Alessia WatsonUnit G386 NotebookCandidate 8303

ContentsFinal Choices4Plan of Action5My Skills6Choosing my Monologues7Monologue 1: Phebe- As You Like It8Interpreting Monologues9Monologue 1: Phebe As You Like It10Further Research12Brainstorm for setting the scene14Summary of Scene15Accent and Pronunciation15Theatre Practitioners Technique16Emotional Graphs17As You Like It Monologue18Costume Ideas19Costume20Final Costume Decision21Prop ideas22Set design23Final Set design25Lighting Ideas27Sound Ideas27Development of Monologue28Character Development28Monologue 2: The Girl in 14G29Interpreting Monologues30Monologue 2: The Girl in 1432Further Research34Brainstorm for setting the scene36Summary of Scene37Accent and Pronunciation37Theatre Practitioners Technique38Emotional Graphs39The Girl in 14G Monologue40Costume Ideas41Costume42Final Costume Decision43Prop ideas44Set design45Final Set Decision and Design47Lighting Ideas49Sound Ideas49Development of Monologue50Character Development50Comparing Monologue 1 and Monologue 251Duologue: A Boy Like That/I Have a Love52Interpreting Monologues53Duologue: A Boy Like That/I Have a Love55Further Research57Brainstorm for setting the scene59Summary of Scene60Accents and Pronunciation60Theatre Practitioners Technique61Emotional Graphs62A Boy Like That/I Have A Love Duologue63Costume Ideas64Costume65Final Costume Decision66Prop ideas67Set design68Final Set design70Lighting Ideas72Sound Ideas72Development of Duologue73Character Development73Health and Safety74

Final Choices

Monologue 1: Phebe, Act III Scene V, As You Like ItMonologue 2: The Girl in 14G, Jeanie TesoriDuologue: A Boy Like That/I Have a Love, West Side Story, Bernstein

Plan of Action1. To being with, we have to identify our skills for this unit of work as this unit is all about expressing your strengths. After we have identified our skills we can selected efficiently two contrasting monologues, we can all do this in our lessons as we will no doubt have to narrow it down from a list so we can use each others input. 2. Once weve found our monologues we can decide upon our duologue partners based on what skills and what monologues we have already chosen. We can then decide on a contrasting duologue compared to our monologues.3. After selecting our three pieces we will then need to go and research them, and read the plays if necessary to help develop a greater understanding of the context of our pieces and help develop our characters. 4. As we should by now have an understanding of our character, we can then start to develop our interpretation of the character but using workshops to explore possibilities of how to portray them, and help exaggerate the comparison between both pieces.5. We will then need to design our set and where the performance will take place with props etc, so we can use the space and become accustom to using it.6. Having designed our sets, and making sure we understand our characters we can then begin to annotate our scripts according to how they will be performed. We can set out clear directions sufficiently to keep our performance clean. 7. After we have set out monologues and our duologue we can film our rehearsals so we can see how to improve our performance and criticise ourselves within our capabilities.8. We should by now be off script so that we are able to use movement and the performance itself will become easier.9. The final stage of our plan will be to watch one anothers performances and give constructive criticism and feedback to make sure we perform to the best we can also highlighting the good elements as well.

My Skills I enjoy performing in the theatre and have done for many years; my first show was at the young age of 3 and ever since I have become engaged by the theatre. I have developed many accents over the years due to the shows I have partaken in. My most confident accents are American and Upper class English. I have also improved my Puerto Rican and Northern accent. I have comedy experience in Pantomimes as a child at the Theatre Royal Bath and also as part of school curriculum. I played the part of the ditzy horse, Mollie in Animal Farm, a musical version, which was my first part containing mainly humour. I enjoy exploring new ways of using humour in my performances. I have played several more serious parts compared to comedy parts as I feel I connect with the audience on a more realistic level. Mrs Van Dann in The Diary Of Anne Frank has been one of the parts where both comedy and using serious emotions have been required as Mr and Mrs Van Dann were in essence comedic relief in the show with their bickering so for our parents it was amusing. I prefer playing serious roles as I like reaching the climax and growing through a show, one of my favourite examples of this is in West Side Story during the last scene when Maria is mourning Tonys death and she becomes hysterical. For me personally I felt I could grow through the show as Maria from being an innocent girl to a grieving lover at the end. My love for musical theatre has been very apparent in the parts I have played as it is a very important factor in what I wish to do in the future. I am currently a Grade 8 Soprano singer with a range from a low E below middle C to a high G two octaves above middle C. I am also developing my belt as a mezzo soprano after playing the part of Fantine in Les Miserables. I have been dancing since the age of 3 in Ballet, Tap and Modern. I have reach Pre Intermediate in both Tap and Modern and Grade 7 in Ballet. This helps in many aspects of theatre as I enjoy using the physicality I have developed over the years in physical theatre in productions being comfortable with being creative with movement. Over the years I have had wonderful opportunities on the stage, being in two pantomimes on the Theatre Royal stage between the ages of 8-10 I have grown to take on some very daunting principle roles including; Belle in Beauty and The Beast, Ellen in Miss Saigon, Cosette and Fantine in Les Miserables and Maria in West Side Story. I have been in over 20 shows and each one I have learnt new skills and developing ways throughout the rehearsal to performance process.

