Transcript What is the class of your character?

WARM UP 2/27
1. Pick a nursery rhyme or song – if you can’t think of
one, then look one up using BYOT or one of the
iPads
2. Write it out – leaving a space between each line.
3. Plan out how you could tell this nursery rhyme or
song without mouthing the words or saying it.
Write down your ideas below each line.
*Be prepared to share*
BERTOLT BRECHT
1889-1956
L ive d i n G e r m a ny
B r e c h t v s . S t a n i s l av s k i
*We will use what we’ve learned
through Stanislavski to help us
understand and adapt to Brecht
*He believed in using and adapting
Stanislavski’s exercises to create
characters that deliver a political and
social message
Political
Social
Relates to the government
of public affairs and the
running of the state
Concerns the relationship
between people and
communities within a
country
What are some political issues
that we see today in America?
What are some social issues
that we see today in America?
BRECHT’S PRIMARY AIM WAS TO
CREATE A POLITICAL THEATRE
THAT COMMUNICATES AND
EDUCATES ITS AUDIENCE
His work was greatly influenced by the
social, political, and cultural events that
surrounded him.
• He witnessed the defeat of Germany in 1918
• The Treaty of Versailles
• The rise of fascism
NURSERY RHYME/SONG
ACTIVITY
*AIM – to take the first steps to narrating
and informing your audience.
*Pick who will be A and who will be B
*p. 47 of Theatre in Practice
QUESTIONS
Answer the following questions in your
journal:
1. How did you communicate your nursery
rhyme or song to your partner?
2. When you could not use your voice to
communicate, what did you use instead?
3. Did you feel that you started to use your
body and physicality to directly
communicate with your partner?
SET UP THE CHAIRS
Get out your 10 minute play and study
your lines.
If you have a field trip permission form
and money, give it to Ms. Klingman
Ellen – take attendence
WARM UP 3/3
With your group research one of the following topics and
make an iMovie presentation about it using one of the iPads
– 2 iPads per group:
• Shakespeare: Communism
• Centerstage: Marx
• Footlights: The Caucasian Chalk Circle by Bertolt Brecht
• Hollywood: Egalitarian Society
• Broadway: Fascism and the rise of Hitler
• Backstage: Fear and Misery of the Third Reich by Bertolt
Brecht
• Callboard: Mother Courage and Her Children by Bertolt
Brecht
QUESTIONS
*Based on the information we’ve learned from
the presentations – How do you think the
major events that occurred during Brecht’s
lifetime affected him? How would it affect
you?
CLASS
AIM: To examine the importance of political, social, and
class issues within society today.
*Form two straight lines facing each other
*Organize yourselves from tallest to shortest
*Organize yourselves by date of birth
*Organize yourselves in order of the number of A’s you
have in your classes
HOW DOES IT MAKE YOU
FEEL BEING PUT IN ORDER
OF THE # OF A’S YOU HAVE?
CLASS CONTINUED
*Form one long line
*If you choose to not take part in the activity you can go and sit
down, do know that you will have to explain why later!
*Left wing (socialist views) and Right wing (conservative views)
-put yourself in order of political persuasion
*p. 51 – Tuition fees, Dumped, Class Order
HOW DID THIS ACTIVITY MAKE
YOU FEEL?
WARM UP 3/9
Last class we talked about class.
Class – the position a person holds in society based on
his of her wealth, education, and upbringing.
1. Give an example of class.
2. Is class still relevant in today’s society? Why/Why
not? What affects whether we see it or not?
THE MESSAGE OF WAR HORSE
War Horse
1. Does War Horse fit Brecht’s view that theatre should
educate the audience?
2. What is the message in War Horse?
IMPROVISATION TO HELP START
TO CREATE BRECHTIAN
CHARACTERS
TAXI DRIVER
p.52
What are the similarities and differences
between these people and how they
might gesture, move, talk, body
language, etc.?CHARACTERS:
A plasterer, 24, from a rich neighborhood, running late for a flight to Miami
for a boys’ holiday with 6 old school friends.
A top heart surgeon, 59, on his way to an international conference of heart
specialists in Berlin where he will be the keynote speaker on some
groundbreaking research he has recently completed.
