For the Class project we had to choose all of our own aspects for the play "Ruined". I was in charge of theatrical space and parts of lighting.
Theatrical Space-
The theatrical space I chose was the University of California Santa Barbara's Garvin theatre because it has a small enough space for it to be intimate and close, yet it has the capacity to hold all the props and lights in the production. Its not that unique or ornate but I felt that the production didnt need anything extravegant. It was a play taking place in total poverty. One good thing about the space is the stage is deep and could easily fit the entire bar in there and have enough room to have a jungle around it.
Here is a picture of the Garvin Theatre:
Production Lighting-
For the lighting I was thinking of a reddish auburn for the inside of the bar. Everything saturated in a light auburn red, possibly coming from the old christmas lights around the bar. Its also significant of the atmosphere in the bar, which is full of anger, passion, and power. Red sets the mood for what the bar is, a whorehouse. Also, subconciously it signifies the unstable balance of war, when the soldiers from opposing side come in to drink and party there is great tension.
Although this is a bit strong it was close to what I was talking about:
For the outside of the bar and the outside scenes, I wanted to have a large sun, like the one from lion king in the back of the stage behind the vegetation and bar, which illuminates a yellow/orange sunny glow on the surrounding vegetation and bar. And at night it becomes the moon and illuminates a pale white light, even a pale purple light. The reason I chose this was because to me it captured an aspect of Africa that is relatable to people, the sun is bright..
Ah, Romeo and Juliet. Although some would disagree, I say it is the classic poster child of Shakespeare. When we think of Shakespeare we think "Oh Romeo, Romeo where for art thou Romeo", right? I recently saw a Romeo and Juliet production put on by Daytona State College. Although, it didnt stray too far from the image of what I thought it was going to be in my mind, it did keep me entertained. With the fight scenes, the parties, dialogue, and costumes it showed they told the story in a "traditional" and rigid form. There was no twists or creative ways of telling the story, but then again I wasnt expecting that. The costumes were elizebethan era clothing, consisting of tunics, cloaks, hats with feathers, ruffs, stockings and pantyhose, codpieces, corsets, doublets, breeches, everything you would expect to be in Romeo and Juliet. The thing is, is that it was expected. I would absolutely love to see a play on Romeo and Juliet done in a different light, same story, different way of telling it. Much like Jude Law's version of Hamlet, with the modern clothes and specific portrayal of the story, more dark in that case. If a school would do that, step out of the box and rigid templates and create their own version, I bet it would be fun and exciting. It would be well recieved I'm sure.
The set was true to the Elizabethan era image and consisted of a castle looking balcony. There were torches on the front of the castle and stairs on the side. Very predictable. Also their were bedroom scenes that called for a daybed and a chair. Please, dont think that I am "cutting down" the production, because thats not my objective. I am merely saying that it would be SO refreshing to see a new creative version.
The weapons used were the rapiers and daggers. The fight scenes were entertaining and had good foot work. I liked it when Romeo and Tybalt had the sword fight. I didnt realize it but actually a lot of people die throughout the play. Romeo has his share of kills, including himself and by proxy Juliet.
The acting was good, but the one that stood out to me the most was the actor who played Mercutio. He did a fantastic job in the role and portrayed him perfectly. He took the character and put his own style into it, you could just feel it, he owned the character, not the other way around. I had seen him in the other play, all in the timing, and liked him in that as well, but I really developed an appreciation for his style in this play. The thing I like most is his use of different facial expressions, different tones, and different personalities for both characters. Although, it may be a bit early to give him too much props, he has done a nice job so far. The one I was least impressed with and began to become annoyed with was the actress playing the role of Juliet's mother. It was her worn out boring facial expressions and poor use of body language that began to get to me, they were so out of place feeling. Imagine this: you are supposed to be portraying someone who is surprised or irritated and you use the same face for both emotions...the face is this: suck a lemon, cross your eyes, and open your mouth really wide as if taking a deep breath. Thats almost the look you got from her. And yes I am being sarcastic but you get the point. Also, her accent was out of place, a typical southern accent pushing southern drawl. Speaking old english without announciation and a southern accent is suicide! But maybe I'm coming down to hard, but probably not.
In conclusion, I did enjoy the production and as always I look forward to the next one. Until next time friends (Kershner) support local theatre!
