Brothers Grimm: Iron Hans, 12/6/2014

Today we nearly finished Iron Hans.

To start with we all set up the stage and then decided on what play we should do, although we had already set up for Iron Hans.

This afternoon we will rehearse Hansel and Gretel because we haven't really rehearsed this and I didn't have any ideas of directing it.

We went on to split into two separate games and do the 'Wizard of Oz' exercise.

We had to choose a line and action from Hansel and Gretel.

For Gretel we had: "How do we get out of this enormous forest?" with her arms raised and walking around in a small, clockwise circle.

For Hansel we had: "Don't worry Gretel, I will save us" with him raising his hand on the first line, then stepping forward with a finger pointed upwards on 'I will save us'.

For the Father we had: "No no wife, I can't do that", he was hunched over with his hands clasped and shaking his head.

For the Mother we had: "You did it before, so you'll do it again". She slowly folded her arms over her chest and glared at the person in front of her.

For the Witch we had: "Put your finger out so I can see if you're plump". The witch was lunging forward with her upper body leaned back, finger held out and shoulders up and squinted eyes since she can't see anything.

We then went onto carry on with Iron Hans but didn't have much time left for this, we didn't get very far on with this piece.

As another element to this piece we are using tall bamboo sticks which are decorated. These are being used as the soldiers are going to war with their 'swords flashing in the sunlight'

Brothers Grimm: Iron Hans and arguments, 9/6/2014

Today, we all managed to have yet another argument. But not with each other, only sometimes we would end up shouting at one another which was generally me and someone else shouting because I wanted to move myself so I wouldn't be distracted.

We started late anyway because of some exams but then set up the stage on a smaller ratio. This meant we were limited when we started to run through the piece because when Iron Hans is tackled, we under estimated the space we now had. I moved the stage back a bit but got told off because we were meant to be in a limited space, I only moved it so that people wouldn't get hurt whilst running through the piece.

Before this we were told to do 'meditation' type exercises but everyone started to shout about this and just wanted to start the piece already and not waste anymore time which we keep getting moaned about for. We then started these but someone started laughing and distracted us all. So we had to do it again and everyone still ended up distracting one another.

When we started the piece I had to stand in for the First King again to show what we had done. People were talking over the top of me so I just ignored them and carried on whilst shouting the lines.

We didn't get very far with this piece because Iron Hans nearly got hurt because the set was in the way and there wasn't enough space to tackle him to the floor. But he was fine and there was actually space. Instead people just got into trouble for messing around. Which they weren't. They were just rehearsing the piece.

Once we tried to add on more to the piece, people were still distracted and talking and annoying one another. I was focused and waiting for my part or going over the piece.

Overall, I think we only added on about two more pages of script.

Brothers Grimm: Lady and The Lion 6/6/2014

Today we worked on Lady and The Lion. Although this was a rough work out of the play from the start to the end since we didn't have our main character who plays the Lion. 

We had two directors working on this and went through it quickly. Even though sometimes we would end up off task because we would suggest an idea and lead on with that and expand then loose ourself from the original point. 

Our idea for this play is that we use shadow puppetry with a screen to show the Lady's journey following the Lion when he is a Dove or the fight between the Lion and Dragon Princess. But we weren't allowed to stay on the topic of shadow puppetry because we kept being told off about this which made everyone confused with what we were then going to act out and what would be shown by puppets. 

I feel like this lesson was successful because everyone just wanted to work and get this piece over and done with quickly without arguing. Although sometimes there will always be arguments between us all. 

This is one side of the stage where we have a gate with flowers on and nice colours which is the summer/spring side of the Lions castle

This is the other side of the Lions garden. We are using the iron gate which is black and dull, it represents the dead side of the garden where it is still in winter.
As a group we felt like this would show the difference between the gardens.

Here is Daisy behind the screen. She is playing the Lady. This is when she is in the room with the Lion and he turns into a Dove. We haven't got around to deciding what the dove will be made out of so Daisy was using a book as the Dove which I think worked well. Others within the room thought otherwise.

Brothers Grimm: Iron Hans 5/6/2014

Thursday 5th June 2014

Today we decided that we would do Iron Hans because Luke was there and people needed a good part in order to get a better grade within the course.

We went through the task brief and now have a new date for our final performance which is July 1st.    Our performance will be to a year 7 class in the school space.

No one could decide who would direct Iron Hans because the main director wasn't in school and he doesn't do his work anyway and didn't care when we originally cut the play. So as a class we did decide to have our teacher direct us.

Miss quickly set up a stage area without any ideas. Although we did try to have some input in with the play but we weren't allowed because we weren't directing.

This is where the First King will sit at the start of Iron Hans. The Huntsmen will walk up to the King and around the audience when they get lost in the forest. This can also be used as a spring or be turned around to show the blue screen which matches the screen behind the cage and then turned around when the Boy goes to the spring.

This is Iron Hans' cage in the centre of the front of the stage so the audience can see him. When we aren't acting on stage we will sit beside the cage and then step up when we are acting and have something to say.

I personally don't like us sitting on the stage when the piece is going on because it may take the atmosphere out of the play and the audience would possibly be more focused on us than the actors actually acting at the time.

