Evaluate the ways in which ideas were communicated to the audience
Name: Michael Sims Candidate Number: 8178 Centre Number: 56515 Evaluate the ways in which ideas were communicated to the audience We constructed War Spectacular to be an abstract piece made up of a number of unconnected scenes; this structure enabled us to tell numerous different stories, all with their own message. We realised early in the devising process that in order to keep this piece objective we would have to keep all of the scenes and settings non-specific, if we used the real names of locations, religions or people it may have caused offence to the audience, thus drawing away from our message. There were many different messages we wanted to convey to the audience; however there was one theme which ran throughout the piece, ultimately connecting the disjointed scenes; we were showing the different 'faces of war'. The first 'face of war' which we wanted to show was the human element of war. The original concept for the play was to show the affect of a conflict upon two families, show their struggle, and ultimately their collapse. Although this concept was scrapped the themes were kept for use during War Spectacular. If we were to show the human and emotional side of war it was obvious that we needed to use a group of 'real' characters (opposed to the more abstract characters which would use throughout the play which would lack exposition and depth) who would
How acting techniques or design elements and the use of dramatic form were consciously employed to achieve the intended effect.
An evaluation of the ways in which ideas were communicated to the audience. Our piece had several key ideas behind it. We wanted to present a piece to educate about drug use, in a way that was different to the methods currently being used - and to a slightly older audience. We felt that the currently methods of education and were not working as they were biased towards the negative side of drugs. We aimed to show the audience both the positive and negative side of drugs. We did this using 'Epic Theatre' format, having several running 'story' have having quick changes to and from each 'story'. Each 'story' was given a certain amount of scenes. We wanted to show a positive scene, a negative scene and a 'turning point' in which the drug user decides to go into rehab. We felt that the audience would then get a brief understanding of the story within a small amount of time. They would also be provided with enough evidence to make a decision on the issues brought forward through the production, questioning the legality of drugs, questioning why people use drugs and questioning the education about drugs. Some scenes, which began as a positive, warped into a negative effect of drugs. For example the "Row Your Boat" opening sequence began as a calm and relaxing 'positive trip' however it turned into a 'bad trip' and the user quickly became frightened. This was also used in the pub
How did rehearsals and the production process contribute to the final performance.
Our initial discussions concerning our stimulus Nighthawk by Edward Hopper was focussed on how we could use the loneliness ever present in his paintings. We choose Nighthawk especially because we wanted to reflect how distant the people seemed in the Bar. Our first devising technique was to choose a part of our image to act out in tableaux; we choose the cigar in the sign of the bar. We used the time period of the painting to reflect how the social culture regarding smoking was fashionable, and how the working man could come home to relax with a cigar. We then devised another tableau to contrast the time period with present day beliefs and fashions regarding smoking, and in this we showed how unsocial it had become. The overall direction we got from this exercise was how influential people were around the 1970's, and we wanted to reflect the concept of office work and how monotonous it was. We firstly created a character that suffered from loneliness, (Richard) and wanted to show what effects this illness had on his life. We looked to frame the piece around him being submitted to a mental institute, and decided to improvise a scene involving Richard and a psychiatrist, where Richard was exposed to multiple probing questions piecing together why he was there. We were not happy with how the idea looked, and felt that someone with a mental illness being to submit to a mental
How did rehearsals and the production process contribute to the final performance?
How did rehearsals and the production process contribute to the final performance? Although the majority of the rehearsals involved working closely as a whole group, there were occasional times where two or three members worked separately to focus on a particular element. One example of this was me, Dan, Josh, Sam and Nicole ensuring we were communicating the same facial expressions and gestures at the appropriate moments in the Positive Hour scenes. Our characters were desperately trying to make Hannah's character (Miranda) realise that her husband (Nick) was homosexual, and so we had to react at exactly the same moments to illustrate this "his yeast isn't rising". Our eyebrows would rise at moments of high sexual innuendo, and we would sigh in frustration when Miranda remained in denial. By designating specific movements to specific lines, the emphasis was stronger and the audience's understanding of the scene heightened. Watching this particular part back with the use of video definitely helped; it enabled us to see from an audience's perspective what was working, and what wasn't. Outside of group rehearsal time, we continued to research ideas as individuals, which often had a very positive effect. Having just two members in a more relaxed environment talking about certain scenes meant far higher levels of concentration and ensured the other person was always listening.
Bertolt Brecht.
Bertolt Brecht. Brecht was born Augsburg, Germany in 1898. He then attended university in Munich in 1917. It was while he was at university that he witnessed the Bolshevik Revolution which was the first event to influence him. Brecht wanted what had occurred in Russia to repeat itself in Germany as he saw all there was to gain from a Revolution. This was the first influence that gave Brecht his voice in social and political issues. In 1918 Brecht was called up for World War 1 as a medical orderly. Here he witnessed some of the worst medical injuries created by the war. This experience made him an extreme pacifist. This was the second most influential event that took place which in turn caused him to be in opposition to those international opinionated political powers. He saw them as being capitalist populations, sending innocent men to be murdered meaninglessly, for their own efficient profitable gain. He felt misery as the human potential completely contradicted its entire meaning by the brute actions of humans around the world. Marxism was the influence that gave Brecht hope that there was good within humans although some needed re-awakening. He had seen the Russian Revolution and witnessed the collapse of Germany after World War 1 and the fall of the Royal Family of Europe. This all influenced Brecht to write his first play Baal in 1918. This raw play and episodic
Blood Brothers evaluation.
