Children's Theatre My Journal - Children's Theatre (2005) Week Thirteen

Yes! Well some things went well today, and other things…not so much! I focused on my vocal characterisations today, yet a little too much. Because I spent a lot of time sounding like a cat, I forgot to sound like an actor and remember my lines. I was stuffing up all night, however at least I sounded cat-like…yeah! (See…us men can only do one thing at once!) I really need to incorporate both, obviously… at the same time, equally obvious. The success with the scene with Sol, however, did save my day.

After my introductory line in my second scene, namely where I flaunt about knowing Italian words, I turn towards Sol in an attempt to attack her. Although I forgot every second line coming out of my mouth, the stalking of Sol worked brilliantly. I feel it illustrates the villainous and sly nature of the cat, and the frantic and quirky nature of the bird; Sol not Kate. It was nice to see ideas work, and primarily this is what this week is about. I love experimenting with ideas, finding out what works and discussing approaches with other characters. If it doesn’t work, someone will tell you, however, if you don’t try it this week, you won’t be able to try it next week.

[i] Benjamin Hoff (1982) The Tao of Pooh, Mandarin: Great Britain, p. XII.

[ii] Drew Carrey in The Drew Carrey Show, broadcast on Network Nine, broadcast date unknown.

'It was recognised that objects placed on stage acquire greater significance than in the everyday world, that 'on the stage things play the part of theatrical signs can in the course of the play acquire special features, qualities, and attributes that they do not have in real life' [i]

I am really enjoying watching Daniel mime during the song ‘The Tragic Story of One Jan Pierawiet’. His energy is great and expressive, especially the gestures he uses to express a sword to the throat. His movements connote a legitimate story telling, seemingly told around a campfire. The realism of the scene is also controlled by the brilliant reactions brought on by the responses from the crabs, penguins and the other animals positioned around Daniel. I feel that his movement is great, but what makes it better are these reactions. Just like in any group scene, it is not so much what is said, but more importantly how everyone responds to it.

The singing rehearsal was great, and much needed. The bit that I found the most helpful was Darren individually outlining each characters and/or groups motivation. By directly stating each characters' sub-text, we all have a purpose for singing. Obviously for me, it is the purpose of getting my gold back; apparently without it my business is doomed…or something like that. I found by stating everyone’s purpose out loud, not only reminded the individuals concerned but also enhanced the ensemble's understanding and character interaction.

For myself, I started to use the props that were available tonight. I only used the handkerchief for my crying scene and I am trying to work out what else I can also do with it. I’ve started trying to attack the crabs in Octavia’s underwater scene and at this moment, all I am doing is stroking my stomach to communicate a desire to eat them, corresponding to their cries of being turned into tasty crab dishes. Perhaps I’ll try placing the handkerchief in the collar of my shirt? This could work because it will not only indicate my hunger and ability to eat crabs, but also Katzenellenbogen’s suggested high-class status as he enjoys the finer things in life…meeeeoooow!

[i] Elaine Aston and George Savona (1996) Theatre as Sign-System: A Semiotics of Text and Performance, Routledge: London and New York, p. 8.

'He knew that one of them was the right, and he knew that when you had decided which one of them was the right, then the other one was the left' [i]

Salmiyah took us through a wonderful relaxing warm-up today, however most of us were already well relaxed due to the minimal amount of sleep the whole ensemble has experienced lately. With such a lethargic group, an energetic warm-up would have been far more appropriate, however, this activity was possibly the most useful one yet due to the fact it was so unique and theme based.

The meditation exercises were extremely appropriate as it focused on the some of the training issues experienced in the play. It was also great to manipulate our movement and focus on the energy produced by our neutral stance. By placing emphasis on our charkas and the elements around us, I believe that the new movement introduced should seem fluid, yet controlled.

