Ways of Seeing 7 October 2014

06/10/14
Ways of Seeing:
Running over and over the same physical section is starting to
become tedious and I think we need to move on however
Gavin came down to give us some directors notes on how to
improve the piece. Overall he liked the concept but feels we
need to focus more on the shadow side now because it's clear
that the physical section has had more work and we need to
make that connection between the two sections in the piece.
We ran over and smoothed
some steps out of the
physical section but we are
over complicating it now
and there is so much more
we need to do! We started
on the shadow puppetry
after lunch while other people went o! to lm interviews but
we're o! for a long time but for me it was a better space to
work in without the distraction. I got some good footage for
the promotional video now which I'm excited about putting
all together. We started to think about the links and the
transitions and how to make a smooth Segway from one
characters storyline to another. We created a routine with the
little girl and the dog who then spins o! stage for the teenage
version to roll on where we rst see her boyfriend. He
proposes to her and the next move is to get into building the
car which we need everyone for. I felt that I was a great help
with this today and coming up with great ideas and having a
very demanding directorial role. I think we have got a lot
done with the shadow puppetry and if we settle down
tomorrow we will be able to get the other two links into the
adult and old versions and then that's the end of the shadow. I
like how Gavin said he thought the shadow was a
1
DON'T
LOOK BACK
My Strengths
Leadership
I felt this showed this week after
I was elected to be director for
the shadow theatre, I have a
vision and I know what to do to
get to it and I feel the rest of the
company respect me enough to be
boys and go with it. I felt I was
demanding this week but I'm that
person the company needed this
week.
Creative
With the shadow I brought ideas to
the table which we tried and have
kept I put my research into practice
with Frantic Assembly with love song
and the idea of old and the new. I felt
I actively contributed ideas into the
pot which have beneted the
company.
Research
During this week I have applied the
research of the physical theatre
companies like Frantic Assembly and
trial and tested their work in our piece.
I feel it has affected our piece and we
have changed and expanded their
initial ideas into our own and moulded
it into inspiration for the piece.
Ways of Seeing 7 October 2014
introduction to the physical section.
At this moment in time I do feel our physical section is
crisper and better because A. It's not as hard a shadow and B.
We have spend more time on it. We need to look at the
storylines and routines for shadow and after this make the
movements more crisp and shaping it up. We need to refer
back to our research of attraction and the shadowland clip so
that we can create the church and car again. It's nally
coming together more and now 7"9 minutes doesn't seem that
long, we just need to all work collectively as a company and
get the most done we can in a day.
2
My Weaknesses
Professionalism
With the whole technician
incident that happened this week
I do understand how I came
across and if they knew me that
might not have taken it personal
but I still should remain
professional and know how I'm
coming off and work with instead
of against the other members of
my team.
Attitude
Going o! what happened with
The technicians I feel like I
could improve my attitude some
what, even though throughout
this process I have been positive
I can get frustrated with myself,
the company and the work but I
cannot let it a!ect the room or
the piece.
Safety
I need to keep myself safe and
healthy as well as make sure
when we are doing lifts I give
this support to others so I can
prevent damages. I did injure
myself badly this week and I
have learnt from this and want
to prevent this from happening
again.
GAVINS DIRECTORS NOTES
!
Lovely ideas but the feel like different
idea, physical section works nicely but it
doesn't match with the shadow
!
Think about putting music to the shadow
!
Connect the shadows up more and how they
come on and off the screen
!
Amber ending in curling image on the screen
and then snapping up on Levi in front of the
screen
!
Stringing the ideas of shadow together to create
a story.
!
Enjoyed the physical section but tighten it
up
!
Commitment inside the physical
section liked, but needs more and
develop it as a company.
Ways of Seeing 7 October 2014
07/10/14
Ways of Seeing:
Focusing on shadow today we started to draw the links into the transitions between each stage in
these characters life and how we make a smooth Segway from each one. We have nished Harriet and
Ambers routine but we had to teach Amber it so that took up our time but she wasn't like the boys
and she did try hard to get it. We have completed Daniella and erols section and we need a routine for
inside the car which we got round to re"creating today and just to tie in with the elements because I
said today that we are loosing this aspect and getting caught in the story and images rather than
creating the allusion of portraying these elements in the relationship. There needs to be more passion
in the teenagers that they can't keep their hands o! each other. We also built the church today and
managed to work out the transition from Daniella to me in the car and then make the church to go in
and come out with charley.
