Dear All,
What a great start to the new semester and to the creative process we are about to immerse ourselves into! I want to thank you all for your immense focus and discipline today. It enabled us to work quickly, efficiently and professionally. Some tiny amounts of distractions can still, further, be done away with. So let's keep working at it.
What we were really happy to note today was how quickly and clearly you were able to translate our tasks into material, with the minimal of questions asked. Ask yourselves what has brought about this change towards a professional mindset. It was also pleasing to see so many constructive ideas from you to ease us through the process. In almost all cases we took your advice on board and went with it. It worked.
A note on the use of music. Music is chosen with care and considered reasons. They are not random choices on our part. The track we used today is by an Icelandic group called Sigur Ross and is called Gobbledygook. The choreographed chaos of the stage movements, reflect the choreographed chaos of the sound that supports it. The effect is a bit like bits of jigsaws that at times come together and then melt away towards discord. That is exactly what a space like Porto would initially inspire. A chaotic environment of charged nerves and calm artificial silences. So, just as we did today, we will rarely put the music aside if it becomes an awkard track to work with initially. Instead we will devise strategies to make it work. Our approach won't be defeatist but constructive-ist. You all did well to cope and be patient. And it worked. So, remember this lesson for future reference.
So questions for this week:
1. What, if any, in your view is different about this method of devising to your previous experiences of the devising process? Discuss with examples.
2. As we continued to repeat the sequences it appeared that the characters' urgencies to communicate through the body was growing visibily. Comment on your connection between the gestures/movements you chose and the emotional commitment behind them.
3. As an aesthetic, what can repetition achieve in a performance, apart from perfecting a routine, which is usually how it is used in conventional movement practice?
Start reading up and using some quotes as you answer these questions, so you can get a trial run for your blog assessments which start soon and which will be introduced in the next session to you all.
Looking forward to your thoughts.
Royona
Bahok, Akram Khan Dance Company
Exploring Liminality
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13 comments:
1. I am used to devising work from a given stimuli or idea - especially from when I was at college. The work we are doing in Porto has made me realise that everything is being put together purely from us as individuals. Everyone is getting the chance to input their own personal ideas so far, and that makes both the process and the performance completely unique.
2. Last lesson, I found that I didn't really think much about the reasons why I did something. I just thought of my character and the letter which we had to write and the movements just sort of happened on their own.
Then as we repeated the sequences, I (my character) felt much more frustrated and anxious, not because of the fact we we repeating the sequence but because it made me feel the urgency to get out of my chair (which is the aim for mee throughout the sequence of 5 movements). After the session, I personally felt quite anxious and frustrated so I must have connected with the characters movements and feelings more than I realised.
3. The repetition during the opening sequence will help to give the impression of chaos to anyone watching. My movements got more chaotic and urgent the more we repeated the sequence and I think this was the feel in the room by the end of it. It will also give the audience to take in different peoples actions as there is so much going on at one time, there will be a chance for them to have an insight into more than one persons movements.
1.
From previous devising experiences the approach to Porto is somewhat quite different. Whilst at secondary school in post 16 education we had to devise a piece of theatre which we were assessed on. Our approach to this was quite different because we were given a stimulus material to read as a group then began brainstorming ideas from the play which we had read. Once we had done a few brainstorming sessions we then began to discuss a story and character backgrounds. Porto on the other hand has a very interesting way of exploring and crafting the story with our individual input having an effect on the outcome.
2.
When we were told to create our 5 movements I thought as my character rather than as “Daniel Smith”. I began by taking my mood and thinking of ways in which I wanted to communicate this with the audience. It became apparent after a short period of time that I wanted to communicate with other people inside of Porto which gave my character a different dynamic almost instantly. My character at first felt lonely and sorry for himself but then soon wanted to talk to other people who were also searching for friends.
3.
From Wednesday’s session, repetition made me question my own movements that I had created. What I mean by this is simply are my movements easy to execute or do they require more time than what we are given? The 5 movements I created were easy but required a little more time, through the devising process I was able to change the way I held a certain pose so that it allowed me to move more fluently between each of the 5 moves. If we had not repeated this activity for such a long period of time I don’t think I would have been able notice the flaws in my own work which I had created such a short while ago.