Choosing my MonologuesI wanted to make sure the two monologues I would eventually choose, showed a diverse change in my characterization. I focused on the contrast between them both so I decided to choose a comedy piece and a more traditional straight piece of acting. I managed to select 6 possibilities: In His Eyes Jekyll and Hyde: This is originally a duet from the show, when both Lucy and Emma wonder what it would be like to love Jekyll/Hyde unknowing to them that they love the same man. I like the way this sounded in my voice as due to the training I have had with my falsetto, the higher notes sounded more powerful as if I was belting them giving a very satisfying feeling when singing this piece. Its Terrible Being Nice Goodbye Charles: This monologue is a comedy monologue about how much a woman has changed and become nice after being so nasty before she met this man, so asks him not to propose because she doesnt want to be nice. This is a very humorous monologue. Act 3 Scene 5 As You Like It: This monologue is when Phebe digresses her feelings for Ganymede for Silvius and she plans to make fun of him just as he has of her. This is a Shakespearian monologue so very traditional and I could use it for auditions in the future. When I Look At You The Scarlet Pimpernel: This song is truly beautiful, almost similar to In His Eyes and uses the emotion throughout. In the show this is where Marguerite cannot understand how Percy is so drastically different from the man whom she married, making this a very innocent song to perform. The Girl In 14G Jeanine Tesori: This song was written for Kristin Chenoweths debut album and uses opera and scatting to create a hilarious change in tone throughout the song. It would help to show off my vocal range. Keeping Tom Nice Lucy Gannon: In this scene Charlie is arguing with her parents about the way they treat her sick brother Tom, this like the others changes tone a lot allowing to me to explore emotions. After reading/singing through each monologue it was evident that for me personally some were more my style than others. I considered which area I would feel more comfortable in playing humour with, whether it was a song or a monologue. I found that it was easier to portray humour in my song choice rather than my monologue taking into consideration what the others in the showcase would be performing. I decided to choose The Girl In 14G as this was the best choice to help showcase my vocal range and also to include comedy. I also chose Act 3 Scene 5 from As You Like It, as I enjoy performing Shakespeare and I felt it would show something different in the showcase compared to the other performers who were performing very different monologues.

Monologue 1: Phebe- As You Like It

Interpreting Monologues

Monologue 1: Phebe As You Like ItSocial and Historical ContextAs You Like It was most likely written around 15981600, during the last years of Elizabeths reign. In general, Shakespeares As You Like It develops many of the traditional features and concerns of the pastoral genre. This comedy examines the cruelties and corruption of court life and gleefully pokes holes in one of humankinds greatest artifices: the conventions of romantic love. The plays indulges in rather simple rivalries: court versus country, realism versus romance, reason versus mindlessness, nature versus fortune, young versus old, and those who are born into nobility versus those who acquire their social standing. However, rather than settle these scores by coming down on one side or the other, As You Like It offers up a world endless possibilities. In the world of this play, no one thing need cancel out another. In this way, the play manages to offer both social critique and social affirmation. It is a play that at all times stresses the complexity of things, the simultaneous pleasures and pains of being human.PlotAs You Like It is a pastoral comedy by William Shakespeare, As You Like It follows its heroine Rosalind as she flees persecution in her uncle's court, accompanied by her cousin Celia and Touchstone the court jester, to find safety and, eventually, love, in the Forest of Arden. The shepherdess Phebe, whom Silvius is in love with, has fallen in love with Ganymede (Rosalind in disguise), though "Ganymede" continually shows that "he" is not interested in Phebe.Finally, Silvius, Phebe, Ganymede, and Orlando are brought together in an argument with each other over who will get whom. Ganymede says he will solve the problem, having Orlando promise to marry Rosalind, and Phebe promise to marry Silvius if she cannot marry Ganymede.As You Like It is a tale of love manifested in its varied forms. In many of the love-stories, it is love at first sight. Phebes CharacterPhebe is a country-maiden and a shepherdess. She has considerable physical charm. She has been depicted as having silky black hair and large black eyes. Phebe is proud and arrogant though she is of a considerable lower status in life than that of Celia and Rosalind representing the city and court. She is proud of her good looks and puts on an air of superiority. She belittles the humble advances of the love-sick Silvius. The contrast between the court life and country life is one of the leading themes of the play, and the contrast between the princesses and Phoebe heightens the country. Phebe in this scene uses her power over Silvius to explore the ways in which she can manipulate him, as he says that he must take her letter to Ganymede. I wrote down a list of words that came to mind of Phebes character: Manipulative Cheeky Fragile Desperate Innocent Girly Struggling In denialThis selection of words will help me to develop my character as these can be characteristics I involve and include in my portrayal. Making sure I have these noted down also means I can keep adding or taking away to make sure my performance is as realistic and also so that it feels comfortable for me.

Further Research

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFY0WUOmEZkIn this clip, Phoebe and Sivilus chase each other round the stage, creating humour for the audience. She uses pauses to add to the comedic lines, making fun of Ganymede. She slaps her face when she lusts for him to stop herself from thinking about him. I will use the stage as this clip shows how important it is for her so seem juvenile and arrogant.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0fehH_LX_QThis clip from the BBC uses her as a more plain woman and worker; she uses an accent throughout to demonstrate her class. She knows exactly what she is saying as she tries to make sure Silvius will stick up for her on her side of the argument. I understand more her intention and will try and be more mischievous in my portrayal.

