As this was our last show, everyone was really looking to blow the audience out of the water. With all the notes on board from the first and second performances we had a lot on our plate to ensure that we would go out successfully.
One of the biggest notes from both performance's was that the entire cast needed to speak louder - doing the rehearsal exercises for projection definitely helped us improve and I think the majority of the cast were speaking clear and loud enough by the final show. Though there were still a few moments that the actor's on stage could've been ha lightly louder - it wasn't awfully noticeable. This was definitely something that the entire cast had worked hard on improving which, I believe, was evident by the final performance.
The best thing about this performance was probably the amount of energy and drive everyone had. We all wanted to make this a brilliant performance as this was the last time we were ever going to do it. In particular I think that Sonia's "Scrub it clean" moment was extremely strong as she didn't drop the ball once in that scene, which was a huge success. This was also evident in the 'Spider' nun scene as I felt it was snappy and well timed - the comedic elements were presented across and the audience were receptive. The fact that the whole cast were working extra hard at keeping the energy going meant that the play's electric dynamic wasn't lost and the momentum did not falter. This was a major success for us as a whole cast as quite often in rehearsals the energy was low.
One thing that was a challenge for me was a few lines lost by my co-actors, particularly in the first 2013 dinner scene. This threw me off slightly and almost caused me to laugh especially when Will's "spare couscous" line was lost - however, I managed to hold it together until getting into the dressing room. I was able to play my own bewilderedness into Su-Lin's reactions when asking Gideon the different foods so I think it definitely worked out for the best. I feel that the dinner, as a group, we weren't at our best, we all did something slightly wrong - for example, I moved too early before Jack said "take a seat" but hopefully people just saw that as eagerness from Su-Lin. But, I do feel the reactions in the 2013 dinners scenes were more snappy than they had been - Jack was colouring a few of the moments with awkward laughs at Gideon's jokes and I pushed myself to be a bit more experimental with Su-Lin's physicality - especially where it says she's fidgeting. In the first performance, we struggled with exiting all together at the end of Part 2 Scene 4 - something that was evident in the notes we had been given in both rehearsals and verbally after the first show. We definitely improved in our second performance and by the third, our exits and entrances all together were coming naturally.
One of the biggest challenges I've faced throughout the rehearsal period is my clarity when speaking, I've always been worried that I talk too quickly and not clearly enough when nervous so I have worked hard at pushing through my speech to make it as successful as possible. I believe I achieved this in the former two performances but particularly so in the final one as some of the notes from our
second performance was that some of the actors were not heard entirely and I wanted to avoid this.
As a piece of theatre designed to entertain an audience, I feel we definitely achieved this. The reaction from the audience during the curtain call and afterwards proved that members of the audience thoroughly enjoyed themselves. Table consisted of various different aspects of performance - musical song, comedic elements and dramatic moments - and we definitely utilised this effectively and created a brilliant show. We, as a cast, I believe were extremely adept at dealing with the change of pace in emotions from scene to scene, which therefore enable us to develop an impactful piece of performance.
Overall, our final performance was extremely successful. We worked really hard to pull it all off and it definitely paid off that we were confident in our lines and actions on stage. The biggest possible success was that we were definitely not underehearsed - there was no moment in which I was particularly worried something would go wrong - my confidence was consolidated by our successful previous performances.
Saturday, 6 February 2016
EVALUATION OF THE SECOND PERFORMANCE
After being told from the other casts that their 4:30pm show was their worst, we were all feeling pretty nervous about the show - especially after not doing it for an entire week.
Firstly, no glasses, props or any pieces of set were broken - this is obviously a major success and relief for the entire cast after the first's performance's diabolical over the broken glass. Not only did this mean that the commune argument scene (where the glass broke) ran smoothly but it also meant Lay Me Low was not affected. However, I definitely feel that Lay Me Low was possibly weaker this time than it was the first performance - I'm unsure why but it didn't feel like everyone was singing, or at least singing loud enough. Though the timing worked out well and the reattaching of the legs happened without fault, the entire scene was definitely hindered by the singing.
Disappointingly I did manage to get one line incorrect, though it wasn't obvious, it did sort of throw the next line off. Next performance I'm going to put extra work into nailing every single one of my lines - even if they're just as simple as 'boo!'. Other than that, I personally believe that my performance was relatively successful. I attempted to ramp up Su-Lin's physicality a little more, really exploring how she acts when she's bored or hot - as she says multiple times at the lunch table.
