Masterclass #1

Fiona Buffini - What is Abstract Theatre?

* Status Journey

* Mistress Game > Universal language about status

        ^ Not matter where you come from in the world, at the end every understands that the game is about finding out what your status is within the game 

Tokout AIDS

> Devise an idea  > Travel to a community (this case, Papua New Guinea)

> Recrute members of the community/tribe 

> Use the language that the community uses 

> Teach them about the danger of Aids

> Tour this idea around to different communities

                 * Fiona explained that she learnt more from doing the project, and leaving with questions. She suggested that perhaps there would have had to have been a huge cultural shift by the community, a change in lifestyle and tradition.

* Working in the local language

* Trying to teach through culturally sensitive way about what is going on e.g. AIDs

* Trying to engage the audience verbally 

Minority Rights Group International - Street theatre in Rwanda to challenge racist stereotypes.

* Create a piece of drama more than just a message

* Aim to change the way in which communities look and behave to another tribe

* Tour the performance around the local area

* The set took 15 minutes to put together 

> Taken 6 actors, everyday people from the tribe e.g. farmers

> Taken 6 of the most famous actors from Rwanda

> The group of 12 worked together to help rebuild or build a house for one member within the tribe who really needed help. This meant that the actors could see how the people of the tribe lived, worked and what they dealt with. This also meant that the people from the village who were acting in the project felt they had the upper knowledge and confidence in what they were doing. Whilst the professional actors had the confidence in the rehearsal room. 

* this put together different types of people from Rwanda together as well as people of different status together

 i feel this kind of theatre brings together a community and can give a sense of self discovery as well as a voice.

Project Research | The Playhouse Prize

The Duchess of Malfi 

* Not a realise project 

* Design a model box

* To be performed in the main house of the Playhouse

* This project has a wide brief

* 750 theatre seating 

* The Playhouse is a major resource for the city

First written in 1612

First performed 1613

It was one of the first performances, and the shakespearian era that moved from outside performance to inside. This is a different feel and world than Shakespeare's worlds within his plays.

Jacobean

> No electricity, candle light

> Actors would have been holding candles for extra light

> A darker world/ tone and theme

> Violent society/ corrupt

> Shadows

Q: What is the relevance of this play to todays society?

* today the media show random acts of horror, torture and torment on a daily basis

The Play is full of: 

> Over hearing and spying

> Violence and torture

> Tarantino style 

> Sex and death

> Power is abused

> The play is a very grown up approach to the story 

* 4 main characters > Duchess - Good willed

                                > Brothers > Cardinal - Unpleasent

                                                  > Ferdinand - In love with his sister

                                > Bosiler - Spy 

                                > Antonio - Stuard, Good willed

Everything in this story seems like things are good, health and shiny, but underneath things are dirty and corrupt

* Something basic about the world 

* Darkness

* Waxworks

* Very visual

         > Strangled on stage

* Deception, back stabbing

*Supernatural element to the play >  ghosts around the cardinals place

*Bloodbath

*Struggle with self values - whats right and wrong

* Public face and private life

Q: How do you make the play look and feel like it connects to today?

Locations

> Court

> Rome

> 'On the Road'

> Prison

This story reminds me off...

A: The three Musketeers   (Corrupt Cardinal) 

A: Game of Thrones

Project Research | 170 years : All Schools Should Be Art Schools

All School should be Art Schools

*Prestigious and Impartial history on today's society
* To raise awareness of the importance of the school of art and design
                        ^ Especially for the future people of Nottingham
* History covered around the 19th, 20th and 21st century's history of the School of Art and Design
*Thomas Wakefield > Educational reform supporter
* Laura Knight
* community drama - for the people of Nottingham and the potential future students. Displayed and made public by the current students of Nottingham
*1843 when the Waverley building was opened
* To be performed in the iconic Nottingham Castle's long hall.

*Actors
* 2 Designers
* Photographers
* Film around and about the council house

* To be performed around the 12th and 13th of January

The target for the project is to make something visually stimulating, memorable and to leave behind a legacy of starting something that future generations can work with and do again and again.

Q: What does it mean for the people of Nottingham?