Brainstorm for setting the sceneSummary of ScenePrior to Act 3 Scene 5, Celia and Rosalind gush Orlando, while still in the forest. Rosalind, however, is upset because Orlando promised to show up that morning to pretend to woo "Ganymede" and still hasn't arrived. Celia suggests that maybe he's no longer in love with Rosalind. Celia points out that love is fickle, and tells Rosalind she heard that Orlando has been passing time in the forest with the exiled Duke Senior, Rosalind's own father. Rosalind sighs that there's no reason to discuss her father when there's Orlando to discuss instead. As Rosalind moons about being love-struck, Corin enters and asks them if they'd like to see a funny scene if they follow him: a faithful lover being scorned and destroyed. Rosalind is eager to see it, as at the moment she's all about love and scheming about her own involvement in others' affairs. Silvius and Phoebe enter bickering and Rosalind, Celia, and Corin eavesdrop. Silvius is pretty pathetic. He says Phoebe may not love him, but he asks her to at least not be so bitter about the whole thing. Phoebe replies that Silvius claimed her eyes could kill. He has lied, because she has tried to kill him with her eyes and he's still around.

Accent and PronunciationI would perform the scene with an upper class English accent and this is how it would have been performed when Shakespeares era. I made sure I watch several Royal Shakespeare Company performances to see how vital it was to articulate my words, especially as it is Shakespeare, making sure every word was well projected with audibility, intelligibility and emotion. I will make sure my rhythm throughout stays true to the iambic pentameter making sure I accentuate my second syllables.

Theatre Practitioners Technique Stanislavski used several techniques in performing, he felt that all characters would only be acted well if you had experience what they had. He said that you should therefore recall back to a time when you felt an emotion like your character, and apply those feelings to how you act and portray your character.

Phebe is/was besotted with Ganymede. As a young girl relationships are new to me. Love

I sometimes feel overcome by opinions of others, not my own. Phebe craves the attention, in any way possible.Naivety

Phebe knows exactly how to get her way with Silvius.With certain people I know how to twist their arm!Cheeky

Emotional GraphsOur teacher introduced us to the practitioner Laben to show us emotional graphs. We learned that Laben was a choreographer who looked at the different states of the body and how different their levels of tension were used to describe emotion physically and mentally. She gave us levels of tension to act out as we walked starting low and building throughout, they were:1) Exhausted2) Laidback 3) Neutral4) Alert5) Reactive/Suspense6) Passionate (Tension exploded)7) Petrified

This graph shows her increase and decrease in emotion towards Silvius and it also helped me understand which lines were more essential to the audience to understand Phebe.

She talks of how she doesnt love him, nor hates him and then remembers how rude he has been about her. As You Like It Monologue

He has been so rude about her, and given her a bad name. Therefore she will send him a letter to confront him about it

Phebe tells Silvius that she doesnt love Ganymede.

She speaks about every aspect of him, judging his complexion and personality.

Costume Ideas

In this picture it shows Phoebe centre stage in a dark and dirty shepherdess costume, demonstrating her low class. This keeps with the period and character very well.

This is a very old picture of As You Like It as you can see from the colour. Phoebe again is still in plain clothes, as she would be working.

This is my favourite costume as Phoebe is still a shepherdess but she is wearing colourful clothes, adding to her quirky character.

This is a more elegant costume, as she has a little hat to wear as well as a nice shade of pink of a fairly nice dress.

CostumeThis is costume for a more sophisticated character compared to Phebe, she is not of a class that would wear this and as she is working this would not be the right way to style her.

This is more apparent with Phebe as she wears a dowdy dress to work in and uses a headband to add to her style as a young girl of her class and making do with her attire.

This is my favourite costume due to the use of a corset, which I think will show Phebe as a more attractive woman rather than a young girl, or at least trying to be. The colour as well shows she can still work in it but she is attempting to be sultry as well.

Final Costume DecisionIn the end I decided to style a white shirt with a corset over the top and a clashing skirt to go with it. Therefore Phebe will look like she is working but she still makes an effort in case she sees Silvius or Ganymede. It will also represent her class as she will just have put on whatever she could rather than being able to buy a matching outfit. It will also add to her quirkiness as a young girl dressing up very colourfully.

Prop ideas

This could be the letter Phebe has written for Ganymede, throughout the scene I could hold it and read it as it is, after all, the reason Phebe consoles in Silvius as she wants him to deliver the letter.

As the scene is set in a wood, she could trip over or sit on the logs as she becomes more and more overcome by her thoughts of Ganymede.

As Phebe is a shepherdess, she could have a basket as she may have been out colleting things to take home or maybe as she worked.

Set designHaving set the scene and having developed a good understanding of my movement, I knew how to now use the set to enhance my monologue. I listed a few ideas that would help me demonstrate the setting of a forest: Logs Trees Shrubbery Twigs Greenery Green lighting Brown lighting Large space

Having written down a list of ideas I designed a set I thought would help portray my character as she was a shepherdess in a forest. I then assessed my pros and cons of my design and evaluate how it could help and enhance my performance.ProsCons

Demonstrate Phebes job. Large space to show freedom Easy to find Not expensive Easy to move I obviously couldnt have a live tree into the performance space and logs would be hard to find so I decided to mainly use lighting to create the illusion of the forest.

Final Set designAfter considering my movement options for my performance I decided that it would be easier and more stylistic to just use lighting. I would use green and brown lights, which I had seen used before in a previous production, to create the look of forest and using the darkness for my scene.

Lighting IdeasI will use green and brown lighting for the stage to keep it dark and give the effect of a forest, as I have seen previously used. It will keep the scene dark, as it would have been if it were set in a forest. This means I will need a spot, or an area of light, where I can make sure my face is scene rather than perform it in darkness so I will have to set lights before the performance.

