Electra Blocking Part 1

The chorus will start the show by roaming through the audience, singing 'Lamb's Glory Box' directly to faces of the audience. We discussed this is lesson and we had further thoughts by maybe not singing it as it might sound odd against the sound track so we have decided that it may be whispered.

'Just...Give me a reason to love youGive me a reason to be a womanI just wanna be a woman'The lyrics of the song show Electra's desire to be a woman, which is significant because nor her or her sister can have children, due to their stepfather. This song basically tells the audience there is a female character who desperately wants freedom from the life she is living.
At the end of song, Electra approaches the chorus who are centre downstage. The chorus bring Electra down to the floor with them, this suggests the chorus being close with her and give her sympathy. Together, they sit in a semi-circle.The action is performed as if it's in slow motion; we whisper and joke.

In the opening dialogue between Old Man and Orestes, the chorus acts as protectors for Electra - distracting her from what is going on behind her. Electra shouts 'Woe for my hapless lot!' - this leads the chorus to taming her, such as placing a comforting hand on the shoulder and instructing her to quiet down. This comes across as effective to the audience as they show their affection. In Electra's first speech, starting 'O purest light', the chorus will be doing a shoal of fish, which we all previously had engaged in the Electra workshop, this means that the chorus had a small understanding on how to be a chorus. The shoal of fish needs to be in rhythm with the dialogue, which Electra will join and re-join throughout. After this speech comes to an end, we flood around Electra. They comfort Electra further, performing it again in a shoal of fish, which ends on the line 'To this land with happy omen brought?'
The reason i look so much at the chorus is because in rehearsals i wasn't acting as the chorus but that will be my role when i'm not playing Electra's mother this meant i didn't have much rehearsal time of the chorus so i was determined to take notes so i would thoroughly know what to do.


After that, the 'Friends' circle Electra, the chorus deliver their lines individually whilst doing so. This breaks up them saying the lines as a chorus and shows diversity to the audience to keep them on edge.

Electra and the Friends remain sat down together for a while, until Electra becomes angry, and aims certain lines at each one of the chorus This leads her to standing above the chorus and watch her intensely.
Chrysothemis enters, and the four Friends hide away in separate corners of the stage. The next time the chorus talk is in a loud whisper in unison, kneeling up to Electra and hiding again afterwards, this highlights the fact that the chorus aren't real people and only a spirit. We come out of our corners, running up and between Electra and the Sisters, acting as a metaphorical wall. The chorus spy on me Clytemnestra, and get the attention of the other friends by clapping and miming. During Electra's and my conversation of being the mother. I have to grow in anger but attempt to dismiss my anger from the audience in a way as i want them to be on my side Electra verbally abuses her Mother, which shows the audience what sort of person Electra can actually be.

Rapunzel Costume Design - Into The Woods

Rapunzel is shy but as she grows older she stands up more to the witch that locked her in the tower. For her costume i think she should have long blonde hair made by string or a synthetic hair wig. My original idea was to have her in a beautiful dress in possible royal colours like purple. Purple is also the contrasting colour of blonde so will fit in with the colour spectrum. This was the traditional costume colour from rapunzel. However, i wanted to wade away from tradition and make it our own. I looked for inspiration on the internet and only found 1 costume interpretation which was in green. The green dress was a flowing fit and had a green lighter tee shirt underneath which was an off the shoulder shirt. It would also be long sleeved.  Over this would be an emerald green dress similar to the ones in Medea but of a different material i suggested cotton or polyester.

But i thought a rapunzel wig instead of string however more expensive will be much more effective.

Her make up would be beautiful and natural but slightly over the top.

Even though her witch mother was rich and made sure her daughter was kept beautiful also there was resent between their relationships and i felt that rupunzel could express this through her slightly rebelious style.

I looked online for synthetic hair wigs as i felt this would look for relatistic and would look so much more effective than string. As i knew this was a more expensive route to go down i decided to do some research on the wigs and found 3 wigs.

http://www.wondercostumes.com/rapunzel-wig-adult-wig-ptarwdu.html

This wig is a more paler blonde that i wanted and come plaited this is the cheapest wig i found at £13. But would fit the costume well.

http://www.costumes.net/adult-rapunzel-wig.html

This wig isnt styled so could then be cut later on if blonde wigs are needed in future productions. It is a long golden blonde wig but would have to be styled into plaits but this means it can be something she does on stage as a movement this can add to the production and means she can have different styles in different scenes whether thats a down hair style or in a side plait. This wig is £16.50. This wig is ankle length.

http://www.costumeexpress.com/p/34552/rapunzel-adult-wig

This wig is quite a luxury wig and is designed with extra small plaiting intwining in her main plait topped off with red ribbon. However this comes at a price of £19

Choreography Starter Task

What is a stimulus?

A stimulus is the original idea for a piece of choreography.

Write down what these 5 different types of stimulus mean?

Visual- a type of visual stimuli could be a photograph or video.

