits) 10 Bob…Bob? Get Back here! That duck is nothing but a big 11 chicken. Bob! Excuse me, please, I have a duck to catch. (Runs 12 off right.) Bob! Hey, Bob…wait up, buddy!The Actor's Text that accompanies this monologue is as follows: The character's name is Sam. She is in 3rd grade. She's a tomboy and bossy sometimes. At home, she has a big brother named Jon, who's in 6th grade. This is where she gets her bigger phrases, for example: "he's a little self-consious about his appearance" The monologue is whiney at times because bob is defiant during parts of it. Sam makes fun of bob during parts, she laugs about his snoring and the way he wears his pants.
Rowan Atkinson:
And on the third day, there was a marriage in Cana in Galilee. And it came to pass that all the wine was drunk. And the mother of the bride came to Jesus and said unto the Lord, they have no more wine. So Jesus said unto the servants: "fill six waterpots with water." That was done. When the steward of the feast tasted the water of the pots, it was shocked to find that is was now wine. They knew not whence it had come. The servants did know, and appauded loudly from the kitchen. They said unto the lord:"How the hell did you do that?" and asked of him:"do you do children's parties?" And the Lord said"no". The servants did press him, saying; "go on, give us another one!" So he brought forth a carrot, and said: "behold this,for it is a carrot." All about him knew it was so. For it was orange, with a green top. He then placed a large red cloth over the carrot, and then removed it, and lo, he held in his hand a white rabbit. All were amazed and said: "thss guy is really good! he should turn professional." So they brought him a man on a stretcher who was sick of the palsy. They cried on him: Maestro, this man is sick of the palsy." And the lord said: "If I had to spend my whole life on a stretcher, I'd be pretty sick of the palsy, too!" They were filled with joy and said:"Lord, thy one-liners are as good as thy tricks. Thou art indeed an all-round family entertainer." There came unto him a woman called Mary, who has seen the Lord and believed, and Jesus said to her:"put on a tutu, and lie down in this box." Then he took forth a saw, and cleft her in twain. There was much wailing and gnashing of teeth. But Jesus said:"Oh ye of little Faith." and he threw open the box and lo, Mary was whole. Well, the crowd went absolutly bananas.Jesus and Mary took a big bow. He said unto her: "From now on you shall be known as Trixy, that is a good stage name." the people said unto him: "We've never seen anything like this in our entire lives. You shouldn't be wasting your time in this little town of Cana. You should beplaying in the big arenas in Jerusalem. Jesus did bind to these words, and went forth to Jerusalem, and performed his act for the scribes, the palestines, and the Romans. But alas it did not please them in their hearts. In fact, they crucidied him. Here endeth the lesson. Amen
(sample):Actors Journal
[resume]
Arsenic and Old Lace - Crew South Pacific - Stage Manager, Actor, Makeup The Man Who Came To Dinner - Actor, Makeup, Costuming Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat - Actor, Makeup The Good Doctor - Actor, Costuming, Makeup Guys and Dolls - Lighting Designer/Director, Actor, Makeup, Costuming Anything Goes - Costuming, Makeup Second Language Theatre - Participant, 1st Place in 2-Person SceneI have always had a strange and inexplicable attraction to the writings of Oscar Wilde. I’m not sure what it is about his mixture of philosophy and the ridiculous, but I love the way he has a sense of humor about the most common (and often the most frustrating) characteristics of humans.Phyllis, from Fat Men in Skirts, by Nicki Silver fascinated me the first time I read this monologue. Though the topic is certainly off-color by the standards of most, the perspective it reveals is eye opening. The people you see on the streets have mothers too. Perhaps because my mother is such a wonderful person, and I have always felt a great deal of compassion for those raised in an atmosphere that didn’t encourage them to think for themselves . . .. Phyllis struggles with what she was taught and bitterness towards her mother that, under the circumstances is completely understandable. The only thing I can’t decide, and I think I vary it according to my mood, is whether she’s almost angry at the end, or half ashamed. To challenge with ones eyes or to let them fall somewhat downcast has been my greatest challenge.
Acting for me has always been a frustration, a feeling that no matter how well your performance is given, you will never truly do the character justice. Trying to convey to others not only what the character is, in its very essence, but to make them feel it. Can that ever really be accomplished? I tend to move away from the theatre of the absurd, striving rather for a person, completed through my interpretation.
*My notes from class today: Movement! No reading! Eyes in anger say so much. Background would be helpful: Date? (1917) Resentful? Feeling! Depth. Acknowledges himself to be base. Do not focus on the text, but on the focus of your dialogue. SLOUCHING, SMILING, yay! I smiled while I told you I slept with your wife, and you smiled too . . . Let’s all just have one big happy party.
To be a truly great actress (or actor) one must be at home inside oneself. Unless you know who you are inside yourself, how can you know who you are inside someone else? A wise person once wrote, “It’s what you do when no one’s watching that defines who you are.” Perhaps we (as people) should watch ourselves more.
*Class Notes: Monologues Retrospective comments Caddyshack? The problem is that you don’t have the other person there creating the balance of position for the audience. Bobbing head details. I don’t think the man was malicious, I just think he was telling his tale. Innocence can make it funny without causing us to dislike the character.
“I’ve just got the feeling I can’t do it today” THAT’S WHY IT’S CALLED ACTING!Pacing rage . . . The Taming of the Shrew almost despairing at the end. Sarcasm! It’s so important to have background on the character, if you don’t your performance is definitely missing something.
The monologue is fun! But the outfit she’s wearing doesn’t go with it. When you’re doing a monologue you should dress in clothing that will not hinder your character’s performance.The whole teaching methodology is go to the limit and then come back to reality?
You decide where (and what) your frame of movement is, and your frame of tone. Then you move around with it.
Very good intonation!!
How old? When you’re playing someone older or younger you have to make sure you’re acting like it . . . otherwise your audience will become completely confused and not know what to think.Though this is an “actor’s journal” since I am primarily interested in directing this is going to contain my thoughts on that as well, it can’t be helped, you can choose to say that I am directing myself. I think it’s important to make a cohesive unit of a monologue (any monologue) that you choose to do, this can be done by repetition of motions, location onstage, height, and intonation. What I admire most in an actor is subtlety, if they look like they’re acting, it’s not acting. True talent will take whatever part it is given and will enact it in the most realistic way possible. This does not mean that I don’t realize that caricatures are often written into scripts (especially comedies) but they should be used only when appropriate, and really good actors do them better anyway. I think that at all times the author’s wishes and intent should be taken into consideration.
Inserted here are excerpts from a conversation between me and a friend about drama and acting:
Me: *shakes head* I think acting shouldn't look like you're acting Friend: like Jack Nicholson M: yes! F: several people have said that he's himself in every role M: really? F: yes F: and that's their basis for disliking him F: I think he's great, though M: I don't think so at all M: he looks the same, his voice is the same, but you can tell by his intonation, gestures, movements and emotional patterns that the roles he plays are different - subtlety M: he knows where he is himself, and he doesn't overact because he's uncomfortable in a role M: Keanu Reeves . . . (on the other hand) F: what an actor F: I cried when I saw Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure M: do you remember "Little Buddha" (A movie we watched in History Class) F: yes M: that's when I cried F: he was such a convincing Sidartha, though M: have you ever seen The Producers? F: yes F: the Gene Wilder/Zero Mostel version M: yes! now they didn't act naturally, but they were supposed to be caricatures, that's what made it funny F: yes M: But if you had someone WAY too dramatic playing Nora (Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll House), for example, that would just make it weird F: mmhmm. . . the conversation then drifted towards lunch. (Inapplicable, though not unimportant)One of the things I notice in class is that people need to research their monologues, have some sense of time, background, appearance, situation, emotion, universal position. Where is the person? (Physically? Emotionally?) Where do they come from? (Family? Friends? Location?) When do they come from? (Time period? Any significant historical events that would have shaped who they are? If so, what were their opinions of these events?) What do they do? (Job? Hobbies? Athletic/intellectual/both? What kinds of books do they like to read? What movies do they watch? Where do they squeeze the toothpaste tube?) What is the person thinking about? (This minute) How old are they? (If there is reference to more than one time period, what were they like at each point, and what does the more modern think of the former?) How do they move? (Gestures say so much about who we are internally)
Then you get into movements, when portraying a character you have to depart from the movements you would put with certain situations; IT’S NOT YOU! Study how people of that age move? Of that background? From that area? Study voice, intonation and expression in all of these areas as well. I know that you have, in addition to all the study, to make the person real, but that’s where it gets into good acting or not. To add that spark of humanity to a character is what makes them real for the audience - they can feel it. Authenticity is important, but it’s more important to be REAL. (But not real yourself, real the character through you) Never forget your personal interpretation, but be willing to look at your character from different perspectives.*Class notes: What is he feeling? What is his background? How is he approaching this situation? I don’t think he’s trying to hurt him, or put him in his place. I think the character was above that. You don’t always have to prove yourself! Truly big people don’t. I think that life need not be always a melodrama. And to be able to act naturally is the ultimate goal. There are caricatures in drama, certainly. But not ALL the characters are that way. No one talks about intonation, or emotion, or even memorization, characterization?
*Class Notes: Relaxation ConcentrationWhy read standing in front of the class? At least put some emotion behind it, skim it first for comprehension (so you know what’s going on) and then do it for the class with as much emotion and inflection as you can muster.
Professionalism becomes very important in theatre. Why would a director want someone who “doesn’t feel like it” or “can’t today” if you can’t do it today will you be able to do it for the performance? You have to get past your insecurities to be a good, professional actor. You also get into the trouble of romantic involvement . . . some people can’t separate themselves from the characters they play, and so they don’t understand that acting allows you to play characters you may not morally or politically agree with. There is a smallness that goes along with not being able to see anyone’s perspective but your own.I’m supposed to discuss the 5Ws of my character, here goes:
(Who?) Phyllis, 35-40, stressed. Mid-upper-class. Slacks and a sweater like Aunt Elsie. If she worked, it would be in an office as one of the more executive people, but probably she’s never really had to, because her parents took care of her, and later her husband (her ex-husband) though she’s been involved in lots of “activities.” They divorced as the natural evolution of their relationship. Her own parents didn’t have a healthy relationship and she now has trouble being real with others, as with being real with herself, because she’s not sure who she is when she gets past all of the things she’s been taught. She doesn’t have any particular accent, she was raised on the East Coast but attended a West Coast university. Not because she really cared, but because she was fulfilling the expectations of her. She is only now beginning to wonder what she’s been missing all these years. Physically she’s moderate. Neither beautiful or plain, fat nor skinny. She is any woman. I see her with neutral brown hair and stressed features.
(What?) A person, who’s just been in a plane crash. I have placed her en-route to visit her mother.
(When?) Mid-morning or mid afternoon. I place it between summer and fall, so that her clothing is sufficient to keep her warm, but not oppressive.
(Where?) On an island, any island, but far enough away from people so as to take several hours at least for them to be rescued.
(Why?) She’s lost, and questioning herself, calling to the audience, and to God, “What is this? This life that I’m in? What does it mean? Why?” She is rather like Nora in Ibsen’s A Doll’s House.Today in class Anatoly was wearing a really great sweater.
Comedy does not have to be gross or vulgar, or in anyway immodest or indiscreet. I think that is one of the most unfortunate misconceptions of our day. Lucille Ball wasn’t inappropriate. People think I’m hilarious and laugh at/with me a good deal, but I don’t frequent disgusting subjects that are not fit for my consumption. Perhaps I have a higher standard about what I put in my head than others do though.
*Class Notes:
ACTOR’S PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITY: To express the character. +physicalization (age, gestures, walk, posture)
My favorite animal? . . . I’m not sure I have a favorite animal. I guess Zander (my fish) would have to be my favorite animal. But I don’t really identify with animals (unless I’m eating them).
Meyerhold - biomechanics
Actor = Actor I + Actor II *Class Notes: If everything comes only from within something will always be missing.
(creator) (medium)
When you ask children to act and when you ask older people to act the difference is the affect of the world.Stanislavsky “Private in Public”
Inside out
Behave in public as if the public did not exist.
Enormous imagination is necessary.IDENTIFICATION PRINCIPLE - EMPATHY SO YOU CAN BECOME . . . you must understand everyone
At last he’s right, the most complicated thing is the human soul.
Actors + Audience = Performance
It’s amazing when you’re actually performing how much a part of the performance the audience is. You can feel their response. And knowing what they appreciate actually changes, not necessarily physically, but internally changes your performance.NUANCE IS IMPORTANT!!! Though I agree, it’s difficult to make that clear to someone who’s not used to thinking about it.
*Class Notes: Stanislavsky - psychological theatre
stress on psychological actingMeyerhold - “if I will draw into my self all the truths of my body”
Logic/reason
Stress on physical acting/theatreIt would be really helpful if I watched television or movies for this class. I have no idea what they’re talking about half the time. But when I talk about plays they’re just as lost . . . so I guess it just falls into the category of vicious cycles.