We managed to get into the auditorium nally and took this precise opportunity to work on the
shadow however problem after problem from the techies as there was loads of random stu! in our
space where we needed distance for that shadow work. I ask them to move it 'can't be done' should be
there catch phrase then they said it won't make a di!erence if the light is further back! We have been
working on shadow theatre for two weeks we know it will make a di!erence. So in this annoyance a
few things got moved but in the process and my frustration a massive desk fell on me injuring and
cutting me. If they did their job in the rst place A. I wouldn't have hurt myself B. It wouldn't cut into
our working time C. They shouldn't be so stupid and try what we have asked to at least prove us
wrong but they knew I was right. After this very time consuming predicament, we nally got working
which helped creating the church and car at a distance because we found it a lot di!erent with the
bigger sheet and space to create the images but also it was better because we got all of our bodies in.
It was benecial and we managed to get an idea for the adults to go into the old people. Having the
rst and last dance and as the adults move away the old people come in and nally fade to the
background and die leaving the nal image to go into the physical dance section. We just need to work
on little routines, polishing it up and making it look pretty with getting in and out as e#ciently and
a!ectively as we can. I think we have a structure so we know what needs xing but we have our story.
We rehearsed the physical section today as well as starting to learn Alex and Daniella's movements for
the ash mob to advertise. We have a structure where we want to take the physical section, I want
some oor work then the sequence we have learnt, lifts and the nal golden section of ripping clothes
of Levi and the end of the piece. I think we are in a good position to tech the show because I don't
think our lights will be very complex but we will need to close the stage in more as well as the music
accompaniment will need to be present and ll the space. I'm excited about what we have now and I
feel today on and o! we were working as a company I think we have been more productive today and
after talking to Denise as a company they elected me to me director of the shadow section and Levi
physical. I'm pleased and proud the company unanimously chose be to be the director because after
today's antics I do feel I'm a great leader and am blunt enough to get stu! done! I feel we are on a
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Ways of Seeing 7 October 2014
good path at the moment and think tomorrow and Thursday are
vital for us to polish and complete our piece to performance
standard.
08/10/14
Ways of Seeing:
Finishing o! the physical section was what we focused on today we
are so close to nishing it because we now have a oor section and
adding on Alex and Daniella's devised sequence followed by a lift
section them the ripping of clothes on Levi we are done. I learnt the
routine but I feel that it's quite repetitive and it feels like it's not
very long and too quick but in time with the music and time wise it's
not, I just feel rushed. I feel we are so very close to the end then we
just need to polish it up. We have a structure and idea of knowing
where we want to get and do but it's just the transitions that are
taking ages and we are still talking about doing it rather than just
going for it and Lewis is a major culprit of this, Alex and Erol are act
now people which I prefer. After learning this section we trail and
tested some lifts and paired up with this so we are going to go into a
massive lift with just Levi and we need to work with this and make
sure we are working as a company focused, professional and safe.
We had a meeting with the technical team about yesterday's incident
of what happened and they didn't like how they were spoken to
personally I know it was more about be than anyone because some
people are too polite to demand what they want, or more
importantly need. I had everyone best interests at heart and it was
for the work which the technicians done understand. I personally
apologised to them because I was stressed and frustrated with the
4
Company Strengths
Producing Work
We nally produced the work! All
the companies congratulated us and
I am very proud of the work that
we created as a company together
and we nally got through it in one
piece.
Having Fun
It was so lovely this week so have a
laugh and joke with the company
and connect, it's so di!erent with
just 11 of us but playing games and
doings the lifts and smiling and
laughing really lifted the
atmosphere in the tense room
about the performance being on
Friday.
Commitment
This week Gavin came in and told
us he liked our commitment and I
feel this has improved and stayed as
a strength this week. I feel that we
are putting our everything into the
work and I feel we are working
together more now to get the piece
out. We are really trying and
committing to the company and
the work.
