The Creation of Pushing Boundaries Theatre Co.
From our first meeting as a company we all decided that we wanted to form a company who would evoke change through our performance pieces. Instead of proclaiming highly political statements around national issues, we wanted to try and represent more local issues which are affecting the people around us. By focusing on day to day issues which are relevant to those around us as well as ourselves, we felt that we could invest more into the performance and the development of characters. As a group and certainly in the script development we focused on the audience’s connection with characters by developing them to be recognisable as people which are seen regularly and part of a normal social group. In our development of ideas, we had several script changes and switches of direction when it came to the outcome of our show. Therefore, to begin I started to give the actors script to workshop so that as a team we could gauge the direction in which we wanted our play to go, as well as the style of writing everyone preferred. I gave the actors sections from Vinegar Tom (Caryl Churchill), Men in the Cities (Chris Goode) and Pornography (Simon Stephens).
Rehearsal notes (Before reading week)
In taking on the role as Director within the company I aimed to focus on the characterisation of the actors and their connections to each other within the student house setting. In doing so, I hoped to strengthen the subtleties within the script and present a relatable group of characters to an audience. I aimed to utilise the creative plot line which our script writer had created, with the way in which he weaves numerous stories together. Through the naturalist style which we have adopted, it was key for me to be constantly reflecting the relationships between different characters and the abrasive nature of living in a large house share. Through taking a clearer focus on characters, it would also make our play transferable to other locations through our utilisation of sound effects and costume which hint at a certain location. Therefore, if as a company we decided to tour our play, we could easily adapt the script in order to be applicable to the locations we visited.
In the development of our script we had numerous changes of direction until we came to the decision of Suitcases in the Hallway, which came out of the actors want for a personalised performance which had definitive characters. To aid Alex in the script writing process I created character biographies which could be developed by Alex and the actors themselves. Character Bio’s
By having pre planned characters it allowed for dynamic relationships to be formed within the text of the play which would allow for the secret keeping, student feel to the household. After having these pre written characters, to aid the actors in character development, Amber and myself wrote a character worksheet to guide actors. Character Worksheet
I then paired this with improvising sessions to allow the actors to create their own backstories and give intent to their alliances within the house. By improvising their first day in the house as their characters, it enabled backstories to be formed so the actors could compare and contrast their developments before and after the events which take place in the play. Amber, Alex and myself also lead individual character studies with each actor in order to go through their worksheet and answer any specific questions they had around their character which we could then implement in rehearsal without wasting all of the casts time in a rehearsal. By doing this, we could clarify character intentions and make sure that the actors were interpreting the script in a way which was conducive to our performance. In addition, it also raised questions which as a production team may not have come to mind, therefore adding more depth to our understanding as well as the actors.
Improvisation task: A full house! Everyone enjoys a good cuppa tea. Emma, Danni, Zoe, Ben, Allie and Harriet.
(Levesque-Payne, 2016)
By taking on both the role of Director and Set Designer I had to spend some time exploring the play in detail and as Katie Mitchell notes ‘think through how the characters will use the place or places, event by event, and consider how everything in that place – furniture or lampposts – will be arranged’ (Mitchell, 2009, 83). In planning the set designs, I had to be conscious of what could make the set look like a student house without blocking any sight lines. In laying out the set as I did I wanted to keep it simple, yet pack the set with small details to personalise it. In adding details, like photos, a chunder chart and empty alcohol bottles it helped to create the appearance of a student house as well as give the audience details to take in as they come into the theatre. Moreover, in my direction of the actors I tried to make it clear to them where their entrances and exits lead. As Mitchel notes, ‘Decisions about set and furniture are the first steps a director makes towards arranging the actors so the audience can see the action.’ (Mitchell, 2009, 79). One of the key aspects on naturalism is knowing the reasons and consequences of entrances and exits, therefore I tried to give the actors a purpose for each. From designing the set I designated different wings to be certain rooms, on Stage left were the front door, Emma’s bedroom and the stairs to the other girls rooms. Then on Stage right was the exit for the back door.
