Wednesday, May 16, 2012

“Bouffon: It’s You When You Are Beautiful. No Doubt.” (Dickheads Part II)

Mark, as a homeless man, came out and was great as this slow shocked kind of thug who would laugh and cough weezily with a big smile on his face, as he spoke about dickheads spitting on him. Philippe said it was good, but a bit sad and that he could be a bit more free. But “the humanity is good.”


~


Ben as a transvestite got up and tried something, but that something didn’t work immediately, and he got a bit freaked out - felt blocked - and gave up. He should have kept going - trying different things.

“You stop and then you have to find something else.”


~

Akron came out as his transvestite who looks like Marie Antoinette.


He was great! Really bizarre, but we loved him. It was kind of Akron, doing a few things he finds funny, and then running out of ideas and coming out of character and looking clearly perplexed. But  he hung on! It was a really great moment for him.

“We don’t know exactly who he is but it’s something good.”

“You have many ideas and these idiot ideas are something good for you.”

“It is important to do a show you never saw.” Philippe said what Akron did today was completely original - we haven’t seen something like this before - and that originality is really important.

~

Tim as transvestite - a bit gay - imitating Steph and Katy gossiping. Philippe said he needs to be “more delicate...more precious.”

~

I got up in my red headed voluptuous transvestite outfit and spoke with an ugly Australian accent - kind of imitating Sam. I was nervous (flashes of Character all over again) and what I did didn’t work, so I tried another voice, and another. I was in the shit, flop central, and then I pulled the trolley off and left before getting killed. Philippe offered me another try. I came on again, and tried a few other things, but nothing really worked. (I’d say they could have, but I wasn’t sensitive enough, listening to the audience, and testing a few things subtly). At one point I sat on the bench on stage with my knees to one side and spoke with a quiet Irish accent. Philippe paused me, and got me to stay in this position without moving, and to speak with this voice - pretending to be Oscar Wilde in stuck in a prison cell. Sort of dreamy and self-reflective. 


He also got me to change my costume a bit. Take away the shoes, and the red head wig. Instead I put on a little black boys wig. So in an Oscar Wilde dreamy sort of way, with my eyes up in the sky looking at nothing but my thoughts, I improvised text. And then in that way I spoke about dickheads. And then Philippe got me to say “My name is Eve and I am the first mother.” Sometimes he got me to laugh a little, or to sob a little. Always really gentle and intimate. 

He led me to leave slowly with the trolley, and then in a flash quickly run back and gossip really loud and fast whilst laughing. Later, he got me to sing a young teenage girls song. Philippe said I “need to play like this” but younger. Like a young homosexual. So I need to get a new younger costume.
I felt good about what I did today. Once in the right space, I was light and listening. Tall and still. It’s a new way of performing for me - to be really gentle and intimate - but it feels like to go in this way will be good for me. To show my humanity - my sensitivity and vulnerability.

~

Katy, dressed like a man with bow tie and slicked back hair, imitated Clark Gable and then George Clooney, saying her text behind the shopping trolley and every now and then popping her head out and shooting people - making the ‘poff’ bang sound of a gun with her mouth, and then grinning.


~

“Bouffon: It’s you when you are beautiful. No doubt.”

1 comment: