Performance Analysis - 'Running away with the Hairdresser' by Earth Fall

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Performance Analysis – ‘Running away with the Hairdresser’ by Earth Fall

1. Place of Performance

The Chapter Arts centre is in Canton, Cardiff. Inside the Chapter are three theatres, two cinemas, a few studios, two bars and a coffee shop/café. There are many different events at Chapter that change every week, including visual arts, parties, hit movies and performances. People who visit the Chapter Arts Centre are usually young people, students, and people interested in the arts which means that many experimental and contemporary acts and exhibitions are shown there.

2. Performance Space

The audience enters the performance space behind the eight or nine rows of seats; the stage area is much bigger than the area of seats. The set was visible as we entered, and there was no curtain, the lighting equipment was also clearly visible to the audience. The sound equipment was behind the audience. The stage was lit up before the performance started, then went dark just as the show started. The rows of seats were a lot higher than the stage area. Initially, the set was quite minimalist. On the right of the stage was a bathtub, at the back of the stage there were four chairs and a piano/electric keyboard, with an old-style telephone on the top. The feel of the place was quite eerie to begin with, but also quite relaxed, although the seating area was full, there weren’t very many people as the theatre isn’t a large auditorium.

We were handed a program upon entrance to the theatre, which gave us some background information about the production company “Earth Fall” and also brief information on the performance itself. They also included the website address of the performance and gave credit to those involved.

3. Audience Space and Actor’s Space

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The audience space was formal – all rows of seats were facing the same direction. Therefore; every member of the audience received the same view of the performance. The actors used the audience as a fourth wall – imagining that they weren’t there and there was something else instead of the audience. For example -  a very loud piercing whistle emerged from the back of the theatre (behind the audience) which the performers seemed to respond to in such a way that it gave us the impression that the actors were unaware of us as an audience. The performance ...

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