What type of research did you do and why?
To work towards and in depth character and good understanding of the ‘Rocky Horror Show’ as a whole, I conducted research about my character and the context behind the show. I watched the 1975 film with Tim Curry playing Frank N Furter and also multiple stage versions, my favourite of these being the performance featuring David Badella. I conducted this visual form of research to see how my character had previously been portrayed and to also have a deeper understanding/ knowledge of the story line. Another example of research I conducted was contextual: Glam Rock, LGBT Rights, Horror B Movies and timeline of Rocky events. This additional research was to help me understand the other themes in the show and why these elements helped make ‘Rocky Horror’ the iconic, successful, cult musical it is today. Overall the research I conducted was to help me create an original character with a confident performance, whilst understanding the underlying themes in the show.
What resources, materials and techniques have you applied and why?
Resources:
The first resource we received was a script:
- I used the script to follow the story of the musical and to understand the relationships between each of the characters in the musical.
- I used the script to understand the order of events, know our cues and learn our lines for the show.
The 1975 film with Tim curry:
- I used the film to get inspiration on how to play Frank; I could watch Time Curry's interpretation of the character.
- The film also helped me to understand the narrative better.
Live performances on Youtube:
- I was able to see the difference in performing this particular show live and fixing the show.
- This was also useful for my character development in seeing different actors interpretations of my character.
The 1975 film cast album and other versions on spotty and apple music:
- I listened to many different recorded albums of 'Rocky Horror', this was useful as I could hear the songs sung in different styles and this gave me inspiration for my own style of signing.
- This was also beneficial for practising at home.
Backing tracks provided by our signing teacher:
- We used the tracks to rehearse, this helped us feel confident with our songs, as we had backing behind and diffident have to sing acapella.
- The tracks gave the performance more energy.
Initial rehearsal space (dance studio):
- We could block, learn dances and plot out the staging in the space.
Theatre and performance space:
- The theatre is a professional space to perform in with sound fx, lighting and a stage, and seats enough people so that we can put on a show for an audience to come and watch
Materials:
Props:
-We were able to get accurate/ identical props to those used in the stage productions and the film , to make the story line more clear and to add to the production value and realism of the performance.
-We were able to get accurate/ identical props to those used in the stage productions and the film , to make the story line more clear and to add to the production value and realism of the performance.
Set:
- The use of set helped tell the story and help keep the audience interested and fill the space on stage.
- Showed a change in scene and place within the narrative of the show.
- Personally developed my teamwork skills, as I helped to paint some of the set
- The use of set helped tell the story and help keep the audience interested and fill the space on stage.
- Showed a change in scene and place within the narrative of the show.
- Personally developed my teamwork skills, as I helped to paint some of the set
Costume:
- Having similar costumes to those used both on stage and in the film meant that we portrayed the classic image of each of our character and made it obvious to the audience who was playing which character.
- Costume was sourced from online and the costume cupboard.
- Having similar costumes to those used both on stage and in the film meant that we portrayed the classic image of each of our character and made it obvious to the audience who was playing which character.
- Costume was sourced from online and the costume cupboard.
Makeup:
- Makeup helps each character stand out and loom recognisable to an audience, makes the overall look of the character more realistic.
- It makes performers look flawless under the harsh theatre lighting.
- Makeup helps each character stand out and loom recognisable to an audience, makes the overall look of the character more realistic.
- It makes performers look flawless under the harsh theatre lighting.
Class handouts and internet searches:
-Gave us knowledge that we could use for research and so that we understood the context behind 'Rocky Horror'
-Gave us knowledge that we could use for research and so that we understood the context behind 'Rocky Horror'
Feedback from teachers:
-Personally this helped me to develop my character and work better each lesson.
- Feedback improved the quality of both our group and solo performances and helped to make the show more slick snd clean.
-Personally this helped me to develop my character and work better each lesson.
- Feedback improved the quality of both our group and solo performances and helped to make the show more slick snd clean.
Techniques:
Singing techniques:
- The signing techniques that we used during this project are those we have bee practising since the start of the year, however this project has only helped build them.
Techniques we have been working on this year:
- Range
- Oral training
- Breathing
- Projection
- Stage presence
- Memory
- Diction
- Tone
- Vowel placement
- Pitching
- Confidence
- Interpretation(characterisation)
- Since working on 'Rocky Horror' we have preparing our vocals. We have been learning songs, projection, studying the notes and melody lines of the songs, as well as learning harmony lines and becoming a character whilst singing. We have been training in this way to help us sustain notes, so that we can sing the difficult vocal lines and impress an audience. Also, we wanted to create believable characters with strong voices that would fill the whole theatre. The audience needed to understand what I was singing, so by projecting my voice even the back row of seat could hear me.
-Personally, the way I did this was by recording the harmonies and practising them at home along with a track or backing track from youtube. I listened to the notes being broken down on the piano in our singing lessons, so that every note would be perfect. I practised daily and I have found that my vocals and my confidence in my vocals has definitely improved. Especially from working on the song 'Sweet Transvestite.' I worked really hard on making this song perfect for my range, I wanted to impress an audience and also stretch my abilities. I did this by changing the key of the song by bringing it up 2 octaves and belting a lot of the spoken notes.
Techniques we have been working on this year:
- Range
- Oral training
- Breathing
- Projection
- Stage presence
- Memory
- Diction
- Tone
- Vowel placement
- Pitching
- Confidence
- Interpretation(characterisation)
- Since working on 'Rocky Horror' we have preparing our vocals. We have been learning songs, projection, studying the notes and melody lines of the songs, as well as learning harmony lines and becoming a character whilst singing. We have been training in this way to help us sustain notes, so that we can sing the difficult vocal lines and impress an audience. Also, we wanted to create believable characters with strong voices that would fill the whole theatre. The audience needed to understand what I was singing, so by projecting my voice even the back row of seat could hear me.
-Personally, the way I did this was by recording the harmonies and practising them at home along with a track or backing track from youtube. I listened to the notes being broken down on the piano in our singing lessons, so that every note would be perfect. I practised daily and I have found that my vocals and my confidence in my vocals has definitely improved. Especially from working on the song 'Sweet Transvestite.' I worked really hard on making this song perfect for my range, I wanted to impress an audience and also stretch my abilities. I did this by changing the key of the song by bringing it up 2 octaves and belting a lot of the spoken notes.
Acting techniques:
-I personally used a lot of acting techniques to create and perform my character of Frank. Initially, in our acting classes we used the hot seating technique. This involved our teacher asking us questions as our character. This forces us to draw on our improvisational skills. This exercise is useful for creating a back street your character and also good for practising to cover mistakes. Anything can happen on stage and you have to be prepared to cover your own or someone else mistake, so practising coming up with dialogue is a great technique, so we can create believable text. Furthermore, hot seating reveals a lot about your character personality and also their relationships with other characters, I found this very useful for the character of Frank. I was able to use this technique along with my research to figure out how Frank would act towards certain characters and how he would react to situations in the show.
-I personally used a lot of acting techniques to create and perform my character of Frank. Initially, in our acting classes we used the hot seating technique. This involved our teacher asking us questions as our character. This forces us to draw on our improvisational skills. This exercise is useful for creating a back street your character and also good for practising to cover mistakes. Anything can happen on stage and you have to be prepared to cover your own or someone else mistake, so practising coming up with dialogue is a great technique, so we can create believable text. Furthermore, hot seating reveals a lot about your character personality and also their relationships with other characters, I found this very useful for the character of Frank. I was able to use this technique along with my research to figure out how Frank would act towards certain characters and how he would react to situations in the show.
Dancing techniques:
- The dance techniques used were appropriate to the style of the musical. Rocky Horror is a sexy and exaggerated musical, so we needed to make sure our movement matched this to fit the themes and also give our characters more personality. For example, Leah used sharp, jerky and hunched over movements in the character of Riff Raff, as this is how she envisioned his character to move. Personally, I used lots of slinky and sexualised movements, as Frank is a character that seduces others easily and this is how I imagined him to move.
- The dance techniques used were appropriate to the style of the musical. Rocky Horror is a sexy and exaggerated musical, so we needed to make sure our movement matched this to fit the themes and also give our characters more personality. For example, Leah used sharp, jerky and hunched over movements in the character of Riff Raff, as this is how she envisioned his character to move. Personally, I used lots of slinky and sexualised movements, as Frank is a character that seduces others easily and this is how I imagined him to move.
