New Techniques

Let's play some catch up:


Rehearsals have been busy for Shrew this week. We've moved into scene work, which means we're breaking down every scene and working on intention, delivery, character, and comedy. By the middle of this week we'll be ready for a run through! Of course, this really means that Director will have us start breaking the comedy down piece by piece in an even more minute fashion than what we cover in scene work, which I'm very excited about. Soon we'll be running the show on location!


There's such great moment work in this play already. When we have the time to sit around and say "How can I make this more funny?" we're going to have so much fun. The great news of the week is that we've found a new Lucentio! The other great news is that I'm almost off book. The best news, by far, though is that I'm having an absolute blast.


I've been able to play a lot this week, and as a result, a lot of funny things are happening. I adore the rehearsal process, because as an actor it gives you the freedom to try a lot of things. Specifically for this play, the cast bonded together so quickly, and every rehearsal has been like hanging out with friends. I get to have fight scenes, I've learned to crack a bullwhip, I dance, I chase butterflies, and we've all spent some good quality time getting to know one another.


On Friday we had a 'Company Workshop', which brought together the casts of Shrew and Henry VIII. It was a workshop covering physical technique, commedia dell'arte, and character work. When we broke down physical technique our instructors taught us the basics of Laban: a way and language for interpreting, describing, visualizing, and notating all ways of human movement.


Laban Breakdown:
There are a small group of words used to describe the everyday movements we make as humans. This small group covers the entirety of the movements we make. Ex. Flick, glide, punch, float, push etc. These are all measured in intensity and whether they are direct or indirect motions. 


By the end of the workshop we learned how to use these specific motions to create more specific characters during our rehearsal process. Does your character glide by leading with her nose in the air? Does he punch the words he says? The technique, while basic and easy to understand, can be very useful when stuck on a character. Ultimately, I felt like I'd learned this technique before in combination with other technique work I've done, but it was interesting to hear it broken down more specifically. I thought it sounded like common sense.


We also learned physical techniques about moving through the space. We practiced leading with different body parts, changing levels, and partner trust. We gave our weight over to partners and moved our bodies in interesting poses while sharing weight with our partners. We rehearsed some scenarios, such as the way you react when you see money on the street that no one has picked up yet, or the way your trip.


The last thing we covered was the different styles (in Shakespeare's time) of how to bow and curtsy. I was excited to learn these because I love to add proper period work to my resume. That always comes in handy.


I attended my film wrap party and was able to see a rough cut of the footage pieced together. It looked pretty darn good! It was incredibly hard to watch myself, and I was (though I shouldn't have been after so long) as always surprised by how short the film was after all the time that had been put into it. I was proud of the action and stunt work. I really can't wait to do more of it in the future.


I did start filming for my newest film yesterday. I went in for hair and make up at 8, and ended up in the chair for a good two hours. After the shots had been set up we started the work. My first scene I was carried into the room and set down in a 'time chair'. I had a good laugh at this because I spent the first day of my last movie being carried in and set on a bed. I'm getting to be a pro at this move!


I had a lot of fun. This film doesn't have much of a budget, and the directors are much more creative with how they obtain the shots they want because their equipment is more limited. It's really interesting to watch the different processes that film makers go through. I watched some playback, and all in all, had a great time being in the future for the day. I wore a full body black unitard that they made to look very much like the suits in Tron. Next time, the lines on it will be painted, but they hadn't had enough time yet to paint them before yesterday. That meant I spent the day fixing masking tape that was attached to my suit. Was this a constant and difficult endeavor? Surprisingly. Did it look good on film? Even more surprisingly. That's why they call it movie magic I suppose.


Three more Sunday's left of this film (four if we have reshoots), and then it's off to the Tacoma Film Festival if they can finish it in time.


With rehearsal six days a week, and filming on the seventh I'm turning into quite the busy bee. It's nice to be able to really focus on what I love doing.  My Friday acting lessons are running smoothly as well. I'm still working on Sexual Perversity, and now I'm learning a new Pygmalion monologue for an audition I have coming up in a couple weeks. Acting Coach has been covering a lot about comedic timing, and the technique of what makes people laugh (which is really just about giving them the opportunity to do so). In other words--I'm having a grand old time!