You have to break every action into cycles, everything must be choreographed.SCENES
Why is there bouncing (try to keep your own responses from confusing the audience . . . it’s quite distracting) Not all arguments are physically close . . . keep the emotion in your voice even when you get to the resolution. What is the physical atmosphere, it should be in the body.DO NOT GAGE YOURSELF BY YOUR AUDIENCE!!! I absolutely detest that little side-glance that so many actors do to find out how they’re doing with their audience. They don’t realize that the audience doesn’t exist in the scene, they’re there, but NOT. DO NOT LOOK AT THEM!!!
“If acting is not enjoyable then we have a problem.” ~Anatoly
Doing a scene with someone else makes me feel like I’m victimizing them. Is this insecurity on my part? I don’t think so. I think it’s that I feel sorry for them because I apply such harsh standards towards everything I do and so I don’t want them to enter in lest they become subject to such unachievable standards.
“Acting = Reacting”
1) Character \ 2) Situation / ImprovBeginning actors should not be allowed to do Shakespeare. If you don’t do it naturally it’s BAD, and beginning actors (in general) can’t pull it off.Past -> Present -> Future (KNOW WHO/WHAT YOU ARE)
Future begins in present, past transitions to future in presentDon’t let people dislike your monologue, work the audience.
Anatoly said operating on stereotypes was ok . . . I’ve always felt that theatre should break down stereotypes.
*Class Notes: (Personal) Characterization, Volume
Who is this man, what is his history? What would living through what he’s lived thorough have been like?
Swearing doesn’t add emphasis if it sounds like you’re accustomed to peppering your speech with it - sometimes subtlety is the best insult. (and the most effective)
Yelling makes you a smaller person, if you and the other person both yell: both = small. If you’re doing a monologue and another person is a prop in it they you have to create the entire scene in your head, with their reactions and how you respond to them.
Yelling can cause people to shut down just as whispering can cause violence, it’s all in the power of words . . .“The power of words.” Indeed. If there’s anything my generation has let ebb away it’s their power over words. As Evelyn Waugh said, “One forgets words as one forgets names. One’s vocabulary needs constant fertilizing or it will die.” She also said, “I put the words down and push them a bit.” Jorge Luis Borges said, “Writing is nothing more than a guided dream.” The idea present in all these is that words must be internalized, grown, and then pushed or guided out. If you know words they will work for you, vocabulary is one of the most powerful things we have, and yet people cannot speak. Pick up a dictionary for goodness sakes! At some point education became a bad thing, no one wanted to look “superior” to anyone else, lack of education became a compliment to all those around you. However this cannot in Truth be so. If you are ignorant and around me, all it says about me is that I surround myself with ignorant people because I either have low self-esteem and need to feel powerful, or I myself am ignorant and don’t know the difference. Unfortunate. We should pride ourselves on education more than we do on material possessions, yet this I do not find in the world.
In my monologue should the last line be almost yelled? An announcement for the world, sort of a final resolved flourish? Sometimes the greatest anger is expressed in calmness, and the things that truly anger people are rarely violent. Acting is interpreting a character from one’s own personal perspective, if you take a character from a movie so often the result is the copying of someone else’s acting . . . which is not what people are paying to see (and not what you were cast for). In my monologue who am I addressing? At the end?
Class Notes: Anatoly - 1. Character = 2. Situation (5 w’s) Strength of voice . . . if your character is strong, you have to have it or everything else falls apart. Not everything must be angry or really loud, but I can see/understand that if one is to be free to think clearly one has to be free of such inhibitions.
If you mention someone in a script, even if they’re not present you should figure out how you feel about them beforehand.
Make sure if you’re doing a monologue from a scene you position the other character in a specific point and don’t lose it.
Picking a part that suits not only your personality and taste, but also your physique can aid your audience so much. And when considering costuming you should also consider historical accuracy (if it’s winter, don’t wear a T-shirt).It’s really important that when you’re acting you don’t gage the audience. That little side-glance at the director can cost you so much in concentration and validity from the perspective of your audience, because even if they don’t see it, they can still feel the lapse of character. You allow your own insecurities to come through. It’s just as in running when you don’t look back at the man behind you, because you have to slow down to do it . . . how many races have been lost that way? countless. It does the same thing for your performance - don’t lose it!
