Ok time for movements and exercises.
Jing(Fairy Godfather)
- Placing, throwing and opening up motions with the use of water sleeves.(this has been taught)
- Kick style walking(this has been taught)
- Must practice fluidity
Exercise to be done
-Walk around in character, doing the prescribed stock type movement and say your lines.
Lao Dan(Stepmother)
- Head isolations( You have been taught these on saturday, and expected to be able to do this)
- Graceful and controlled walking which is slow yet very graceful(this has been taught too)
- finger isolations to be practiced so as to be able to carry out gestures requireed of this stock type.
Hua Tan(Cinderella)
- Walking with slight trots to be practised
- Playing with handkerchief- Bending knees low when posing
- Practice finger isolations for greater control of your gestures. This has to be done due to lack of water sleeves
Xiao Sheng(Prince)
- Practice kick style walking(different than Jing's)
- Practice gestures
- Practice pivoting
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Agendas for Meetings
PLEASE TAKE NOTE-
Rehearsals-
Monday- Scene 1 and 2 to be finished. All stock type movement for each character must be known. Only touching up of movement is to be done. Scene 1 to be memorised. Showcase also.
Tuesday- All scenes completed. And rehearsed. All scenes to be memorised, as scene 3 is just me.
Wednesday- Perfect everything.
Rehearsals-
Monday- Scene 1 and 2 to be finished. All stock type movement for each character must be known. Only touching up of movement is to be done. Scene 1 to be memorised. Showcase also.
Tuesday- All scenes completed. And rehearsed. All scenes to be memorised, as scene 3 is just me.
Wednesday- Perfect everything.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Stock Type Movement of Lao Dan- Stepmother
The way they walk-
They are the most grounded stock type of this piece. They're lower body movement is very limited, at most they have slight up and down motions to accentuate sudden flares in emotion. They walk very slowly and tend to move about the same spot when speaking. Though they are grounded, they do not bend their nees very much when posing as they are 'old' and portray their grace through their control.
The way the move their upper body and posture-
Their upper body is very stationary, only moving with their head to accentuate the movement of their head and pose. It is also detrimental as it portrays whther the character around her is of a higher or lower status.
The way they make gestures with their arms-The movements exhibited by their arms is very slow and controlled, portraying an element of trained grace. The make use of their fingers and arms by making gestures towards people or things. They also use it to make very elegant poses to show an emotion as the trend is to create a character sophisticated enough to show underlying emotions with their short poses.
The way they move their heads-
The Lao Dan's head is the most important part of their body in terms of movement. They use their head to portray almost all of their emotions and gestures. Their head is used by cocking it towards or away from the person they are talking to show whether they like or dislike the person. They also use facial expressions very heavily which is why the head's movement is essential to the way their emotions are portrayed.
In General-
This character requires a good amount of physical control and assertive facial expressions
They are the most grounded stock type of this piece. They're lower body movement is very limited, at most they have slight up and down motions to accentuate sudden flares in emotion. They walk very slowly and tend to move about the same spot when speaking. Though they are grounded, they do not bend their nees very much when posing as they are 'old' and portray their grace through their control.
The way the move their upper body and posture-
Their upper body is very stationary, only moving with their head to accentuate the movement of their head and pose. It is also detrimental as it portrays whther the character around her is of a higher or lower status.
The way they make gestures with their arms-The movements exhibited by their arms is very slow and controlled, portraying an element of trained grace. The make use of their fingers and arms by making gestures towards people or things. They also use it to make very elegant poses to show an emotion as the trend is to create a character sophisticated enough to show underlying emotions with their short poses.
The way they move their heads-
The Lao Dan's head is the most important part of their body in terms of movement. They use their head to portray almost all of their emotions and gestures. Their head is used by cocking it towards or away from the person they are talking to show whether they like or dislike the person. They also use facial expressions very heavily which is why the head's movement is essential to the way their emotions are portrayed.
In General-
This character requires a good amount of physical control and assertive facial expressions
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Stock Type Movement of Xiao Sheng- Prince
The way they walk-
The prince always walks upright, stamping te ground with his feet as he is the authority and one who is in an extremely high position. He never bends his knees. When turning, he pivots just like army men or does th 'check T L V thingy'(didn't know how else to put this). He is always marching from one place to another and is very rooted to the ground.
