Vocal
Development Programme –
‘Auditions
for Actors’ Performance Assignment
|
|
Date
|
Tuesday 10th May
2016
|
Exercise Used
|
-
Facial Warmup
-
and “Why fly so
high” rhyme
|
Vocal Characteristics
|
Pre-Performance:
-
Crisp
-
Throat resonated
-
Quiet
Post-Performance:
-
Throat resonated
-
Articulate
-
Strong
|
Vocal Reflection
|
‘The Two Gentlemen of Verona’:
-
Articulate – when
projecting Shakespearean text.
-
Paced – to show
character’s thought process.
-
Husky – to show
character’s status and occupation (clown).
‘The Seagull’:
-
Articulate – to show
character’s high status, education, and understanding of the English
language.
-
Distorted – to show
the character’s hesitation in expressing their opinion.
-
Emphasised –
particularly on words like “theatre” and “love” to show disgust.
‘Kiss Me Like You Mean It’:
-
Shaky – to show
the character’s nervous state.
-
Clipped – to show
hesitation to speak his mind.
-
Neutral Tone and
Pitch – to show innocence and low social status.
|
Received Feedback
|
-
Good pacing
-
Clear diction
(through understanding of the texts)
-
and Good and
clear projection.
|
Strengths
|
-
Pacing
-
Transitioning
from one vocal state to the other
-
Emphasising
certain scripted words
-
and Projecting.
|
Areas of Improvement
|
I aim to rehearse the
scripted texts, and practice more vocal exercises to increase my overall
vocal performance abilities.
|
Frank Hussey's Performance Blog
Saturday, 14 May 2016
'Auditions for Actors' - Vocal Programme
Friday, 13 May 2016
Kiss Me Like You Mean It - Auditions for Actors
Auditions for Actors –
Kiss Me Like You Mean It
Intro
‘Kiss Me Like You Mean It’ is a
contemporary production written by Chris Chibnall. This play tells the story of two young people,
on a warm summers evening, as they explore their lives, meet new people, and
build a relationship together.
The character I will be performing as is:
Name: Tony
Age: Early 20s
Relationships: Ruth (the woman he loves)
Likes: Parties
Drinking
Dislikes: Cancer
Death
What has happened before the monologue?
When we are introduced to our leads, Tony
and Ruth, we see various similarities between them. The both of them are in tricky situations and
are desperate to escape, and both have a desire to be loved and
appreciated. When they meet, both are hesitant
in talking to each other, but after long conversations they begin to reveal to
each other why they are upset. Ruth has received
a marriage proposal from a man she has had a relationship with for some time,
and does not want to marry him. Tony on
the other hand has received the news that he has testicular cancer. Shortly after getting closer, they meet Don
and Edie, an elderly couple living in a flat near them. Both couples join together and have a party. After the party, Don reveals to Tony that
this is his and his wife’s last night, as he is terminally ill, and he
convinces Tony that life is too short and he should ask Ruth out.
What transpires during the monologue?
Plucking up the courage, and receiving a
few words of advice from Don, Tony has an intimate talk with Ruth. Telling her that she is the most beautiful
woman he has ever laid eyes on, and how he wants to fall in love with her.
Why did I choose this monologue?
When choosing a contemporary monologue, my
initial choice was Douglas’ monologue from Alan Ayckbourn’s ‘Man of the Moment’. Having previous experience with this
monologue and decent understanding of the character, I felt it would suit the
criteria, plus I would embody the character without the need to devise
something new for the character. However
I needed to experiment the performance abilities and expand my contemporary play
knowledge. Therefore Tony’s monologue
was recommended to me.
After my first read through I was
instantly fond of this piece. I found a
connection to the character, with his age, his social status, and above all
else his passion. This was a character I
could relate to.
The monologue explores:
-
Tony’s
passionate
– especially his feelings for Ruth.
-
Tony’s
social status – as Ruth is “out of his league” and he tries to break
that by expressing true love.
-
and Tony’s
tragedy
– with the background knowledge that he has testicular cancer, seeing Don and
Edie together, and Don telling him “life’s too short” he feels the need to
spend the rest of his life with Ruth to ensure she is happy with her life and
he enjoys his last days.