Perhaps more so than our first performance, I think the comedic moments were responded to more enthusiastically - perhaps this is due to the audience being filled with more of our peers. Afterwards many of the audience members who have seen the other shows said that it was nice to have a show that had more of a comedic side to it after three pretty dark shows in the rest of the season. In particular I feel the 'Stone' commune scene worked very, very well. The cast members in the scene have worked hard at being able to bounce off of one another to allow the dialogue to really flow and I feel like the effort they put in was extremely evident in this performance.
One thing that I picked up on - it may have just been me, I'm not sure - was that it felt like a few of the transitions dragged out a little too long. I think it was the transition after Lay Me Low into Lauren and Will's last scene that felt particularly long - it would be a lot more effective if we could make it more snappy with the timing but it works as it is. However, I'm not sure if it just felt too long to me rather than it actually being too long.
A challenge I had to work around during Part 3 Scene 1 was that a pink bowl hadn't been passed down to me from the 2013 scene prior therefore with the entire situation with the ribs, I had to improvise by taking Will's bowl and using it as my own. Usually I have my own pink bowl to use so this is something we all need to work on by the next performance - utilizing the props as much as possible and making sure we all have them at the correct time.
Overall, I definitely feel this performance was as successful as our first one for a myriad of reasons - though some things went wrong, they were compensated for by the moments that worked really well. I know that we, as a cast, were all very relieved that our 4:30pm performance ran without very few errors after not performing it for 11 days. Bring on the final show!
Firstly, no glasses, props or any pieces of set were broken - this is obviously a major success and relief for the entire cast after the first's performance's diabolical over the broken glass. Not only did this mean that the commune argument scene (where the glass broke) ran smoothly but it also meant Lay Me Low was not affected. However, I definitely feel that Lay Me Low was possibly weaker this time than it was the first performance - I'm unsure why but it didn't feel like everyone was singing, or at least singing loud enough. Though the timing worked out well and the reattaching of the legs happened without fault, the entire scene was definitely hindered by the singing.
Disappointingly I did manage to get one line incorrect, though it wasn't obvious, it did sort of throw the next line off. Next performance I'm going to put extra work into nailing every single one of my lines - even if they're just as simple as 'boo!'. Other than that, I personally believe that my performance was relatively successful. I attempted to ramp up Su-Lin's physicality a little more, really exploring how she acts when she's bored or hot - as she says multiple times at the lunch table.
Perhaps more so than our first performance, I think the comedic moments were responded to more enthusiastically - perhaps this is due to the audience being filled with more of our peers. Afterwards many of the audience members who have seen the other shows said that it was nice to have a show that had more of a comedic side to it after three pretty dark shows in the rest of the season. In particular I feel the 'Stone' commune scene worked very, very well. The cast members in the scene have worked hard at being able to bounce off of one another to allow the dialogue to really flow and I feel like the effort they put in was extremely evident in this performance.
One thing that I picked up on - it may have just been me, I'm not sure - was that it felt like a few of the transitions dragged out a little too long. I think it was the transition after Lay Me Low into Lauren and Will's last scene that felt particularly long - it would be a lot more effective if we could make it more snappy with the timing but it works as it is. However, I'm not sure if it just felt too long to me rather than it actually being too long.
A challenge I had to work around during Part 3 Scene 1 was that a pink bowl hadn't been passed down to me from the 2013 scene prior therefore with the entire situation with the ribs, I had to improvise by taking Will's bowl and using it as my own. Usually I have my own pink bowl to use so this is something we all need to work on by the next performance - utilizing the props as much as possible and making sure we all have them at the correct time.
Overall, I definitely feel this performance was as successful as our first one for a myriad of reasons - though some things went wrong, they were compensated for by the moments that worked really well. I know that we, as a cast, were all very relieved that our 4:30pm performance ran without very few errors after not performing it for 11 days. Bring on the final show!
EVALUATION OF THE FIRST PERFORMANCE
Our first performance went relatively successfully. It really allowed us as a cast to understand that we actually have a very good show that we're proud of. It was definitely a relief that it went well for all of us.
One of the strongest aspects of my performance was the fact that I believe I projected and used my voice successfully. One of my biggest worries about Su-Lin was that most of her dialogue is conversational, she's talking to someone who's right next to her - this has the potential to make it very hard to be heard properly on stage. I really worked on making my voice as loud and as supported as it could possibly be without it becoming too removed from the character and from response from audience members, apparently I could be heard the entire way through.
