Through out the play my characters role was switching from Cassie to the News reporter. I was able to keep in role as these two characters by keeping my mind focused on how I believed both of these characters would react and speak and used different tones in given circumstances. The two characters were very different to each other which made the switch from one to the next easier. The character of Cassie spoke in a colloquial way where as the News reporter spoke in a formal manor.
“A lie must become, or at any rate must seem to become, truth on the stage before it can be convincing. And truth on the stage is what the actor, the artist and the spectator believe to be truth” (Stanislavski)
How did group skills contribute to the development of the drama?
In the beginning we discussed as a group what the key group work skills were. These were Co-operation, listening, negotiation, teamwork, forward planning and dedication. We decided to keep these key skills in order to have a successful production.
Communication was the most important skill, which bought our group forward. For example a group member missed an evening rehearsal but said she was going some where else when we found out this information, as a group we approached her and said that this behaviour was not acceptable she apologised and we were able to carry on our devising productively.
We then agreed if any one had a problem they should speak about it rather than hold it inside as we realised this would create a bad atmosphere, which would not allow the group to progress positively.
As a group we decided is an individual didn’t like a particular scene or idea for some reason that individual had to give a valid reason but also have another idea to back this up.
We discussed the topic, which we wanted to explore which was ‘the Criminal Mind’ we then researched about criminals when we returned we gathered all our information together and then decided we want to base our characters on murders. Then we had to go away further and research a murder. We agreed we had to find out the age and motive of the murder, which we were going to base our character on.
From the play division began we decided that one or two individuals would direct each scene, we tried this but as the play progressed we decided we worked more productive when we came together as a group and directed each scene.
Each group member had different strengths, which contributed to the final production piece. For example my main strength was keeping a happy and positive atmosphere; I kept the spirits up in times when the group were in despair, where as another group member was able to take more control with the Physical Theatre and another member had strength in scripting certain scenes. This pulled the group together, so we all shared the pressure.
We all took turns in one rehearsal to hot seat another character thins strengthened the play as our characters were being bought forward.
“What is important to me is the truth in me, the truth of my attitude towards one scene or another on the stage towards the different things on the stage, the scenery, my partners and their feelings and thoughts” (Stanislavski)
When the group faced problems we sat down together and discussed the problem, we discussed how we could overcome it positively and finally we got on and face the problem physically.
With those skills incorporated into our group we were able to produce a unique and didactic piece of theatre.
Indicate how the influence and ideas of other playwrights and/or directors have been seen
So far with in the play our main influences have been Brecht and Stanislavski.
Stanislavski has influenced our play, as we want to create ‘A Slice of Life’. We have decided to keep our characters realistic in order put across the question we want our audience to answer. We believed that if the characters are realistic this enables the audience to be affected by the issue raised and enable them to realise that’s these issues are taking place within the society we live in today.
“Don’t act for the sake of acting, Always act with a purpose” (Stanislavski)
Brecht has been our main influence for our set design. We are aiming for our set to be minimal with only 6~7 stalls on it. We want our audience to feel alienate by making our stage ‘A Place of Transformation’ (Brecht). We plan on having a mask on our set, which will be larger than life, and this will be used to symbolise the mind of a criminal and as actors we will be travelling inside the mind of a criminal and asking questions, which we do not have the answer for.
We realised after researching that, this idea would be expensive but also a great hazard to us as performers, so we decided on having a minimal stage with stools and a backdrop.
Our Physical Theatre scene was greatly influenced by Artaud.
“The real stage play upsets our tranquillity, releases our repressed subconscious, drives us to a kind of potential rebellion” (Artaud)
In our Physical Theatre we wanted our audience to feel intimidated by our physical theatre scene but also aware of the issues being raised.
“Any true feeling cannot in reality be expressed. To do so is to betray it. To express it, however, it is to conceal it”
The idea of having the stage as minimal as possible developed from when I went to see a Theatre performance of Hamlet at the Barbican theatre. The actor bought on one chair which was not used in every scene otherwise the stage was empty.
The staging in another performance called Peep Show, which was at the Lyric theatre, gave you an insight to other people’s lives. This influenced our mini snippet scenes as these also gave you an insight to what went on in people’s lives before they were classed as mad.
The use of speaks over the music as the lights change into the next scene influenced our art class scene. This was from watching a performance called Electra at the Millfield Theatre we saw this as a good idea for a link rather than jus having a black out, we had the characters still talking.
With all these combined together we were able to create “Just Another Headline”
In what ways were acting techniques or design elements and dramatic form used to achieve the intended effect?
Our acting techniques are based on Stanislavski’s ‘a slice of life’ this is in order to create the most realistic effect possible to enable for our audience to be drawn into the message being put across.
When our audience walk into our acting space we want the audience to feel as if they are in a mental institute. We want to have 4 mirror panels, which are placed in front of where the audience are sitting. This is to create the effect that the Subjects (actors) are being watched but they are unable to see through them, but also when we researched them we found they were too expensive and we had no place to hang them from the ceiling.