After an extremely long day at uni, the evening was great as we got to try on our costumes, in some cases for the first time. I’m so glad I was given a wig as it finalises my character perfectly, and now wearing my coat and patting my stomach doesn’t seem so odd (I’ve just had an image of the people in the audience, up until now, wondering what I’m doing with my hand). It really shows how great the costume people have worked this year, as without any costumes our characters would not seem as believable; and a bit naked as well! But it’s not just that, these costumes connote the period, present the animals’ characteristics and suggest the characters’ status and even their mood.

I love my costume as it is now helping in redefining my movement on stage. My gestures are changing and my arrogance has enhanced; I know, I didn’t believe I could get more arrogant but there it is! It is not appropriate for me to play with my tail as it shows a playfulness that is non-existent in Katzenellenbogen, however could be extremely appropriate for Marilda. While I write this I am reminded that I will be suing Jenny at the end of the semester. Every time I need to write… KATZENELLENBOGEN!!! …my fingers cramp and I forget what I was going to say after writing it. I’m not fussy, but next time I require a shorter name and a private dressing room…that will be all for now!

[i] Benjamin Hoff (1982) The Tao of Pooh, Mandarin: Great Britain, p. 12

'The Katz in the Bogen and the silver spoon, little Bluebeard and the man on the moon...'

A long, long rehearsal today, however quite productive. The tech run was useful as it allowed us to see the, almost, finished product. The rehearsal was also great as it went rather smoothly with only minimal mistakes. We tried ad-libbing in the training scene when Jan was late on to stage, although our attempts were for the most part humorous; the experience was an important one. At any stage, an actor could miss their cue or fail to enter the scene all together. Mistakes do happen; we are all human (expect for Paul, but more on that later); the trick is to not direct audience attention to these mistakes. I feel it is important to now organise some back-up ad-libs, just in case a scene goes… ‘unbelievably, badly, wrong’. [i]

The other thing I tried tonight was an addition to the Sol the seagull ‘attack’. I’ve been following Kate around all week, collecting her malting feathers (does this make me sound like I’m a stalker?) I tried the addition tonight, which included the thumping on my chest and the ‘coughing’ up of a feather suggesting I had already eaten or perhaps had bitten a bit of Sol. I am hoping this reinforces Katzenellenbogen’s feelings towards other animals, his disrespect and even his contempt. My hope is this will be counteracted with his feelings in the second act as he becomes ‘one of the team’, thus connoting his journey and the play’s message.

[i] I am Not an Animal, broadcast on the Australian Broadcast Corporation, on 25 of May 2005.

I made a fool of myself today… nothing new I know! I don’t normally show my frustration externally but today, it all came out. Before getting into costumes, we were asked to learn some new moves for the end of Octavia’s underwater scene. That’s perhaps where it started, as I don’t believe it is appropriate to learn any new moves the day before opening night. I feel that the final dress rehearsal should solely be for confirming the production’s overall look and finalising last minute problems. It is also essential for the actor’s and crew to feel comfortable with a full run through, mainly to settle the nerves.

I got to a point that I needed to walk away and leave the room as I was so negative it was not funny; except to Paul who found seeing me like this extremely funny as it was something he had never seen before. I should have stuck around and learnt the new moves, however, what I was impressed with was the commitment of the other students. They may have realised the moves were too late to learn, but they still attempted to rise to the challenge. Even Ilona took some time to show me the moves later on. I know it was a long, exhaustive and busy week, but I could have done better.

It was a great rehearsal in the end, and the production is looking great. Everybody is doing a fantastic job, including all of the backstage people. What is noticeable is the lovely manners that everyone is using back stage, including the kind gestures. I know it’s common courtesy, however, Emily is going around and handing out properties, the make-up people are always apologising for being in our way and Matthew and Brad wait patiently for us to pass before moving on set pieces. Although Emily should tell us to get our own properties, make-up and the set people should tell us to get out of the way, both cast and crew are working and conversing as one. It’s a great group, it really feels like one ensemble with a common goal; wow!

[i] Michael in the Big Brother house commenting on one of his fellow housemates, Tim, Big Brother, broadcast on Network Ten, broadcasted on the 3^rd of June 2005.

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