1. I think the main difference with now having to devise something for a given task is that you to think on your feet. You cannot spend hours mulling over it. Obviously having to put thought into it but quick desicions have to be made. But then nothing we do is set in stone so we know that anything can be changed.
2. I think that with your emotions and character in mind, it is that that influences the movements you choose. And then I think repeating them brings out that emotion that was originally there. And then eventually you realise exactly why you are doing them. My Sequence was to reflect a split between two emotions, and new thoughts and differnece in moods of character.
3. I think that if you give and audience a repetion of the extent to we are, then it makes them feel extreemly comfortable with what they are watching. And then the advantage we have then is to do something completly different which unnerves them a little. Go can gain their trust and relax them and then completly turn the tables to the unexpected.
1. The process we have endured so far to create Porto has been very different to the devised theatre i have created at college, as during the module we have spent alot of time preparing the mind aswell as the body were as in devising you may do workshops and create character profiles but you don't feel asthough your going into depth like you do when creating a movement piece like i have in Porto. I feel asthough i am able to create something in a process and performance session that i have never been able to do in previous devising sessions.
2. After woking on a basic character in the first part of Wednesday session and applying movement to these emotions made me feel asthough a character was startin to emerge, as we moved to our chairs although i noticed other people around me i was completely ingrossed in my own world. However sitting next to Shaun was surreal as throughout the session we walked around the room as our characters together and i feel as though it was an character i was drawn to him as his character and felt comfortable to sit next to him, i didn't realise this until after the session. Repeating the movements created bigger emotions to be built within our characters this really worked with really understanding our characters.
3. I believe that repeating the movements in the performance creates viually something very strong, with learning this craft even if you feel asthough a movement was wrong it may be how your character wanted to move.
1. This type of process is different from things that I have done in the past. At sixth form I was given a starting point with some indication of where the performance was heading. However with Porto I have no idea. This feels strange that there is no structure but as a group means that we can create something new and fresh where all individuals have their own input to the performance. The process allows the body and the mind to explore new ways of thinking. It means that i am able to work in a way that i have never done so.
2. The way in which you feel on the day has a significant input to the movement that is created. After repeating the movements meant that I adapted them each time to develop a further insight to my character and how I wanted to be perceived by the audience. At first I didn’t think about the five movements I just moved on impulse which gave me my sequel. After repeating a few times my character started to feel a connection, I felt as though I was alone but wanted to be noticed, each time the progress was noticeable.
3. Repetition is effective to the audience as the images are imbedded and remembered. This will be useful in Porto as there is so many of us that it gives the audience time to look at the group as a whole and start to notice the individual characters.
1) During previous experiences of devising, I've always had a clear and concise stimulus to draw ideas and concepts from in order to experiment with. So far with Porto, I've been unaware of where I am going and it feels different to other devising experience I've been part of as I genuinely feel like I'm going on a journey as a performer and as myself Leyna. I do think the use of our bags and items within them are will be our stimuli. Within past experiences the stimuli has always been revealed and explored during the beginning of the creative process. Once it will be revealed and we know the purpose of our belongings within the production and have tasks strongly related to them then the interesting characters will emerge.
2)During the repetition of our individual sequences I found myself becoming more agitated and somewhat more powerful as it progressed - Some of the feelings we all get in day to day life. I feel as I'm not creating a character but I am building and exploring my own emotions as I intend to perform as myself. I am finding the process is affecting me as a person and am enjoying the challenge and personal discovery/journey I am going on.
3)As an audience member I find myself more intrigued and engaged with mass repetition onstage. Not only it is appealing to the eye but when it is repeated by a large group of people it seems to absorb me into the production more.
Looking back at my past experiences of devising Porto reminds me more of when i have had to devise a dance rather then devising a peice of drama. I feel this is because i work on my instinct rather then thinking about it,how it looks and if i am passing the correct message to the audience. This devising process is conciderably different to what i have encountered before. As we have our basic characters to build on, making the simple movements that may not mean much but as a whole, each audience member will take something different away with them. I enjoy the fact that what we are devising now may be totally diferent in the final performance.
At first the 5 movements chose were moevements that my body told me to do s my character, as i said in the last paragraph it was all on instinct. It was as if i was moving and then after i would think about it. Action then emotion. As all the company were repeating the movements the emotion turned into connection, this connection of how all the company link together. In a cuple of instances my movements could be linked to some of the other character and i am looking forward to see where these connections will go.