Through out the duration of our play we will be using coloured gels to create different atmospheres. Blue gels to represent the criminal’s life when they were happy and with out a motive to kill, Red gels to represent the anger in which the criminal feels while committing the crime and finally Purples gels to represent the criminals confused state of mind.
Our audience were seated in a diamond shape, this was in order for them to have a view of all what was happening and also to symbolise that they were having different prospective on people’s lives.
When getting into character we found Stanislavki’s relaxation technique helped our character greatly. This made me focus more when acting; this also made me feel like I was acting with a purpose which was what Stanislavski wanted his actors to feel when performing. I used the acting techniques of physicality, eye contact and characterisation to portray my character. I kept strong eye contact with the audience members, this I believed intimidated them and made them feel uncomfortable in their personal space. To get my characterisation and physicality I observed young people the age of 14, I was able to notice a particular girl in the school canteen who was with he friends, she seem rather shy, timid and introvert. This seemed the perfect example for the character of Cassie Whatts.
Our design element was extremely minimal. In the beginning of our devising we want our set to have a clinical feeling to it but as the play progressed we decided this was not the best option.
Our backdrop was minimal also and did not give away any of the plays plot. The backdrop had the title of the play “Just Another Headline” with nothing else. We wanted this to create an image similar to a newspaper article, so that when the Over Head Projector images and quotes came up the audience felt as if they were reading the newspaper article.
We had our stalls seated next to the audience members so they felt apart of the play.
A number of dramatic forms were used with the play. Naturalism was a big part as all our characters were based on a real person from the past.
“Naturalism is what you do when you don’t know anything else. When you have little skill for anything else you automatically revert to the copy of everything around you” (Berkoff)
Alienation was used through out the whole play but particularly in the Physical Theatre scenes as we had strobe lighting and stools swung around the room.
Our play had an episodic structure as it jumps from different days and times.
Our characters were based on Stanislavkis’ ‘Slice of life’, which allowed us to keep our characters as natural as possible.
We used mime in our Art class scene, which was a small section of our everyday life in the institute. Also we added three snippets scenes, which ran through the play these were showing the build up to the criminal committing their murder
“Emotions have to be exaggerated and for this an actor must use gesture. Gesture as used by actors adapting the alienation effect most underlining the social gest” (Brecht)
Our play was an examination of the criminal mind and the social perception of it. We presented our audience with characters, which they were able to relate to, we also showed how real characters could change to criminals. The play was a combination of effective devices from a variety of practitioners including Artaud, Pinter, Stanislavski and Brecht.
How did the rehearsals and the production process contribute to the final performance?
In the beginning of devising our piece we sat down as a group and firstly decided on the days in which we where going to use to rehearse. When we found the days, which suited every one, we were able to make a group decision not to miss any of these sessions unless unavoidable.
At this point it was instigated that we make a set of group rules, which we should all abide by. These rules kept the group together and I believe with out them the play would not have been productive.
Also in order to keep organised we allocated tasks for every one to do these included lighting, sound, advertisement and motivation. We then agreed that we all should direct a specific scene but as the play developed we then thought as a group we were more productive when devised each scene.
Quite early on in our devising time began our rehearsals with a warm up to get us focused but as we developed our piece and knew where it was going with regards to the ply, we did not need to do this as much, as everyone came to rehearsals focused and full of ideas.
Some of out evening rehearsals were spent developing and talking as a group about what we want each character to portray. It was then you responsibility to go out and kind research on that before the next rehearsal.
At the very beginning of our devised piece we, as a class had a physical theatre workshop. This inspired our group to incorporate this into our piece some how.
After weeks of rehearsing we had a basic structure for our play. We then asked our drama teacher to give us practical criticism, we were able to notice the weaker scenes, which gave us time to alter or completely change. We also noticed that’s our play as a whole was not as in depth as we aspired for, so we sat down and discussed what areas we believed to be letting the play down.
As a group I found our positive attitudes helped us in a great way even though we did have good and bad moments this made our rehearsal process easier. When the rehearsals were getting intense and pressurising there was always a positive attitude whether it was with one or two members of the group.
A beneficial moment in out play was when we added an extra physical theatre scene. This boosted the group and this gave us confidence as it was created by all of us.
Our final piece, I believe came together on the night of our dress rehearsal and even after we still decided to make changes but this would not have been achievable if we were not honest and we did not have that trust and bond.
How the group planned for a range of responses
At the beginning of the play while the audience were walking in, we were already seated so when the audience were all seated they felt as if they were apart of the play. There was no movement amongst the actors as we had the overhead images of ourselves while we were speaking. We want the audience to feel drawn into the newspaper in order to be aware of the issues being raised. We had soft music playing in the background.
The next scene was our 1st snippet. Throughout the play we had three of these particular scenes. These snippets represented the past and the build up to the murder. It was like a mini story within the play. For this we used blue, lighting and a track from the train spotting CD.
