UNIT 10
Articulation:
Education
Here are a few examples of scholarships that help fund students to go into acting school:
Most Drama schools often ask students for some type of payment plan or a certain fee within your first month in order to secure your place. Finance has a big part to play in Drama school.The drama school fee is approximately £9200 or even more which you need to pay every year. Although they split the payments throughout the year , its still a lot and something to take into consideration.
Drama school Audition fees:
Drama schools often charge an audition fee which ranges from the price of £45-£65. Some drama schools provide schemes to offer free auditions to people however its only for people who meet certain conditions of this policy such as low household income or being from a particular area. Its not guaranteed for everyone .
Qualifications needed for Drama school :
Drama school often requires some type of qualification you've achieved in order for you to extend your studies n drama school. They observe the grades you achieved beforehand as well as evaluating your capability by inviting you to an audition ( which is not optional) on specific dialogue genres ( Shakespeare // contemporary monologues ). They have specific procedures to follow which builds up to the decision of you being accepted in their drama school. For drama students which have been studying previously are aware of these procedures however, if drama school is your first step of your acting career , its very different and may not be everyone's type of comfort zone at such short and drastic measures, Due to all these rules and regulations , its a lot harder for pupils to get accepted into a drama school. They give everybody the same set task therefore you as a person need to utilise your uniqueness and illustrate it to. In addition to this, Drama schools such as RADA, have a huge reputation in the acting industry therefore they are looking for the best of the best.
Drama schools timetable/Curriculum
Drama schools timetable is a lot more compacted and is full time education. Its timetable is like a reflection of school again . Drama schools schedules/ timetables are very compacted due to the amount of content they provide within your studies. Most classes start from 8 am due to warm up preparation for the day ahead . The usually ends around 6/7 pm . On top of that, you receive homework on a daily basis in order for you to research and complete your written work , you have rehearsals to attend which is out of your curriculum ,monthly exams and you need to prepare for your exam productions. All these things need to be done outside of your spare time therefore, what spare time do you have. Unless your willing to dedicate potentially your whole life to Drama school , then maybe university may be a better option.
University:
Although there is no specific university which just focuses on drama , various universities offer programs in acting as part of the courses they have to offer to students within the universities curriculum. University is an intuition which educates students with higher education standards and techniques. Although universities tend to not focus on one specific subject, It provides multiple degrees within different subjects/topics in order for students to achieve in whatever aspect they want to achieve in. When it comes to university, you are not restricted to a certain topic which helps you to explore independence and incentive as a person.
Studying Drama in University:
Many universities will provide some type of acting or theatre program which will run through a course of 3/4 years(depending on whether you take a foundation year within your course which gives you a extra year of your studies) which will then conclude in you receiving a BA/BFA degree if you pass. Although this seems similar to studying at a drama school, in the acting word this is not seen considered as "Drama school training ". In the UK there is a government backed official accreditation of drama schools which is governed by drama UK. This makes it extremely harder for any other institution including universities to label them as a " drama school " or even portray there course to be the same measures as " drama school training " due to strict polices and regulations therefore when universities advertise any form of theatre courses , they will label there course" BA acting". ( an example)
Being accepted by a university :
University have certain rules , regulations and boundaries in order for you to get accepted into their institutions. Grade boundaries, attendance and punctuality is vital as well as wanting their students to be experienced in the course they are extending their studies in .Although university has rules , regulations and grade boundaries , they are a lot more subtle with their standards , and there is always an alternative they will have to offer to students, well as drama school , if your not accepted , its finalised and there is no alternative option.University has grade boundaries which students need to full-fill but foundation years are also taken place for the students which do not fill these requirements or just want an additional year to familiarise themselves with the course. Alternatively, if you was looking at a specific university and you didn't manage to get the entry requirements, there a high chance that another university will it accept you as there boundaries are slightly different,Every university has different grade requirements. This s a huge advantage for universities as it gives people a wider range of option to continue their studies.
University Schedules:
University is of higher education. Although its higher education , its not always full time. Its schedules are not packed as such due to its lectures being usually being around 2-4 hours long . Lectures is the format universities teach in which are not that long hours but still contains the right amount of content you need in order to achieve that degree you want. If you study drama in university, the course may include the word ~"theory" in it which means that it does require a numerous of homework as its mainly coursework based and your lectures may include a lot of information , but university is a lot more independent when it comes to drama and many other subjects. Your in control of when you do your coursework, the notes you take and attending your lectures. Its very independent based. This gives you a chance of balancing other things in life which you may need to pursue ( a part time job in order to maintain a day to day life, enjoying the student life, socialising with other students ) as well as n your spare time as you have quite a lot of spare time ) attending auditions for an acting job which may give you recognition . This is an advantage as everything is on your own accord due to its independence.
University may be a better option due to its manageable schedule as well as not a lot of homework. Majority of the information you will need will often be provided within your lecture. You get deadlines on these essays therefore you can always plan ahead and receive enough time to finalise your work. Due to you having a lot of spare time on your hands, you can work part time in order to provide for the things you need as well as attending auditions in order to boost your acting career.University isn't just about education when attending , but socialising with people and becoming independent ( e.g living by yourself) .As well as studying , you also get chance to to enjoy a real students life.