All in the Timing Performance Analysis In All in the Timing, there are 5 one-act mini plays. They are: Sure thing, words, words, words, the universal language, the Philadelphia, and variations on the death of Trotsky: Leon Trotsky. The play I went to see was at the News Journal center in Daytona Beach, FL. During each scene change they had a large clock projected onto the stage and various songs talking about time, for instance one of the songs lyrics was "Time keeps on slipping, slipping, slipping, into the future." The chimps would come out and roll around during the changes as well. In the background of the stage there were giant gear wheels that would only spin during scene changes. Please note that the videos shown are NOT the Daytona version.
Sure Thing A man and a woman meet for the first time in a cafe, where they have an awkward meeting continually reset each time they say the wrong thing, until, finally, they connect. The conflict is man vs. himself, the man and woman are trying to get to know one another but cant help but say clumsy things. In the play they have the ring of a bell for every wrong thing said and then the man or woman says the sentence over again, but followed by a different response. At first, the man even struggles to sit down at her table. He must ask her over and over again as we the audience listen to her different responses. It is an entertaining and creative way to allow the characters to speak funny short lines of dialogue without it having to be elaborated upon. In the video clip provided the ding! sound is made by surrounding guests in the restaurant, but in the Daytona production the sound is made by a bell. In the center of the stage there is a clock that appears between scene changes. There is only a boy and a girl at the table and no one else, unlike in the video. The only props used are a table and two chairs, along with the book the girl is reading of course.
Words, Words, Words Three chimps are put into a lab under the watchful eye of a never-seen Dr. Rosenbaum to type on keyboards until they eventually produce Hamlet. The three all have different opinions about their situation. One of the chimps named Swift is the rebel and plans to get out of the cage and seek revenge against the scientists watching him. Milton is the go getter of the group, he wants to write Hamlet and be rewarded for it, the only problem is he doesn't know what Hamlet actually is. Kafka is seemingly the airhead, she pushed one letter, "k", for twenty lines, but eventually she is the one to start Hamlet. In the Daytona version they have only two desks (for Milton and Swift, Kafka doesnt have a desk, her typewriter is on the floor next to a pile of bananas) and a tire swing used in the scene. The chimps use the desks for writing and jumping on (only Milton jumps on the desk) and the tire swing is used only a couple of times, once when Milton jumps on it and the other when Swift pushes it out of the way to show his rebelious nature. Milton is rewarded for acting like a chimp with a cigarette that is lowered down to him on a line from the ceiling.
The Universal Language
When a girl with a speech impediment comes into a language tutoring building she is suprised to learn about the universal language of Unamunda. Taught by a professor who fluently speaks Unamunda and does so all throughout the play, she is at first reluctant, but quickly catches on and falls in love with the language. The language sounds like gibberish and kind of is. It is a combination of made up words and english words. For example, "excuse me" is "squigy" and "good" may be "gold". After the man teaches her some words, he asks for money, but then feels a sudden rush of guilt. The man is a con-artist who was swindling her for money, but she doesnt care. She tells him that what he was doing was taking her into a magical world with a whole new language, he sees the vision and agrees to partner with her and teach the language to everyone. The scene ends with a man coming into classroom asking about this new language.
The Philadelphia When nothing goes right for a man all day he finds out from a friend that he is in what is called a Philadelphia. A place where nothing goes the way you want it to and no one helps you. In order to get what he wants, the man has to ask for the opposite of what he wants. For example, he wants a budweiser beer, but has to ask for water, when they don't have water, he asks for something else, then something else, until he eventually gets the budweiser. The friend is in a great mood despite being fired from his job and dumped by his girlfriend, but later the roles are reversed when the friend is in a Philadelphia and the man is in great mood. The daytona production had the man looking like a suave business man, he had a bluetooth headset on and was wearing dressy casual clothes. The unhappy man was very funny in the way he busts onto the stage and begins complaining about his day. His sleave is ripped and has a claw rip on the backside of his shirt.
Variations on the Death of Trotsky: Leon Trotsky The play shows Trotsky dying in different ways. It takes place on the last day of Trotsky's life and shows eight variations to his life. He dies at the end of each scene. The funny part and cause of death is an climber's axe sticking out of his head. He does not know of the axe until his wife comes in with an encyclopedia from the future and reads to him about his death. He is killed by a Spanish communist named Ramon, who enters the stage playing a guitar and wearing a matadors outfit. After coming to grips with the fact that he is dead or dying he realizes he will never leave this room and ponders the nature of man and humanity. He somehow begins to realize all the future events he will not see and specifically names a few. The scene is set up with only a desk, a chair, and a large window placed behind his desk. The daytona version has the scene ending with Trotsky walking over to the window and looking outside and the stage darkens all arround him except for light coming throught the window, then all goes dark.
