Having sent the actors away to work on their character breakdowns I thought it were wise that we met up for a rehearsal.
To enable the actors to apply their feelings to the script I made them walk around the space envisioning the character's world; their past, present and future. I wanted them to really become the character and for them to think about this it then made the character their own.
After this we then came back together and discussed individually their character breakdowns.
Hedda: Ellie decided that Hedda was a fairly jealous character as well as nosey. For this to work she had to really commit to the character as she was fairly reserved during rehearsal to open up about her past.
Mrs Elvstead: Chess on the other hand felt that the character of Mrs Elvstead was being bullied and she was not in control. Later Chess revealed that she had been bullied at a previous work place and felt victimised.
Eventually both of the actors came out of their shells and worked on characterisation along side the script.
After this I told the actors to re-do the exercise of answering each others line with the same line that had just been spoken. I believe it really helped the actors not only learn their lines but it made the conversation more natural as they really had to think about what they were answering and their response.
As the play is set in Oslo I did not want the actors to try a Norwegian accent so I set the scene in 1890's Britain. To get the typically British tone in their voice I asked them to read their lines through in a common accent. This was to balance the correct accent I did not want the girls to be melodramatic however I did not want them to speak their lines in their normal register.
Sunday, 24 February 2013
Monday, 11 February 2013
Rehearsals Within Class Time
Today we carried out an exercise in class which got my actors working together to make the scene appear more naturalistic. My actors were labelled A and B and B had to repeat all of A's line then follow this with their response to the previous line. This continued until we had reached the final line of the scene.
From a directors perspective it highlighted the two different emotions which appear within the scene. At first the conversation appears fairly light-hearted with each character making small talk. However, as the scene develops Hedda becomes a lot more interfering and asks very personal questions in relation to Mrs Elvstead's personal life. At this point the awkward small talk vanishes and the questions begin to flow more naturally as Hedda knows what she wants.
After this exercise we developed further and read through the script with no emotion at all. We all noticed that when doing this it created a hidden awkward sub text. As Hedda and Mrs Elvstead are only acquaintances it seems strange as to why these two people would be upholding such a long conversation. As Hedda wants to find out information from Mrs Elvstead this makes the conversation more forced and it carries on for much longer than it should.
This gave me the idea that we could really play on the awkward silences between lines and even have the characters doing other things than just concentrating on the conversation alone.
The Theatre Whisperer was the next exercise and I found this difficult as a director to control. As my actors had only recently received their final script it was tricky to get into the characters minds and say the lines that they would normally say. The actors job was to stay focussed and respond to what the theatre whisperer would tell them. The whisperer would have their script and tell them to do things in keeping with their characters. It was a good way of getting to see how others responded to instruction and gave my actors ideas as to how they could physicalize their character.
The best exercise of the day was the proximity test. In the first exercise the scene was spoken with the actors talking face to face with no other movement. It certainly showed that we needed movement, no necessarily a lot but we wanted to not make the scene just a typical boring conversation.
The next exercise was back to back where the actors faced away from one another. It was difficult for the actors as there were many other groups in the room. However, as we will be performing in the university theatre it was important that we did this exercise to work on clarity, pitch and timing. I also liked this symbolic staging as at one point in our scene Hedda cannot look at Mrs Elvstead in the eye as Mrs Elvstead is suspicious and Hedda is the guilty party. During this part of the scene I want to stage it so that Hedda is behind Mrs Elvstead unable to settle and cannot sit near her or even look at her for a long period of time.
Walking around the space made it appear more of a confrontation rather than a light hearted chat which the scene initially is.
It is definitely important to understand the proximity on stage as it can change the whole meaning of the scene.
Initially I felt that my actors were hesitant to the idea of having a director but after doing this exercise I believe that they feel that having an extra pair of eyes looking in on the scene it will help them with the smaller things, such as proxemics and voice.
With this in mind I sent my actors away to work on character breakdowns so that we could begin to rehearse during the next meet up.