They way they move their upper body and posture-
The upper body hardly moves, unless it follow the movement of the arm, and even this is not done very obviously. It moves with the lower body as if one unit, and or seems to have a 'swagger' when walking. This motion which i call 'swagger' is actually the character's persona which is seen through the way the body sways. This motion is done by moving more of the hips to give off a slightly more feminine composure to portray a more loving male character.
The way the make gestures with their arms-
The gestures, are very locked. The fingers must be closed tight and movements are done with the use of the shoulders while the elbows are locked at different positions to give a more assertive demeanour to the movement.
The way they move their heads-
This character doesn't move his head too much, unless he wishes to assert a point or portray a sudden change in emotion as regardless of his persona, a male has to be stoic and calm.
In General-
This character is quite uptight in his movements, yet he presents himslef with grace and poise as expected of one from regal bearing.
The prince always walks upright, stamping te ground with his feet as he is the authority and one who is in an extremely high position. He never bends his knees. When turning, he pivots just like army men or does th 'check T L V thingy'(didn't know how else to put this). He is always marching from one place to another and is very rooted to the ground.
They way they move their upper body and posture-
The upper body hardly moves, unless it follow the movement of the arm, and even this is not done very obviously. It moves with the lower body as if one unit, and or seems to have a 'swagger' when walking. This motion which i call 'swagger' is actually the character's persona which is seen through the way the body sways. This motion is done by moving more of the hips to give off a slightly more feminine composure to portray a more loving male character.
The way the make gestures with their arms-
The gestures, are very locked. The fingers must be closed tight and movements are done with the use of the shoulders while the elbows are locked at different positions to give a more assertive demeanour to the movement.
The way they move their heads-
This character doesn't move his head too much, unless he wishes to assert a point or portray a sudden change in emotion as regardless of his persona, a male has to be stoic and calm.
In General-
This character is quite uptight in his movements, yet he presents himslef with grace and poise as expected of one from regal bearing.
Stock type Movement of Hua Dan- Cinderella
The way they walk-
They are not as grounded as most characters, and tend to hop before posing or making a gesture. They walk with small trots which makes them look energetic and youthful.
The way they move their upper body and posture-
They tend to be lithe and fluid in the movement of their upper body, showing a good command in terms of flexibility and coordinated body isolation.
The way they make gestures with their arms-
They actually have one of the most complicated set of gestures and movements for this area. As they do not possess water sleeves they need to refine and perfect the use of their fingers and wrist so as to further exaggerate their movements. This in turn equates in a greater control of the movement of their arms as the audience can actually see what they do.
The way they move their heads-
They are very animated, moving it along with their arms and body, giving rise to a very playful looking character.
In General-
This character is very lively and bustling with energy. It needs to be played with a lot of energy as the movements required of it has to be 'blown up' on stage.
They are not as grounded as most characters, and tend to hop before posing or making a gesture. They walk with small trots which makes them look energetic and youthful.
The way they move their upper body and posture-
They tend to be lithe and fluid in the movement of their upper body, showing a good command in terms of flexibility and coordinated body isolation.
The way they make gestures with their arms-
They actually have one of the most complicated set of gestures and movements for this area. As they do not possess water sleeves they need to refine and perfect the use of their fingers and wrist so as to further exaggerate their movements. This in turn equates in a greater control of the movement of their arms as the audience can actually see what they do.
The way they move their heads-
They are very animated, moving it along with their arms and body, giving rise to a very playful looking character.
In General-
This character is very lively and bustling with energy. It needs to be played with a lot of energy as the movements required of it has to be 'blown up' on stage.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Chinese Opera Movements
“The choreographic nature of acting on the Chinese stage,” A.C. Scott wrote in the International Encyclopedia of Dance, “is apparent in the formalized treatment of movement and gesture, integrated with passages of song and music, in which words are treated as time-movement units. Hand gestures symbolizing emotional reactions create a continuous visible element with the tonal movement of the actors’ singing and declamation. Graceful passages of pointing with the fingers of one or both hands move through spatial sequences attended by the following glances of the performer, whose foot movements timed to the music carry forward the motifs of the dance.”
Delta wrote: “Always present...is the manner of moving used to define the specific individual being portrayed. Roles fall into genres—human beings, animals and birds, and supernatural beings...Ghost are conceived of as being stiff, devils as curvaceous; they dance grotesquely and humorously...The intrinsic quality of each animal or bird is fancifully and fully exploited—the powerful tiger, the brazen leopard, the sly fox, or the wily eagle.”