Sound IdeasThroughout the scene I could use the sound of birds to create the forest atmosphere with the audience, and maybe also the sound of wind and breaking twigs to give the scene more evidence that it is set in a forest.

Development of MonologueThroughout my monologue I made sure to keep to the rhythm of the iambic pentameter, as well as making sure my enjambment of lines made sense. I made sure I sectioned my monologue to decide where to use which idea, for example: where Phebe was lusting over Ganymede compared to when she was explaining how she loathed him. This can also mean I can use my pauses to create tension and also to increase the humour as the next line may be unexpected to the audience. I will also translate the meaning of the monologue in to newer English compared to Shakespearian English. This will help me use the enjambment correctly and I will be able to know what I am saying and how I can perform certain lines to make sense.

Character DevelopmentVoice: For the voice of Phebe, I made sure she was very proper and spoke with a fairly high pitch as she was young and excitable. When she is talking to Silvius directly, or lusting about Ganymede, I will lower the tone because she can then sound more like a woman rather than a child.Gestures: As a young girl I think Phebe would use her arms a lot to walk around and try and get her story across to Silvius, I will also make sure I put my hands on my hips a lot to make her seem like a stroppy teenager about the whole situation. Relationships: Phebes relationship with Silvus is evident that she has him wrapped around her little finger, so she uses that to make him only see her side of the story. Much like the way she feels/felt for Ganymede she knows what she likes in a man and basically is only interested in their appearance.Facial Expressions: I will use my face to exaggerate her expressions to make the scene engage the audience with more humour as well as making her seem energetic about the whole situation to try and win over Silvius to her side due to the events.Space: I will make sure I use the space to my advantage as the pair are in the forest, so therefore she can move around as much as she wants so I will make sure I travel the scene.Movement: Phebe will move excitedly around the space, moving quickly from spot to spot almost in a hurry. This will keep the energy of the scene high so the audience stay enticed.

Monologue 2: The Girl in 14G

Interpreting Monologues

Using these annotations will help me set out the performance and remember specific emotions or actions that will become my movement. I feel reading out a song first before singing it helps you portray it for sufficiently, therefore I feel annotating the main text of it will help me.

Monologue 2: The Girl in 14"The Girl From 14G" was written by Jeanine Tesori , She was commissioned by Sony Classical to write "The Girl in 14G" for Kristin Chenoweth's debut CD, "Let Yourself Go". Kristin Chenowerth is an American singer and actress, with credits in musical theatre, film and television. In 1999, she won a Tony Award for her performance as Sally Brown in You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown on Broadway, and in 2003, she received wide notice for originating the role of Glinda in the musical Wicked. Let Yourself Go is her debut solo album, released in 2001. The backing orchestra is Robert Fisher and the Coffee Club Orchestra. It includes songs from many musicals over the years, some very unknown.Jeanie Tesori is an American musical arranger and composer. Jeanie made her Broadway debut when she arranged the dance music for the 1995 revival of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. In 1997 she composed the score for the Off-Broadway musical Violet, for which she won an Obie Award, the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Musical, and the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Musical. In 2000, Tesori joined forces with lyricist Dick Scanlan to write eleven new songs for a stage adaptation of Thoroughly Modern Millie, she was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Original Score. She also wrote the music for Shrek The Musical. Kristen had originated in the role of Millie when rehearsals began, but later dropped out as she was going pursue her own sitcom. The whole story behind how The Girl in 14G came about is still a mystery, but it was perfectly created to suit Kristins vocal range and talent. The Character of GirlWhen looking at how the piece is written, the Girl is portrayed as being very cheeky and quirky. I thought maybe by listing words and characteristics I thought that represented her; I could use them to create my own interpretation. Some of them were; Quirky Cute Girly Innocent Shy Proper Sensible Dumb Polite Funny HappyThis list of words would help me create the character by using all of them to create my own personally Girl as this was my performance. I decided that I would make sure she laughed at herself a lot and didnt take anything too seriously. These words would help me to keep growing my monologue as each rehearsal I could include a new word or characteristic and in time I would create my Girl.

Further Research

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBJn4BHtqqY

The song itself was written for Kristin Chenoweths debut album so watching her performance demonstrated how much she is able to play with it. She uses very exaggerated differences between the characters using her physicality. At the beginning of the song she is very cute and innocent so she uses her face a lot to demonstrate her excitement. When the opera section of the song enters, as shown in the screenshot above, she uses her arms and changes her stance to anchor the high notes but also to show the change in character. Later on when the scatting section comes in she bends her body down and uses her arms low to show contrast. She doesnt use any props making it easier for her to hold the audiences attention. I realized that I need to make it clear between the changes of character to make this piece humorous.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ui3Uc6xvfTQ

In this performance at a University Senior Vocal Recital, immediately I noticed the use of chairs and props in Elenas performance. I think this added to the petite nature of the character as she uses the chair to stabilize herself after the opera and scatting wannabes break into song. She again uses her body to show the different, much like Kristin, this adding to the humor as many audience members laugh throughout. She takes a more aggressive tone to some of the phrases as she gets angry at the other rooms but I personally feel I can take more from this clip as she uses her facial expression and movement more, which is necessary for my performance.