Themes
of the Play
Love
– deduced
from the passionate connections between Tony and Ruth, as well as Don and
Edie. As the moral of the story states
that people should follow their hearts and express their true feelings. Only then can they find true love.
This theme has a huge impact on the monologue
as Tony is fuelled by love and the desperate need to see if Ruth loves him.
Life
– the
tragedy behind this romantic comedy is the inevitable death of our leads. Both Tony and Don are diagnosed with life
destroying symptoms, and the pair of them take challenges in this play. Challenges that could backfire in everyday
life, but they pursue ignoring the backlashing only knowing “life is too short”
and they need to enjoy it while it lasts.
This theme has a minor impact on the
monologue, but I take it in mind because it foreshadows the life Tony and Ruth
will have in the future.
Dedication
& Trust – I deduced this theme based on the early relationship of
Tony and Ruth. In the beginning of the play
both characters have just met and by the end they fall in love, vowing to never
leave one another. Therefore the themes
of dedication and trust take a huge impact on the characters and their
motivations. Indicating to their untold
future and bringing the audience on their side.
Performance
Style and Inspirations
Physically – since
becoming very fond of the character and seeing a few similarities with the
character of Tony, I decided to keep my physicality as naturalistic as
possible. I felt that minimal movement could
emphasis the deeper meaning behind Tony’s words. Plus I feel the audience could be a good
representation of the character of Ruth and have the audience decide whether
she should love him or leave him. The
majority of my movements would be to show his desire to be with her by taking
slow steps forward, and gests towards her to exaggerate his true meaning.
Vocally –
similarly to my physical performance I aim to keep it as naturalistic as
possible. However to convey the true
passion behind his words, I imagined that the character of Ruth was attempting
to leave out of sheer awkwardness. This
would lead the character to push his words out further, showing true desire and
love within, not just my vocal, but my overall performance.
‘Man of the Moment’ Synopsis: http://manofthemoment.alanayckbourn.net/styled-10/index.html
‘Kiss Me Like You Mean It’ Summary: http://www.headgatetheatre.co.uk/pdf/kmlymi_synopsis_character_profiles.pdf
The Two Gentlemen of Verona - Auditions for Actors
Auditions for Actors –
The Two Gentlemen of Verona
Intro
‘The Two
Gentlemen of Verona’ was written by William Shakespeare between the years 1589 and
1593. The play tells the story of two
gentlemen whose friendships are put to the test when they meet the women of
their dreams. This is a comedy that puts
its characters in humorous situations and explores the power of love and
friendship.
The
character I will be performing as is:
Name: Launce
Age: Early
20s
Relationships: Proteus
(his master)
Crab
(his dog)
Likes: Crab
Entertaining
people/his master
Dislikes: Goodbyes
What
transpires during the monologue? The
monologue takes play just before, one of the two titled gentlemen, Proteus
departs for the Duke’s court in Milan (where he has been asked to go on behalf
of his father) and Launce is his witty servant and has to accompany him. The purpose of this monologue is to show two
sides of Launce’s personality. His
humorous side, as he entertains all the people around him. With his emotional side, as he says farewell
to his trusty companion, his poorly trained dog named Crab.
The
monologue explores:
-
Launce’s
passion for entertainment - as he performs to an audience without
his master present and in his spare time.
-
Launce’s
love for his dog, Crab – despite the fact that Crab is poorly
trained and makes little to no notice towards his master.
-
and His
commitment to his master – as he too is leaving everything behind to
accompany him to another country.
Themes
of the Play
Love – deduced
from relationships between the plays four leads; Proteus, Valentine, Julia, and
Silvia. In the beginning of the play,
Valentine is arranged to marry Silvia (the daughter of the Duke of Milan), and Proteus
is to marry Julia out of true love. Throughout
the play we see various comedic scenarios showing the male leads competitiveness
against one another to find a marriage and true love.
But the
theme of love transpires within the character of Launce, in this monologue, as
we see his strong relationship with his dog Crab. Knowing he is the servant to Proteus (one of
the leads who is the more ungentlemanly of the two) it isn’t hard to imagine
that he is constantly working to entertain his master. Therefore the only company he would have is
with his dog. This makes their farewell
all the more impacting, as Launce is losing his only friend.