Repitition will not only be a strong opening to the piece but it will also give the audience some time to take in some of the characters and actions and also give them a sense of relationships and show how each character is builing in the routine. I feel this will be good as said in some other modules that some audience memebers may find it difficult to connect to us as it is not a straight piece.
1. I am very familiar with devising work and it certainly isn’t something I am new to. I would say that the method that we have used is not that different to what I have done previously. In previous work I have stared off by using a stimulus. In this case we have used our bags to help tell a story as we start out journey.
2. As I began to repeat my gestures I began to understand my character more and more, I can now feel the physicality of my character and I am starting to feel the transformation from me to my character. Considering we have only had one lesson in devising Porto, I would say that I am starting to already feel the emotional aspects of my character, hopefully by the end of Porto I will be at a stage where I am 100% engaged physically, emotionally and mentally with my character. I think this is possible as i feel i am at a good place with my character at the moment.
3. Reputation of a routine can be very powerful and engaging to watch. It’s powerful to watch at it makes a statement to the audience that we are telling a story and the more it is repeated the more we as the actors and the more the audience begin to learn about our characters.
Zara's Comments:
The difference in devising from past experiences is the notion of body impulse. Devising at a younger age in school or Sixth Form would involve discussions with the group. We would sit down, talk to each other, draw up brain storms and consider the outcomes of the piece of what we hope to achieve, where outlines and structures where made for each character and scene. So far, devising Porto has seemed to use similar techniques to an extent, where we know the overall picture and the message we want to communicate to its audience. However, with Porto there is not much dept in terms of mental knowledge. Understanding the piece and what we want to portray is one thing but actually obtaining knowledge of our characters, personally for me is not really there mentally for Porto, but more so physically. I say this as the body is in control operating and doing, rather than the brain.
Repeating the sequences I did find myself committing more to them. This may have been because I felt more comfortable and at a place where I got to know my character better, enabling me to let loose with my body. Forming less tension in the muscles and limbs, therefore creating bigger gestures and movements.
Repeating movements as an aesthetic, can look visually breathe taking. An example would be to watch the chaos scene we are working on at the moment for Porto. The repeated movements implant a memory of many different pictures of the characters lives and stories on stage. Which I feel is such a powerful and an effective moment. I am definitely looking forward to work on this in the future. To look at the word ‘repeat’ in a thesaurus there were many words to replace ‘repeat’ such as; - duplicate, recur, go over, do again. These are all words that suggest a significant statement is to be made. Therefore repeating movements as well as visually looking pretty can have important motives for doing so.
We have as a group worked on character development before in previous modules such as Text and Context and Devising 1. However this differs as it is more personal, the movements however absurd have an individual reason behind it. Whereas in Text and Context we worked with the villainous character or the hero, how they would move across the floor, what their arms may do. In Devising 1 we looked at motives that characters may face; money, food and love. In Process we focus on what drives us to move rather than what would drive a stereotyped character making the development more exclusive.
Despite adding anxious qualities to the movements it seemed to be very natural to move that way. When asked to find a chair and failing the rest of the group had to ask whether I deliberatly missed the chair or not which gave me a wave of relief that I must be doing something right (except finding a chair) as though my character wasn’t too forced. So I was glad to feel at ease when we continued to build 5 movements which would be repeated. I chose to add the anxious qualities and question myself whether I was doing the right thing taking this journey. My character could leave at any time and wasn’t sure what to do. I tried to pick movements that would express this conflict such as looking at everyone else in the space or getting up to leave then turning back.
Repetition gives the audience a chance to look at the bigger picture, rather than focusing on one person they can look at the entire group and decode a message that is being sent out. Repeating something is to make a message clear and in this type of performance the audience may want to have an idea of why the performers are doing these movements rather than simply observing.
The difference between the methods of devising I have personally used is the beginning process. What I mean by this is how we produced the first section of movements, for example for Porto individually we were given a task to complete given a set amount of time to do it in and comparing this with the Devising 1 module it was completely different. We weren’t given individual tasks to do basically we were told we had to produce a piece of devised theatre and at regular intervals we were told whether we were going in the right or wrong direction.