Brainstorm for setting the sceneSummary of SceneThe Girl in 14G is set in a new apartment on one of the first nights of her sleep when she is beginning to relax into her new room when suddenly either side of her apartment, her neighbours sing to their hearts content and wake her. She asks them to stop, but eventually finds that it feels good to sing and all three join in to create a trio.Accent and PronunciationKristins original performance Oklahoma accent, therefore I will perform my monologue in an American accent which is a fairly strong accent of mine. I will make sure I use twang at the appropriate moments when changing character. As the Girl in 14G I use twang to make her sound more nasal compared to when I will make sure I am using my diaphragm efficiently when performing the opera to sustain the notes. The skating section should be ok as it is in a low area of my voice it will sound different to the other two styles. To perfect my American accent I will watch American TV programs and also watch as many performances of musical theatre songs to understand how specific vowels and consonants are performed.

Theatre Practitioners Technique Using the exercise I did with my Phebe monologue, I will do the same with The Girl In 14G. I want to be able to connect with the character as much as I can through my experiences to create an accurate interpretation of the Girl.

I am young and only recently becoming introduced to societies. Girl is young and new to this experience of living in an apartment. Innocent

When she is woken up she feels angry because of her neighbors. Angry

I get angry when people talk while I am trying to work.

ProperI take care of my appearance and attitude towards others. The Girl is very prim and proper.

Emotional GraphsI looked at the emotional graphs again, the same way I had used it for my first monologue. I applied it to The Girl In 14G monologue which helped me understand how to make my monologue realistic. My second monologue will have different elements in comparison to my first monologue which is more expressive. The levels of tension were:1) Exhausted2) Laidback 3) Neutral4) Alert/Curious5) Reactive/Suspense6) Passionate (Tension exploded)7) Petrified

Much like my graph for my first monologue, this helped me understand how to grow throughout the song as she becomes more and more intense and now I knew where I should make sure this happened.

The Girl in 14G Monologue

Girl has just moved into a new, beautiful apartment.

She hears the room below Opera singer, but tries not to let it ruin her evening.

The girl upstairs then joins in as she scats away so Girl is surrounded by noise.She asks the girls to nicely stop but then realizes how nice it feels to sing so joins in as a trio.

Costume Ideas

Kristin wore a black dress as this was her concert so didnt change a lot, this adds to the sophistic style of the character

The use of a dressing gown in this performance adds to the idea that she is at home and about to go to bed.

This is a typically quirky Kristin costume, adding to the ditsy traits of the character.

This is another costume demonstrating the class of the character as she is in a dress.

CostumeDepending on how I choose to perform my song, as the performer is talking about how she wants to go to bed she could be in her pyjamas or a dressing gown ready for bed or I could be wearing a dress as she may have just come in from somewhere and adding to her status and how it would affect her feelings toward her adjacent flat mates. These pyjamas would add to the style of person she is as they are quite neat and tidy, as Cath Kidston is, and also as she would soon be going to bed as she is woken up by them, this could work nicely as there is no time period specifically mentioned.

These again are pyjamas with a certain style to them. This also would stay with the theme that she is going to bed, but these are of a darker colour maybe meaning it would make her seem not as cheery and innocent compared to the mint green spotty pair above.

This woolly dressing gown would make her seem very at home and relaxed, also staying with the bedtime theme. This may be too dark a tone as well however due to the darkness of my hair it may benefit the character if I wear something lighter.

This black dress is much like the one Kristin wore for her performance, showing off her class and elegance as though she had just got home from an engagement, maybe meaning that the noisy distractions to her evening may ruin how good she feels as she is dressed up.

This dress would keep the character still quite quirky and fun as if she was dressed up, using the light colours of pink to make her still seem quite young.

Final Costume DecisionMy final costume decision is to wear the pyjamas as I think this adds to the innocence of the character, as she is very simple and plain in her own home but very dramatic. It also sufficiently follows the theme of the song as she is at home and so she can stay connected with the song.

Prop ideasThis lounge chair would add to the sophistication of the character as she relaxed on it during the song.

A book would help me play out what was being sung as she wants to read a book; I could also use the slamming down of it as a sound effect.

A mug would add to the homeliness of the scene as she can be content with her evening and her cup of tea.

As she begins to settle down, I could fluff up a pillow to make it more comfortable as she relaxes.

Set designHaving set the scene and having developed a good understanding of my movement, I knew what was going on and knew that the monologue would need to be set in a bedroom. I was positive that I wanted to set the scene in a bedroom so noted down a few ideas: Chairs Bed Sofa Light Desk Bedside table Kitchen area for tea etc Upper class Neat and tidy Pretty GirlyHaving written down a list of ideas I designed a set I thought would be suitable and that combined my ideas, labelling my pros I have chosen and why. I then, like my other monologue, decided to assess the pros and cons of my design and evaluate how it could help and enhance my performance.ProsCons

Could help portray the era in which the monologue is set. Lots of props would give me lots to do throughout the scene. Upper class style would add to the humour of the piece. Clear where the scene is set due to the selection of props. Some of the props were very difficult to allocate such as: the sofa, bed, kitchen area and the desk however the audience will still know where the scene is set.

Final Set Decision and DesignIn the end I decided to stick with a basic set, by only using a chair as this therefore can mean that I can move around the space more and be more over exaggerating with my movement. This means that I will use the chair as a stabiliser during the piece when the song becomes more heated.