From a directors perspective it highlighted the two different emotions which appear within the scene. At first the conversation appears fairly light-hearted with each character making small talk. However, as the scene develops Hedda becomes a lot more interfering and asks very personal questions in relation to Mrs Elvstead's personal life. At this point the awkward small talk vanishes and the questions begin to flow more naturally as Hedda knows what she wants.
After this exercise we developed further and read through the script with no emotion at all. We all noticed that when doing this it created a hidden awkward sub text. As Hedda and Mrs Elvstead are only acquaintances it seems strange as to why these two people would be upholding such a long conversation. As Hedda wants to find out information from Mrs Elvstead this makes the conversation more forced and it carries on for much longer than it should.
This gave me the idea that we could really play on the awkward silences between lines and even have the characters doing other things than just concentrating on the conversation alone.
The Theatre Whisperer was the next exercise and I found this difficult as a director to control. As my actors had only recently received their final script it was tricky to get into the characters minds and say the lines that they would normally say. The actors job was to stay focussed and respond to what the theatre whisperer would tell them. The whisperer would have their script and tell them to do things in keeping with their characters. It was a good way of getting to see how others responded to instruction and gave my actors ideas as to how they could physicalize their character.
The best exercise of the day was the proximity test. In the first exercise the scene was spoken with the actors talking face to face with no other movement. It certainly showed that we needed movement, no necessarily a lot but we wanted to not make the scene just a typical boring conversation.
The next exercise was back to back where the actors faced away from one another. It was difficult for the actors as there were many other groups in the room. However, as we will be performing in the university theatre it was important that we did this exercise to work on clarity, pitch and timing. I also liked this symbolic staging as at one point in our scene Hedda cannot look at Mrs Elvstead in the eye as Mrs Elvstead is suspicious and Hedda is the guilty party. During this part of the scene I want to stage it so that Hedda is behind Mrs Elvstead unable to settle and cannot sit near her or even look at her for a long period of time.
Walking around the space made it appear more of a confrontation rather than a light hearted chat which the scene initially is.
It is definitely important to understand the proximity on stage as it can change the whole meaning of the scene.
Initially I felt that my actors were hesitant to the idea of having a director but after doing this exercise I believe that they feel that having an extra pair of eyes looking in on the scene it will help them with the smaller things, such as proxemics and voice.
With this in mind I sent my actors away to work on character breakdowns so that we could begin to rehearse during the next meet up.
Sunday, 3 February 2013
Rehearsal 3rd Febuary 2013
During this rehearsal period I thought it best that we did not rush straight into blocking and rehearsing for the final performance. I told the group of the research that I had conducted prior to the rehearsal:
Naturalistic Theatre was helping equality between male and female worlds. Male playwrights were voicing the opinions of women who would not necessarily been able to speak out for themselves; women felt trapped and envied the world in which men lived. "What gives naturalistic plays historical status is not the number, or even the centrality of female characters, but the way female experience is presented." (A Source Book on Naturalistic Theatre: 2000: 18) Many women within the 1890's were writing plays however none were ever published or staged. This "reflects the reality of gender inequality in the period and even more ironically it is an illustration that men felt it right to speak for and define women." (A Source Book on Naturalistic Theatre: 2000: 19)
"The defining moment of naturalistic drama is the slamming of the door, as Nora leaves her husband at the end of 'A Doll's House.' (A Source Book on Naturalistic Theatre: 2000: 20)
Even though we are performing a scene from 'Hedda Gabler' we all knew the play 'A Doll's House' well and I wanted for us to remember throughout the rehearsal process of the importance of the Naturalistic Theatre movement, in terms of us being female students now and in terms of their individual characters within the scene.
After discussing our information we went onto adapting our script. As there is only two actors we wanted to cut Mr. Tesman's lines completely. This was in keeping with the idea of women being the stronger sex and being able to express their opinions without a man present. However, this task was quite difficult as Tesman breaks up the conversation. We wanted to use the information that Tesman gave within his lines so we then had to weave his lines into the lines of Hedda and Mrs Elvstead. After a long period of time we managed to create a cohesive script and I was confident in the fact that the actors could now part and begin to learn their lines.
Innes, C (2000). A Source Book on Naturalist Theatre. Oxon: Routledge. 18-20.