Friendship – deduced
from the close bond that the two gentlemen share as close friends. Their friendship does spawn competitiveness to
see who can find true love the first.
But the overall power of friendship comes to its full might in the end
of the play. As Proteus makes an
incredibly disgraceful act, to which Valentine immediately forgives him.
The theme of
friendship can be found within Launce’s close bond/love for his dog Crab. As well as a possible friendship between
Launce and Proteus; while never fully seen the loyalty between servant and
master is clear.
Dedication –
deduced partially from our lead’s passion towards finding true love and staying
loyal to one another; but majorly from Launce’s dedication to his master and
his entertaining skills. Launce is a
very dedicated and loyal servant to Proteus so much so that he entertains him
at will, without objection, and does join him on a journey abroad. While it is his job to do so, Launce does his
job with little to no concern. It is
only when he says farewell to his dog Crab, where we see a little objection
within his eyes, suggesting that he does not want to leave his only friend
behind. Plus his dedication to his
entertaining skills, especially in this monologue, suggests that he is a
natural entertainer and can trigger a clown like state at will. Knowing full well that he is making a fool of
himself, he progresses without hesitation.
Upholding a passion and dedication to all those around him.
Why did
I choose this monologue?
When
choosing a Shakespearean monologue for one of my classical pieces I wanted to
choose something different and out of my comfort zone. One monologue I was keen to try was Ford’s
outburst in Act II Scene II of ‘The Merry Wives of Windsor’ (http://www.shakespeare-monologues.org/plays/11?g=3). I was fond of this monologue because of its
bizarre role within the rest of the play, plus it showed the character, of
Ford, going a little mad over a ridiculous situation. All performance elements I wanted to test
within my own performing abilities.
However this
character seemed to be too out of my comfort zone and had little to no
connections with my own character.
Therefore I was recommended Launce’s monologue. I instantly felt a connection with the
character and was invested to the bigger story surrounding the plot of the play
and his role.
Performance
Style and Inspirations
Physically – when
analysing this monologue I found a few similarities between the character of
Launce and the Commedia character of Harlequin.
Harlequin’s characteristic state shows a naïve and sensitive physical
structure:
This is how
I wanted to interpret Launce. To have
the appearance of a shy and naïve servant, but is subconsciously aware that he
is making a fool of himself. Plus I
would use exaggerated movements and gests (during his descriptions of saying
farewell to his family) to emphasis his clown like lifestyle and indicating
that this is his natural physicality.
Vocally – considering
the character’s status, physicality, and role within the play, I wanted my
vocal state to be near neutral. Neutral
in the sense that the character doesn’t have a sophisticated lifestyle, or
education. Although the character does
understand what he is talking about and understands his role as a servant and
where he is going. Therefore I will
inflict several emotional states within my vocal performance to enhance these thoughts
and feelings. These emotions list from:
-
Pride – when thinking
of his payment for joining his master on his journey to Milan.
-
Excitement
–
when thinking about the adventures he is going to have.
-
Disappointment – when his
dog, Crab, doesn’t seem to be upset at all when he says farewell.
-
Confusion – when he
makes a joke that doesn’t quite make sense in front of an audience, and needs
justifying.
-
and
Sadness
– when he says his final goodbye to Crab and the dog still does not respond.
Taking these
performance notes about my physical and vocal performing style choices, I
believe I can convey several layers of emotion and investment to a character
whom has a minor role in a bigger story.
‘Two Gentlemen of Verona’ Plot Summary: http://www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/twogentlemen/summary.html
Launce’s Monologue: http://www.shakespeare-monologues.org/plays/16?g=3
Harlequin Resource Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harlequin
Monday, 9 May 2016
The Seagull - Auditions for Actors
Auditions for Actors –
The Seagull
Intro
‘The Seagull’
was written by Anton Chekhov in 1895, and was first performed on stage at
Petersburg in 1896. ‘The Seagull’ takes
place at a Russian estate, and tells the stories of various characters that
live the lives of wealth, power and fame.
The play explores the struggles and misfortunes that come with having everything
you wanted, but not finding happiness.