A single mother, 19, on benefits with her 2 year old daughter, going to visit
her sick mother in Scotland.
An Italian housewife, 48 visiting the grave of her mother in France. She has
two children, both in college, and a husband who works in a bank in the
city.
A teacher, 29, travelling to Sydney, Australia in search of more money and a
better job.
THE SITUATION
STUDENT A
Pick one of the characters from
the list.
- Decide who they are and how
you can show their class, social
background, gender, ethnicity,
profession and family
background.
- Use props, an umbrella,
suitcase, hat, newspaper, etc.
to show who your character is.
- Think about the message your
character is communicating to
the audience
EX: The single mother may want
to think about communicating the
imablances and inequalities that
exist in society today.
STUDENT B
The Taxi Driver
- You are parked at Grand
Central Station in NY
- You have been on shift since
10AM, it is now 3 PM
- Your job is to try and figure out
who person A is, where they
are going, how old they are,
what class they come from and
what job they do.
- Do not ask these questions
straight out. Try to work it out
from their characterization.
BRECHTIAN TERMS
GESTIC PROPS – props that are
used by the actor or director to
send a message to the audience.
EXTERNALIZATION – To show
thoughts or feelings on the
outside using gesture, movement,
and facial expression.
GESTUS – A gesture that defines
the position your character is in
within society.
ACTIVITY: p.55
2 Housewives
2 Husbands
Wives- fold laundry, bedsheets
Husbands – relaxing in the
garden
QUESTIONS
1. How did you feel folding the sheets while, at the same time
pretending to be having an argument?
2. Did you find you started to externalize your emotions?
3. Did you find you were coming up with a particular movement
that helped to express your character?
4. Did you find that you were coming up with a particular
physical movement that helped to express your character?
5. Was there any message behind the improvisation? Were you
telling the audience anything about your class or social status?
SCENEWORK
WORK on your 10 minute play with your group.
-What is the class of your character?
-Who are they?
-How can you use facial expressions, physicality, and
gesture to externalize your character?
(10 minutes)
We will continue improving part of your scenes, for
those who have not gone yet.
WARM UP 3/17
Write a paragraph reflecting on the performance
of Peter Pan you saw yesterday. What did you
think of it? What did you think about the
costumes, tech, sets, etc.? What did you think of
the acting, singing, dancing?
Sandy Duncan as Peter
Mary Martin as Peter Pan
Cathy Rigby as Peter Pan
Allison Williams as Peter Pan
VOCAL WARM UP
CHARACTERIZATION – ART OF
CREATING A CHARACTER WHERE
THE TRAITS AND PERSONALITY ARE
VISIBLE
*Chairs in a circle
*Look around the circle – pick one person that you think
you can imitate – using voice, physicality, facial
expressions.
*Think about how they walk, talk, and any mannerisms
they may have.
*How can you send a message to the audience about the
person your imitating and what they are like?
V-EFFECT
- Where the actor attempts to detach
himself or herself from becoming lost
in the circumstances of the play, while
allowing himself or herself to narrate
the proceedings.
OLEANNA BY DAVID MAMET
[Carol has come to John's office at his request. The tenure committee has
already met and decided that John is not to be offered tenure]
CAROL: The issue here is not what I "feel." It is not my "feelings," but the
feelings of women. And men. Your superiors, who've been "polled," do you
see? To whom evidence has been presented, and who have ruled, do you see?
Who have weighed the testimony and the evidence, and have ruled, do you
see? That you are negligent. That you are guilty, that you are found wanting, and
in error; and are not, for the reasons so-told, to be given tenure. That you are
to be disciplined. For facts. For facts. Not "alleged," what is the word? But
proved. Do you see? By your own actions. That is what the tenure committee has
said. That is what my lawyer said. For what you did in class. For what you did
in this office. They're going to discharge you. As full well they should. You don't
understand? You're angry? What has led you to this place? Not your sex. Not
your race. Not your class. YOUR OWN ACTIONS. And you're angry. You ask
me here. What do you want? You want to "charm" me. You want to
"convince" me. You want me to recant. I will not recant. Why should I...?