One of the biggest challenges - possibly the biggest - from the first show, was the fact a glass broke just before Lay Me Low, a scene in which the entire cast is present. This proved a very big issue as their were multiple actors without shoes on and we, as a cast, needed to play out the scene without anyone getting cut and removing as much glass as possible without making it look obvious. I feel like we did this pretty successfully as after the legs were reattached - which happened pretty seamlessly - as I spoke to an audience member after the show who didn't even notice it happened. We managed to work through a potentially hazardous situation in a professional manner and not let it effect our performance.
Lay Me Low went particularly well for the entire cast, we managed to time it perfectly without having to go into the second verse that we don't really know. This was a major relief for us all as not only did a glass smash in the scene before but in the last couple rehearsals we couldn't quite get the timing to work.
One moment that didn't quite work was the exit from the first 2013 dinner scene, we're all supposed to leave at the same time but that didn't quite go to plan during this performance. The 'three breaths' exit is definitely an aspect of the performance we need to work on intensively to get right in the future shows - especially the entrance back on, which I don't think we've ever carried out at the same time. If we don't fix it, the entrances and exits will look extremely messy and most likely throw the rest of the scene off.
We definitely fulfilled our task of entertaining our audience - the response from the audience has been really positive and has really boosted our confidence as a cast. The majority of things that went wrong during this performances were only things that we, the actors, would recognise as incorrect. The fact that they weren't blatantly obviously allowed us to carry on with the scenes without getting too distracted by different mishaps.
Overall, the first performance was very successful. Despite the mishap with the broken glass and the speak stone being thrown into the floor - the rest of the performance ran extremely smoothly. It was a major. Incidence booster for the entire cast and really gave us the drive to continue on for the next two performances.
One of the strongest aspects of my performance was the fact that I believe I projected and used my voice successfully. One of my biggest worries about Su-Lin was that most of her dialogue is conversational, she's talking to someone who's right next to her - this has the potential to make it very hard to be heard properly on stage. I really worked on making my voice as loud and as supported as it could possibly be without it becoming too removed from the character and from response from audience members, apparently I could be heard the entire way through.
One of the biggest challenges - possibly the biggest - from the first show, was the fact a glass broke just before Lay Me Low, a scene in which the entire cast is present. This proved a very big issue as their were multiple actors without shoes on and we, as a cast, needed to play out the scene without anyone getting cut and removing as much glass as possible without making it look obvious. I feel like we did this pretty successfully as after the legs were reattached - which happened pretty seamlessly - as I spoke to an audience member after the show who didn't even notice it happened. We managed to work through a potentially hazardous situation in a professional manner and not let it effect our performance.
Lay Me Low went particularly well for the entire cast, we managed to time it perfectly without having to go into the second verse that we don't really know. This was a major relief for us all as not only did a glass smash in the scene before but in the last couple rehearsals we couldn't quite get the timing to work.
One moment that didn't quite work was the exit from the first 2013 dinner scene, we're all supposed to leave at the same time but that didn't quite go to plan during this performance. The 'three breaths' exit is definitely an aspect of the performance we need to work on intensively to get right in the future shows - especially the entrance back on, which I don't think we've ever carried out at the same time. If we don't fix it, the entrances and exits will look extremely messy and most likely throw the rest of the scene off.
We definitely fulfilled our task of entertaining our audience - the response from the audience has been really positive and has really boosted our confidence as a cast. The majority of things that went wrong during this performances were only things that we, the actors, would recognise as incorrect. The fact that they weren't blatantly obviously allowed us to carry on with the scenes without getting too distracted by different mishaps.
Overall, the first performance was very successful. Despite the mishap with the broken glass and the speak stone being thrown into the floor - the rest of the performance ran extremely smoothly. It was a major. Incidence booster for the entire cast and really gave us the drive to continue on for the next two performances.
REHEARSAL PROCESS EVALUATION
Going through the play from start to finish and establishing the basic blocking first rather than intensively developing each scene from the very beginning really allowed us to develop the scenes more freely as we didn't have restrictions from already in place detail. It gave us the basic frame work to work with - our entrances and exits - and then enabled us to fill in the scene by making logical decisions with blocking that we think our characters would make. As the scenes developed and we added more and more detail, I found myself being able to access my character and act more as my instincts already knew the blocking so I didn't have to put too much focus into it. The intensive attention to detail was only added once a scene had it's basic blocking down and all the lines learnt by the actors, this was extremely beneficial as it meant we could work to develop the scenes without the confinement of having scripts in our hands which had been holding us back previously.