McGrath, S.(2016)
In the lead up to our technical rehearsal we added more hours of rehearsals in order to delve more deeply into textual details and character work. In booking four hour blocks of rehearsals, I divided up the rehearsal to make use of the time we had. By allowing the actors to take the first hour of each rehearsal to focus on their lines and cue lines they can prepare for each scene that we would cover. Amber would then lead the second hour as assistant director; she will take the actors through sessions which aid them in building on the character work further. Finally, I lead the actors through rehearsals for the final two hours after they have fully prepared. By scheduling the rehearsals in this way I hoped to utilise the time fully and allow the actors the time to go over lines in rehearsals.
As our rehearsals developed we decided to mix up the order of the original script, by placing what would have been the final scene depicting the Sunday morning at the beginning of our performance. In doing so we wanted to show more of a contrast between the actor’s attitudes by going back in time. In changing our order, we wanted to accommodate our audience in making the performance less predictable, which can be the case with naturalistic plays. In addition to this, I decided to stylise some of the bridge sections to make them contrasting to the action of the rest of the play. By adding a more surrealist effect to these sections, we wanted to present a definitive change in time which was more aesthetically appealing.
The Technical Rehearsal
After the technical rehearsal it was clear that one of the aspects I needed to focus on with the actors was their energy levels and projection. By watching from the tech box I was able to see when certain actors would slip into the background as their energy dropped below that of others within the scenes. I planned for the actors to have a mock show day in studio two from 12 until 6pm. As Mitchell notes it is most effective to ‘Do a full run through at the end of your penultimate week of rehearsals. That will give you at least a week to make any changes in response to discoveries about the overall structure’ (Mitchell, 2009, 185). In leaving most full runs until later in the process it allowed for more devised sections attached to scenes and for the runs to still feel fresh. By giving the actors this opportunity, they could also get a feel for a bigger space and understand how they needed to perform in order to fill the stage. In performing in the manner they would in the auditorium, it gave the actors a chance to realise where their energy levels needed to be on the performance day in order to compare and contrast to other actors within the scenes. In doing this day I feel like it gave the actors and technical team a chance to see the performance for how it could be on the show day and the actors stepped up their performance. With the way in which the actors treated the opportunity they got to see how far they have taken their characters and the performance. Also it encouraged the actors to see how much further they needed to take their script work and characters in order to create a performance which would stir emotions among the audience members.In running the show in this manner it also cemented in for the actors any movements which needed to accompany lines as well as work out an issues with where props needed to be.
(Turner, 2016
As show day came upon us I don’t think we could have been more prepared. We had a few issues with props not coming back on in the dress rehearsal, but otherwise the actors stepped up the performance to another level. One of the main issues which we faced on the day was the actor’s projection as they were not used to the acoustics of the theatre. However, by testing the actor’s projection and working with those who were particularly struggling that became less of an issue as the day went on. In the dress rehearsal the energy levels were lagging but the actors didn’t want to over exert themselves so that they had the energy for the performance later in the evening.
On the performance day I chose to view the performance from the technical box in order to see from a different perspective as well as to aid Sophie in cueing the performance. From being up there, I could better analyse the use of the space by the actors and see where they needed to move to. Moreover, from being high up, if I could hear the actors clearly I knew they were projecting well. If we were to continue touring this show, I would make sure that the actors used the space more as sometimes they tended to clump a little when they got wrapped up in the performance. Moreover, one of the main struggles for the actors was their lines which at times were still tripping them up later on in the process. One aspect which was noticeable to me was that some of the actors were still not overly confident with their lines and their focus on their physicality or reactions would drop. However, this would be something which would improve over time and with more shows, the actors would become more comfortable with their lines. From feedback, we found that the performance was shocking and had all the plots twists that we hoped would throw off our audience and we didn’t allude to them too early. To continue the performance, I personally think would only make it better as the actors inhabit their characters more fully and would become used to the projection and energy levels needed for a performance such as the one we created. As a director they made me proud and they showed that all of the hours of rehearsal and hard work was rewarding with such a poignant and unexpected performance.
(Crow, 2016)
End Scene x
Word Count: 1936 words
Works Cited:
Crow, P. (2016) Available from: https://m.flickr.com/#/photos/61839232@N02/26922145430/in/set-72157668418084582/ [Accessed: 25/05/2016].
Levesque – Payne, S. (2016)
McGrath, S. (2016)
Mitchell, K. (2009) The Director’s Craft: A Handbook for the Theatre. Abingdon: Routledge.
Turner, D. (2016) Available from: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B3RfKkyAHBzdamh1V1k1MWllSWs&usp=drive_web [Accessed: 25/05/2016].