Rhinoceros Research

We are soon going to start reading Rhinoceros by Eugene Ionesco in class, so Mrs. Burke asked us to do some background research first. The play is about a drunk named Berenger, whose town becomes plagued by rhinos. Soon, everyone has been transformed into rhinos, and in the end, he vows to fight the rhinos. This play sounds crazy!!!! People transforming into rhinos?!?! I can see why they call it theatre of the absurd; this plot is certainly absurd. I wonder how they are able to act out these scenes because a play does not have the special effects that are available in movies. The author, Ionesco, was born in 1909 and died in 1994. He grew up in France, but moved to Romania in 1925, where he eventually met his wife. They had one daughter, and Ionesco often wrote stories for her. He wrote his first play in 1950, when he taught himself English. Ionesco's unique work is characterized by his rejection of the logical plot, character development, and thought of traditional drama. He created an anarchic form of comedy to show that man's existence is meaninglessness because everything happens by chance.
Sources:
http://www.imagi-nation.com/moonstruck/clsc19.html
http://www.theatrehistory.com/misc/rhinoceros.html

Real Gone Preparations

The past week in class, we helped Mrs. Burke get the set together for Real Gone. It was so much fun!!! It made me realize how much work it takes to put on a play, and all aspects must be taken care of. We painted the set, first using primer and then later painted the color. It was a lot fo work to make sure everything looked good, and the clean-up was a big aspect as well. On Thursday, the morning of the first showing, it was madness!! The set was still not done, and I'm pretty sure Mrs. Burke was stressing out a little :) But hey, what's theatre without things coming together at the last minute?! It was great to see how so much of the cast was down there working quickly and efficiently. They were all so involved in every aspect of the production, and they wanted the set to reflect all of the hard work they had put in. Anyway, we were all frantically putting last minute touches on the painting, setting up chairs, and Katherine, Mrs. Burke, and I worked on covering the couch. I thought the set was really coming together, even though it was a little worrisome not to have everything done. I am SOOOOO disappointed I wasn't able to come see the play :((( I hear it was fantastic!! And they got great compliments on the set, so I was a part of that aspect :) Unfortunately, I didn't get back from my track meet on Saturday in time for the show, but I really hope I can come see the one in the spring! Despite the fact tat I didn't get to see the play, helping with the set made me realize that every aspect affects the production, not just the acting. Things that we often take for granted actually take a great deal of work. Although I doubt I have a future in painting sets (I wasn't the greatest) it was still an amazing experience!

OOVOO Debacle

So our class thought we had a great idea to finish up our discussion of Henry V by having a group video chat with oovoo. However, it was a disaster. I couldn't get my microphone to work, Gwen couldn't get her video to work, and Mrs. Burke was having problems with both! Then, we tried to just do a group chat, but it was really confusing because everyone was typing at once, so we decided to finish our discussion in class. It was a learning experience because it showed us that you have to be prepared to deal with technological difficulties. I'm sure that theatrical productions often have problems with technology in plays, but the show must go on! We then had a great discussion in class the next day, and answered discussion questions that I am unfortunately not able to upload to here! :(

Henry V Throwback

I am currently rereading this book that I love, Annie Between the States, about a girl living in Virginia during the Civil War. In one scene, she meets William Farley, a scholarly soldier, who quotes Henry's speech from Henry V. As soon as I read that, I was so excited because I knew what they were talking about! That made me think about our discussions of Henry V in class. Henry gave his speech in Act III, and we discussed the significance of this speech because it serves as inspiration for the men. Most of the soldiers feel as if theirs is a lost cause, but Henry tries to muster support and convince them to fight to the death. This also marks Henry's maturity, for he is no longer the irresponsible boy shirking his duties, but he is taking responsiblity for his country. We talked about the manner in which he delivered his speeach, and I envisioned it being similar to King Theoden hitting the spears of his soldiers lined for battle in Lord of The Rings: Return of the King. He inspires the men there, just as Henry inspired his men.

http://lotrrotk.wordpress.com/

Atonement Dumb Show

Yesterday in English class, our teacher gave us a theatre opportunity, and I realized how much it connects to our studies in theatre! Each group was assigned a scene from the first 3 chapters of Atonement. Our group had the scene in which the Quincey cousins arrive and Briony experiences struggles with her cousins and the play. We had to justify our choices for props and color. The big catch was: no talking! We had to convey our scene without any noise, which proved difficult because facial expressions and actions become of utmost importance so that the audience can understand the scene without relying on words. I portrayed Briony, so I wore white to convey innocence. After our skit, we presented to the class about our choices. Then, after everyone was done, we talked about what had went well/what was frustrating. The conclusion that we came to was that our productions were similar to Briony's in that she was frustrated because everything had not worked out as she had envisioned it, just as is often the case with theatre. I really enjoyed this because I love performing dramatic things, and was fun to have to rely on my facial expression and actions. Yet, at the same time, it was difficult because I often rely on the strong projection of my voice to convey emotion. Overall, it was a great learning experience, and I am starting to see how all of our IB classes interconnect.

Forgetful

So I can be an incredibly forgetful person, but luckily Mrs. Burke saved me with her reminders of what we needed in our journal. I forgot to post about my meeting with her regarding my RI/PPP. On November 16, 2012 I met with Mrs. Burke to discuss the results of my rough draft for my RI and PPP. At the meeting, we discussed how to change my introduction so that it was more formal in not using "you." This was really helpful because I liked the catchiness of my intro, but I was struggling with how to fix it without using "you." But through our meeting, I was able to change it just a little bit to make it a really strong introduction. We also talked about citations, which I had some issues with, but I thought I fixed those pretty well. Overall, the meeting helped in reassuring me that I had done a pretty good job with my drafts, I just needed to do a little more work in tuning things up. I was really please with my final copies, so I appreciated the meeting in helping my progress.

Atonement

We have just started reading Atonement by Ian McEwan in English class. The book begins with the main character, Briony, trying to put together a performance of the play she has written. This really resonated with me in connection to our theatre class because Briony's struggles represented those that are often present in theatre. She knew exactly how she wanted her play and its characters to look, but her cousin Lola messed with her vision. Unfortunately, that is often the case with writers and directors. They have a picture in their mind of how they want an actor or set to look like, but there are often limitations on bringing that idea to fruition. I think Briony's play will continue to be integral to the plot of Atonement, so maybe I will see more of a parallel as I read more of the novel. Meanwhile, my inner theatre geek shows as I think about the logistics and acting of the play :)