Reflection 1- 09/09/24-12/09/24
Today was our first today pretty much an induction day and during this day we started off with a warmup that includes realistic acting techniques, from this I learnt how to improvise on the spot and use realism through acting, we then watched a Halloween movie called Hocus Pocus, for our first project we are collaborating with the light cinema for a fright night. I have been given the role of a zombie. Whilst watching the movie I analysed the zombie’s character making sure I’m ready to bring it to life in the light cinema for fright night. We also did some research on the police museum which is located in Bradford we are going to have a project related to our course there so we had to make sure we know enough about it in order for our project to run smooth.
Today we went through a power point with Jessica in which she thoroughly explained the meaning of Context and how we are supposed to be applying it to our context page on digital space, we went through the context of ‘ourselves’ and of the Bradford police museum. We then started learning the dance to a song from the musical ‘mama Mia’, this choreography was pretty simple for the most part but also quite challenging on the spins and turns. On Thursday with Steph we started off with doing Skills assessments on Navigate, we then continued researching context upon the Bradford police museum and the light cinema, we then had a singing class in which we started learning the song from Anastasia called ‘a journey to the past’ I found this pretty simple and easy as we had previously been over this song.
Reflection 2-16/09/24-20/09/24
Today with Steph we went through a power point in which we understood the major periods and movements in theatre history, we explored the impact of different theatrical styles on contemporary performances, we analysed the historical context of influential plays and playwrights and we also developed critical thinking skills through discussions and analysis of theatre history. We were also given our scripts for the Bradford police museum role play. I was given the role of a witness who went by the name of Mathew Eintwhistle. This was quite an easy role as my only job was to stand on the witness box and answer questions given by the prosecution and barrister. Today with Jess we started off with finding the contextual research of The light Cinema, from this lesson I learned how to apply context to digital space in further detail, we then went through research and what we should be researching in order to get the highest grades possible. The research part of digital space then made a lot more sense and it was a lot more easier to do.
Reflection 3-30/09/24-4/10/24
Today with Steph we started off with going through a PowerPoint related to acting, gestures and postures. We watched two clips of Charlie Chaplin and his silent comedy focusing on his exaggerated facial expressions and movements. We then split into groups of 3 and did a little bit of mirroring. We then devised a small scene of non verbal acting in which we exaggerated our movement and facial expressions. We then started of with creating our own court room case and scene where two girl have been charged with theft. I got the role of the prosecution which meant I would be against the girls attempting to give them a sentence.
Reflection 4- 7/10/24
Today with Steph we went watched a clip of shadows and lighting within movies and how they are used in order to capture the audiences attention. We then used a sheet and lighting to try and replicate some scary and frightening shadows. After that we gathered ideas about our own scenario that will be taken to Bradford police museum and acted out professionally. Below is the scenario:
After lunch we rehearsed our court room case that will be acted out on Wednesday. I have to read a statement and answer questions from the prosecution and defence attorneys who are Isobel and Ashley. Acting this out was pretty easy and simple as I’m reading off of a sheet of paper. The following day, in the morning we had a scrapbook session in which we continued with our digital space work, I started doing some research on hocus pocus and the Bradford police museum. After that we had an ambition hub session in which we learnt the importance of resilience upon mental health and chronic problems. It was then time for our court case performance at the Bradford police museum. I gave my statement to the jury’s and it was quite overwhelming as there was a lot of people present. I felt anxiety and nervousness whilst reading the statement and answering the prosecution and defence questions however overall it was amazing and a new experience as a whole.
Reflection 5- 14/10/24-18/10/24
Today I started off my day by having an appointment with my Make up artist for the hocus pocus fright night event. We started off with the MUA applying latex to my eyebrows for coverage however she wasn’t the biggest fan of it so she decided to use prosthetic and has settled with using that for the actual performance. With Steph we then created an improvised performance. My group was given the task of a nervous waiter attending to a customer who has feelings for the waiter whilst another customer is constantly being noisy. In this I played the waiter and did a some what good job at improvising. We then as a group did some stand up comedy using specific scenarios which was quite hilarious. After that we continued planning for our Bradford police museum court case and managed to get through with it however we didn’t get the chance to act it out. The following day with Steph we had tutorial in which I continued my research in scare acting, I found out a bunch of new things about the industry and now need to consider researching upon my character ‘Billy Butcherson’ to make the fright night at the light event more easier and less stressful.
Sunday 20th October- Hocus Pocus showday
Today was the fright night event and I was pretty nervous and also excited as this is something I have never done before. We started off with makeup, I met my MUA at 11 o clock, she started by applying the prosthetics to cover my eyebrows and then continued with the green and brownish look around my face. After the makeup was completed I got into my outfit which more or less improved the whole ‘Billy Butcherson’ look. The MUA then proceeded to add a bald cap on my head to cover my hair, she then put on the wig which pulled the whole look together. It was then time to start scaring the children. I found this rather fun and exciting and managed to get a few people to jump scare, which was hilarious but I continuously stayed in character so it doesn’t ruin the excitement and the whole idea of the characters being brought to life at the light cinema. After the scare acting was done we then proceeded with the removal of the makeup. I wasn’t the biggest fan of the prosthetics feeling on my face and after it was removed it was such a relief. We then finished for the day and overall I found it hilarious, Fun, exciting but also nerve wrecking. Below you will find pictures of myself and the rest of the cast:
Reflection 6- 21/10/24-25/10/24
Today with Steph we started blocking and staging our performance and timed it. The whole performance had to last around 5 minutes and after timing it a few times it fell within 5 minutes and a few seconds. We then managed to get off script as a group and go over it a few more times. We then continued on strengthening our improvisational skills by doing warm up tasks that include improvation.
Saturday 26th October-Bradford police museum showday
Today was the day of our court case performance, we had a total of three shows and they all pretty much went well and up to standards. I played the role of prosecution which is a barrister/ lawyer who isn’t in the support of the defendants. The prosecution managed to win one case out of the three which was funnily enough as the defendants initially got hanged when found guilty over a loaf of bread as that’s how petty the crime/ sentences were. I enjoyed the rehearsals and performances of this court case and absolutely adored it also because of the simplicity it held.