"Neutral Mask Exercise: Imitate Winter and Spring
My winter was okay. My spring was "strange". It's clear that when imitating elements of nature the movement needs to be fluid.
Neutral Mask Trial Exercise: Imitate paintings of famous artists.
I got up to give Van Gogh a go with Mia...But I could only really think of this painting:
I ended up doing swirls with my body but it was awful! "Good bye Guy." Mia was great though. She was making different shapes and playing with different rhythms with her body. She might become yellow for a bit, then blue, then black, then a sharp angle, then a blotch of paint...
Greek Tragedy Text showings:
- Franck: "We don't see enough of his pleasure - his fun. We see nothing...Not enough life of a human being...Not enough jokes." Philippe got him to growl like a pig and it helped Franck be present with us (as he often goes somewhere else) and to have some fun. "So put a pig in your body."
- Christine: "You play too much...so many small things...full of bad ideas." It's true. It was bad. Even with the fantastic tramp costume he got her to wear, along with soaking wet hair. You could see she was wanting to be loved, but what she offered were little tricks and anecdotes that weren't shared with us. Whereas simpler and stiller would have been far better. You don't need to do a lot. It's riskier to do less in fact.
- Moi: I got up and tried out the Orestes monologue I had learnt.
My monologue is from the ending of The Oresteia: Choephori (The Libation Bearers) by Aeschylus, after Orestes has killed his mother, and then finds that he hasn't ended the chaos his mother has caused at all, but rather, has sent it spinning further.
It was not a sin to kill my mother.
From head to foot she was
polluted with my father's blood.
...
Ah! Look there, look!
Women, in grey cloaks,
with the faces of Gorgons.
They are coming.
...
Apollo you did not warn me!
...
You cannot see them but I see them.
You cannot feel their whips but I feel them. Ah!
I started off with Black and Fire as my elements. I was really in my body and voice, just playing the rhythm and tension of the element.
My Black was thick and slow with my body - a 6 tension. With a slow and then snappy rhythm and a breathy snake-like voice. My Fire was on-voice, sometimes shouty, with jumpy erratic movement. I jumped between these two elements as I spoke the text. Then Philippe got me to bring in Snow towards the end - which was light, soft, and airy in my body and voice - and eventually he got me to minimise the movement of playing 'snow' with my body and just keep it in my voice and rhythm. Towards the end of my text he got me to walk backwards slowly, getting softer with my voice.
"Not Bad...Not Bad At All...Even Good...Good."
I felt great that I had done well - that I could do the thing I've been wanting to do. I knew I could do it but to do it and have it confirmed/reassured feels good, even though I know that is a bit needy. Philippe hardly worked with me at all compared to others though. He just let me do what I did basically, which means I was doing well without him I think. This makes me think I've now got to explore more - and do it for myself, not for approval - and that there is plenty more that I can give.
In it I felt focussed, free, and present. Like "I am coming...watch out". Really taking the space and my time. Good body, tall, eyes, playing. Giving a lot. Pleasure. Not doing too much. Just committing to playing one element at a time and exploring.
Next time I would like to try humanising the elements from the start (I spoke to Jamie afterwards and she said for a real Greek Tragedy production you would minimise the movement but keep the rhythm and voice inside), and see if I can find more specificity and colours. Explore more within each element, and perhaps do more elements within the monologue. But not too many.
"So polite..."
Philippe cracked me up today! I got up first to do my Greek text but said if anybody hasn't been before then they should go. And Philippe started teasing me for being polite...which is apparently typical of New Zealanders.
"We didn't kill as many Aboriginals as the Australians...I love the Maori (kiss kiss)...I love your culture (kiss kiss)...I love your language (kiss kiss)...We are not racist (kiss kiss)...We have taken your country (kiss kiss)...We give you a sandwich (kiss kiss)..."
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