Tactile - a type of tactile stimuli would be something you can feel, something like a hedgehog or a cloud.

Auditory- a type of auditory stimuli would be a sound or piece of music.

Ideational- a type of ideational stimuli would be a theme and idea.

Kinaesthetic- a type of kinaesthetic stimuli would be a stimuli based on movement.

What is motif?

A series of repeated movements that represent stimulus.

What is a climax in a dance choreography?

The climax in a piece of dance is the highlight of the piece, the memorable part which stands out from the rest.

Write down as many ways as you can remember to develop a motif/choreographic devices and explain what they mean?

1) Variety with dynamics

2) Fragmentation

3)Embellishment

4)Repetition

5)Canon

6)Retro

7)Instrumentation

8)Tempo

9)Size

10)Levels

Compositional structures: this is a way of forming art and giving a dance piece structure.

The AB structure- binary (two part) is one of the more simplistic structures, like a verse and chorus of a song. A and B need a transition or a link.

Chance movements are chosen at random or randomly structured to create a movement sequence or a dance.

Narrative/Episodic structures is a choreographic structure that follows a specific story line. The structure helps the story unfold and each section is a further exposure of the idea of the story. The choreographer must consider the linking/transitions of each section.

ABACADAE - structure - Rondo is a further extension of AB. The idea that A keeps returning.

ABA structure - ternary (three part) so the beginning and end are same with a contrast in the middle. Like chorus verse chorus.

Theme and variation - A1, A2, A3, A4 varying a motif, not developing into something totally new and unseen before but instead varying/ changing the dynamics, mood, space, style of A.

Akram Khan Rush

This is me and my group in our 1st rehearsals. For our next rehearsal we need to expand our piece as we need to fit in more choreographic devices such as change of tempo, levels, canon. We are still continuing to improve our piece so we can dance to the best of our abilities. I am the dancer on the left in the trio.

Akram Khan -Rush Rehearsal 2

This is me and my group in our 2nd rehearsals. We added and expanded to our piece as we needed to fit in more choreographic devices such as change of tempo, levels, canon. We are still continuing to improve our piece so we can dance to the best of our abilities. I am the dancer on the left in the trio.

2 Job Roles and Responsibilities

Responsibilities of a Casting Director

A casting director is a middleman or middle woman who finds the actors needed to fill roles in movies, TV shows, theatrical productions, commercials or even corporate and music videos.

The studio, producers, director and writers are on one side, and the actors and talent agents on the other -- with the casting director in the middle. "Middlewoman" applies because casting directors represent one of the few entertainment occupations that's dominated by women, not men. I think this is because women maybe are more comfortable and instinctive judgements. 

A casting director's responsibilities extend beyond contacting actors or agents and holding auditions. Casting directors assemble casts that may include hundreds of actors, negotiate deals with the actors' agents and manage the contracts once the actors have signed.

Casting directors become involved in pre-production. The casting director may be employed by the studio, own or work for a casting agency or be a solo operator. The casting director:

• meets with the producers, the director and possibly the writer to understand the project
• meets with the production accountant for information about the casting budget, the money that'll be used to pay the actors
• reads the script and make notes about all the speaking parts
• creates a list of possible actors, in preferred order, for the most important parts first
• contacts the actors or their agents to determine their availability
• provides the list to the producers and director to make their decision Lead actors may not be asked to audition.
• prepares lists of actors and production schedule for supporting and more minor actors
• makes appointments for auditions or readings with the available actors
• provides information about available parts to talent agencies and lists opportunities with Breakdown Services, a company that maintains a daily list of acting opportunities
• conducts auditions
• makes recommendations, based on auditions, for each speaking part The director and producers make the final selections.
• negotiates contracts with the actors' agents, keeping an eye on the casting budget
• issues casting calls for minor acting parts and conducts those auditions
• acts as a liaison between the director and the actors, once contracts are signed
• finds replacements, as needed, during production for actors who can't fulfill their contracts

Casting Directors will work their way up in the industry and will start off small, they will be hired to do little job and work up to get work experience in being a theatrical agent or manager, where you will learn how the business works, who the casting directors are, what areas they specialise in, and perhaps who is looking to add to their staff.

Responsibilities for Marketing Directors

For most businesses, there are several different organisational approaches to marketing. The duty may lie with a single member of the team, or it could be a group responsibility. 

Depending on budget availability and the skills of the team, you may choose to outsource certain elements of the marketing process (such as market research) or decide to do these jobs in-house. Key responsibilities of the marketing director vary according to the business but can include:

• Instilling a marketing led ethos throughout the business
• Researching and reporting on external opportunities
• Understanding current and potential customers
• Managing the customer journey (customer relationship management)
• Developing the marketing strategy and plan
• Management of the marketing mix
• Managing agencies
• Measuring success
• Managing budgets
• Ensuring timely delivery
• Writing copy
• Approving images
• Developing guidelines
• Making customer focused decisions

Information can be gathered from questionnaires, focus groups, the internet, interviews, buying habits and many more sources, but it's important that the information is examined in a scientific way using proper statistical methods. 