Going to university for Drama is seen as a safety net . Drama relies on other people in order to achieve your success. someone needs to spot you , whether its a agent or director, someone needs to spot your potential in order to be a success. University is a safety net as it more depends on you. Your work ethics and degree which you worked hard for will allow you to achieve what you want in the industry. The fact that you receive a degree is a safety net as a degree allows you to pursue your career in a variety of aspects within drama. A degree can be utilised to become
-A Drama teacher
-Drama therapist
-Theatre director
-Theatre stage manager
-Broadcast presenter
However, the acting training university provides is nowhere near the same level as a drama school would based upon my research. The degree is a good thing to achieve but is not that valuable within the industry due to the fact that when proceeding with auditions and trying out different casting roles, they are simply not going to ask you if you have a degree as its not crucial within the acting industry.In addition to this, when studying at university , its very unlikely that you will connect with important people within in the industry as casting directors and agency seek talented actors at drama schools. This then reflects the final year show cases audience as its not targeted to people within the industry and attract minimum attention.
Cost of University: University requires the same cost of training as drama schools, the only difference is drama school requires you to pay whilst taking the course, university gives you a student loan to cover the cost which you will pay back in the future whilst earning a certain amount of income.
Skill Audit
Through out the past year I felt like I’ve developed a wide variety of skills which will contribute to my future acting career ;
Teamwork :
I personally feel like my team work skills have increased significantly. Team work is crucial in drama as it allows you to work as an ensemble . Drama is a communal art therefore each person is necessary to the whole. When working as a team we was able to work through problems together . By exchanging ideas with my Peers and then combining it into one, this required us to work as a team and interact with each other .It gives everyone the opportunity to speak and deliver equally. Working with a variety of different people (attending workshops which other students were also attending ) , helped me to understand the value of teamwork . Everyone has a significant role to play in a team in order for the outcome performance to be successful . If team work doesn’t occur then it effects the performance drastically , big or small .In order for team work to work , I was obligated to interact with my peers which developed my communication and listening skills .By communicating with my peers enhanced co-operation and made them feel comfortable to address their ideas and strategies to me comfortably .Communicating helped me achieve the goals and ambition I wanted to receive in certain elements of my performance by sharing these ideas to my group and adapting to them . Listening is as equally as important .
Confidence :
I’ve always had confidence when being surrounded by people I feel comfortable with . When working with my peers or my tutors over the year my confidence will be on 100%. However , when stepping into that stage with several unknown eyes watching me, my confidence levels decreases dramatically . As much as I felt not that confident on stage , I never made my peers , tutors or any members of the audience aware of this .No matter how scared I felt , I pushed it to the side and gave a performance to the best of my capability .
Over the past few terms , my confidence skills have risen slightly as I started to believe in myself . If you believe you can do it , you can . This mindset helped build my esteem and made me set the bar higher each and every time performing in order to feel as confident as I can be . Positive mindset ,positive outcome . Within this confidence transformation, I had to maintain my positive energy . Not only did it benefit me but it benefited the people I was working with as well .Projecting positive energy allowed people to receive it and project it back . The positivity made me strive more into what I want . My rehearsals time can’t much more productive as I felt as if I could do a lot more . The positive energy boosted my enthusiasm in tasks and workshops which pushes me to give more In both rehearsals and performances
Physicality;
It is vital to embody my character both physically and mentally and therefore I have embraced my physicality skills when embodying my characters .
It is my responsibility to bring the character to life . In order for me to do that attention to detail of my character had to take place . You only get one time on the stage , one chance to shine . Whilst studying the practitioner Stanislavski , I noticed that majority of his methods are utilised for us actors get a closer psychologically underst
So I started to focus more on the characters physicality, in particular
Facial expressions -
- I started considering more how my character feels at that moment in time
- How my character would illustrate their emotions
- Eye contact is key an convey my characters personality .Staring at another character straight in the eye illustrates power , confidence well as no eye contact conveys fear , shyness .
- Good posture
- Is my character the type to use certain gestures . Gestures as subtle as utilising your hands and feet when talking . All these subtle things have a huge impact on how people observe your character
- Movement was something I mainly focused on . In my perspective, movement is the most important in expressing your character’s emotion as it is the most visible for the audience to see and understand .
