I have spilt the last scene of the play ‘Blood Brother” so I can direct and explain how I want things to be spoken etc. in sections. In this way, I can paint a clearer picture of how I wish this last scene to be directed.
1-Directing the play from When Edward is giving his speech until the councillors hurry off, the stage will be set out as of the following.
While the speech is taking place, the stage will be set out as a normal conference room. Edward, trying to look nonchalant under all the stress, is standing behind a high quality wooden table, which is on a high podium. There are two councillors standing either side of him, dressed in suits and ties. They are holding their head up high. Edward says his lines in a high volume, also he is trying to speak at a steady pace, his tone is quite firm and formal.
The atmosphere of the scene also is quite formal until Edward’s audience start commotion. There will be a white light focusing on wards while he is addressing his speech, unaware that Mickey will appear. As soon as Mickey enters the atmosphere completely changes where Mickey is now the person in the advantage with a gun in his hand. Edward will start to sweat and get every nervous, thinking the audience are against his speech; even so he will stumble on with his speech. Edward will slowly turn his head, when he does this also the spotlight on him will move, he will see Mickey standing their with a gun pointed at him. The audience Edward is addressing will start screaming and running around terrified in all direction creating chaos. The tension keeps building up while Edward starts realising what is going on and why his audience is in chaos etc, at this time there will be a drum beat getting loader and loader by the minute and then it will suddenly stop to a halt when all the councillors and Edwards audience are gone from the stage. At this point only Edward and Mickey are present in the stage. There will be a white stream of light going from the gunpoint and connecting with the white spotlight on Edward to show the effect of the gun and its reality.
2-Directing the play from when the councillors hurry off until just before we hear the Policemen arrive, the stage will be set out as of the following.
In this part, we are dragged deeply into Mickey’s feeling and what he has been gong through. It is for this reason I do not think there should be any sound effects, so all we hear his voice explaining the situation to Edward and to the audience. Edward does try to fight back for the accusation being made towards him – ‘Mickey, I don’t know what…’ I think that Edward should say this speech in a firm yet hurried way, to show his innocents as well as him fear. Mickey does not believe what Edward is saying is true and lashes out at him for the first time in the scene, at this point a load bang will occur and the spotlight will fall upon Mickey as he shouts – ‘Friends!’ For the rest of this part, Mickey and Edward finish off there conversation in anger and denial, Edward thinks Mickey is talking rubbish when he accuses him about his child, when Edward says – ‘No, for God’s sake!’ – he will turn to a different direction yet will still be facing Mickey, to show how ridiculous he thinks his “blood bother” is acted. There is then a pause of when Edward and Mickey just stare at each other silence.
3-Directing the play from when Mrs Johnstone is addresses Mickey until the Police are heard through the loudhailer, the stage will be set out as of the following.
Then when the police and Mrs Johnstone enter this is where the drumbeat should begin. This will show the audience that something is about to happen but not clear on what it will be. When Mrs Johnstone walks down the aisle towards the boys the drumbeat should increase in tempo, and then suddenly stop when she stops. This section starts with Mrs Johnstone just observing her tow sons and the situation she had caused then to be in, she does this in absolute silence, no sound effects, just the same spotlight of the gun to hitting Edward sharply. Mickey sympathetically telling his mum to get out of the mess he is in- ‘Go away Mam…Mam you go away from here’- abruptly breaks this silence. She rejects her son’s call for her safety Then suddenly the sympathy for his mother turns to anger as Mickey gets aggravated and shouts- ‘Mam!’- At this point a sharp light and strong sound should hit the centre of the stage to emphasis the anger going on between the family members. Mrs Johnstone still rejects his call and starts her speech of the hidden truth towards the two young men- “Mickey. Don’t shoot Eddie’. While Mrs Johnstone is making her sons face the facts of there birth, slow yet daunting music should be in the background to emphasis the un-revealed truth that has just come. Although when Mickey shouts ‘You! You!’-the music stops and the lights go down leaving only the usual typical subtle stage lighting, this will give the audience a scene that it is all over and nothing can be done about the situation any longer. A spotlight will follow Mickey until he finishes his angry speech. While Mickey is saying his speech he is shaking violently and swearing continually. He will concentrate his eyes upon the gun and only the gun to show his unbelief the entire situation and to also to show his fear. Then there finally comes the end to the whole play, THE GUNSHOT. There will be a bluely spotlight upon Mickey throughout his speech, while the gun takes it shot the spotlight will jump out of its place along with Mickey’s hand shaking, this is followed by the policeman’s gunshot towards Mickey, it is only when Mickey hits the ground with a ‘No’ that the spotlight is taken off his body. This is so the audience can see the damage caused by his mother, him and his brother lying on the floor in darkness, side by side, with only a gun separating there two bodies. There will be slow sad music playing in the background and rain falling upon the whole stage to give a chance for the actors to leave without the audience noticing. When the rain and the music eventually stops, the lights will come back up at full blast and the final part of the last scene will take place…
4-Directing the play from when the narrator and Mrs Johnstone are signing in the end, the stage will be set and it will be directed out as the following.
The stage will have no sorts of props or furniture on it. The only people who will be on it, is Mrs Johnstone, the narrator and his company. Mrs Johnstone will be isolated taking up half the stage, in the other half of the stage; the narrator and his company will be there isolated alone also, this is too show that Mrs Johnstone came from having a whole family to nothing. The music will go with the rhythm Mrs Johnstone sings her piece as if it was any other tune, it would not work effectively. The bodies of Mrs Johnstone’s two sons will remain in the centre of the stage, and she will between her words from time to time come up to the dead bodies and touch them to show the audience her affection the only spotlight in this part of the play will be focusing on the two bodies, this light will supplies a reflection of light to the rest of the stage. I believe that the less light in the end the better so the theme of sadness and tragedy can be emphasised.
In conclusion, I believe I have described the way I want the last scene to be directed. I have talked about what sort of lighting I want and at what times. Also I have talked about the way I want particular lines to be said to emphasis the wording being used. And finally I have also described the sort of sound effects I want throughout the play.