Ways of Seeing 7 October 2014
company and I did take that out on them slightly only because the
shit that wasn't there really shouldn't have been. What's the point of
the production meeting so say what we want if they are not going to
successfully communicate or respond to what we need e#ciently and
on time. Alan said there is miscommunication but saying this will
change is just another thing said and mothering done about it. We
should have had supervision in the space because we are all in training
and we need that authorities gure in the space to assist us in how we
go about things because obviously this is where it went wrong
yesterday. Saying you can move it ending in me getting hurt was not
how I wanted to end the day and for them to worry about the
equipment rather than if I broke my leg is not that nice and Alan
calling us all arrogant was NOT a comment I took lightly, we know
what we want and we try to get it. I do feel if they just didn't argue
and sorted it we wouldn't be in this mess, I am aware we all need to
work together to get a show out but I felt I was the only one who was
actually getting what we needed and speaking the mind of everyone
else. I don't want to look stupid on stage and I'm sure no one else
does, we have decided to out it all behind us and I just hope we can
work professionally now but I feel they might still hold a grudge
because we are teenagers and we are NOT in the industry so we are
not going to treat it like it and I am no longer going to feel
comfortable putting my voice in the room to demand what we need.
Carleigh said herself you need to command not ask.
09/10/14
Ways of Seeing TECH
As diverse as our company are we managed to come to conclusions
about the tech, the colours we knew before hand but Carleigh said to
think ahead each time. I felt like we didn't need as much guidance
from a director in the tech like the other day of rehearsals. It was
annoying when we elected Alex as the spokes person but because she
was by the techies when we spoke to her we had to shout so we might
as well talk to the techies. After a while di!erent people fancied
themselves as a lighting director so a lot of people were up by the
techies. I was using terms that the actors don't know but relate to the
techies terms about dim fade over 20 and phrases like this which
other colleagues didn't understand. I felt that we did agree on a lot
ore during this tech than what we normally agree on, we all have a
vision but sometimes like Carleigh said we need to bite our lips and
just test it. I feel that it was frustrating one person telling the tech
team their vision and then the rest not agreeing or consulting us like
5
Company Weaknesses
Frustration
There has been a lot of strain on
the company this week because
some people care and others don't
and some want this process and
vice versa. We all want to have a
impressive piece that makes us look
good but with all this stress ying
around its been hard to work
together this week.
Time Management
As a company this has been a major
weakness throughout the weeks
and I felt like we have spent more
time talking than doing and now we
are doing there is little time left to
x things and polish them.
Marketing
Going back to time management
we spent a morning learning a
routine for a ash mob which took
ages for us to do to market the
piece and generate an audience. I
created a video to promote us as a
company and the process but we
needed to do more.
Ways of Seeing 7 October 2014
Sam did. I didn't feel we all needed to agree but enough of us having an issue helped. The electing
someone to be the spokes person didn't work, but I love the images we have made and the colours
relating back to the elements now so we are relating back to the stimulus.
I feel that we worked alright as a company as we can and possible for the diverse opinions we have to
cover. I think the physical section looks good but there is a lot of red in it but we have added more
purple in and some textures and the timings. I think the overall tech of the piece went well and I can't
wait to rehearse and run the show fully.
Ways of Seeing:
We rehearsed the physical section and nished o! the routine up till the end image after where we got
up to this morning and after teching we knew the places we wanted to tweak. We did the lift with Levi
but instead of not talking about it and trying it we spoke again so this needs to be improved but Lewis
is the biggest culprit of this. We continued and trailed with the music as well and it tted in and we
tested ideas for the screaming out because
we want to add noise but haven't in our
piece so far. We ran through this but like I
mentioned to Alex we are visible for this
section we we can't talk through it unlike
the shadow where we can cheat it. We did a
run of shadow theatre for my benet
because I asked as we never get a ran
because we start stop. After we ran this for
three minutes with the music we started nit
picking the pieces that don't need to be
there. We also went through to say what
needed to be xed and Harriet said I should be the person do to this but as charley was leaving I had
to be in it but after this Harriet started taking over and after what has been I just thought I'm not
going to argue and just follow even if I saw something and didn't agree. After this we ran the whole
shadow section with the music and there are now certain counts we come in on so its timed better.