Spacial awareness :
By working in both big and small spaces allowed me to acknowledge just how important spacial awareness is for us actors.Due to majority of my rehearse time being set in quite a small space, i learnt to adapt to different space sizes as your not always guaranteed a big performance stage so its good to start adjusting from now.No matter what size your stage is, you still have a performance to perform to the best of your ability.Spacial awareness allowed me to understand my surroundings clearer so that i respect my space as an individual whilst on stage , but also value other performers and there space to.By moving around constantly , spacial awareness is crucial as props may be on stage to help build the performance which you need to be aware and careful of, tripping on other performers due to levels across the stage which may be explored( if someone is laying on the floor , i need to be aware when moving across the stage ) in order to avoid any harm on both myself and other actors. By being aware helped me recognise objects even from different angles of the stage. Articulation:
Due to warm ups in the acting industry bring crucial, this helped me to expand and develop my articulation . Voice warm ups and vocal lessons played a major part;
-My dialogue was a lot more fluently and coherently
-Using the right words to express myself and my ideas to the rest of the team
-Using a wide range of vocabulary
-Ensuring whilst speaking that it’s at a reasonable paste
Projection :
There’s a difference between performing in front of your class and then to a live stage audience . As I continued studying drama in college , There was a lot more outside workshops I was being introduced to. The more I anticipated the more performances I was in . These workshops were located all across London therefore I was always performing to a wide range audience which were new every time . No matter who was in the audience , I as an actress still had things to maintain within my self no matter how big or small my audience or venue is . One of these key things is projection , I ensured ;
-Audience can hear me loud and clear
-Making sure my voice has versatility as it’s mainly used to communicate my characters emotion
-Having strength whilst speaking
-Taking advantage of my voice in order to capture a massive audiences attention ,
Creativity :
I have developed my creativity skills throughout the last year of college in order to be prepared for drama school. Although I have contributed my creativity skills consistently throughout the year , I pushed myself this year in particular to give it my all . This is the year which determines my next journey in drama .
- Thinking outside the box . This a strategy I have grown in . By studying the practitioner Artaud helped me think outside the box due to his unusual ways to convey his ideas in theatre .
- Creativity helped me to adapt to certain situation/ ideas more than others . Not only did this benefit in drama but in my every day life as you face new challenges everyday
- I can flow with others ideas naturally due to be creative enough to adapt to their ideas. This highlights team work also .
- Helped me build my imagination and confidence .
Goals for the future ;
Although I feel I’ve achieved a lot of new skills and developed on skills I already had , there is always room for improvements. Im
Be even more confident on stage
Watch more theatre productions
Getting involved in theatre productions by applying for auditions
Try and find an agency
Drama CV:
Name: Kenya Harriott
( Image of myself).
Full Home Address:
-27 Flat C Grittelton Road
Postcode:
W9 2DD
Contact Number:
07916068497
Email Address:
Statistics:
Training:
Role Playing Ages: 2017-2020
Westminster Kingsway College
17-22 years old
Acting and Production Arts
Height:
2012-2017 Maria Fidelis Roman Catholic
5’3
Secondary School: Drama
Voice Tone:
2014-2016 Paddington Arts
Centre:
Soft
Performing Arts
Friendly 2008-2010 Tabot Play Centre
Clear
Music, Singing, Dancing and Acting &Musical Theatre
Eye Colour:
Brown
Hair Colour:
Black
Ethnicity:
Black British /Black Caribbean
Acting
Experience:
Production
|
Role
|
Venue Company
|
“A
Midsummer Night’s Dream” By William Shakespeare
|
Father-Egeus
|
Westminster
Kingsway College
|
“
A Quesmas Story” Devised piece
|
Police
Officer- Marley
|
Westminster
Kingsway College
|
“
Romeo and Juliet “ By William Shakespeare
|
Friar
Lawrence
|
Westminster
Kingsway College
|
“
Fugee” By Abi Morgan
|
Mother
and Child Solider
|
Westminster
Kingsway College
|
“
The Three Sisters” By Anton Chekov
|
1/3
Sisters “Irina”.
|
Westminster
Kingsway College
|
“
the York Realist “
|
Westminster
Kingsway College
|
|
Devised
piece
|
The
Shaw Theatre
|
“
Move your body – Beyoncé”
Flash
Mob
|
Dancer
|
Euston
Station
|
||
“448
Psychosis” By Sarah Kane
|
Doctor,
Patient
|
Maria
Fidelis Convent School
|
||
“
metamorphosis” By Steven berkoff
|
Lodger
, Greta Samsa
|
Maria
Fidelis Convent School
|
||
“
Jack the Ripper” Devised ensemble piece
|
Child
|
Maria
Fidelis Convent School
|
||
Pros and cons of University/Drama school Essay
Drama school
Education
Firstly, i am going to explore what a drama school is, Drama school is an independent institution/department which revolves around only educating students on drama and other subjects similar to this within the performing arts industry. Although it has the word "school" involved, Drama schools content of education is of higher education which explores the same level of academic information as a university would as its compulsory for a drama schools education system to be validated by a university.
An advantage regarding Drama school is that they provide different type programs.Usually drama schools provides both graduate and undergraduate programs which is beneficial to a variety of students due to the fact that if Drama was new to you , you will be able to study at a drama school within the undergraduate course until you graduate. And, for students which graduated in drama school and want to extend their studies, can do so as drama school gives them that opportunity. In addition to this,students can achieve a bachelor of arts and various master degrees in Arts often combined with science through certain drama schools also within the UK. Although this advantage is limited as not everybody wants to study science, the fact that that option is there for students which take interest in both science and drama is very beneficial to them as its two qualifications in one.