“Because classical opera uses no scenery, the actor-dancer sets the stage by incorporating the idea of physical environment onto gesture and movement...Action expands the stage when, from atop three stacked tables, the dancer does a double somersault to indicate he is running down a mountain. Many actor-dancers turn the stage into a sea with spread-eagle leaps, diving falls and spiraling turns...A general on a symbolic horse uses slipping, sliding and collapsing movements to portray efforts to advance on icy ground.”
Delta wrote: “Always present...is the manner of moving used to define the specific individual being portrayed. Roles fall into genres—human beings, animals and birds, and supernatural beings...Ghost are conceived of as being stiff, devils as curvaceous; they dance grotesquely and humorously...The intrinsic quality of each animal or bird is fancifully and fully exploited—the powerful tiger, the brazen leopard, the sly fox, or the wily eagle.”
“Because classical opera uses no scenery, the actor-dancer sets the stage by incorporating the idea of physical environment onto gesture and movement...Action expands the stage when, from atop three stacked tables, the dancer does a double somersault to indicate he is running down a mountain. Many actor-dancers turn the stage into a sea with spread-eagle leaps, diving falls and spiraling turns...A general on a symbolic horse uses slipping, sliding and collapsing movements to portray efforts to advance on icy ground.”
Monday, July 27, 2009
Conventions of movement Part 2
Well starting off with the feet. When walking, the feet has to make complete contact with the ground. This means that when walking, a footstep must begin with the heels, after which the rest of the foot is planted firmly on the ground. Then, the foot is lifted off the ground with the transfer of momentum to the ball of the feet.
To ensure that the steps are smooth, the knee is bent, again frimly rooted to the floor, belying a very firm and grounded style of dance.
When maing movements with the arms, only the elbows, writs and shoulders move. these movements are in circular motion, never in a straight line.
Lastly, all through the actions, the chest is always hellp up, head tilted slightly upwards and bottoms flexed so as to allow the actor to be as graceful as possoble when carrying out his/her movements.
To ensure that the steps are smooth, the knee is bent, again frimly rooted to the floor, belying a very firm and grounded style of dance.
When maing movements with the arms, only the elbows, writs and shoulders move. these movements are in circular motion, never in a straight line.
Lastly, all through the actions, the chest is always hellp up, head tilted slightly upwards and bottoms flexed so as to allow the actor to be as graceful as possoble when carrying out his/her movements.
The first Rehearsal
Well, we managed to accomplish half a scene. The movements were not the easiest to choreo as it didn't come so naturally and needed quite a bit of thinking before it could be used. Isaac helped me out by making sure that my movements were in tangent with the character's personality, age group and social stature. Rachel Boo seemed to have a natural talent for the style and so did outstandingly well, helping me out with nuances in the movements and it's execution.
All in all, it was a good rehearsal.
All in all, it was a good rehearsal.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
The Script As It Was Planned After Consult
Ok after consulting Mrs Wong, an artistic director and chinese opera actress, we'd come to the conclusion that we were going to take the approach of modern chinese opera, where the need to appeal to the audience was of great importance, and as such decided to go along with an Americanized step sister and a 'Chinaman' type Fairy god father.
This is due to the fact that the modern audience needs to have a connection with the characters and be consistently entertained by that 'one' character who does things differently and as such, the godfather became the stereotype of the strict, constantly annoyed chinese man who seems to have a funny side and the stepsister the shallow superficial girl like today's trend-chasing girls.
The above allows the audience to connect with REAL people they may have met throughout their lives. As our target audience is teenagers, they will be able to relate to the Fairy Godfather as a teacher or parent who consistently nags and picks at them yet genuinely cares, while the stepsister is the girl in the class or the one in the street who looks like an airhead but tries to hide it.
In terms of MOVEMENT, this will allow a more varied form of movement for each of these characters and give the play a contrast from the ancient norms of opera and fairytales. The Fairy Godfather for example will have mechanicalish and rigid movement, yet he will have a few playful moments here and there to give him that 'human' connection. The stepsister will have more 'fluttery' and 'wavy' motions which will show her front of trying to be fragile and delicate. She will also have tantrum like behaviour to show her stubborn character which shows that she's a sore loser.
