Analyse each Directors choice of setting for the three films (all versions of Macbeth) - Explain what you think the director is trying to achieve in each case and how effective you believe him to have been - Refer to the idea you think the director has ab
Analyse each Directors choice of setting for the three films. Explain what you think the director is trying to achieve in each case and how effective you believe him to have been. Refer to the idea you think the director has about the play. In this essay I will analyse the opening scenes of three versions of Macbeth. The three versions are directed by Orson Welles, Michael Bogdanov and Trevor Nunn. Each expert in their directorial field. The directors brought their own interpretations of Shakespeare's Macbeth. The main feature of Orson Well's interpretaion was the use of black and white film. A feature of Michael Bogdanov's version was the modern set. He chose to bring the story into the twentieth century and chose a set which reflected this. Trevor Nunn's interpretation although on film was actually like a theatre production. In the following paragraphs I intend to show how the directors use of Lighting, set, costume, camera shots, pace, mood and script for the opening scenes will set the tone of the play. The Michael Bogdanov setting has to be the strangest of the lot instead of a dark and misty day, which we expect it, opens with a bright hazy day this confuses us because we expect the opening to be much more moody and dramatic to reflect the evil in the play. There is a panning shot of a junkyard then we zoom down into it where the opening scenes are set. By
Billy Liar: How to play Rita in her first scene
Set Text Essay - Billy Liar 6a) I have been using the Nelson Thornes Dramascripts edition of Billy Liar. I will discuss how I would play Rita in the selected scene. In this particular scene, I think it is important to show how aggravating the character of Rita is to everyone else on stage, and while I want the audience to understand this too, it is also a scene rich in moments with comic potential. For most of the section, Rita is pushy and aggressive; however there are occasional moments when she almost lets her guard down. I wish to explore the subtextual side of Rita's personality including the motives for her wanting the engagement ring from Billy. I view Rita as more complex than she may appear on first impressions, and instead of solely wanting the ring to show off, she may desire the ring to give her a feeling of belonging, to prove to herself and those around her that she can be loved, as in places, she could be seen as a deeply insecure character. At the beginning of the selected section, when Rita first makes her entrance, I want the audience to see how Rita does anything to get what she wants, even if it entails storming into a stranger's house. I would also want the audience to see that she is a formidable character, who will stop at nothing to achieve her goal. I would enter onto the stage by striding from the back of the room, through the gap in the middle
Show how two different directors present the opening/witches scenes.
Macbeth William Shakespeare Show how two different directors present the opening/witches scenes. We watched two different versions of Macbeth. One was the BBC Shakespeare and the other one was a production called Middle English! While both productions told the story of the original play by William Shakespeare they were different in a number of ways. The BBC Shakespeare presents a traditional version of Macbeth. The director starts with a long shot of a bleak, empty landscape. As the camera zooms in it starts to focus on a granite platform with three objects lying on top. The rock-like platform is bathed in swirling mists and there is a greyish lighting used with occasional flashes of light to represent lighting. There are also loud percussion noises to represent thunder. This is because in Shakespeare's play the opening scene has stage directions for a storm and the first lines spoken by the witches also support this idea "When shall we three meet again in thunder, lighting, or in rain. As the camera goes in for a close up the mysterious shapes begin to move. Along with their slow movements they start to unfold and to rise and the music increases in volume and pitch as if reflecting the movement of the shapes. It soon becomes clear that these bundles of rags are in fact women. They are the weird sisters or witches in the play and they are shown in this version as old and
How effectively do Roman Polansk, Orson Welles and Trevor Nunn Use a combination of sound and vision to create an atmosphere of evil and the supernatural at the beginning of their respective versions of Macbeth?
Comparing 3 versions of Macbeth Introductions How effectively do; · Roman Polanski * Orson Welles * Trevor Nunn 1) Use a combination of sound and vision to create an atmosphere of evil and the supernatural at the beginning of their respective versions of Macbeth? 2) What differences in interpretation do you notice? Roman Polanski This is a modern representation of evil. The scene starts with a time lapse sequence, beginning with sunset into night, pulling through to sunrise. This style of scene opening makes it clear to us that the ritual has to take place at a certain time; early morning. A seagull breaks the silence, giving the scene an isolated feel. A title saying, `the tragedy of Macbeth' appears as the opening scene comes to an end. The camera moves to show a crooked stick make a mark in the sand, and then three pairs of hands begin to dig a hole in a very hurried way. This gives a mysterious effect as it isn't obvious at this moment what exactly is happening. The camera now shoes us the three witches that are digging the hole, they are breathless which gives the impression they aren't in the best of health. We see a full facial view of the witches as they begin to chant their rituals. They are traditional looking witches, one has a crooked nose and they have bent figures, mumbling voices, facial warts and black clothing. The oldest
How effective an adaptation of the play Macbeth is the film ‘Macbeth on the Estate’?