An advantage regarding Drama school is that they provide different type programs.Usually drama schools provides both graduate and undergraduate programs which is beneficial to a variety of students due to the fact that if Drama was new to you , you will be able to study at a drama school within the undergraduate course until you graduate. And, for students which graduated in drama school and want to extend their studies, can do so as drama school gives them that opportunity. In addition to this,students can achieve a bachelor of arts and various master degrees in Arts often combined with science through certain drama schools also within the UK. Although this advantage is limited as not everybody wants to study science, the fact that that option is there for students which take interest in both science and drama is very beneficial to them as its two qualifications in one.
Degree:
When passing your Drama degree, its a huge achievement. An actor with a degree from drama school will appear a lot more professional within the arts industry as well as a lot more appealing to agents on the look out for roles. Drama degrees are very highly rated within the industry.
Additional Subjects ;
Additional Subjects ;
Drama school school also offers subjects in correlation to drama which is a advantage as it gives students a chance to study the subject they want to proceed their career with. The subjects they offer are often
Musical theatre
physical theatre
stage management
directing
set design
lighting design
Drama school is a opportunist to the industry:
Drama school is a opportunist to the industry:
When studying at a drama school like RADA or The Drama Centre London , and then graduating, it looks amazing on your drama CV and attracts a lot of attention from agencies.Drama schools gives you a variety of ways to motivate and push yourself out into the field of acting by providing various opportunities. The most significant opportunity they provide is within the final year showcase where this performance is being viewed by multiple talented agencies,casting directors and important people within the industry(.you wouldn't have this opportunity in university. which gives you the opportunity to introduce yourself to the acting world and be open to a head start .)Agents and casting directors value actors with drama school training more. Harsh but its reality. If successful, you will always be revolved around strong connection with people in the industry, and if hired by a agency, you will be represented through this agency which means you will get opportunities to to star in roles/ plays/castings/ auditions as resources to do this. You could do this independently however it will be a lot easier being managed by an agency as your more likely guarantee to have work as an actor.
Practical work vocal, physical work Drama school
Although drama school seems like the easier path, Drama school training is a lot more valuable but a lot harder to achieve due to its high expectations and formal training. Its an intensive three year course which is designed to prepare actors to get physically, mentally and vocally ready for their acting careers.Its practical work enhances your performance skills.Drama school focuses on vocal technique , the chance to develop skills like stage combat and gives you tools and techniques ( more examples ) which university wouldn't provide.Drama school focuses on the more practical side of acting.
Bursaries and Student Loans
Although Drama school is expensive , scholarships and bursaries are provided for student which need financial support. The disadvantage is that although the scholarships come in handy to students which are in need, nor everyone is guaranteed. These scholarships and bursaries are only given to a small amount of students and majority of these scholarships wont contain the full amount of funds payment in total throughout the 3 years of being in drama school . Therefore, it is helpful but only to a certain extent as either way , you still have to pay something in order to complete your years in Drama schools .
Here are a few examples of scholarships that help fund students to go into acting school:
A "DaDa" which stands for a Dance and Drama award.This is a government funded scheme that offers promising 16-23 year old help with fees and living costs at one of 17 private dance and drama schools.
"Andrew llyod webber foundation scholarship" This scholarship supports 30 students annually on a variety of courses ranging from musical theatre, acting , music and stage management. Its one of a wide range of scholarships ad bursaries currently available across the training sector sector.
" Laurence oliver bursary" Established by the society of London theatre to help students further there studies from second to third year on any BA (hons) acting course.
"Constellation creatives Bursary" Which is awarded to students by the Yellow Earth Theatre . They look for students in particular which they think will stand out due to a number of reasons within acting. For example, They awarded a student of East Asian origin to encourage greater participation and representation on stage and screen.
"Society of London Theatre" Which awards £72,500 in bursaries to help student complete acting training.
"Central school" receives more than £400k to fund scholarships and support applied theatre students. Most Drama schools often ask students for some type of payment plan or a certain fee within your first month in order to secure your place. Finance has a big part to play in Drama school.The drama school fee is approximately £9200 or even more which you need to pay every year. Although they split the payments throughout the year , its still a lot and something to take into consideration.
Drama schools often charge an audition fee which ranges from the price of £45-£65. Some drama schools provide schemes to offer free auditions to people however its only for people who meet certain conditions of this policy such as low household income or being from a particular area. Its not guaranteed for everyone .
Qualifications needed for Drama school :
Drama school often requires some type of qualification you've achieved in order for you to extend your studies n drama school. They observe the grades you achieved beforehand as well as evaluating your capability by inviting you to an audition ( which is not optional) on specific dialogue genres ( Shakespeare // contemporary monologues ). They have specific procedures to follow which builds up to the decision of you being accepted in their drama school. For drama students which have been studying previously are aware of these procedures however, if drama school is your first step of your acting career , its very different and may not be everyone's type of comfort zone at such short and drastic measures, Due to all these rules and regulations , its a lot harder for pupils to get accepted into a drama school. They give everybody the same set task therefore you as a person need to utilise your uniqueness and illustrate it to. In addition to this, Drama schools such as RADA, have a huge reputation in the acting industry therefore they are looking for the best of the best.