Lighting IdeasFor the scene I think a single spot in the centre would set the scene up nicely, as the character likes all the attention to be on her. This would also mean, much like my previous lighting plan for Phebe, that I will need to set it so I know where to stand to be in light for the audience to see my face and keep my movement minimal.Sound IdeasThe use of sound in this monologue I think is unnecessary due to the amount of change throughout the song using the music and my voice anyway. Therefore I will focus more on using the light and making sure the volume of the music is at the right level so my voice can be heard and I do not have to push the performance.

Development of MonologueThe development of this monologue was harder than my first monologue due to the fact that The Girl in 14G uses different characters all interlocked with each other, whereas Phebe is just one character. Therefore I made sure I created a personality and back story for all the characters, for example: 15G was the apartment of a older woman as she was performing opera and 13G was the apartment of a younger woman than both of the other ladies as she was performing a very different style of singing. This also meant I had to know how to support the singing of each part, how much air pressure was appropriate and how to support the sound and anchor it. Character DevelopmentVoice: I made sure each character was different but all as strong as each other, this meant supporting all the styles with my diaphragm and also making sure 14G was a lot more nasal than the rest of them.Posture: When skating as 13G I will lower my posture to make her seem younger and also more versatile, compared to how upright I will make 15G as she will hold her posture perfectly and 14G will look more neutral. Gestures: The use of my hands will be important as the rest of my body will stay neutral in the center, so I will be overly expressive with my hands depending on the character at that section. Relationships: Even though I am playing all the parts, 14G can express how she feels about the others as she can direct a certain line to either 13G or 15G to show how angry she is with them; she also can connect with the audience to create a relationship with them. Facial Expressions: The whole monologue must be over exaggerated as it is a very cheesy song; therefore I will make sure I use my face to make my feelings clear to the audience as well as creating humour. Movement: The use of movement will be important to each individual character, so making sure they are different is essential. Therefore 13G will dance on the spot when she is skating and 15G will stand up right with her arms in a structured position compared to 14G staying natural.

Comparing Monologue 1 and Monologue 2Both monologues are very different in the sense that they both try to explain their emotions directly to the audience or another character. Phebe is very sure that Ganymede has made her look like a fool and must win over Silvius trust, this was easier to do as using my emotional recall technique I could remember a time that I had wanted to prove myself to someone and make sure they were on my side. The Girl in 14G however was harder to connect with as I have never lived in a flat alone by myself, but I do know what it feels like to have someone need to quiet down or to sing so forcefully it feels amazing. Together both monologues required a connection from me to understand how it feels in those situations which required loads of character development.Phebe is besotted with a lover who does not feel the same, as Im sure many cases have risen when I have been in the same situation and someone didnt feel the same way back, but Phebe is very strong about it and demands her dignity and reputation stay intact. Much like how shy the Girl feels when she considers telling her flat mates to quieten down as she is new and doesnt want to be a spoil sport, we have all experienced this at some point when we know someone should maybe stop as she sings. Both characters require a certain childish, cheeky manner as Phebe is young and very assertive whereas Girl is new to this way of life shes grown up to. Therefore I will need to make sure both characters are different, as Phebe is young by age and Girl is young by characteristic and personality as Phebe wants to be a lady to convince Ganymede or Silvius to love her. They both require perfect timing for comedy moments as well, which is very hard to do as both pieces are so different. This will take rehearsing well and thoroughly with the class to take on feedback and understand what works well.

Duologue: A Boy Like That/I Have a Love

Interpreting Monologues

Duologue: A Boy Like That/I Have a Love"A Boy Like That" is a song from the 1957 Broadway musical West Side Story, with music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. In the musical, the song is paired with "I Have a Love" and is sung by the characters Anita and Maria. West Side Story is an American musical with a book by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and conception and choreography by Jerome Robbins. It was inspired by William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet.The story is set in the Upper West Side neighborhood in New York City in the mid-1950s, an ethnic, blue-collar neighborhood. (In the early 1960s much of the neighborhood would be cleared in an urban renewal project for the Lincoln Center, changing the neighborhood's character.) The musical explores the rivalry between the Jets and the Sharks, two teenage street gangs of different ethnic backgrounds. The members of the Sharks from Puerto Rico are taunted by the Jets, a Polish-American working-class group. The young protagonist, Tony, one of the Jets, falls in love with Maria, the sister of Bernardo, the leader of the Sharks. A grieving Anita arrives at Maria's apartment. As Tony leaves, he tells Maria to meet him at Doc's so they can run away to the country. In spite of her attempts to conceal it, Anita sees that Tony has been with Maria, and launches an angry tirade against him, ("A Boy Like That"). Maria counters by telling Anita how powerful love is, ("I Have a Love"), though, and Anita realizes that Maria loves Tony as much as she had loved Bernardo. She admits that Chino has a gun and is looking for Tony.The Character of MariaMaria is based on Juliet from William Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet, therefore she is a very young innocent girl. She is from Puerto Rico and is under the watchful eye of her older brother meaning she has never truly been free to explore her new life in America. I thought, like my previous two monologues, I would try and describe Maria with a list of words to include into my character development. They were: Innocent Young Besotted Girly Afraid New Fresh Loving Cute Naive GrowingThese words would help both Jane (Anita) and I to understand our characters and to then work on their relationship as a pair of best friends. We could offer opinions on the strength of each of the words compared to the other character in the scene.Maria and Anitas RelationshipMaria and Anita are best friends; however Anita takes on a more motherly figure to Maria as they have just moved to America. This relationship is very realistic as all friends are protective of younger more innocent others. Anita is in a relationship with Marias brother, when Marias lover kills him by accident. They are both close friends who may not see eye-to-eye when it comes to Marias choice, but they both know how it feels to love someone.