How effective an adaptation of the play Macbeth is the film 'Macbeth on the Estate'? Macbeth on the Estate is a modern adaptation of Macbeth. It is set on a modern, run-down housing estate in Birmingham. The major changes from the play are the setting and the characters. There are much fewer noble qualities about the people and places shown. Instead, the setting is very run-down and poor. The characters are also corrupt and indulgent. A lot of the blame for the bad things that happen in the play seems to be given to characters. For example, the possibility that the witches control Macbeth, and he is not in control is implied to be untrue by suggesting that the effects that seem to be supernatural are simply caused by drugs and the poor conditions. There are also some things done that cannot be done in a theatre, such as camerawork to direct the audience. I believe that the film is a reasonable good conversion of the play into a modern film. I believe that it managed to portray the meaning of the original in a modern way that is easy to understand for modern people, as well as making suggestions about the story. I like how every aspect of Shakespearean world was converted into something of the modern world, for example the castle being converted into a social club. What I don't like about it is the fact that the language wasn't changed from the original text. Although it is
blue remembered hills2
Blue Remembered Hills Drama Coursework Development When we ere given our parts, I was given the part of Angela, who I knew from reading the script was the spoilt, annoying child! I was pleased with this because I thought it would be fun to play. I thought this because even though I didn't have a great deal of lines, I thought it would be fun to show the personality of my character through movement, compared to dialogue. Our group were given the end part of the play (scenes 15-29), which was possibly one of the more significant parts of the play. It was important because it was at the end of the play when Donald dies, which would be a sad moment for the audience, and we had to portray the feelings of sadness. This was most definitely the key event in our scenes. After we had explored the play more, we started to rehearse and perfect our parts. Our group wanted to reach a stage where we had a piece that we were ready to perform and one that we were happy with, because we had the end scene; we knew it had to be of a good standard. We also wanted to have lots of energy in our performance. We thought the best way to achieve this would be to rehearse a lot. When we started rehearsals, we found that some people struggled with the West Country accent. This then led to some people getting very irritated with the play and feeling as if we would never reach a point where we could
William Shakespeare, lived during 1564 and 1616, wrote "Spring" and "Winter".
Marta Davis Poetry Essay 1 Spring vs. Winter: A Comparison of Shakespeare William Shakespeare, lived during 1564 and 1616, wrote "Spring" and "Winter", both eighteen line poems written as a companion piece to one another. Similarly, the poems discuss the themes of each season through the use of imagery. Both poems use ABAB rhyme, meaning the first line rhymes with the third, while the second line rhyme with the fourth. Both use iambic tetrameter, four units of iambic beat to a line. This allows the poems to maintain a rhythm of weak then strong beats. Spring and Winter, both contain lines with eight syllables. In addition to meter and rhyme, Shakespeare repeats whole words, phrases, lines or group of lines in some fixed pattern, similar to a song (Arp p. 176). "Spring" uses three sets of four lines to separate the poem, summarizing the poem with two lines at the end. The theme of the song is that spring is a time for beauty, growth and regenerative powers especially when compared to the season of winter. Shakespeare creates these themes by a major use of imagery. Imagery is the use of vivid or figurative language to represent objects, actions, or ideas (dictionary.com). "Daises pied", is a concise way to say the daises are patchy in color, along with the blue violets. Between the flowers and buds of yellow hue, "do paint the meadows with delight". Immediately, the reader
How would you direct the characters Abigail and Proctor to convey meaning to an audience?
How would you direct the characters Abigail and Proctor to convey meaning to an audience? Abigail: On the line 'Give me a word, John. A Soft word' Abigail should come closer to Proctor and stroke the side of his face gently. This conveys that she still is in love with john and wants to tempt him back to her. She should also bat her eyelids at him softly too. After this, Proctor says 'No, no, Abby. That's done with now' Abby should spring back and have a shocked expression but then move in closer again and say the next line. This conveys that John Proctor does not want another relationship with Abigail but shows that Abigail has the determination to not give up until she has her man. When she says the line 'you come five mile to see a silly girl fly? I know you better.' She should say this in a tauntingly fashion and give him eye contact while saying this. This shows that she is really trying hard to catch him in a gaze to grab his attention more and she should say the line flirtatiously; and Abigail puts her hand around his neck. As john attempts to push Abigail away, Abigail grabs hold of John Proctors hand in desperation and holds it firmly. Then she says the line: 'John-I am waiting for you every night.' The Abigail's eyes start to water slightly but no tears come out of her eyes. This conveys that she is upset by him not wanting her again, but shows that she
How does Shakespeare create tension and atmosphere in four scenes?
Rachel Morgan 11b Macbeth Course Work How does Shakespeare create tension and atmosphere in four scenes? Introduction In this essay my intention is to show how shakespeare created atmosphere and tention in the following scenes - Act 1 scene 1 - Act 1 scene 3 - Act2 scene 1 - Act2 scene 3 When Shakespeare wrote this play it was designed for an Elizabethan audience. People of this time believed in God and the devil, and heaven and hell as real places. They also believed in evil spirits and the power of witchcraft and magic. James I himself was interested in the subject, he'd even written several books on it. One Scottish woman called Agnes Sampson was accused of trying to kill James by witchcraft, she was supposed to have attached parts of a dead body to a cat, sailed to sea to cause a storm to wreck the king's ship. People also believed in the Divine right of kings - that kings were appointed by God therefore, to kill a king would be the evilest murder of all. So immediately Shakespeare sets the mood and captures the imagination of the audience by starting the play with the witches
Any film maker when making their own interpretation of a play needs to create a general atmosphere relevant to the original script.
Any film maker when making their own interpretation of a play needs to create a general atmosphere relevant to the original script. This would have been the case for Roman Polanski and Orson Welles when each was creating his own version of act 1 scene 1 of Shakespeare's Macbeth. In their individual historical contexts they each had cinematic equipment at their disposal which Shakespeare did not have. When the later called for lightening and thunder ,he was given thunder boards, his play was performed in daylight with no special lighting effects in 16th century England. However Shakespeare did have the advantage of his audience understanding the superstitions concerning witchcraft, which unfortunately a modern audience would not have. Having noted these points Welles and Polanski follow Shakespeare's requirements for his play in their cinematic interpretations of Macbeth act1 scene1. Polanskis witches were quite normal looking, one is young , one is old and one is middle aged. They are also quite harmless looking, but that is really deceptive. One witch is blind, one dumb and one deaf ; they need and depend on eachother to stay alive. In Shakespeare's day 3 was a magic number, the witches appearances are very dramatic, perhaps due to their infirmities. The oldest witch is the most terrifying looking because she has got no eyes and her skin has grown over the sockets. It