How have these resources helped the development of your work?
The resources helped us to work professionally, quickly and to a high standard. We had everything we needed to complete good daily rehearsals; props and staging ideas. We had a good space to practise in, which meant that when we transferred to working in the theatre, the space was similar, yet we were prepared to adapt the work if needed. We had great lighting and sound effects, which added to the narrative of the story and also the professionalism of the production. We could also work quickly as we knew that other elements like makeup, costume and props were sorted by our production team, who were a huge help throughout the process. Without their help the production wouldn't have run as smooth or been as professional. Another way the made us work fast, was the fact that we learn out lines and lyrics from listening to the cast album an watching live performances. This meant we could focus on learning the dances and complete the show quicker.
Which elements have been most effective?In my opinion the most effective elements in the production were sound effects and props. The production team were responsible for finding and sourcing the sound effects, however we were able to have input regarding the timing and what sound effects we wanted. The sound effects were effective as they bought quieter moments to life and exaggerated key moments in the show. For example, just before Rocky (Nehemie) is revealed there was 3 chords played in a dramatic way after I shouted commands at Riff Raff (Leah) and Magenta (Alex). This added to the drama of the situation and also alerted the audience that something was about to happen, so therefore we had their attention and they would understand what was going on in the show bette, as they were concentrated. The sound effects also helped create moods. For example, at the beginning of the show when Brad (Bethany) and Janet (Tilia) were in the car and it was supposed to be raining, we used a rain sound effect. This linked to the dialogue later on when Riff Raff say to Janet: “You’re wet...” and Janet replies “Yes.. it’s raining”. This made the joke funnier, as it should be obvious as to why Janet is wet and it also makes the joke seem more like a sexual innuendo . The rain also reflects that something bad is going to happen, as rain has connotations of storms which are scary and typically feature in horror films. Overall the sound effects bought moments of the show to life and made it seem more realistic in some cases.
If i was to do a similar project to this again, I would keep a diary of events so that I could refer back and see what we had done week on week. This would have benefitted me in the long run and helped me with my weekly logs. This would have also given me more to say in my technical development, as I would have more improvements and notes on what skills I had used every lesson. For me personally, I think this would have made my work more detailed an accurate and less stressful when it came to meeting project deadlines.
How does this link to your goals of progression?
I want to get a good end of year grade and also end of 2nd year grade, so that I can go on and further study at at Musical theatre/ music or drama university. To go on a be successful in this line work education and work you need to be organised and good at reflecting practical work into written work. This will mean that when I move onto higher education, I will be able to stay on top of my work and use my organisation skills to help me achieve the grade/ outcome at the end of my training.
What did you contribute to the collaboration process?
Throughout this final project there have been a lot of opportunities for me to get involved and collaborate with my class mates and other students invalid in the production of 'Rocky Horror' . I really enjoyed collaborating with Nehemie to create choreography for make you a man, as this allowed me to explore me creativity and devise movement from the narrative of a song; something I had never done before. Also, I collaborated with Tilia and discussed my costume with her. She helped me decide on the colour scheme for my final outfit for the floor show. I also collaborated with the production students and helped them in painting props and set. Overall, me and my fellow classmates all took part and each completed some form of collaborative work throughout the past few months: Ghazall with Nehemie and myself worked on 'The Sword Of Damocles', Leah worked on 'Hot Patootie' with Ghazall, Alex worked on 'Science Fiction Double Feature' , Nehemie worked on 'The Floorshow' and Tilia and Bethany worked together on 'Dammit Janet'
What different skills did you need to draw on and how did you use them?
I had to make sure I was spacially aware and knew where I as going o stage at all times. Due to the production being a full musical there was no time to change spaces during scenes or songs, as we had set positions and the show flowed through each scenes and song with no time for mistakes. I had to know where all the props were and where the stage started and finished so that I was always visible to the audience. Additionally I was wearing very high stiletto heels, so I had to be extra careful where I was walking so that I didn’t injure any of my fellow cast members or myself. Being spacially aware helped not only with this but also with the transition from the dance studio into the theatre, as I could easily adapt myself to the surroundings and know where I was going without colliding with another cast members or set pieces. Also, I was aware of where the audience were. This helped with my positioning and also my projection, I knew exactly where to direct my comical lines and where to stand in order to be heard. I made sure that was always stood front or side on when singing or speaking, to make sure the audience could always hear me. Furthermore, this pushed my projection skills further as, I had to concentrate on projecting my sound forward at the audience. I think this was evident in my solo song: ‘Sweet Transvestite’. I started at then back of the stage and had to make my way downstage whilst dancing in my high heels. I used my diaphragm to push the sound out of my mouth and used breath control to support my sound as it came out, making a clear and audible sound for the audience. I have been working on these techniques in our weekly singing class.