Why does romance onstage always seem to have to be about sex? Is there no modern consideration for affection, or have we so boiled down our emotions as to have them all caused by a physical reaction, instead of considering the possibility of a more spiritual feeling. Cyrano de Bergerac has no place in this modern sense of drama. He was passionate, but for love, for admiration and yes, for affection. He valued all that was beautiful in Roxanne - her wit and then her face. Can people no longer attain this sense of loyalty without ulterior motives for the flesh? Roxanne was pure until death . . . as was Cyrano. That speaks of a love deeper than commonly understood today.
“Fashion is wearing what looks good on you.” Or what suits your body more. Even the homeliest girl can look better than a beautiful one if she knows how to dress herself properly and the beautiful girl doesn’t. If you’re going to play a part, make sure you look it to the best of your abilities.
Class Notes: Subtext = performance, Actor’s Text Props Set Costume Rings? Throne, bench classical dress? Line by line analysis is important! Set Prop Costume /\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/ Body language 63% Language 7% Para language 30%You can treat sex like it means nothing, but to do so you have to completely ignore pretty much everything we know about humans."Do you want me to tell you something really subversive? Love is everything it's cracked up to be. That's why people are so cynical about it. . . . It really is worth fighting for, being brave for, risking everything for. And the trouble is, if you don't risk anything, you risk even more." Erica Jong
The Ugly Duckling by A. A. Milne
Who: Camilla (Nice, confident, interested (in almost everything), sweet tempered, enthusiastic) People have been putting her looks down for years, but she’s amused by it and not offended . . . a very wise way to be. Simon (prince charming) - Two people who just like each other . . . on many levels.
What: A lot of busy nothings . . . they fall in love. Out of not only mutual admiration, but mutual interest. It’s rather sudden though, so Charlotte in Pride and Prejudice would think them very wise to, “Know as little of the defects of their future partners as possible.”
Where: Throne room in Camilla’s Castle. She’s waiting for her future husband to be duped into marrying her, but “Carlo” is so attractive (intelligent, manly, interesting . . . ). Simon is just waiting to get it all over with, I see him as a discouraged love-seeker. He’s traveled all over trying to find a woman worth sacrificing his bachelors life for, but he’s found nothing in the world to please him.
When: Camilla: late teens, Simon: early 20’s . . . Late morning-ish.
Why: Because they’re the only ones who really see the other . . . and they’ve never found that anywhere else.LYSISTRATA REVIEW:
Overacting, unless it’s intended as overacting isn’t okay. They were so involved in moving their bodies at every moment that often their movements were meaningless. They lost almost the entire script by adding tones and voices to fit with the different dynamics that they put with different characters. (i.e. the guy who was supposed to be a drill sergeant, I couldn’t understand a word he said!) Maybe this is a personal stigma, but if I can’t figure out what people are saying, and their movements seem to be random thrashings and are not helpful (whatever their intent) in enabling me to understand what’s going on, the show becomes uninteresting, stupid, sad and pathetic. (I am more judgmental when I’m tired and confused) The costuming was okay, but completely inaccurate (I realize that’s not what they were going for). They did not hold at all to the author’s intent (which I happen to think is an important element). Though some may not consider the author of any significance at all, I think the attitude a play was written with should be taken into consideration, especially if the author did a good job. Give him credit, don’t defecate all over his life’s work. I have no idea about the director, maybe he did the best he could (no comment). Makeup and hair were (I think intentionally) atrocious, and the lighting and sound were ambiguous.Antigone
I see Ismene as a rather weak-willed individual. I think she’s got really good intentions, but is so worn with familial strife that she doesn’t know what to do about it anymore, and all other resolution fails. I also think that in some ways her irresolution to help pushes Antigone to be so overt in her actions . . . and perhaps inspires her confidence where she didn’t have it before.I am now faced with an unfortunate predicament, what to do if both your scene partners bail on you almost simultaneously. I have a feeling that Rich is going to show up and want us to go it completely unrehearsed. (NOT COOL) What if he doesn’t know his lines? What if he stops in the middle and completely breaks his almost non-existent character? What if I get a terrible grade on this assignment and get less than an A in the class and it causes me to lose my scholarship. I almost want to strangle him right now (but I can’t because I have no idea where he is).
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2005-2006 Theatre UAF Season: Four Farces + One Funeral & Godot'06
Film-North * Anatoly Antohin
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keys.txt -- Anatoly Antohin
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