Drama schools timetable/Curriculum
Drama schools timetable is a lot more compacted and is full time education. Its timetable is like a reflection of school again . Drama schools schedules/ timetables are very compacted due to the amount of content they provide within your studies. Most classes start from 8 am due to warm up preparation for the day ahead . The usually ends around 6/7 pm . On top of that, you receive homework on a daily basis in order for you to research and complete your written work , you have rehearsals to attend which is out of your curriculum ,monthly exams and you need to prepare for your exam productions. All these things need to be done outside of your spare time therefore, what spare time do you have. Unless your willing to dedicate potentially your whole life to Drama school , then maybe university may be a better option.
University:
Studying Drama in University:
Being accepted by a university :
University have certain rules , regulations and boundaries in order for you to get accepted into their institutions. Grade boundaries, attendance and punctuality is vital as well as wanting their students to be experienced in the course they are extending their studies in .Although university has rules , regulations and grade boundaries , they are a lot more subtle with their standards , and there is always an alternative they will have to offer to students, well as drama school , if your not accepted , its finalised and there is no alternative option.University has grade boundaries which students need to full-fill but foundation years are also taken place for the students which do not fill these requirements or just want an additional year to familiarise themselves with the course. Alternatively, if you was looking at a specific university and you didn't manage to get the entry requirements, there a high chance that another university will it accept you as there boundaries are slightly different,Every university has different grade requirements. This s a huge advantage for universities as it gives people a wider range of option to continue their studies.
University Schedules:
University is of higher education. Although its higher education , its not always full time. Its schedules are not packed as such due to its lectures being usually being around 2-4 hours long . Lectures is the format universities teach in which are not that long hours but still contains the right amount of content you need in order to achieve that degree you want. If you study drama in university, the course may include the word ~"theory" in it which means that it does require a numerous of homework as its mainly coursework based and your lectures may include a lot of information , but university is a lot more independent when it comes to drama and many other subjects. Your in control of when you do your coursework, the notes you take and attending your lectures. Its very independent based. This gives you a chance of balancing other things in life which you may need to pursue ( a part time job in order to maintain a day to day life, enjoying the student life, socialising with other students ) as well as n your spare time as you have quite a lot of spare time ) attending auditions for an acting job which may give you recognition . This is an advantage as everything is on your own accord due to its independence.
University may be a better option due to its manageable schedule as well as not a lot of homework. Majority of the information you will need will often be provided within your lecture. You get deadlines on these essays therefore you can always plan ahead and receive enough time to finalise your work. Due to you having a lot of spare time on your hands, you can work part time in order to provide for the things you need as well as attending auditions in order to boost your acting career.University isn't just about education when attending , but socialising with people and becoming independent ( e.g living by yourself) .As well as studying , you also get chance to to enjoy a real students life.
Going to university for Drama is seen as a safety net . Drama relies on other people in order to achieve your success. someone needs to spot you , whether its a agent or director, someone needs to spot your potential in order to be a success. University is a safety net as it more depends on you. Your work ethics and degree which you worked hard for will allow you to achieve what you want in the industry. The fact that you receive a degree is a safety net as a degree allows you to pursue your career in a variety of aspects within drama. A degree can be utilised to become
-A Drama teacher
-Drama therapist
-Theatre director
-Theatre stage manager
-Broadcast presenter
However, the acting training university provides is nowhere near the same level as a drama school would based upon my research. The degree is a good thing to achieve but is not that valuable within the industry due to the fact that when proceeding with auditions and trying out different casting roles, they are simply not going to ask you if you have a degree as its not crucial within the acting industry.In addition to this, when studying at university , its very unlikely that you will connect with important people within in the industry as casting directors and agency seek talented actors at drama schools. This then reflects the final year show cases audience as its not targeted to people within the industry and attract minimum attention.
Cost of University: University requires the same cost of training as drama schools, the only difference is drama school requires you to pay whilst taking the course, university gives you a student loan to cover the cost which you will pay back in the future whilst earning a certain amount of income.
Conclusion:
In conclusion , if you are fully dedicated in become a actor/actress, Drama school is the best option. Although it takes full commitment and it costly, it gives you the right content and experience you need in order to become an actress/actor when reaching the industry . It gives you a higher chance of receiving acknowledgement within the industry also and you also achieve a degree within this. If you are only focused on becoming an actor and nothing else then Drama school is the best option for you. However, if you want to study drama in a wider content, therefore not only the practical work but studying it in a lot more depth , then university is for you . If you are not financially stable, have other things going on but still want to keep on track with your future career , then university is a huge advantage in doing so . You will still achieve a degree in addition to this.