Naturalistic Theatre was helping equality between male and female worlds. Male playwrights were voicing the opinions of women who would not necessarily been able to speak out for themselves; women felt trapped and envied the world in which men lived. "What gives naturalistic plays historical status is not the number, or even the centrality of female characters, but the way female experience is presented." (A Source Book on Naturalistic Theatre: 2000: 18) Many women within the 1890's were writing plays however none were ever published or staged. This "reflects the reality of gender inequality in the period and even more ironically it is an illustration that men felt it right to speak for and define women." (A Source Book on Naturalistic Theatre: 2000: 19)
"The defining moment of naturalistic drama is the slamming of the door, as Nora leaves her husband at the end of 'A Doll's House.' (A Source Book on Naturalistic Theatre: 2000: 20)
Even though we are performing a scene from 'Hedda Gabler' we all knew the play 'A Doll's House' well and I wanted for us to remember throughout the rehearsal process of the importance of the Naturalistic Theatre movement, in terms of us being female students now and in terms of their individual characters within the scene.
After discussing our information we went onto adapting our script. As there is only two actors we wanted to cut Mr. Tesman's lines completely. This was in keeping with the idea of women being the stronger sex and being able to express their opinions without a man present. However, this task was quite difficult as Tesman breaks up the conversation. We wanted to use the information that Tesman gave within his lines so we then had to weave his lines into the lines of Hedda and Mrs Elvstead. After a long period of time we managed to create a cohesive script and I was confident in the fact that the actors could now part and begin to learn their lines.
Innes, C (2000). A Source Book on Naturalist Theatre. Oxon: Routledge. 18-20.
Saturday, 2 February 2013
Final Performance Project- 'Hedda Gabler' Ibsen
Due to illness I had not been to class the previous week so missed out on the opportunity of selecting a play which I knew a lot about and could see myself either performing or directing in. At a request I chose to direct the group that I was in and they had already chosen and selected scenes from 'Hedda Gabler' by Henrik Ibsen.
'Hedda Gabler' was first published in Norway during the year 1890. Most of Ibsen's plays are "beyond all social radicalism, defend feminism, contain free thought, and free love..." (Ibsen's Drama: Right Action and Tragic Joy: 1996: vii) and this is what makes him one of the most notorious playwrights of all time. Throughout the play Hedda must keep her former life with Eilert Lovbourg a secret from her husband as they are rivals in the literary field. As well as this Mrs Elvstead, an acquaintance of Hedda, has also taken an interest into Eilert. When Eilert loses his manuscript for his new book he confesses to Hedda that it is lost and he does not know what to do. Hedda has the manuscript but instead of telling him this she says that the best way to end all of his troubles is to commit suicide. He follows her instruction but in a turn of events he does not have a peaceful suicide in which Hedda wished he had. To make matters worse one of Eilert's friends knows the origin of the pistol and he has gained power over her. Towards the end of the play Hedda takes a pistol and shoots herself in the head, her husband (Tesman), Eilert's friend and Mrs Elvstead find Hedda's body. The role of Hedda Gabler is considered to be, by critics, one of the most dramatic characters in theatre. In many productions Hedda can be seen as a heroic feminist or a manipulative, evil villain.
Reading through the script with the group I can see why Hedda can be resembled to both character traits as she wants to find out information with regards to Mrs Elvstead and Eilert Lovbourg without her own secret becoming clear. As well as this she is a strong woman and the audience can see this in the title alone. Hedda is a married woman but has not changed her name, Ibsen did this and said: "My intention in giving it this name was to indicate that Hedda as a personality is to be regarded rather as her father's daughter than her husband's wife." (Fiend or Heroine?: 2006) With this in mind I wanted Ellie to play Hedda as she is a much stronger character and I can see her being able to relate to situations quickly to a time when she has had to think like Hedda. The other character in the scene is Mrs Elvstead who unlike Hedda has always been controlled by men, but in Ibsen's plays this is not allowed, so she has recently left her husband to find Lovbourg. Chess will be playing Mrs Elvstead a nervous and shy character but has come out fighting after leaving her husband.
