THEA 1000 - 100 level assignment B PDF

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100 level assignment B...

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Okay gang let’s split up Scene partners: Sophie Barrell and Sammy Walker Word count: 940

My goal of my script "Okay gang let’s split up" by D. M. Larson was to use the techniques learned in class to develop distinct characters that would allow the performance to be effectively comedic. The most effective technique that created a contrast between characters was the use of body language. Parker was the more relaxed sarcastic character, therefore, had heavy and indirect movement, for example, he was mainly slumped in his chair spinning around freely. In contrast to the controlling and serious character Rosie whom was also heavy but had direct movements seen in her aggressive sharp hand gestures. This contrast exaggerated both characters personalities, therefore, Parker's actions became more absurd and for this reason funnier.

Improvements could have been made in the vocal delivery to create that greater juxtaposition between the characters. Both characters Parker and Moose could have exaggerated their range in volume and even tones more to emphasize the absurd and ridiculous slapstick humor. I also think if we had created a distinct type of voices the characters could have adopted for the performance it could have been very effective. For example, Moose’s stupidity could have been more extreme and noticeable if his voice became a higher pitched and whiny. This would have dragged out some of his words and even stumble over his own sentences by stuttering. This would have made his character more distinct from Parker as they were similar in some ways such as their playfulness making it more comedic.

When rehearsing my scripted I went over each line, variating the different vocal tones to find the most effective and suitable one to my character. I felt my lines had a lot of variation in mood that needed to be vocalized well in order to be effective. My character Parker changed moods dramatically from being very relaxed about the investigation of the office murder to the excitement that they could solve the murder mystery. His relaxed mood was portrayed through his ‘goofy’ and sarcastic attitude. For example when Parker pretended to be a woman with fake breasts the tone of the voice was a sexualized exaggerated portrayal of a woman in a bar stating “At least by me a drink first”. By preparing the right tone of voice that was going to be applied made that scene more engagingly and represented Parker's personality well. In contrast to a higher pitched and optimistic tone as Parker became excited by the idea that they could solve the mystery stating “We have some good dirt already. We're such good detectives “.

Regarding the set, we laid out the audience in an ‘L’ shape attempting to portray the idea of a classic 90’s office space with multiple cubicles. The two rows of the audience were seen as 'office walls' to the cubicles. This allowed the audience to feel apart of the set making it more engaging to watch because they wouldn't have felt like a normal audience. For example, at the start, each character was at a ‘cubicle’ with Parker right in the corner of the ‘L’ typing on his computer but consciously ignoring the audience. The extremely close invasiveness would've been uncomfortable yet resulted in a humorous touch because of it.

In preparation for the next layout, all three characters wheeled their chairs slightly to the further corner, meaning to be out of earshot from the other employers. I thought the preparation for the second layout could have been more effective because there was an unnatural movement from each of our ‘cubicles’ to one spot. The cluster of chairs seemed an awkward unnatural arrangement and space could have been used more effectively. This made the set unrealistic and less believable making it difficult for the audience to follow as they were distracted by the unnatural flow from one layout to the other.

The audience's response matched up with Parker's attempted to amuse both Moose and Rosie. Parker pretended to be a woman by stuffing his shirt with a jacket in the mold of big breasts. After he said “That is no way to treat a lady... at least buy me a drink first” in response to Moose prodding his fake breasts the audience found it humorous and matched up with Parker's playful attitude.

In preparation for my monologue ‘Serial dater’ from the play ‘Lacey's Last Chance’ I will need to use a range of techniques to do it effectively and hold the audience's attention throughout the performance. I will definitely use the technique of detecting the sections of Lacey’s change in mood by trying different tones that fit my character's personality and emotions that I want the audience to be feeling during that section. I found this very effective for preparation for my duologue.

Regarding the layout of the audience, I will prepare it differently, not be using them as part of the staging and not be acknowledging their presence however quite the opposite. I want to be directly talking to them and connect personally with them by acknowledging their presence. Having a small audience will allow me to achieve this effect by arranging them in a position that is close and surrounding.

My spatial awareness will be crucial in my monologue. Similarly, in preparation of my duologue, the use of seats was the main feature that allowed the audience to be at eye level with the characters which made it less intimidating the watch. However, I would like to incorporate the use of space more by standing and walking around getting close to the audience. In preparation, I will make mental cues of what space I should be incoherent to the mood my character is in....