Pomona Week Eight

Pomona Week Eight

Development



This week we’ve been doing more fluid runs of both acts one and two, which have really helped me understanding and practising the transitions between scenes as a lot of the choreography on the blocks confused me before.



I also did my first run in costume this week, which I found very helpful. Wearing the character’s clothes always makes me feel more connected to them and to the play, and seeing everyone else in their costumes made me feel more immersed in the world of the play.





Character Work



I feel like I have finally made a break through with my characterisation this week, and settled on my version of Fay.



The interpretation I settled on was actually really similar to how I first read and saw her, despite all the different ways I’ve tried her since then. My Fay is very closed off and defensive, but her main defence is acting bored and annoyed, like she’s seen everything before and isn’t impressed. This comes across most in her first scene with Ollie.



I’m the last person in the group to have this break through, but I’m actually quite glad my decision came later. Not settling too soon gave me time to explore different aspects of the character through different mannerisms and voices. Doing all the different personalities helped me really dig deeper into the character – they were all valid ideas and things Fay could still have inside herself, just as different hidden sides to her.





Ensemble Work



As I’m still a bit unsure about some of the blocking for when I’m ensemble/Cthulhu in the alternate casts performances, I made a chronological list of everything I have to do, which I will put somewhere backstage to refer to if I need to. I think this will be really helpful for both me and Emily (who is the ensemble member/Cthulhu in my cast).

1.      Enter from upstage left corner on a diagonal, wearing mask, and lead Fay from her box to the phone box. Exit.

2.      Enter again at the end of the phone box scene and take the phone from Fay on her line ‘What do you want?’ and hang up for her. Close curtains.

3.      Lead Fay to the block Gale was previously sitting on and exit.

4.      Enter downstage on a diagonal and slowly approach Gale, so the other Cthulhu and I are either side of her. Take a step in after a few moments. Turn and stare at her when she steps forward, then exit and open curtains.

5.      Open curtains. Turn the TV on backstage, press play on the white noise DVD and carry the TV to the upstage left block towards the end of Moe and Charlie’s fight scene.

6.      Draw curtains curtains in front of Moe and Charlie.

7.      Carry the TV off again at the end of the Fay and Ollie’s scene and open curtains.

8.      Enter without mask on Charlie’s line ‘people push past you’ and begin doing the four corners exercise. Perform the shopping centre scene as an ensemble member. Exit at the end of shopping centre scene and close curtains.

9.      Enter on Keaton’s line ‘Do you know what happens to the girls you give them?’ and stand either side of Gale. When Keaton says ‘they tie them down’ grab Gale’s arm and slowly lower her to the floor. Hold her down until the end of the scene, then follow Keaton out of the door single file.

10.  Walk on when Charlie says ‘A person in a leather jacket’ wearing a leather jacket and smoke. Exit.

Goals



My goal now is to just practise a bit more with props, as I will be holding a laptop for several of my scenes and I need to work out how and when I pick it up and make sure I can always keep track of it. Also, I definitely need to rehearse quickly putting on the gag and the bag on my head in time before the next scene.