We need a run and try with the lights however I feel overall we worked well as a company today, it's
irritating when everyone can't stay behind and do lates as promised but we can't help that and we have
done better than I thought we would have.
10/10/14
Dress rehearsal
Technically the rst showing of our piece to a live audience was nerve raking and exciting a lot went
wrong for me in terms of the physical section but I felt the shadow went really well and quite smooth.
I'm not sure what the really over exaggerating movements were with Daniella and Harriet stroking
the dog. Some of the timing went wrong but it was also with lighting and the blackouts. The moment
which we change waking into Levi not everyone did and then Charley was in my way for the next
dance sequence so I started late and I was condent from then so I wasn't going fall out and then after
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Ways of Seeing 7 October 2014
the lift my top went up but I didn't move it. There was work to do on the physical section but I
thought it looked not as neat but because of some of the jolting moments it didn't need to be
completely perfect as well with the shadow backing us up.
Groups Ways of Seeing:
Carleigh: this group really told a story, it was clear and fresh, loved the urban vibes. Thought the
comical coughing moments were great. Use of breathe and vocals were great and I felt like used words
but they didn't because the storyline was so clear and the noises were so crisp. The hoodies were great
and the physical clarity on the train was great as well.
Dancers: I was disappointed I must say about their performance it's not as good as the years before, I
liked their bird I thought that looked a!ective. Meg was the only dancer I noticed that when she
looked up saw something as you could tell she had done acting before. I thought their routine was
good and they obviously used some dancers strengths with leg holding. I thought Jack stood out to me
with his sassy ness and attitude, the guy with big hair as well was great
physically but he had to push someone out the way and that a!ected a
lot of people and ruined the performance for me.
Gavin/ Laura: some bits were passive and I don't think that there was
much of a storyline as other pieces, I liked the changing sequences that
everyone did and the commitment from the actors was great. Tabitha
stood out to me as Aleea. I found the White feather quite literal but I
did like the way they didn't have to show so much rage and movement
to engage you in a piece but I would have liked to have been more
dynamic.
Claire: loved Claire's piece I thought it had a clear storyline and it
engaged me throughout, the tribal theme was very primal and I loved
the a!ect it gave. The actors were sweating by The end of their performances which showed their
commitment as well, I thought it was very risky and brave to run at the audience screaming as well as
David running into the audience. Loved the passion, vibe and energy; although opposite to Gavs could
had showed more pace and slower dynamics, which in turn would have made the fast sections look
faster.
Show 2
The best show we did of ways of Seeing, the shadows were timed and delivered clearly, I thought the
transitions had energy and elegance; the audience interacted and connected with the storyline. The
physical was a lot better and we sorted out the moments that needed tweaking, When it came to the
performance I went full out with commitment as well because that was something along with
condence I lost last time. I believe that I brought facial expression and more character to the
performance, I felt like I felt the part and brought life to the routine and as a company I felt that as a
whole the commitment and passion was evident. The ripping of Levi's top went so wrong and some
people didn't get a piece of the top so we needed to work this.
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Ways of Seeing 7 October 2014
Show 3
This didn't go as well as the second but not as bad as the rst, the shadow timing was a little o! and
the lighting cues again weren't right and Levi's light went on for ages so the audience thought that the
show has nished. They connected and like the shadow work and ambers dog kept getting better and
better and I feel she has got on really well with the company and the commitment in the performance
was impressive. The physical section was alright but not as committed as the last one and I did a few
legs wrong but it was the last show and even though I did it wrong the commitment of the facial
expression together with the body didn't make it look as bad. The ripping of the top even though we
tried to x it didn't work but I felt that it went as well as I could have with all the commotion. I am
really pleased with what we achieved as a company Independently working to produce a piece.
Charleigh said it was very risky and a challenge to do shadow and we pulled it o!, the other companies
were impressive and liked it and I hope we inspired them.
8
Action Plan:
- Manage time better
- safety first
-chill
- keep professionalism at all
times
- work as a company for
next process
Ways of Seeing 7 October 2014
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