The
character I will be performing as is:
Name: Konstantin
Gavrilovich Treplev
Age: 25
Relationships: Irina
Nikolayevna Arkadina (mother)
Boris
Alexeyevich Trigorin (mother’s lover)
Sorin
(uncle)
Yevgeny
Sergeyevich Dorn (doctor)
Nina
Mikhailovna Zarechnaya (admirer)
Masha
(admirer)
Likes: Writing
Dislikes: His
mother’s fame
Being
ignored.
What
transpires during the monologue? The
scene is moment of silence for a few of the lead characters, and a chance for
the audience to absorb more of the leads back stories; particularly Konstantin’s
history with his mother. Konstantin, and
his uncle Sorin, talk about their relationships with Irina. We establish that Sorin and Irina, as brother
and sister, get along rather well and know each other’s personalities. Whereas Konstantin and Irina, as mother and
son, do not get along.
Konstantin’s
key role in ‘The Seagull’ is he has written a unique play that he wishes to
bring to life. Sorin hosts his estate to
perform the play, and his mother Irina is performing in the play. However because he lives in the shadow of his
mother’s fame, he is constantly being told he needs to change various
details/writing styles, or to listen to the professionals, he becomes
frustrated and feels the need to escape this life.
The
monologue explores:
-
His admiration for his mother
-
His hatred for his mother’s fame
-
His distaste for the current state of
theatre
-
and His desire to be something unique.
Themes
of the Play
Love – Deduced from
the lack of “true” love between the lead characters. The mother and son relationship (between
Konstantin and Irina) is less than stellar.
The relationships between the lead and his two admirers (between
Konstantin, and Nina and Masha) are a mix of desire and uncertainty (as Nina
misleads Konstantin just to get closer to Irina and Boris, and Masha is
tormented by her uncertain feelings towards Konstantin). All enhancing the inevitable tragedy that the
play concludes on.
Lust – Deduced from
certain character motivations; shown particularly in our lead’s objectives. Konstantin desires to achieve a big name for
himself in the world of writing. Irina
wishes to achieve more and more out of her fame and fortune. Boris becomes enchanted by Nina’s beauty and
seduction. Nina, alternatively, misleads
Konstantin into thinking she loves him, when in truth, she desires to get
closer to Irina to become a famous actress and to steal the heart of
Boris. All conflicting and contrasting
to Konstantin himself.
Backfiring – The inevitable
tragedy that ends the play is Konstantin committing suicide. The play explores backfiring as a theme
demonstrating to the audience that words and actions can have a devastating effect. This is shown through Konstantin’s
progressive journey with more and more disappointing acts towards him, leading
him to a permanent end. Enhancing the
moral of: “think before you act”.
Connections
To both a
contemporary audience, and myself, there are various elements within the monologue
and the characterisation where a modern audience member, like myself, can
relate. Elements that I feel are the
more relatable list from:
-
The desire to be noticed
-
The desire to be accepted
-
and The desire to be appreciated.
These three
elements in particular are what I aim to reflect within my vocal and physical
performance of Konstantin. This is a character
I can relate to, and I feel a contemporary audience would feel sympathy for him
and embrace the tragedy when he falls to the brutal end.
Why did I
choose this monologue?
I have
previously performed this monologue to achieve my LAMDA (London Academy of
Music and Dramatic Arts) Silver Certificate, so I had few background experiences
with the speech. Although the texted
version I used was suited for GCSE performance level, whereas this version of
the monologue is written in classical Chekhov text. Therefore I chose this monologue piece, out
of familiarity, plus the opportunity to test my vocal performance adaptability
by performing in Chekhov’s original writing style.
Performance
Style
Physically – the
current state of Konstantin in this monologue shows deep frustration and
disapproval as he boast about his mother’s career and lack of commitment as a
mother. Therefore in my physical
performance I shall incorporate both emotions to allow the audience to see and empathise
with the character’s disappointed state, and foreshadow his future within the
play. How do I aim to show this?
Sitting;
having a posture where my eyes are locked onto the floor and slouching, when
sat down, I feel, almost exaggerates the character’s emotional state, but works
for this monologue piece.
Standing;
maintaining a upright posture to indicate a sophisticated and polite
upbringing, I will also exaggerate pacing to show emotional state. I will support the pacing with harsh foot stomps
and strong stature to further encourage the character’s desire to escape.