Marketing Directors may have specific degrees in marketing which will help them achieve a job such as this. They may start off in work experience or work there way up in the industry.

Assignment 1 - Other Job Opportunities

In this assignment we are to look at 3 job roles that you would consider doing if not in a production job role. My first job that i looked at outside of performance roles, was a front of house role.

My application letter to a Front of House job would be:

Dear Employer,

Further to your advertisement in the The Telegraph, I would like to apply for the front of house position at your theatre. I have many years of experience in the theatre, as I started performing from the age of 9. I am familiar with how you must behave in a theatre and familiar with the ins and outs (backstage) of a building. In my time i have seen 25 west end prodcutions so i have a clear understanding of how the theatre works. This also is reflected accademically in my achievements within the theatre.

 Academically, i have achieved all my singing grades up to grade 5 all with distinction. I have done a total of 30 hours volenterring with disabled children at an organisation called CCPS  all the children their had a wide range of disabilities. I have performed in various theatre's including The Royal Albert Hall (London), The Capital (Horsham), Brighton Dome (Brighton), Eisteddfod Theatre (Wales).

As well as having knowledge about the basics of the theatre, I also have experience with some of the technology, such as mics - how and where to put them on the actor as i have also worked backstage in prodctions including a National Theatre's Connextions production.

 I understand that a Front of House role also requires customer service skills. I gained a lot of experience in customer service at Pebbles Catering Company, where I took payments in person and over the phone, greeted customers and dealt with any complaints. I handled all these situations very professionally, and built a good relationship with many of the frequent Pebbles customers. In this job it also means i have good catering experience so if any function rooms in the theatre were in use and required staff, i would be equipt with the health and safety regarding food and nutrition.

Thank you for your time, and I hope to hear from you soon.

Yours Faithfully,

 

Niamh Kenny

SECOND JOB APPLICATION LETTER

To apply for a position with any Walt Disney Company, I need to start at DisneyCareers.com and choose my position of interest. I need to create a profile which includes an application to fill out, and then I can upload my CV. After applying online, I will receive a confirmation acknowledgement email, this is so I know my application has gone through, and I can also review it. Hearing back can be immediate or up to a couple weeks, it will depend on the volume of applicants. The company would've decided if your skills and experience match the role.

If successful, I will have an interview. It is most common to expect one phone interview and two in-person interviews per position.

My letter of application to Disney would be:

Dear Employer,

I am writing to you to apply for the role as a cast member (Disney Princess) at your theme park. My name is Niamh Kenny, I'm 17 years of age, and Caucasian. Being Caucasian allows me to take up various roles in Disney. I believe I would suite characters such as; Cinderella as I have long blonde hair and a similar build. Elsa would also be a well suited role for me as it is of similar characteristics. I've loved Disney since I can remember who hasn't? But as a performer, I see this as a real opportunity and a possible dream come true. I am great with children and have volunteered with a wide range of disabled children as I believe in giving everyone an equal opportunity to have fun

I am musically talented, which is what Disney reflects in their park parades, and of course, the films. This is reflected in my achievements of getting a Distinction* in my Performing Arts Level 3 Diploma. My peers would describe me as a confident and approachable, which are two characteristics I believe you must have for a role like this one.

I have been to Disneyland Paris and Orlando, and have recently booked a returning visit. I have found my experience at Disney Land phenomenal and in I particular remember receiving a V.I.P ticket from a Disney worker at Disney’s Wildlife park by one of your colleagues, this enlightened my Disney dreams and ever since I’ve wanted to give other children the experience I had and allow them to step into the world of magic, love and dreams.

Thank you for your time, and I hope to hear from you soon.

 

Yours Faithfully,

Niamh Kenny

THIRD JOB APPLICATION LETTER

For several years, I went to Brighton Festival Youth Choir. This led me to enquiring if they had any positions going there, so I have chosen to email the manager.

 

Dear Ester,

It is Niamh Kenny, former member of your choir. I am currently looking for a job in the performing arts that would work alongside my regular auditioning. Therefore, I am writing to you today to see if there any positions of work for me, or to see  if there were any opportunities for me to run singing  and possibly acting workshops. This allows the choir members to have a wider insight into the showbiz world, and how they can further there hobbies from choir to outside of choir.

At my time at Brighton Festival Youth Choir, I learnt a lot about myself and progressively became a stronger performer than ever before. On many occasions, I had the responsibility of looking after the younger years, both on and off stage, which is something I really enjoyed. I developed a strong relationship with all the conductors and choir masters, and would love to work with them. I believe there is still so much more for me to learn and gain from them. As well as the members to learn from what they taught me over years.

I would love to give back to the choir that provided me with so much.

 

Thank you for your time, and I hope to hear from you soon.

Kindest Regards,

Niamh Kenny