"It's Really Important To Send Messages To The People Of Paris."

We started with a bar scene in which a woman is washing glasses and every now looking up the 5th gallery as if she's just thought of a lovely memory. Then a man enters - they look at each other, then up to the 5th gallery, then back to each other (x 3) - as an audience we get the idea that 

'something is coming'. 

"It's really important to send messages to the People of Paris."

Then the man orders a beer and sits down. One by one the woman's children enter asking their mother for money (who explains she doesn't have enough), but the man ends up giving the money to the children. He says to the woman she has lovely children, and she agrees and tells him they are from different fathers. He then goes to pay for the drink and the woman says it's on the house. They look at each other again, and then he leaves.

The idea is that the man in the bar is one of the fathers, who went away a long time ago and has just returned. They both know this, but neither say anything about it. And as an audience we experience the tension and pain and sadness of the situation.

A few people had a go but it never really got moving. It requires a good sense of rhythm, with stillness and silence, and the right voice at the right time. You have to present yourself as an actor too - soak in the audience's gaze from every angle.

"They are actors, not zombies."

~

"I speak about something IMPORTANT for the People of Paris."

~

We then played a scene in which a mentally retarded person comes on stage, clearly in love. Then a woman (the loved person) enters and they talk. The mentally retarded person eventually communicates that he's in love. And the woman tells him that she's in love too (which he gets excited about), and then goes on to describe how she's engaged and very happy (which he gets visibly upset about). Then the fiancée of the woman enters and they leave together. The mentally retarded person then cries by himself, and the curtain falls.

It took a while for us to get going on this one as well (I think people were tentative today for some reason). To counter this Philippe got us to dance in couples to music, and those who had good complicité were selected to try the scene. I danced with Maria (from Malaga, Spain) and we had great complicité.

Malaga, Spain

We are good friends - which helps. But I'm also getting much better at taking my time and being simple - looking into the eyes of my partner and looking for a way for us to play together. We were selected.

We then had to dance again, and one of us had to slowly morph into the mentally retarded person. Maria did at first - but she stopped being with me. Then I had a go, and played quite gently (I was scared to offend to be honest) and just stayed with Maria and took my time. Philippe was trying to get Maria to take on a big voice, and then he played 'Maria' from Westside Story, which lightened her up. Once she had told me she was also in love Philippe got her to leave the stage, then sit down by myself, and try to sing (with the voice I had) the tune to 'Maria' - but start crying throughout. I do so, then he told me to be quiet - then "curtain". 

"Me, I like Guy a bit."

I felt good about being lighter and more subtle. Showing myself.

~

After we did a similar thing with dancing, and the scene was that one of us had to announce how in love we are with our partner, but that we have tuberculosis and are going to die very soon.

I got up with Maria again, and Philippe said goodbye to all the other dancers on stage except us! I tried with a big voice, trying to be 'an actor' but Philippe said we don't believe you..."you are a charlatan."

Then Maria had a go. Philippe got Thomas to beat a fast rhythm on his drum, and for Maria to work with the rhythm. Fast, then slow. Then I had a go too. I had a good loud clear voice, good rhythm, and good freedom in my body. But Philippe said the voice I was using - "you could do it in the theatre today." But right now we're looking for a theatre voice of yesterday... "You can't speak normal like you do in a normal life...a theatre voice."

We'll learn more about this voice tomorrow!