We are using the two blocks for the huntsmen to stand on whilst looking into the spring. Some people did just jump on George who was playing Iron Hans to capture him. Although this ended up in George with three people on him and then falling to the floor. But this was good for the piece and shows that men will just jump on someone and not be afraid to throw themselves into something even when they don't know what it is and it is the one thing that has been making people go missing.

Brothers Grimm: Hansel and Gretel, Ashputtel 23/6/2014

Friday 23rd May

Today we came to a conclusion of cutting Iron Hans. We were meant to rehearse this yesterday but Luke wasn't in and he is playing the main boy. We moved the rehearsal to today instead but, again, he wasn't in so we just decided to cut this if he wouldn't be committed and learn his lines in the future for this. Everyone agreed to cut this. Iron Hans was one of my favourite of the plays but not everyone can change due to one persons choice, we have to stick as a group and go with a majority vote. It is best to cut this anyway because we know that Luke has never really been committed to the class and probably won't learn his lines for this or take it seriously.


We then went on to rehearse Hansel and Gretel. As I am directing this, I decided that we run over what we had already done and add in Georgia since she wasn't in the lesson last week. We all worked together as a group for this piece because we all have our own ideas for it.
I came up with an idea that, for the start when the Father is talking, that when he is in the woods, Hansel and Gretel are running through the trees and playing since they are children and being introduced by the Father. Someone else came up with having the father walking through the woods when he is talking at the start as he is introducing the piece and he is a woodcutter. I decided that the Stepmother will be watching over the children playing in the woods.

This is a drawing we all contributed to on the board. We have the stage layout including pathways. This is clearly mapped out for everyone within the group and we were all writing down the ideas that we each came up with.

Scene Ideas
- Noises of animals when in forest
-Hansel and Gretel start in forest with father (mother watching over them)
-Trees different levels
-Trees get closer when getting further into the forest
- The actors being the furniture have to come down and be the trees
- Creating one big room for the actors
-When father, step mother, Hansel and Gretel go out to the forest the first time they travel the trees turn. Then the second time they travel they interact with H&G then walk around their fire
-Second tree interaction, H&G get lost - trees surround them more
-Trees coward away from step mother

These are all of the ideas that we each came up with during the first part of the scene when the family leave the house and head into the forest.
Our lesson was successful because we improved on the piece so that we all understood it and came up with ideas until they see the Gingerbread house. An idea was come up with that when they see the house, the trees will all point to it and show Hansel and Gretel their way.

In our next lesson we started to rehearse Ashputtel although I am not really in this play. I recorded the lesson. However the fire alarm did go off in the middle of the lesson and we all had to leave. Soon enough we all went back into the lesson and carried on up until the fire alarm going off again at the end of the lesson. Most people were focused in this lesson and they were coming up with good ideas for the piece to make it successful.

Directors Jodie and Georgia coming up with initial ideas for the opening of the piece

Mother spirit (left) and Ashputtel (right) in the opening of the piece when Ashputtel is called to her mother on her death bed

 One of the step sisters (left), Jodie, and Ashputtel in the back waiting to start rehearsals

 The other step sister, Georgia

Both step sisters will start sitting by the audience as they start their story as beggars

 Father (Nikky) with Mother Spirit (Molly) as she is on her death bed

Father and Mother Spirit

Brothers Grimm: Learning Lines 22/5/2014

Thursday 22nd May

Today, in our first lesson, we were suppose to be rehearsing Iron Hans. But the main actor wasn't in school so we swapped around our rehearsal for Ashputtel to this lesson and Iron Hans will be tomorrow.

I didn't do much within the lesson because I'm not in Ashputtel. Instead I started learning my lines for Hansel and Gretel but did struggle with beginning to learn this and ended up giving up. I drew out the staging area to come up with a pathway of when Hansel and Gretel walk through the woods but got told to stop and just learn my lines instead which I really didn't want to do. I was learning lines with someone else but he didn't have a script so we had to share one but he took hold of it and left me without one. Everyone else in the class was using their scripts to rehearse Ashputtel so I couldn't borrow one either.

Brothers Grimm: New Building Plans 19/5/2014

Monday 19th May

Today we went on a tour of the new building. We went into the new performing arts space which is a big stage area with bleacher seating.

When we came out of the building we started to make plans for our Brothers Grimm performance of Hansel and Gretel. Since this new area has bleacher seating we aren't really able to have the audience wherever we want them such as in the round or transverse.

Since the stage can change levels I decided that I wanted Hansel and Gretel's house to be on stage right but on a lower place than the witches house which would be next to it. This shows that Hansel and Gretel have been hit by the poor society, famine and hunger with their starvation. The witches house will be stage left but on a higher level to than the family. The woods will then be on the floor in front of the audience since there will be a big space between the seating area and the stage.

I then came up with another idea of having the woods on the stairs of the audience. They would come down from the gates by the lighting box on the balcony. However there are many scenes which are performed within the woods so this wouldn't be a good idea to do.

There were other ideas for the atmosphere of the piece for the audience, someone came up with the idea of having the audience just sitting on their own as a one person seat and the woods would be around them. Since sitting on your own within a theatre would be creepy and eerie anyway, having the scots work around you would add to the affect of the piece that we want to achieve.

This is the new staging area at its different levels 

 Here is a view of the stage from the balcony where the lighting box will be. The audience will go up to near the black thing is on the floor or just before there.

This is the balcony area, where the black pipe is is where the lighting box will be. On the far left and far left will be gates for the audience to get don to their seats.