Monologues:
Monologues:
Mini Tasks to prepare for Monologues:
Transitioning through the door
My modern monologue :5 Five seconds of Silence
Transitioning through the door
Walking through a door ( reason behind it ,stepping into character
What’s your intentions / thoughts / feeling beforehand )
Analysing Shakespeare's Language :
Reading through Shakespeare monologues to familiarise ourselves with the language
Picking three words from Shakespeare monologues
- Saying his dialogue aloud
- Creating gestures to symbolise those words
Repetition to engage audience :
Repeating the first word of each sentence
Captures the audience
Engages the audience
Strong intro
Focusing on the punctuation
Using it to pause / breathe as sentences are long in majority of Shakespeare's plays.
Physicality
Using our bodies to illustrate a setting
Still images
Working as an ensemble
Collectively creating the freeze frame
Special awareness
By Shelagh Stephenson
Founded in 1997, and with 39 productions to its credit, Stepping Out Theatre is the country’s leading mental health theatre group. It has produced a wide range of work on mental health themes and is open to people who have used mental health services and their allies. It offers mental health service users the opportunity to work alongside people with professional experience of writing, directing and acting, some of whom are service users themselves. The group has won two national awards in recognition of its high quality and groundbreaking work in mental health.
This particular play focuses on a family which has been victims of abuse by their father/husband Billy .The play highlights mental health through the character Billy and his psychotic ways which has an effect on his family and there well being . Stephenson’s play is a brave exposure of abuse which, as its title implies, too often remains hidden behind veils of silence. The father Billy is a abusive husband / father mentally and physically . He was abused as a child and utilised this pain into abusing his family to .The mother Mary had a neglected childhood which has then grown up to suffer abuse from her husband and feels trapped within her marriage. Janet is the eldest daughter which is determined to escape from the abusive family. Lastly , the youngest daughter Susan portrays a lot of confusion by her own emotions and racked by personal guilt as she is molested by her father is eager to feel loved by him to and feels this is the only way in doing so .
This play focuses on how the character feel individually as well as how the abuse affects the family as a whole and can In fact push the family so far that the consequence could lead up to drastic measures . At the end of this play, the 3 females shoot billy in his bed twice.this highlights that enough is enough and even though this is not the right way to handle these types of situations, the fact that abuse has driven these 3 victims into doing something which isn’t normal emphasises on just how damaging abuse can be mentally and physically .
My character -Mary
As Mary, the mother, my character was a neglected child who seemed cast by nature into the role of victim; yet she is aware of her own inability to stop the abuse and, understanding that it crosses generations, she is determined that she does not want grandchildren. Having a husband who suffers from alcoholism and epilepsy makes my character a victim of violence .
Although the play is based on mental health issues , my characters personality brings the positive side to the play. She does this by reminiscing about the past of her marriage and symbolises this physically through dancing often. Mary is very naive. Although she’s fully aware of what’s going on around her , She doesn’t really acknowledge the destructive power of her love for Billy . In my perspective Mary is emotionally shut off and trapped in a toxic mentality from Billy’s relentless control over her to the point where she feels like the way he has mistreated her is almost normal and to escape from those times , she fantasises through the use of her romantic monologues and her inherent gentleness personality .
My character is various monologues throughout the play in order to express her emotion . The dialogue within the monologue contrasts with what else is going on in the play . This is due to the fact that my monologue focuses on my characters early romance with her husband billy but is being contrasted with the abuse she receives by him on a daily basis . Although Billy’s character is not physically there. When the three female leads share centre stage, she portrays a sense of relief and strength fortified now they’re free of their tormentor( despite killing him ) . Billy gone the cycle of abused becoming abusers will finally end.
A lot of emotions are expressed throughout the play within my character . My monologue focuses on isolation The core emotion my character feels before it all started from her parents when they neglected her
Why I chose this monologue :
In my unit 11 essay , my question is also regarding mental health issues therefore I wanted to explore this in my unit 10 in order to get more of a better understanding and link the two together . I feel like there needs to be a lot more awareness in today’s society that mental health does happening and capture people’s attention when it comes to mental health as numerous people don’t acknowledge that they suffer from mental health issues . This is illustrated through the 3 female characters within the play (Susan , Janet and Mary ) as they are victims of abuse both physically and mentally ,in this play , the 3 females often justify why they get mentally and physically abused by their Father/Husband. There is no excuse for anybody to abuse you in any form and i feel like that us a very important message to put across to young female victims.Abuse cant be justified as the victims may have not acknowledged so my aim in performing this monologue is also to bring it to peoples attention.
My Classical Monologue : " I left no ring "-Twelfth Night
By William Shakespeare
My character - viola
I would describe my character as a strong independent female which is able to adapt herself to new circumstances . This is due to her making her own way into the world ( or should I say play) when she is washed up onto he shore of Illyria when her ship is wrecked in a storm .Viola easily adapts to situations that get thrown at her and uses her knowledge to help her over come the situations and begins to plan her future.As the play starts,my character is alone and neglected . She is also dealing with the death of her brother but she still remains strong and the level of her strength increases throughout the play .