What I say is right. You tell me, you are going to tell me that you have a wife
and child. You are going to say that you have a career and that you've worked
for twenty years for this. Do you know what you've worked for? Power. For
power. Do you understand? And you sit there, and you tell me stories. About
your house, about all the private schools, and about privilege, and how you are
entitled. To buy, to spend, to mock, to summon. All your stories. All your silly
weak guilt, it's all about privilege; and you won't know it. Don't you see? You
worked for twenty years for the right to insult me. And you feel entitled to be
paid for it.
SPEECH FROM THE CAUCASIAN
CHALK CIRCLE P. 59
In this scene the judge is asking Grusha why she
thinks Michael should be given to her to look after
and not his mother:
GRUSHA:
I’ve brought him up ‘according to my best
knowledge and conscience’. I always found him
something to eat. Most of the time he had a roof
over his head. And I went to all sorts of trouble for
him. I had expenses, too. I didn’t think of my own
comfort. I brought up the child to be friendly with
everyone. And from the beginning I taught him to
work as well as he could. But he’s still very small.
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF
THE V-EFFECT?
WARM UP 3/19
Complete the 1st Section of the Worksheet
WARM UP – COPY DOWN THE
FOLLOWING DEFINITIONS
* Theatre of Cruelty – Antonin Artaud - can be seen as break with
traditional Western theatre, and a means by which artists assault the
senses of the audience, and allow them to feel the unexpressed
emotions of the subconscious.
* Poor Theatre– Jerzy Grotowski - it dispensed with theatrical trappings
and the technological resources of ‘rich’ theatre. Grotowski made the
actor’s voice and body central to the performance. Only stationary light
sources were used
* Human Connection – Peter Brook - In order for the actor to
authentically feel what his character is intended to feel, he must
discover those emotions on his own, without the director telling him
what they are.
* Inner Character – Stanislavski
*Epic Theatre – Brechtian
OPHELIA
The 5 Truths with Ophelia
What do you think of the similarities and
differences between the different approaches?
CAUCASIAN CHALK CIRCLE
SOLDIER: What! The young lady is not in church? Shirking service?
GRUSHA: I was already dressed to go. But they wanted one more goose for
the Easter banquet. And they asked me to fetch it. I know something about
geese.
SOLDIER: A goose? (feigning suspicion) I’d like to see that goose.
(Grusha doesn’t understand) One has to be on one’s guard with women.
They say: ‘I only went to fetch a goose’ and then it turns out to be
something quite different.
GRUSHA: (walks resolutely towards him and shows him the goose) There it
is. And if it isn’t a fifteen pound goose, and they haven’t stuffed it with
corn, I’ll eat the feathers.
SOLDIER: A queen of a goose. It will be eaten by the Governor himself. So
the young lady has been down to the river again?
GRUSHA: Yes, at the poultry farm.
SOLDIER: I see! At the poultry farm, down by the river. Not higher up,
near those- those willows?
GRUSHA: I only go to the willows to wash linen.
SOLDIER: (insinuatingly) Exactly.
GRUSHA: Exactly what?
SOLDIER: (winking) Exactly that.
EPIZATION: A rehearsal technique used to create a narrative style of
delivery of text.
1. Say with He said, she said before each line.
2. Now decide on a more specific verb that will help you describe how
your character is saying the line.
SOME EXAMPLES TO HELP
She asserted
She claimed
She whispered
She hinted
She screamed
She divulged
She complained
She flirted
She rebuked
She rejected
he cried
he muttered
he disclosed
he joked
he mocked
he hinted
he snarled
he scolded
he teased
he discarded
NOW TRY THIS WITH YOUR PLAY
10 minutes
HOW DID IT AFFECT THE WAY
YOU PERFORMED IT?
WARM UP 3/27
Plan and Write down the following for your play with
your group:
1. Costumes:
2. Props:
3. Set Pieces:
4. Set Dressing:
5. Sound Effects:
6. Music:
REHEARSE YOUR 10 MINUTE
PLAY 2ND 1/3 FOR 5 MINUTES