Q: What does it mean for people around the world?
                                 ^ European Lace market > 19th Century

Q: How important is the culture and political aspect for Art and Design?

Q; What is the market concerned about?
                                 ^ Past, Present and Future?

Q: What is the value of Art and Design as an educational disciple?

Q: What is the future agenda for art and design education?

Q: How should past tradition inform future practise?

Q:Should art education offer critical alternatives to current social and political agendas?

Q: Should the outcome of a degree in Fine Art be primarily practical or theoretical?

Q: How should personal creative expression be nurtured and encouraged in an educational environment?

Q: Will three years at university and an art degree lead to fulfilling and rewarding careers?

Project Research | Mellars

* Year 1 class > ages of 5+
                  ^ They are learning about personal development
                  ^ WW1
* Collaborating or be interested in working with that age group
* Group work
* Explore - 'The Shoe Maker and the Evles'
* Might be best to take a known text and work from that
* Or to devise a new text
                 ^ Think of influences e.g. water
* Budget £500
* 30 to 40 minute long performance
* Would you perform to small groups or as a whole
* What kind of theatre space would you use? Traverse?
* Puppetry is likely to be included
* Majority of the spring term would be needed for this project
                 ^ Dedicate the bulk of the spring term

Performance
* Last two weeks of the spring term for practise and performance

Project Research | Mansfield Palace Theatre

Project 1

*500 paramecium Arts Theatre
*120 members of the youth theatre
* National Theatre Connections > competition to get the show to Sheffield
* An idea of a Mini Tour
                   ^ Transferable to a thrust stage
                   ^ Adaptable
* Small budget of £600 (can be flexible)


Plot could link into dissertation idea at the moment
                   ^ World of Equality

* Cast of 18 (16 to 18 year olds)
* This project is more about working with young people
* A fully supportive technical team


Project 2

* Writing Track
* 50 minute performance
* 150 Auditorium space
* New writing
* Small budget of £600
* Cast of 6
* Not finalised script until January

Project Research | Dance4

Cyborg Sunday

* 4 Performers > Group pieces
                         > Chorus

* Live on an island space
* Mapping out and presenting the story
* Relating in an abstract way
* Never illstrated
* Actors manipulate each others bodies and movement


Set
* No objects on stage
* One light, in the middle, centre stage
                      ^ Like a child/ babies mobile
                      ^ continuously moving, causing shadows and interesting shapes
                      ^ Only light source
                      ^ Constant Mutation
                      ^ 4 metres high, long
* Relation with the touch...
                      ^ Imagination


Performance
* Actors are not always interacting with each other, they will do their own things
* Actors given a description on an action/ scenario > " Hold the shoulder of the closest actor, as if it were a dead rabbit"

Costume
* Wigs, same colour as the actors and actresses hair
* Changing clothes to imitate other actors
                      ^ Doubles of same costume in different materials
                      ^ Cross dressing into each other
* Manipulating the clothing of each other as if it were part of the body
                      ^ Clinging clothes
*Artificial clothing
                      ^ Made out of different materials
                      ^ Pixelated
                      ^ Wood, Plastic

Noise
* Pixelated, noise
* Distorted
* Digital noise

Audience
* Audience sat on the floor
* Sat randomly within the room
* Actors will walk through and between members of the audience



What does this remind me off?
A: 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony

The Performance

During the early stages of the research and development stage, the group had originally thought about a heavy performance piece for the Riot project. Have a big part performing with the cart and getting the audience involved. 

As our idea developed however, our piece slowly became more for a stand-alone piece, being the performance itself, rather than the group performing solely. 

Once we had set up the 'Machine' we then had to develop a routine for a small performance. This was tricky as we hadn't focused of a performative side and thought that the machine itself would be leading the audience up into a space, where the other two carts would be situated. 

Considering the amount of time that we had, I feel that our group worked effectively trying to focus no coming up with a performance to best show of the Machine. 

I feel that the three carts were all placed in the correct order to give a narrative to the entire performance. Our cart being first represented the industrial side of Nottingham, the growth of machines and labour. 

The only thing I would have liked to have happened, would have been for a bit of information given out to public viewing the performance to give our starting performance some context. With a bit more information I feel that our machine would have been better communicated to the audience.