Also, as I was playing the main role, I had to draw on my retainment and memory skills. I had the most lines and most songs in the production, this meant I had to work hard to learn all of my content included in the show. I also had to learn dances and cues, as in a lot of scenes my lines were crucial to the narrative and what happened next, so if I missed a line or messed one up it would throw off the performance. This was a lot of pressure but a challenge that I took on and felt as though I succeeded at. I listen to the songs everyday and read my script every night before going to bed, as well as running through the dance every weekend. This kept all the content fresh in my mind and helped me to learn everything fast and to a high standard.
Also, as I was playing the main role, I had to draw on my retainment and memory skills. I had the most lines and most songs in the production, this meant I had to work hard to learn all of my content included in the show. I also had to learn dances and cues, as in a lot of scenes my lines were crucial to the narrative and what happened next, so if I missed a line or messed one up it would throw off the performance. This was a lot of pressure but a challenge that I took on and felt as though I succeeded at. I listen to the songs everyday and read my script every night before going to bed, as well as running through the dance every weekend. This kept all the content fresh in my mind and helped me to learn everything fast and to a high standard.
How did your skills develop as a result of the work?
Over the last few months of developing ‘Rocky Horror’ , I now have much better spacial and audience awareness, as well as improved vocal technique. From being in this show I now know that I need to always make sure that I visible and audible to an audience, especially as we didn’t have microphones. We had originally planned to use microphones, however we had problems with the frequencies. This is what pushed my to use my spacial awareness and projection vocal techniques together to create a great performance.
What was your additional role and how did it contribute to the overall success of the final show?
My additional/ backstage role for ‘Rocky Horror’ was Makeup. Makeup is an important final touch to a production because it transforms the face and allows the audience to see the character painted onto the actors face, so they are truly becoming them. Personally, I find that when I wear the full stage or character makeup of whoever I am playing, it helps be characterise more, as I truly feel that I am in the characters skin. We discussed as a class how we wanted our makeup to look for each individual character. I had already planned my own makeup and drawn a design for how I wanted to look. I used my research I conducted about Frank’s makeup, I watched tutorials and watched film and stage productions to see Frank’s makeup was interpreted by different artists. I wanted to have my own take on the makeup and make it original yet still to the style of ‘Rocky Horror’, keeping the key elements: red lipstick, dark eyes and a pale face. My makeup stayed the same throughout the show, which reflects how Frank’s motives stay the same during the show; he wants to be obeyed. Most of my class mates designed their own makeup, I was happy for them to do this they could adapt it to be how the wanted it, and they could make it unique to their portrayal of the character. Overall, I feel that makeup was a huge contribution to the success of the show because I was playing a man who dresses as a woman. So I used makeup to further convey this to the audience, I included a shadow about my top lip to break the illusion and show the audience I am supposed to be man.
How successful do you think the show was overall as a collaborative performance? What was the reaction from the audience?
In my opinion I think that the matinee performance went well. The whole cast remembered their lines, cues, lyrics and choreography, minus one minor slip up during ’The Time Warp’ when Columbia (Rina) was meant to come forward for the tap break but Riff Raff stepped forward instead. Although they covered this well and the audience didn’t notice, as it seemed to still fit well with the song and Columbia (Rina) was able to catch up with the music and stay in time. Despite our efforts at remembering the hole production, we lacked energy in the group numbers and group scenes. I think our energy was lacking due to us being nervous, as it was our first proper performance of the show and also it was in front of other performing arts students from the college. The audience of college students related very differently to the audience of mature adults at the evening performance. During the Matinee the students would laugh at moments that weren’t meant to be funny, this was off putting but we carried on and didn’t let their comments bother us. The evening performance was more successful in this way, as the adults kept their laughter to themselves without disturbing the performance. I wasn’t sure how the audience were going to react, as at professional performances of ‘Rocky Horror’ the audiences sing and speak along with the actors, so I had no idea how our 2 audiences would receive our piece. Overall, I felt that the evening performance was better as were more prepared and had practise in front of an audience, as well as this we were excited and confident, as we wanted to impress out family and friends.