Viola disguised herself as a young man calling herself “ Cesario". Although she is disguised as a man , characters in the play end up falling in love with “ Cesario”.The idea of becoming disguised was once clever to viola , complications occurred and as the play unravels , viola feels as though her disguised had entrapped her . However due to viola being so strong minded , she did not panic but suggested another plan “ conceal what she is for such disguised as happy shall become the form of her intent “. She’s always willing to seek alternative solutions .
Act 2 scene 2-
Background information regarding my monologue :
Viola promised Orsino (her master) that she would do her best to please his lady whom his Olivia. But viola has fallen in love with Orsino .Twelfth night explorers a love triangle between these characters . Despite her feelings for Orsino, she sticks to her duties and responsibilities but begins to experience an emotional internal self -conflict within herself as her love for Orsino increases.Viola then tries to hide it which makes her feel worse within herself as it’s eating her from within . This illustrates how selflessness viola’s character is by sacrificing herself for the responsibilities given to her .I ensured to carry out these emotions within my monologue.
Due to viola being fixed with confusion on her emotions , she is oblivious on what’s going on around her , so when Olivia states that viola left a ring confusion is at its highest . My monologue “ I left no ring “ is there to convey Violas thought process in trying to get a understanding on what’s going around her .Within the monologue she realises that Olivia has fallen in love with her boyish disguise ( “ fortune forbid my outside have not charmed her “) , thinking back to all events that have taken place , she recalls Olivia “ certainly made good view of me; indeed , so much / that sure methought her eyes had lost her tongue “.
This monologue is all about realisation and is portrayed as a thought process . The evidence has now become clear to viola as she realised that Olivia has indeed fallen in life with Cesario ; “ When she spoke to the young man she spoke in starts and spurts” and her manner was “ vague and distracted “. Due to viola being selfless , she pities Olivia .; “It would be better for the poor Olivia to love a dream “ This was never her intention and after she realises the mess shes responsible for she says “ Disguise I see thou art a wickedness “ like a Olivia , viola is actually a women therefore she knows the anguish of love : “ Our frailty is the cause , not we , for such we are made of , such we be “ this highlights that Viola is meditating upon her actions .
By analysing violas characters throughout the play ,it felt as if I was following her on this journey .It was a lot easier to perform this monologue as Shakespeare's plays Have been studied throughout the year for everybody to get a clearer understanding, Therefore analysing twelfth night was a lot easier and understanding as there are variety of resources to help you with understanding the content of the play and characters and then utilising your own interpretation into the play .
https://youtu.be/m5tdDZnNkiA
^ A link of me performing my monologue as practice
Young Actors Theatre :
We recently visited the Young actors theatre. It helped a lot for me personally as it was just a change of scenery , bigger space and something fresh. Everybody performed their monologues in front of a very important cast member from inbetweeners. As a actor , he was able to assist us with our monologues which was very useful as it prepares us for Drama school. In addition to this , he was able to give us individual feedback as well as constructive criticism.It was extremely helpful.
Personal Statement/Proposal Form;
Section 1:
Over the course of 11 units I have studied whilst taking this course , I am confident my growth in becoming a professional actor has improved significantly.
I began this journey in 2017 and as a personal self observation ,I have acknowledged that both my physical and mental knowledge regarding the performing arts industry has expanded for the better . Not only is this useful for my career in the future ,but also makes me ,as a training actor to feel more confident within my talent and capability . By studying a variety of practitioners; Stanislavski, Brecht and Artaud , utilising their techniques in order to develop my own skills and taking on board their useful techniques has allows me to expand my knowledge and performing ethics.
By self evaluating myself after every performance and taking on feedback , negative or positive ,I have learnt to accept criticism and utilise it constructively which I feel has perfected my craft in becoming the best I can possibly be. By participating in numerous performances has allowed me to illustrate my skills through a range of different concepts . Throughout the years , my main focus and progression is to ensure I utilise character development . By broadening my knowledge from the essence of my character, has allowed my acting skills to be more realistic . This is due to taking all aspects into consideration when planing to play a character ; things like getting into the habit of research has a huge part to play in this .
Beforehand, I use to just receive a character I’m playing and just go with it . However i am now getting to terms with interpreting characters from different characters perspectives aswell as my characters place in the play . Asking rhetorical questions in order to gain a further understanding;
What is my characters purpose ?
What is my characters intention ?
Taking stage directions into consideration due to this having a reflection on the characters personality ( body language etc) ,I now take time to deconstruct a character I am set to play. Peeling as much layers possible to be accurate when In -bedding my character through the use of my talent .“ in order to depict an authentic character “
Not only have I learnt the context of theatre in more depth by studying this course , but I have adapted to this and feel passionate towards it to .In order to be the best you must achieve the best . Feeling confident within myself has been portrayed through my performances . If you give it 100% effort , the outcome will be successful , even when in doubt .