One of the biggest challenges I personally found during the rehearsal period was developing my scenes without knowing the tune to Su-Lin's canto-pop. As it was undecided until quite late into the rehearsal period that I would find my own song to work from it meant that before then it was hard for me to feel like the scenes we were working were really being developed in great detail. However, when I did have to learn the song, I believe I learnt it relatively quickly and efficiently which meant I was able to insert it into the scenes without struggle. That being said, I would've definitely liked to have started work on the song a lot earlier than we did - perhaps from the very beginning - so I could be one hundred percent confident with it earlier on in rehearsals than I was. Another issue with learning the song so late was that it meant it was particularly hard to develop the ending in rehearsals as in the text, the canto-pop featured heavily as the play's ending. This meant there was a delay in rehearsals and the play always seemed unfinished when we did run throughs. However, I feel as we developed the ending into something different from the text, what we created is just as interesting and dynamic as the original.
However, though the canto-pop song dragged the musical aspect of the show down, I feel that the songs were a strong point for us during rehearsal. Though we had to work extensively on Lay Me Low to get it to work - working with Rob from Musical Theatre was definitely beneficial - once we were able to actually work with the table, it developed into one of the most powerful moments of the show. I was particularly surprised by Naomi and Will's commitment to the songs their characters had to sing, this definitely helped myself and I don't doubt the rest of the cast, to feel more comfortable with the singing aspect. As we dove right into the singing with Lay Me Low, Don't Be Unkind to A Duck...etc - it wasn't something to be worried about in future rehearsals as the songs had been present and worked on since the beginning of the show's development. All the actors playing the nuns who worked on their songs - Naomi, Leanne, Deja, Claudia, Alice and later Tia, again showed commitment in rehearsals to the songs, taking time to really work on getting them to sound good - this definitely helped improved everyone's positivity on the show and the music in general. It could've been expected for theatre students - not musical theatre - to shy away from the task of having such a musically driven show, but I think the fact we didn't avoid most of the songs in rehearsals really allowed us to get comfortable with the singing in order to develop them further more effectively.
Another major challenge for the rehearsal process was the inconsistency of people's attendance. Although I attended every rehearsal, it was extremely difficult to progress with scenes with people absent. This was evident in one of my own scenes in which Will wasn't present whilst we were developing the first 2013 lunch scene - Josh had to stand in for him to read the lines. This was irritating though not too dampening on the scene as a whole as we picked it back up when Will came back and helped him through the scene. Absents were particularly present in the scenes with a large amount of people - such as the commune scenes or the nuns, these scenes include a lot of dialogue which meant it was hard for them to develop properly without people present. I know that the final commune scene - "That's what she said is it..." - hadn't been rehearsed with every cast member present until the last rehearsal before the first show - this obviously caused some anxieties with other cast members in those scenes.
Overall I think we had a very successful rehearsal process as we were all in a confident position before the first show - though the were obviously some insecurities over particular moments - we all knew what we had to and how to do it successfully. It was a vast contrast to the rehearsal process for Children's Theatre and my anxieties and stress before those performances.
Thursday, 4 February 2016
Go on then table!
This scene really puts the rest of the show into prospective as it's really the turning point for the table - there's an entire chunk of story that we do not see whilst Sarah is at the commune without Gideon, instead we see a flashback to Sarah's childhood and her twin brother Albert. I really love Tanya Ronder's choice to go back to Sarah's roots to highlight the fact that she passed on rather physically show it, it really goes back to the point that the play is about one family's story.
This scene is also one my personal highlights of the show - when the energy is high and the actor's are snappy and working off of one another, it's really effective. Their energy is contagious and it makes myself personally want to keep up with them and not to let the ball drop.
(There should be a clip of the 'GO ON THEN TABLE, YOU SPEAK.' moment from the commune scene, I've uploaded it but I'm not sure if blogger is showing it.)
Wednesday, 3 February 2016
One of the most effective rehearsal tasks we did was exploring the scenes without any text, but simply playing our objectives. By removing the dialogue we were really able to focus on what our characters were trying to achieve throughout the scene and the means in which they attempt this. This was really useful in the 2013 scenes with all four of us in as those scenes can get quite mixed up and confused, so it was really useful just to drop the dialogue and do it physically.