Plus I will
use gestures in select moments; cued by words such as “theatre”, “love” and “mother”,
mainly to show his disapproval and distaste for such words and subjects.
Vocally – similarly
to my physical performance, I aim to transcend to the audience that the character
is frustrated and disapproves of his current state of living, all transcended vocally.
Looking
particularly to the character’s origins and state of wellbeing, I know he has received
a decent education and is an established author aiming to devise new forms of
art. Therefore I want to incorporate
clear diction and articulation to show that the character knows what he is talking
about. Also including a sharp tone to
emphasis his frustration.
Plus with
select words such as “humanity”, “depicting”, “tritest”, “vulgarity”, “fatuous”
and “fatiguing” shows he has a strong range of vocabulary to further support
his understanding of the English language.
Also demonstrating to himself that he is capable of making himself seem
strong vocally and enhancing a theme of ‘Standing up for Yourself’.
Inspirations – when looking
for inspiration to perform as this character I looked to two characters, from
two different forms of literature, for support to get a better understanding of
how I can project such emotions physically and vocally.
My first
inspiration was the character of Rosalind Franklin from Anna Ziegler’s ‘Photograph
51’. This is a character with a completely
different origin story, but I see a connection between her, and Konstantin’s,
objectives. Both have a desire to be respected
for their work and not seen just for what they are. As everyone saw Rosalind Franklin as nothing
more than a woman, when in a matter of fact she was the scientist who made the
discovery of DNA imagery through ‘Photograph 51’. Throughout her story we see her desperate
desire to be heard amongst her colleagues and to receive credit for her work,
which was all underwhelmed due to her gender.
Inflicting both characters’ share the desire to be heard.
My second
inspiration was the character of Nick Dunne from Gillian Flynn’s ‘Gone Girl’. Now this is a character representing the
everyday man in a contemporary time period, being attacked by the press because
of an event he wasn’t involved in. The
story of ‘Gone Girl’ takes a minor exploration to the misfortunes and heavy
backlashes that come with being the centre of attention to thousands of people. This is something I can see a connection to
in Konstantin’s lifestyle. Konstantin’s
mother is hugely famous actress in ‘The Seagull’ and he has been raised and
lives in the shadow of her fame and fortune.
All things he doesn’t want. Similarly
to the lead of ‘Gone Girl’, as he himself is trapped with the worlds press
watching his every move. Inflicting both
characters’ share the desire to escape.
These are
elements and reflections that I aim to use for inspiration to further enhance
my performance to a contemporary audience and bring good intention to the
character of Konstantin.
‘The Seagull’ Plot Summary: http://www.sparknotes.com/drama/seagull/summary.html
‘Photograph 51’ Review: http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2015/sep/14/nicole-kidman-photograph-51-noel-coward-theatre-rosalind-franklin-review
‘Gone Girl’ Synopsis: http://www.shmoop.com/gone-girl/summary.html
Thursday, 5 May 2016
'The Man of Mode' - Vocal Programme
Vocal
Development Programme –
‘The Man
of Mode’ Production Week
|
|
Date
|
Wednesday 20th
April 2016
|
Exercise Used
|
-
Breath Control
-
Breath Resonation
-
Tongue Twisters
-
and Rubber
Chicken
|
Vocal Characteristics
|
Pre-Production:
-
Raspy
-
Crisp
-
Throat Resonated
Post-Production:
-
Articulate
-
Paced
|
Vocal Reflection
|
Pre-Production I found my natural vocal
state took over which I needed to rectify in order to enhance the vocal
characteristics of a well-educated rich young man. Focusing on my breath control, chest,
nasal, and head resonators I was able to warmup and prepare my vocal folds and
muscles to ensure articulate control and projected diction.
I personally could see a clear different
pre and post production and I feel I succeeded in changed my vocal
characteristic state to suit my character on stage.
|
Received Feedback
|
-
Good vocal
diction
-
Clear
articulation
-
and Good breath
control
|
Strengths
|
-
Pacing
-
Breath Control
|
Areas of Improvement
|
I feel the need to take more time,
pre-production, to truly analyse my vocal stage in order to gain a clear view
of development, for future reference.
|
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