The third scene each character (subject) was interviewed. This jus allowed the audience to find out who each character was this introduced them into the play.
The next scene was our Physical Theatre scene this represented the state of mind each character was in, with relation to their murder. Remorse, revenge, madness, escapism, entrapment, confusion and frustration were all portrayed with this piece and in conjunction with the strobe lighting this added the visual affect, which was desired. You were able to see the confusion on the audience’s faces along with the anticipation.
The forth scene was the monologue of the professor who had been working at the institute. Her monologue gave you her background of work experiences. This scene did not have an intended response but it did inform them of the professor’s background.
The art class scene gives you a hint of what the subjects are like on a day-to-day basis. The art class allows the audience to see the subjects on a deeper level as they express their artistic skills to portray how they feel.
Scene seven was the second part to the snippets this just shows the building up but the purple light is shining this shows the confusion of the subjects as they are feeling pushed.
The next scene is another news report this scene shows that the subjects have been caught for their murder but also this moves into a movement piece where we throw different newspaper articles on murders on the floor. The subjects then mime how they committed there while the professor is picking up the articles.
The next scene is the monologues. This scene allows the subject to justify why they committed the crime. At this point the professor is sticking the newspaper articles onto a big sheet as she creates collage this represents her obsession with her job. Some of the monologues made you feel sorry for the character where as some made you believe that they felt no remorse for their murder but this allowed the to get an understanding and background knowledge of the character.
The interview of the professor was just another opportunity for the audience to have an understanding of the professor and her day-to-day life.
The third snippet now shows the breaking point of each character, and the actual murder which is carried out. Red light is used to symbolise the anger and frustration.
The counselling scene brings the whole play together bring the whole play together. The characters now express their feelings through speaking, it is evident why the characters did what they did whether it was the right or wrong action.
The final scene was our Physical Theatre this represented the control, which the subjects had over the professor. This scene conveyed to the audience that the professor was turning into one of the subjects, this scene then moved into the over head projector images where quotes, statistics and graphic pictures were used. The quotes were regarding murders, which had been committed, the statistics were of recent murders and their reason and the pictures were of victims who had been assaulted.
By these images we wanted our audience to be shocked as well as educated, in order for them to be aware in the future.
Evaluate the way in which you ideas were communicated to the audience.
In the play I wanted my character to represent and communicate the young people in this society. My main aim was to show that any one is capable of committing a crime even a 14-year-old teenager, if they are pushed over the edge or have reached their boiling point. On a whole we wanted out play to examine and communicate the social perception. A lot of people are oblivious to what is going on in society and would not believe a 14 year old could do such a thing.
My character put this into perspective and made the audience realise that this can actually happen and it does.
When looking at the character of Cassie Watts, it would seem hard to believe that this character, after looking at her characteristics and physicality would be capable of killing a baby.
We presented our audience with characters, which they can relate to and showed how real characters can change.
In each scene my character changes. When she is in the institute she is extremely quiet where as, when there are scenes of her outside the institute you are able to see ‘the real’ Cassie.
I wanted to communicate to the audience that the institute changes the character. I wanted to communicate that Cassie was sorry for her murder. This is shown through her monologue, Physical Theatre and counselling scene. The monologue makes the audience think she is sorry but the Physical Theatre scene is also there to clarify her remorse. In the counselling when Cassie is asked to use one word which best describes how she is feeling, she uses “sorry” and through out the scene all she says is that she is sorry.
We used a number overhead projector images; which included pictures, statistics and questions. These images carried the story line in order to make clear what we wanted our audience to get from the play.
How Stimulus material we developed through the drama process
“When you begin to study each role you should first gather all of the materials that have a baring on it, and supplement them with more and more imagination” ( )
The main stimulus, which influenced our main focus for out play, was newspaper pictures, which were of battered elderly people. We discussed as a group that we wanted to look into the criminal’s side of the story as the victims are often investigated.
Our drama teacher gave another stimulus to us, which was song words/poem. When we looked at the poem we realised this did not have any association with the themes raised.
A piece of music was bought in by a group member this was a stimulus which influenced our Physical Theatre piece. The music gave us a beat to work with so we were able to move in time and with out any hazards.
“ What was the impact of social cultural and or historical conditions on the work”
Just Another headline focuses on all different social backgrounds. Each of the characters are from different classes including working, middle, lower and upper.
The different characters backgrounds mean they speak and judge different situations differently for example the character of Zhara Wallis was a lesbian at this point in the play she is lower class as she has been kicked out of her home because of this. This shows that Zhara may have been bought up from a good social background and this type of behaviour would not have acceptable from this social class.
Cassie Watts was from a middle class family with a good up bringing, murders are unheard of within her family.
These characters are all based on real people from the past. The character of Cassie Watts was based on a lady called Doreen Baired from the 1950’s who killed a baby who was the age of eight months. Doreen was babysitting five children and this particular baby was crying more than the others, she reached her boiling point and strangled the baby.
The quotes used in the play are all taken from historical events, which have occurred.