This is due to the fact that the modern audience needs to have a connection with the characters and be consistently entertained by that 'one' character who does things differently and as such, the godfather became the stereotype of the strict, constantly annoyed chinese man who seems to have a funny side and the stepsister the shallow superficial girl like today's trend-chasing girls.
The above allows the audience to connect with REAL people they may have met throughout their lives. As our target audience is teenagers, they will be able to relate to the Fairy Godfather as a teacher or parent who consistently nags and picks at them yet genuinely cares, while the stepsister is the girl in the class or the one in the street who looks like an airhead but tries to hide it.
In terms of MOVEMENT, this will allow a more varied form of movement for each of these characters and give the play a contrast from the ancient norms of opera and fairytales. The Fairy Godfather for example will have mechanicalish and rigid movement, yet he will have a few playful moments here and there to give him that 'human' connection. The stepsister will have more 'fluttery' and 'wavy' motions which will show her front of trying to be fragile and delicate. She will also have tantrum like behaviour to show her stubborn character which shows that she's a sore loser.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Movement in Chinese Opera
Well, after a lot of talking around and Saturday's performance and introduction to chinese opera, I finally know what to do!!!
Movement in chinese opera is like a dance. And it works around the 'rule of opposites'. This means that whenever one does an action, it begins in the opposite direction it is supposed to go. Say for example greeting. The actor will perform hand movements while walking backwards and then walk back to the front continuing these movements till he stops to prostrate, performing a bow. I'll search for a video and put it up as soon as I find it. Other than this, the movement for female characters requires more hip and wrist movement while the male characters have more elbow and shoulder movement. Along with this, the posture of the male character is very important especially since we're going to have a deity and a prince.
Movement in chinese opera is like a dance. And it works around the 'rule of opposites'. This means that whenever one does an action, it begins in the opposite direction it is supposed to go. Say for example greeting. The actor will perform hand movements while walking backwards and then walk back to the front continuing these movements till he stops to prostrate, performing a bow. I'll search for a video and put it up as soon as I find it. Other than this, the movement for female characters requires more hip and wrist movement while the male characters have more elbow and shoulder movement. Along with this, the posture of the male character is very important especially since we're going to have a deity and a prince.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Roles
Saad-Movement. As movement coordinator, i'll have to choreograph the movements according to the script and traditions of chinese opera, make sure that the gestures fit in with the words, the mood od the dialogue, the costumes and their restrictions and will contribute to the overall success of the play.
Isaac- Scriptwriter. As the scriptwriter, Isaac heads the scipt production, while I help him by cross checking the lines and mood, making appropriate changes when needed.
Rachel- Makeup Artist. As the makeup artist, Boo will have to make sure that our makeup follows the traditions of chinese opera and that our character type and chracteristics can be immediately recognized as soon as we enter the acting space.
Wen Zhen- Costume. As the on heading costume, Wen Zhen has to design costumes fitting our characters personality and social standing.
Priscilla- Director and Tech. She is going to head the research and the blending of the east meets west concept. She is also going to be making sure that everything falls in place and all aspects of chinese opera are present.
Isaac- Scriptwriter. As the scriptwriter, Isaac heads the scipt production, while I help him by cross checking the lines and mood, making appropriate changes when needed.
Rachel- Makeup Artist. As the makeup artist, Boo will have to make sure that our makeup follows the traditions of chinese opera and that our character type and chracteristics can be immediately recognized as soon as we enter the acting space.
Wen Zhen- Costume. As the on heading costume, Wen Zhen has to design costumes fitting our characters personality and social standing.
Priscilla- Director and Tech. She is going to head the research and the blending of the east meets west concept. She is also going to be making sure that everything falls in place and all aspects of chinese opera are present.
Reading During The Hols- Text 1
Ok 4.48 Psychosis. A play which blew me away yet made me feel so bare. This play was written by Sarah Kane. It was her last play which describes someone undergoing clinical depression, a condition she had at the time.
What The Play Was About-
-Suicide
-Self Doubt
-Self Conflict
-Self Probing
-Self Questioning
-Despair
This play, made me realize how fractured human beings are and the pain and suffering we go through on the inside.
What The Play Was About-
-Suicide
-Self Doubt
-Self Conflict
-Self Probing
-Self Questioning
-Despair
This play, made me realize how fractured human beings are and the pain and suffering we go through on the inside.
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