Rehearsal Process Post 05 - Shakespeare

Classical Theatre Performance Assignment –

‘Much Ado About Nothing’

Tuesday 13th – Friday 16th October 2015

     With each week passing we continued the rehearsal process and have drawn to a holt, as we had to have time to focus on our individual characters, performing in ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ scenes.  I took this week to an advantage to create my character study plan, establish the language of my character, and their progression within the plot of ‘Much Ado’.  Here is what I have established so far…  Official Character Profile to be uploaded soon. 

Character Study Plan

What did I already know about Don Pedro?

     I knew from past experiences of the play that Don Pedro was the Prince of Arragon.  He was a well-dressed, well-spoken, and a down-to-Earth gentleman.

What are Don Pedro’s relationships in ‘Much Ado’?

-          Don John is his bastard (half) brother. 

-          Claudio and Benedick are his right hand men, and were loyal companions in the war (set before the play’s beginning). 

-          Leonato is his long time good friend, and he supports his family of Hero (Leonato’s daughter) and Beatrice Leonato’s niece).

Which interpretations inspired/helped my portrayal of the character?

     Watching other interpretations of the play draw a lot of inspiration for me when it came to the understanding of the play and how to enhance the comedic value of the classic text.  But two interpretations of the characters stood out to me the most.  The first interpretation was Kenneth Branagh’s motion picture interpretation of the play, starring Denzel Washington as Don Pedro.  The second interpretation was the stage production of ‘Much Ado’ starring David Tennant and Catherine Tate as the leads, and stared Adam James as Don Pedro.  Here is my comparison of the interpretations and which one I took the most inspiration from:

Denzel Washington – I found this depiction to be extremely traditional, in Elizabethan styled acting.  His depiction of the character was rich and charming, both physically and vocally.  I admired his wardrobe as well; it was extremely apparent that this character was indeed a man of royal background and had all good intentions with life.

Adam James – On the other hand, I personally liked James’ depiction better.  Vastly because he seemed more realistic.  While this production’s interpretation was set in the 1980s and character’s responses to plot elements became more realistic from a modern audiences perspective, I got more of a sense of a character within his performance.  While Washington’s performance was more traditional, James’ performance gave a believable character to the play.  Plus he made it literal that he was down-to-Earth and enjoyed time with his friends and wasn’t always an up-tight Prince. 

 

     Adam James is the performer that I took the most inspiration from and wanted to make homage within my own performance.

Character Language

     Analysing Don Pedro’s lines within the text, I did find a pattern similar to my repetition of the fact that he is a down-to-Earth sort of man.  Within the text I noticed several key lines in my scene which read, and translate to:

·         “You have it full, Benedick” – “Ah, he got you back, Benedick!”

·         “I dare swear he is no hypocrite,” – “I think he’s actually serious,”

·         “I charge thee on thy allegiance.” – “Your loyalty to me requires you to tell me what you’ve been talking about.” – All taken from Act 1 Scene 1; modernised Shakespearean text translated on No Fear Shakespeare website http://nfs.sparknotes.com/muchado/.

     While at first glance and with a basic understanding (that his a Prince and close friends with the powerful Leonato) many would assume that Don Pedro is nothing more than a father/authority figure to Claudio and Benedick.  But from what I’ve learnt about the character and what I’ve devised, after observing other performers interpreting the character, I strongly believe these comments to be nothing more than sarcasm.  It inflicts nothing more than the fact that Don Pedro likes a good laugh and enjoys spending his time with his closest friends. 

     I particularly admire the line “I dare swear he is no hypocrite”, translated to modern English (“I think he’s actually serious,”) gives me the impression that he’s whispering to Claudio as if to remind him of an old joke between them.  All increasing the meaning behind the comments and adding layers to the characters.

     But how do I intend to deliver these lines?  In the previous week we looked to language techniques that could support our performances.  The two techniques that supported me the most were; Iambic Pentameter and 11-Beat Words:

Iambic Pentameter – This technique supported my deliver and clarity of the lines.  By breaking apart the text, and highlighting key words, this would support breath control and pacing of the text.  Plus it helped me put emphasis on the key words making the speech all the more intriguing, for the upcoming performance.  

11-Beat Words – This technique helped me more with learning lines than the actual performance.  Once again, by breaking apart the text and adding a rhythmic pattern to my deliver gave me support to speech up the line learning process.  All paid off exceptionally for our current rehearsal process, and will hopefully uphold for the main performance.

Character Progression

     A final point worth noting for my character study plan is answering the following questions:

What is Don Pedro’s role in this play? – Don Pedro, and his men, are the guests of Leonato at his house and attend a royal celebration as the war is over/won.  Don Pedro’s role progresses to being a proud supportive father figure to Claudio, as he is engaged to Leonato’s daughter Hero and the celebration celebrate another joyful event, their wedding.  While the plot does cover elements such as Don John attempting to end Claudio and Hero’s marriage and everyone teasing Benedick and Beatrice to fall in love, Don Pedro uphold the role of a proud, loving, likable, and fun father/authority/friendly figure to the cast.

Where does he end up in this play? – ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ ends with a traditional Shakespearean comedy vibe, everyone lives happily ever after and all is well.  Don Pedro’s arch ends in no different manner.  Don Pedro friends are happily married and in love with their partners.  His bastard (half) brother Don John is arrested for criminal actions.  The war is won.  Seeing his friends happy is enough to make him equally happy and joyful.

     All the previously mentioned plans for a character profile are studies into the character from the original text.  In my official character profile I will based all the questions and character points around our depiction of ‘Much Ado About Nothing’.  Widening the views and interpretations of the character and story.  My character profile will be uploaded soon.