Further Research

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tviqJ15V2Y

This is a clip from the Broadway production of West Side Story so is a very professional performance. Anita is very aggressive towards Maria as they try to plead their opinions to one another. Maria seems to stand up for herself a lot in this as Anita uses her body and arm movements to try and make Maria realize what her actions are doing. From this I can make sure that Anita has the power for the beginning part of the song as she is telling Maria off, however in the second section Maria is pleading her side.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrFkgyOOY30In this clip from the movie, Maria stays a lot quieter compared to the Broadway production. She sits on the bed and doesnt retaliate as much to what Anita is accusing her off however Anita is more forceful and keeps more distance from her as she sits on her bed, also creating levels to show her superiority at that precise moment. From this clip I will use my movement and my levels to help portray their relationship as Anita is a mother/big sister figure for her.

Brainstorm for setting the sceneSummary of SceneIn the scene prior to A Boy Like That/I Have a Love Tony has been to tell Maria that he accidently killed her brother, in anger she accuses him of being a killer but slowly she falls into his arms and lets him comfort her, he then ends up spending the night with her and the scene ends with them climbing into a bed together holding each other. In this scene Anita enters in anger due to the fact that Tony has just left Marias bedroom after he admitted to killing Marias brother and Anitas boyfriend. The begin to argue as Maria will not listen to Anita about how stupid she is for staying with a boy who can kill someone who means so much to her, as Maria argues it was an accident and she cant choose who she loves. Accents and PronunciationThroughout the song we shall use a Puerto Rican accent as that is their nationality making sure we pronunciate our words throughout the song with a different edge compared to our normal accent. This is done by rolling the letter r and making sure our a sound is more ah sounding. We will watch several performances of the show and song to see how they use their accents, we will also search any other clips where the accents are prominent and we can copy.

Theatre Practitioners Technique As I have done with my previous two monologues, I will do the same with our duologue of A Boy Like That/I Have A Love. This will mean I can connect with the character as much as I can through my experiences to create an accurate interpretation of Maria:

Maria is completely besotted with Tony, no matter what he has done to her family.As much as people tell you what is best, you can decide whats best for you. Defiant

Maria loves Tony more than anything and he means everything to her. Love

Relationships demonstrate a weaker element of her feelings at my age.

Maria isnt afraid to argue her point with Anita.

Argumentative

When I have something to argue and I want to get my point across I can become very argumentative.

Emotional GraphsI looked at the emotional graphs again, the same way I had used it for my two monologues. I applied it to A Boy Like That/I Have A Love duologue, it had a lot more tension in the scene as there were two of us, in comparison to my previous pieces, as both characters were arguing against one another. The levels of tension were:1) Exhausted2) Laidback 3) Neutral4) Alert/Curious5) Reactive/Suspense6) Passionate (Tension exploded)7) Petrified

Just like my monologues before, this graph showed me how to create tension with Anita and in comparison with both of our ideas where one character should grow more; therefore we could work as a team to show how intense the pair felt about each other and the consequences surrounding them.

A Boy Like That/I Have A Love Duologue

Anita realizes and has an argument with Maria as Tony killed her brother and says she cant love him. Maria has just been left by Tony after spending the night.

Anita realizes nothing she says with change Marias mind.

Maria sings of her love for Tony and how much they both need each other.

Maria pleads with Anita because she knows she shouldnt but she loves Tony.

Costume IdeasThis is from the scene we are singing A Boy Like That/I Have A Love. Anita comes in dressed up as she has been out however Maria has been at home, so a nightdress would be appropriate.

In this picture, again she is in a nightdress without a dressing gown but still showing she has been at home before Anita finds her after Tony has left.

At the end when Tony dies in her arms, Maria wears a red dress, this represents her love and the blood of what has become of the rivalry between the Jets and the Sharks. This could be too bold to wear in this scene as Anita must seem more sophisticated as she tells Maria off.

This is another dress but lighter, I feel Maria should stay in a pale light colour as she must represent the purity of the danger surrounding her and Tony.

Costume

This is the traditional Maria dress; it shows her white purity however using a hint of red with the belt shows she also loves. This is what she wears at the dance. I personally think the point in the show that the duologue we are performing would mean Maria would wear something more striking.

This is a very sultry red dress, showing that Maria has matured. I think this dress demonstrates how much she has grown as this is a bold colour and a very quirky style. I think this may be a bit too risky for Maria however.

This dressing gown follows the story as Maria has just been left by Tony after he spends the night, meaning therefore Anita is aware of what she has been up to against her wish. This however would be difficult to get hold of and due to the fact we have no context before the scene it may be more powerful if I wore a bold coloured dress.

Final Costume DecisionAfter considering both styling Maria as her innocent self, compared to how she has grown to the extent in this scene, I decided to wear a bright red skater dress as this shows her as a young woman rather than a child as she has been treated like before in the show. The skater skirt is of a length that she can be seen as sultry to Tony but she also keeps her modesty but stands out with a bright colour.

Prop ideasAs Anita storms in the room, she sees Maria dressed as though she has just spent an evening with Tony so could tear the dressing gown off to start their argument.

Candles will represent the mourning they are both in at Bernardos death as well as bringing peace and innocence to the room despite the nature of the argument.

The bed in the centre will add levels, as when Anita is arguing at Maria she could be sat on the bed to represent that at that moment of the song Anita is in the right until Maria argues back. It also again shows how Maria spent her evening.