At first glance of my five movements they wouldn’t have meant anything to either people watching or me personally. It was only until I repeated them I understood the true meaning behind why I did them. And I began to feel a deeper connection between me and my character as I built the intensity. I also began to feel a better understanding of my character compared to when I first entered the space.
By using repetition it can help to reinforce the movement that individual characters perform but it can also help to enhance the idea of the characters and personally like I said in the previous question it made me understand my character that little better, and has allowed me to leave the session thinking how I can extend on my character in the next session.
1. To be honest, engaging in ‘Porto’ has been my first serious devising process so far (not underestimating Devising 1 module which I have found very useful and which fructified in a rather short but enjoyable piece). Being in Poland, working theatrically, either professionally or amateurishly, all creating of performances was always text-based. Devising Theatre has been a completely new art form for me. So I am really unable to share any views (different or not) with my previous devising experiences. However, what I can state, after having acquainted with the first chapter of Alison Oddey’s ‘Devising Theatre a Practical and Theoretical Handbook’, is that we certainly have begun to go through similar devising process as professional devising theatre companies. According to some devising theatre’s stipulations, namely spontaneity and artistic freedom that you leave to us, are a really interesting and absorbing process to be part of. ‘Devising is about thinking, conceiving, and forming ideas, being imaginative and spontaneous, as well as planning.’ The idea of being led through the main aspect, issue of ‘Porto’ but still remaining the main creators is really appealing.
(Oddey, A. (2006) Devising Theatre: A Practical and Theoretical Handbook. London: Routledge.)
2. Choosing gestures and stances, putting emotions and sharpness in them, is becoming a character, not thinking of character (while during writing about our stage personas). Focusing on movement is a physical creation of our character, emotional sensing if our character is true in his gestures and with our idea of him/her. It is a process that in my case looks like trying a gesture and analyzing if my character would physically behave this way or not. While repeating stances, you improve them and authenticate them, and begin to be convinced – yes, I am becoming my character, or better, yes, I am my character.
3. As I stated above, repetition is an useful tool of becoming more and more familiar with your character, creating himself of herself real and true for the audience, but mostly for yourself. I think that unity of a pefromer and his or her character is the most essential (not standing next to your character, trying to recreate something which can turn out as an untrue failure to the audience and performer himself). It is also the process of analyzing the emotional and physical surface of the stage persona. Repeating is the improving of your character and his or her stances as well.
1. Devising naturalistic based characters will involve exercises like hot seating, thought tracking, improvising scenes to see how that character would react etc. A lot of this is primarily aimed at using words to find out about the character. In this process however, we are using no words at all to develop out characters, doing so purely through movement, which is something I haven’t really done before. It is much more focussed on the body and its natural impulses, expressing emotions physically rather than vocally. Furthermore, it is not just the devising process of characters that is different but also the way in which we’re devising the whole show. In my second year of A levels we had to devise, but I remember talking about it for ages, what we wanted to do, all the ideas people had etc, whereas in our lectures now whole sequences can be devised in complete silence, using techniques such as clapping or using music for visual stimulation.
2. As the repetition sequence developed I definitely became more emotionally involved with it, with my character seeming to be a lot more desperate. My first gesture was simple, my hand pointing towards the audience. However, when an emotional layer was added, my hand became more out stretched, I was slightly raised off the chair, and my eyes were wide and scared creating an originally empty movement into a poignant one. Repeating it so many times meant that these emotional additions became more exaggerated, so it wasn’t just my hand pleading anymore, it was my entire body.
3.
The great thing about an audience watching our repetitive sequences is that they will constantly see something different every time it is repeated and it is probably impossible to see all 5 movements of every person. How this affects the performance is that the audience have not been told anything about these characters and if they have missed some of the movements or not concentrated on them during their entrance then they’ll know even less. However, just because they haven’t heard anything about the characters verbally doesn’t make them less of a in depth character, as this can be done adequately through movement and the repetition of these movements could be seen as physical dialogue that’s interpreted by the audience. Aesthetically, it will be highly chaotic, giving the audience a lot to take in, and as some people start to do the whole group repetition sequence, the audience will start to notice it and will be able to watch it build up, creating a very interesting visual picture on stage.
Nicola
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