As Ibsen's plays are full of stage directions I believe that the movement shall come quite naturally whereas thinking about the context of the play will be quite complex. As a director I must fully understand the context of the play and the time in which it was written in. During this period it was predominantly male playwrights voicing the opinion of strong minded women therefore it highlights "the intrinsic connection between Naturalism and the movement for female emancipation." (A Sourcebook on Naturalist Theatre: 2000: 19) Playing on Ibsen's strong feminist views I want the women of my piece to play their roles with this in mind so this is what we shall be working on in rehearsals.
Innes, C (2000). A Sourcebook on Naturalist Theatre. Oxon: Routledge. 19.
Theoharis, C (1996). Ibsen's Drama: Right Action and Tragic Joy. Hampshire: Macmillan Press.
Sanders, T. (2006). Fiend or Heroine?. Available: http://dlibrary.acu.edu.au/staffhome/trsanders/units/modern_drama/hedda_gabler.html. Last accessed 1st Feb 2013.
'Hedda Gabler' was first published in Norway during the year 1890. Most of Ibsen's plays are "beyond all social radicalism, defend feminism, contain free thought, and free love..." (Ibsen's Drama: Right Action and Tragic Joy: 1996: vii) and this is what makes him one of the most notorious playwrights of all time. Throughout the play Hedda must keep her former life with Eilert Lovbourg a secret from her husband as they are rivals in the literary field. As well as this Mrs Elvstead, an acquaintance of Hedda, has also taken an interest into Eilert. When Eilert loses his manuscript for his new book he confesses to Hedda that it is lost and he does not know what to do. Hedda has the manuscript but instead of telling him this she says that the best way to end all of his troubles is to commit suicide. He follows her instruction but in a turn of events he does not have a peaceful suicide in which Hedda wished he had. To make matters worse one of Eilert's friends knows the origin of the pistol and he has gained power over her. Towards the end of the play Hedda takes a pistol and shoots herself in the head, her husband (Tesman), Eilert's friend and Mrs Elvstead find Hedda's body. The role of Hedda Gabler is considered to be, by critics, one of the most dramatic characters in theatre. In many productions Hedda can be seen as a heroic feminist or a manipulative, evil villain.
Reading through the script with the group I can see why Hedda can be resembled to both character traits as she wants to find out information with regards to Mrs Elvstead and Eilert Lovbourg without her own secret becoming clear. As well as this she is a strong woman and the audience can see this in the title alone. Hedda is a married woman but has not changed her name, Ibsen did this and said: "My intention in giving it this name was to indicate that Hedda as a personality is to be regarded rather as her father's daughter than her husband's wife." (Fiend or Heroine?: 2006) With this in mind I wanted Ellie to play Hedda as she is a much stronger character and I can see her being able to relate to situations quickly to a time when she has had to think like Hedda. The other character in the scene is Mrs Elvstead who unlike Hedda has always been controlled by men, but in Ibsen's plays this is not allowed, so she has recently left her husband to find Lovbourg. Chess will be playing Mrs Elvstead a nervous and shy character but has come out fighting after leaving her husband.
As Ibsen's plays are full of stage directions I believe that the movement shall come quite naturally whereas thinking about the context of the play will be quite complex. As a director I must fully understand the context of the play and the time in which it was written in. During this period it was predominantly male playwrights voicing the opinion of strong minded women therefore it highlights "the intrinsic connection between Naturalism and the movement for female emancipation." (A Sourcebook on Naturalist Theatre: 2000: 19) Playing on Ibsen's strong feminist views I want the women of my piece to play their roles with this in mind so this is what we shall be working on in rehearsals.
Innes, C (2000). A Sourcebook on Naturalist Theatre. Oxon: Routledge. 19.
Theoharis, C (1996). Ibsen's Drama: Right Action and Tragic Joy. Hampshire: Macmillan Press.
Sanders, T. (2006). Fiend or Heroine?. Available: http://dlibrary.acu.edu.au/staffhome/trsanders/units/modern_drama/hedda_gabler.html. Last accessed 1st Feb 2013.
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