Some specific moments that highlighted the difference in the audiences reaction:
- In the matinee performance in front of the college students, at the end of Act 1 when I (Frank) push Nehemie (Rocky) down onto his knees in front of me in a sexually suggestive way, the audience hollered and shouted in shock and embarrassment. However in the eve ning performance the adults watching were more reserved and respectful and kept their laughter and comments held in until the interval when they were free to discuss what they had seen on stage.
I found it reassuring in a way that the audience was laughing, as the musical is supposed to be a comical performance, so it was having the desired effect on the audience, however they could have been more respectful towards us. Ultimately, this show me that you can never have a perfect audience and that their reaction will never be what you expect.
Some specific moments that highlighted the difference in the audiences reaction:
- In the matinee performance in front of the college students, at the end of Act 1 when I (Frank) push Nehemie (Rocky) down onto his knees in front of me in a sexually suggestive way, the audience hollered and shouted in shock and embarrassment. However in the eve ning performance the adults watching were more reserved and respectful and kept their laughter and comments held in until the interval when they were free to discuss what they had seen on stage.
I found it reassuring in a way that the audience was laughing, as the musical is supposed to be a comical performance, so it was having the desired effect on the audience, however they could have been more respectful towards us. Ultimately, this show me that you can never have a perfect audience and that their reaction will never be what you expect.
However, individual characterisation was strong and most solo performances had high energy. Each character contributed a vital element to the narrative and personally I felt that everyone achieved this and made their characters motives and personality clear to the audience, who may not have previously see the show or know the story.
What did you learn from the experience and how will you use it in the future?
Throughout the planning, choreographic and performance process I have learnt a great deal about both performance and myself. I have learnt to not doubt myself, I have very little confidence in my abilities and throughout the rehearsal and performance time I found myself questioning if I could take on a role such as, Frank. But since watching my performance I realised I need to have more confidence and faith in my skills. I gave a unique, high energy and believable performance and found that I stood out in a lot of scenes, due to my characterisation and performance skills. I used exagerated facial expressions and projected my voice, so that the audience could notice me and I would stand out for the right reasons. This will help me in the future, as I will have more confidence in myself and push myself to audition for main roles and be sure that I can take on any character and make it my own.
I have also learnt a lot about directing and putting a show together. There are a lot of elements that you have to consider when putting a show together . In my opinion the most important part of any show is rehearsal and making sure the show is perfect, I have learnt that this is tiring and despite this you must keep high levels of energy and remain alert so you can take on corrections and retain what you are learning. Additionally, I have found that during rehearsal things may not always go to plan and you have to find ways around problems. For example: if members of the cast are not present at rehearsal you will have to stand in for them or not complete this section of the show, which hinders rehearsal and therefore effects the outcome of the show. Learning this key knowledge about the overall behind the scenes of putting a show together, will be helpful in the future because I will know the amount of stamina it takes to attend daily rehearsals and I will aloud know how to approach problems in a professional way.
My teamwork and collaborative skills have also improved, I worked with my classmates to choreograph dances and also worked with production students on crating set and props fro the performance. I have found that these skills have developed as I have been communicating effectively with my classmates. Through clear and organised conversations and planning we were able to get a lot of the musical completed in a short space of time. I will use these skills in other productions I will take part in the future. I think we worked together well and that the teamwork skills I have gained from doing this show will stay with me into he next stage of my musical theatre journey.
My teamwork and collaborative skills have also improved, I worked with my classmates to choreograph dances and also worked with production students on crating set and props fro the performance. I have found that these skills have developed as I have been communicating effectively with my classmates. Through clear and organised conversations and planning we were able to get a lot of the musical completed in a short space of time. I will use these skills in other productions I will take part in the future. I think we worked together well and that the teamwork skills I have gained from doing this show will stay with me into he next stage of my musical theatre journey.
Matinee show
Evening show
No comments:
Post a Comment