Set designAfter setting the scene with Jane, we decided what set we would like to include in our duologue. We thought about what would be in the room considering the circumstances as they would have only recently moved in as they have just come from South America. We listed some ideas we could include in our set design: Bed Candles Clothes Dressing gown Girly Dark Unmade bedding Window LampHaving written down a list of ideas we thought of how we would use the set with our movement and how easy it would be to find the items. We wrote down pros and cons for our list of ideas:ProsCons

A bed would demonstrate why Anita was as angry as she would know Tony had been there. Candles would show that Maria had been praying and that she is mourning her brothers death. It would set the scene as the environment they were living in. A window would be difficult to find and would cause hassle to change the set. The candles would need to be health and safety checked and could blow out at any moment.

Final Set designWe eventually decided to stick with just the bed in the centre so we could play with the levels of our characters using it throughout the duologue. It would set up the scene nicely as well as giving each of us something to do as we walked towards and away from each other. It would take centre stage and we could move around it and sit on it.

Lighting IdeasFor this scene, much like my previous two pieces, lighting will be important. We thought maybe the use of a dimmed light to cover the room would add to the tension between the two characters. As the scene is also set at night it would set the scene for the audience. The use of maybe a purple/dark colour would also at to the sensuality of Anita. We would also, like the previous lighting plans, use a spot lights to follow us and give us an area of idealistic light. Sound IdeasAt the end of the scene, after we have built up the tension in the song, we will use a siren to show the danger that is surrounding them because of what has happened. It will add to the atmosphere of the scene as well as helping Jane and I seem agitated due to the consequences of Bernardos killing.

Development of DuologueThis duologue was very different in comparison to my other monologues, one of the main differences being the accent required for the scene. Therefore Jane and I researched the duologue in great detail watching several clips. It was very interesting to see how each character was portrayed. We made sure we used volume to our advantage to increase the anger and tension throughout the scene; we also decided to experiment with speaking some of the lines to add emphasis. Together we were able to identify which sections should be used to increase the tension and also which sections should be used to express the character. We also swapped parts at one stage to understand how the other character would feel and react to one another which was very interesting to play with each others emotions in character. When singing together, we needed to decide whos part needed to be more prominent and which line was more important at that stage so we again used volume to decide upon superiority. Character DevelopmentVoice: The use of the Puerto Rican accent was essential, but also the appropriate twang and sob that should be used to create Marias tone of angst towards Anita and how desperate she is to make her understand. Posture: Maria stays very upright as she refuses to be looked down upon by Anita so she is not afraid to stand tall and go against Anita in their fight. Levels: The use of the bed can create the levels of superiority during the song, as when Maria is being told off she can be sat on the bed as Anita stands over her.Gestures: Anita is very aggressive with her arm movements, as we watched in several performances, as she tries to get her opinion across, whereas Maria uses her movement towards Anita. Relationships: The tension between both of the girls is created by neither of them backing down to the others opinion, therefore you can tell they both truly care for each other as they are so opinionated. These girls have both become very strong and independent. Facial Expressions: Facial Expression is very important in this scene as a lot of the time only one of us shall be singing so it is important to react to what is being sung as your character, therefore I will make sure that I react to every line Jane sings with a movement or change of expression. Space: The use of space will be important around the bed as they can focus of walking around it trying to create dominance. Movement: Neither of the girls will be afraid to walk towards one another so therefore on lines when they are begging each other they can walk towards or away from each other with purpose rather than aimlessly wandering. Health and SafetyHealth and safety is essential and incredibly important in all performances, from amateur to professional. There are several different possible hazards and risks in theatre, from serious emergencies such as a fire or more simple hazards like tripping over a cable on set. Therefore it is important that we create a plan for our safety to ensure everyone on and off stage is safe. We need to ensure:My Costumes: Whilst playing Maria and Phebe I will be in dresses, Phebe to the floor, so I will need to practise working in them and also practise walking in the heeled shoes I will be wearing to make sure I do not trip up. My Props: I will be careful when using props to make sure they do not break. The bed may be unstable so I will not put all my weight down onto the supports underneath the mattress. I will also make sure the chair I use is not moved so I do not miss it and if I stand on it I can remain stable and keep my balance. Wires: As a group we will make sure that all wires are tapped to the floor and cannot come up when we may be rushing onto stage; these wires are required for the piano and all the lighting. Lighting: This will be the responsibility of the Tech team to make sure it is efficiently safe for themselves as well as the performers. This will be double checked to ensure the safety of everyone making sure the sound and lighting is rigged safely. Spatial Awareness: This is essential in our duologue, we will have to make sure that we are all aware of how we can use our space safely with one another as we do not want to bump into a prop or a piece of set and hurt ourselves. This will require a lot of rehearsal time so we know where all our props and set are for the performance. Fire Hazards: This is one of the larger issues due to the risk to audience and performers/members of the cast. We will make sure all fire exits are made clear and are easily accessible.Physical And Vocal Warm Ups: This is essential for all performers before we start our showcase as we do not want to injure ourselves when we give our all. Therefore we will do a full physical warm up in our show space before we perform to stretch out our muscles and warm our bodies up for any physicality that may be required in our scene. With our vocal warm up, as we are all singing, we will make sure we stretch our vocal chords to a comfortable length and help our breathing as we will of course be nervous, this will also help us stayed focus and prevent any damage to our voices.

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