This exercise also really interrogated us on how well we knew the scene, whether or not we could play it without the dialogue. The first scene we explored - Part 2 Scene 4 worked really well, we were definitely able to play it without the dialogue, just working with our objectives. However, Part 3 Scene 1 was less so successful, we all got a little lost with scene without the dialogue - this is because there are a lot more units in this scene, various things happen and are discussed. This caused us to go quicker or slower than each other, it was much harder to follow. We caught it by the end, as I chose a definitive moment to leave the scene with the daddy long legs, which enabled my other cast members to identify the part of the scene we were at if they were lost, but I still found it particularly challenging.
However, once we played back the scene with the dialogue again - the benefits from doing it without the dialogue was definitely beneficial. The objectives were heightened as we had singled them out and played with them previously, I felt that everyone interacted with their objectives a lot more effectively and successfully then we all have in the past which allowed the scene to flow more dynamically and smoothly.
I will definitely do this exercise in later development when looking at scenes as I believe it really pushes the actor's attention to detail and how well they know the scene and the character - the fact it's so simple, by just removing the dialogue, means it will be a task that's accessible in any rehearsal without any preparation except knowing the scene relatively well. It's definitely one to do later on in the rehearsal period.
This exercise also really interrogated us on how well we knew the scene, whether or not we could play it without the dialogue. The first scene we explored - Part 2 Scene 4 worked really well, we were definitely able to play it without the dialogue, just working with our objectives. However, Part 3 Scene 1 was less so successful, we all got a little lost with scene without the dialogue - this is because there are a lot more units in this scene, various things happen and are discussed. This caused us to go quicker or slower than each other, it was much harder to follow. We caught it by the end, as I chose a definitive moment to leave the scene with the daddy long legs, which enabled my other cast members to identify the part of the scene we were at if they were lost, but I still found it particularly challenging.
However, once we played back the scene with the dialogue again - the benefits from doing it without the dialogue was definitely beneficial. The objectives were heightened as we had singled them out and played with them previously, I felt that everyone interacted with their objectives a lot more effectively and successfully then we all have in the past which allowed the scene to flow more dynamically and smoothly.
I will definitely do this exercise in later development when looking at scenes as I believe it really pushes the actor's attention to detail and how well they know the scene and the character - the fact it's so simple, by just removing the dialogue, means it will be a task that's accessible in any rehearsal without any preparation except knowing the scene relatively well. It's definitely one to do later on in the rehearsal period.
Developing the ending
I really like how we chose to end the show - paralleling with the opening - as it really allows the entire production to come in full circle. Having the entire cast on at the very end really allows us to push the idea that the play is about one family through generations and how something so simple like a table can be the anchor of the family.
One of the biggest challenges for the ending for my performance is the singing. In particular, the singing with Will. He sometimes throws me off by singing the incorrect version of the song which means rather than me singing the actual version I've learnt from the lines in the play I usually repeat the ones he sang - for some reason the version and tune I have learnt, goes right out of my head. Though this is more so my problem then it is Will's, I really need to push myself to ensure that I sing the correct one. However, I think it also works in some respects as it really highlights the relationship between Su-Lin and Gideon as it shows Gideon really trying to connect with his Granddaughter.
I definitely feel like this ending is a lot more effective than us trying to recreate the one in the script - everyone singing the canto-pop song. This is due to us developing the music aspect of the piece quite late on in rehearsals - it would've been very hard for everyone in the cast to have learnt it well enough by the first performance.
I really like the ending with Su-Lin and David, I think it's a really powerful moment that presents the entire journey the audience have been on. From the youngest Best family member to the oldest, spanning over 100 years. It really brought light to the fact that this one family, that every single character, are related through the table.
One of the biggest challenges for the ending for my performance is the singing. In particular, the singing with Will. He sometimes throws me off by singing the incorrect version of the song which means rather than me singing the actual version I've learnt from the lines in the play I usually repeat the ones he sang - for some reason the version and tune I have learnt, goes right out of my head. Though this is more so my problem then it is Will's, I really need to push myself to ensure that I sing the correct one. However, I think it also works in some respects as it really highlights the relationship between Su-Lin and Gideon as it shows Gideon really trying to connect with his Granddaughter.
I definitely feel like this ending is a lot more effective than us trying to recreate the one in the script - everyone singing the canto-pop song. This is due to us developing the music aspect of the piece quite late on in rehearsals - it would've been very hard for everyone in the cast to have learnt it well enough by the first performance.
I really like the ending with Su-Lin and David, I think it's a really powerful moment that presents the entire journey the audience have been on. From the youngest Best family member to the oldest, spanning over 100 years. It really brought light to the fact that this one family, that every single character, are related through the table.
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