Blood Brothers evaluation. Written by Willy Russell Performed at the Phoenix Theatre, London Performance date 27 March 03 The performance was melodramatic with big hand gestures and with altered voices. Being melodramatic and the big gestures made it clearer to see what was happening on stage especially as the audience was seated so far away from the actions of the characters. The narrative was set in an old road in Liverpool with Liverpudlian accents, so the actors altered their voices to cockney accents to create a believable setting. The staging was well thought out because the stage was narrow and the seats were plotted around the stage with three floors and lots of seating. It had a rich and luxurious feeling to it and the audience must have felt the same way too, especially with the binoculars built into the seats. The cyclorama (hanging cloth/sky cloth) had a big affect on the audience because it created an illusion of stars and night, which is not commonly used on most stages so it was particularly impressive. The thing that makes or can make musicals in this genre more attractive are props because they add colour, they make it more realistic, added connotations and helps you to tell what is happening by symbolic representation. The set disappointed me because you could see people controlling the light and
Messages and Values in police/cop shows
Compare the representations of police and criminals in two police series. 24 is a American drama with a very high production values. It has lots of locations and high status actors such as Jack Bauer. As its producer Fox, is very powerful. Its shown on Sky One which is a entertainment channel for young audiences . 24 is sequential and fast paced , which is suitable for its target audience , which I think is young men in their 20s because it's technological and up to date; there are lots of gadgets and electronics. The male actors are wearing suits and have sophisticated guns . Also because there is lesbianism depicted, very good looking actors and girls who are vulnerable, which is appealing to most young men. The Bill also popular is shown on terrestrial television, Itv. Itv is a popular, traditional, commercial based channel. Usually aimed at middle-aged people and families. The Bill is targeted at people in their late 40s . You can see this because it is routinely shown ; middle aged people usually like routine. Also the adverts in the break are about houses and furniture and the majority of the actors are middle aged. There are actors who are have appeared in programmes with similar targeted audiences because people find pleasurable to recognize actors. The actors are also look realistic to appeal to older people. The Bill episodes have recaps so you can
Alfred Hitchcock is commonly known as "the master of suspense!" - does he achieve this in the "climbing frame" scene in the film "The Birds"?
Alfred Hitchcock is commonly known as "the master of suspense!" Does he achieve this in the "climbing frame" scene in the film "The Birds"? "The Birds" is a melodramatic film produced in 1963 based on the short story by Daphne du Maurier. It was directed by Alfred Hitchcock, a British-born film fanatic. Rod Taylor (Mitch) and Tippie Hedren (Melanie) star in "The Birds", which is one of Alfred Hitchcock's abstrusely unnerving psychodramas. The action takes place in a small Californian town, known as Bodega Bay. Before long the town is attacked by marauding birds, and Hitchcock's skill at staging action is brought to the fore. What really unnerves the audience is not the birds skirmishes, but the anxiety and the eerie quiet between attacks. Hitchcock's dominant suspense thriller sees Melanie taking fate into her own hands to hook up with a rugged fellow (Mitch) in the coastal town of Bodega Bay, after he had purchased some love birds. This film gives light to some of Hitchcock's most unnerving images such as a seagull casually gliding into a shot aloft a blazing petrol station and when Melanie was on a playground bench, unaware of the menaces flocking to the playground climbing frame behind her. This essay will go into great detail about the ways in which the "master of suspense" creates tension and suspense in the infamous "climbing frame" scene. The climbing frame scene
Alfred Hitchcock is commonly known as "the master of suspense". Does he achieve this in the "Climbing Frame" scene in the film The Birds?
Alfred Hitchcock is commonly known as "the master of suspense". Does he achieve this in the "Climbing Frame" scene in the film The Birds? The film we are going to be reviewing is called "The Birds" and was directed by Sir Alfred Jacob Hitchcock. This apocalyptic thriller was distributed in the year 1963 by Universal Pictures, and had been based upon the story written by Daphne Du Maurier. This film is filled of chaotic attacks of ordinary birds, and not of birds of prey, and we are looking at one particular scene, "The Climbing Frame Before this scene, you find that the movie is set in Bodega Bay. Melanie (acted by Tippi Hedren) finds out that Mitch (acted by Rod Taylor) lives in this town of water. She goes along to this village and sees him to deliver some lovebirds. As she approaches the port of the lake she is attacked by a gull. This is the first sign in which we establish that the suspense has started. We find out that, "the birds" is not an ironic title for the film but is explanatory before you have either seen the cover or the whole film. After this part of the movie, Melanie has decided to stay in Bodega Bay with the consultation of Mitch. She has dinner with Mitch's family and this is when the second attack occurs, as more birds fly in through the fireplace. This creates tension, because I had never imagined that the birds could come in through the
How is suspense created in the elevator scene in the film speed?
How is suspense created in the elevator scene in the film speed? The director of Speed, Mark Gordan, uses a range of techniques to build tension and suspense in the film Speed. Camera Angles We see a group of business people leaving a meeting and getting into the lift. The camera angle is at eye level to help the audience feel as though they are looking into their eyes, almost as if they were there with them. This is useful in order to help the audience identify with them and develop feelings for their situation later. After the first two explosions, the camera angle changes to looking down on the passengers. This makes them appear smaller and vulnerable. In contrast to this, the shots of the lift shaft are long shots to contrast the dizzying drop to the basement. There are also various close-up shots of the passengers, suspended in limbo in the lift shaft. This enables the audience to see the fear and anxiety of their faces. We also have close ups of Harry and Jack showing them sweating to help convey the sense of urgency. Camera Techniques We see the finger of the bomber pushing a button on the detonator. The figure is anonymous. Unlike the eye level shots of the passengers that we are invited to identify with, this technique leaves the bomber as a dislocated figure, removed from view and leaves the audience with no means of identifying with him. This ensures our