Participating in various workshops , attending other actors performances ,visiting different theatres such as the Shaw theatre and shepherds bush theatre and working with companies like “ Camden youth theatre “ has contributed tremendously towards my independent skills as an actor . These experiences allowed me to step out of my comfort zone which gave me the confidence to give my all into anything, not only within performing arts but on a daily basis to . This course has allowed me to become more knowledgeable. Strengthen my weaknesses and improve on my strengths.
My goal from this is to achieve a career within the performing arts industry , whether I teach it or participate in it
SECTION 2
This final term , we are studying a classical play “Midsummer nights dream “,which is a comedy play written by William Shakespeare . The play explores the adventures of four Athenian lovers who get caught up in a love triangle due to numerous factors , in particular ,a spell. A Daughter is left distraught after her father forbids her marrying her lover. She then finds herself facing desperate measures as she has the choice of either marrying a man that suits her fathers standards or disobeys her father and faces death as a consequence. The play also portrays a variety of other events which take place within the play which highlights various themes;
Gender,Love,The supernatural as well as man and the natural world.
The plays popularity is due to its simple plot regarding lovers and due to its humours and happy ending . The fact that it contains; Fairy ,love and mischief is a bonus for the audience .
My aims I would like to achieve for my final production consist of doing a wider range of research in order for me to fit playing my character to the best of my ability.I will be ensuring I develop my characters analysis in order to portray an authentic character. Looking at a variety of sources and different versions of the play in order to be more familiar with the play as a whole as well as observing my character as an individual. Focusing on actors body language and posture when working with Shakespearean text. In addition to this , utilising the tools I have learnt at the start of my course from successful practitioners, in particular Stanislavski. Due to my character being at the start of the play , emotional memory has been something I have been exploring in more depth . I really want to get into my character and maintain that throughout my performance .
At the start of a performance , I am usually nervous and therefore to much time gets invested into how I feel . I want to transfer this into something more productive therefore by focusing on emotional memory allows me to me more into my characters mindset by trying to feel similar emotions my character is feeling.
Another aim I want to succeed on this project is my work ethics . Giving rehearsals 100% energy and sustain this all throughout each rehearsal and performance .Sometimes rehearsals can be extremely repetitive which then gets draining. As it gets draining your energy begins to decrease . Not only is a disadvantage to me as a individual but also my team . When working as an ensemble one persons energy can effect many . If your not giving 100% into the production then others may follow this example . I want to lead by example in order for everyone to achieve this goal as Consistency is key .
I will try and ensure that my group uses time efficiently and effectively. By having a timetable which states what each lesson consists of allows us all to conduct rehearsals frequently and equally to other curriculum's. Towards every end of each lesson we will aim ,as an ensemble , to have reflection time on what we have done each day , feedback and constructive criticism . This helps you as an indivisible as well as a whole “production” due to every little bit helps the final outcome overall .Ideas will be shared whilst carrying out rehearsals in order to adapt to the play as we go along which allows everyone to feel involved and equal with other cast members , even if you aren’t in a particular scene,By having two separate casts is just as beneficial as it allows you to give feedback to you peers , not just your tutor . I , as a young actor , accept feedback and constructive criticism as these are all things which will enhance my character .
Due to this course being 3 days per week , I will create my own separate timetable to ensure that I use my time efficiently to achieve the best ;
-Taking notes in lesson to write up into my blog.
-Reciting my lines .
-Research the plays context / my character .
SECTION 3:
Self evaluation and feedback :
Due to there being two separate casts, it’s an extremely good way to self evaluate myself . Whilst being in rehearsals with my peers, I ask at least one of them for overall feedback for each weekly practice performance. By asking different individuals each week , allows me to receive a variety of feedback from different aspects of my performance , good or bad , it’s still constructive. They may realise something which I wasn’t on aware of therefore it’s always an advantage as I accept constructive criticism knowing that there is always room for improvement.Another way I could receive feedback is by the audience! After the performance I can approach family and friends in order to hear there own opinions on the performance . By asking them what they did and didn’t like I can take on board into my future shows .
Other than this, there are multiple ways to evaluate myself . Taking pictures of work I’ve done in lesson in order to document it into my blog . By comparing my original ideas to the overall outcome idea for the performance, allows me to self evaluate on how I got from A-B? How did I manage to express my ideas , ensure my idea has been Illustrated and also collaborate this idea with the rest of the teams . Self evaluating is not just only the performance /actor aspect but also teamwork factors to .
I will aim to record myself at least once a week to observe my work and see if I am making any progress as the weeks proceed .A clear example is line learning . The first week ,i as well as everybody else will be on book therefore i may not see that much interaction with my cast members as everyone including myself is just familiarising themselves with the text . As the weeks proceed the recordings should show that I’m picking up the text which will then allow me to self evaluate something else .
Once the production is complete I will re-evaluate everything I’ve stated in order to see whether I feel I achieved these set goals .My biggest critique is myself . Nobody knows me like me . I can outline my strengths and weakness in order to learn from them and utilise this analysis into my future productions
References:
Skill audit
University & Drama school Essay references :
Monologue references :
Young Actors Theatre :
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