Historical reenactment is a type of roleplay in which participants attempt to recreate some historical event or period. This may be a particular battle, such as the reenactment of Gettysburg, or as broad as an entire period.
Reenactments have a long history. The Romans staged recreations of famous battles within their amphitheaters as a form of public spectacle. In the Middle Ages tournaments often reenacted historical themes from Ancient Rome or elsewhere.
Two major examples of reenactments are combat demonstrations and battle reenactments.
Combat Demonstrations
Combat demonstrations are mock battles put on by reenacting organizations and/or private parties primarily to show the public what combat in the period might have been like. Combat demonstrations are usually not based on actual battles, they generally just consist of demonstrations of basic tactics and maneuvering techniques.
Here is an example of combat demonstration, featuring Swedish military takedown techniques:
Scripted battles are reenactment in the strictest sense; the battles are planned out beforehand so that the companies and regiments make the same actions that the were taken in the original battles. They are often fought at or near the original battle ground or at a place very similar to the original. These demonstrations vary widely in size from a few hundred fighters to several thousand, as do the arena's used (getting the right balance can often make or break the spectacle for the public).
An example of battle reenactment, Pickett's Charge reenactment:
The term living history describes attempts to bring history to life for the general public. Historical reenactment includes a continuum from well researched attempts to recreate a known historical event for educational purposes. Participants incorporate historical tools, activities and dress into an interactive presentation that seeks to give observers a sense of stepping back in time. Although it does not necessarily seek to reenact a specific event in history, living history is similar to, and sometimes incorporates, historical reenactment. It is used by museums, schools, and historic sites to educate visitors.
This a video about the Shoal Creek living history museum in Alabama. All the participants play the part of confederate soldiers or citizens of the South and never break away from the persona:
Works Cited:
Felner, Mira and Claudia Orenstein. The World of Theatre: Tradition and Innovation. New York: Pearson, 2006. Print.
Mime is considered one of the earliest forms of expression. Before there was spoken language, silent gestures (mime) was used. In ancient Greece, mime was turned into a form of entertainment. The mimes were known as ethologues and would often have a moral to teach the audience.
The theater of Dionysus in Athens was where mime in Greece really exploded. Masked actors performed outdoors, in daylight, before audiences of 10,000 or more at festivals in honor of Dionysus, the god of theater. However, when the Romans conquered Greece, they brought the Greek art of mime back to Italy and set about making it their own. Mime enjoyed much success and growth under Emperor Augustus of Rome.
After the fall of the Roman empire, the Christian church showed great opposition to the bawdy, and often indecent associations of Mime, and excommunicated all performers, and closed down all the theaters. Despite this, the basic form of Mime survived. As the Church began to relax its attitude, mystery and morality plays began to appear with religious themes, many performed in mime.
Comedia Dell Arte'
Through out the middle ages mime continued to be a strong form of entertainment in Italy, but became known as Comedia Dell Arte'. It originated in the streets of the Italian market in the 1500's. The performers wore masks to draw attention to themselves. These characters became known as Zanni. They would commonly make fun of royalty, hiding behind their masks. The more of a scene they made, the more popular they would become. They left Italy and moved to different parts of Europe, its not like language was barrier.
Charlie Chaplin is a good example of Comedia Dell Arte':
Modern Mime
After the second world war, Marcel Marceau come onto the scene. He created the character 'Bip', the classic mime with the face paint, top hat with the flower coming out of the top and the short jacket. Influenced by the silent film stars like Chaplin, and Keaton, Marceau was the designer of a new style and tradition, the true creator and master of modern mime as we know it today.
There are two types of mime, Literal and Abstract or a combination of both. Literal mime is used for comedy and story theater. Literal mime usually tells a story with a conflict through the use of a main character. The actions and visual design clearly tell the viewers the story which is usually humorous. Abstract mime is used to generate feelings, thoughts and images from a serious topic or issue. Normally there is no plot or central character. It is considered a more intuitive experience or image rather than literal actions.
Here is an example of literal mime:
Works Cited:
Felner, Mira and Claudia Orenstein. The World of Theatre: Tradition and Innovation. New York: Pearson Books, 2006. Print.
The Origins and Development of the Art of Mime by Annette Lust. Service, 01 January. 2003. Web. 03 October. 2009. < http://www.mime.info/history-lust.html>
