Category Archives: Stage techniques

Group 6 Reflection

Death and dying, King Lear, Stage techniques, The Fool, The role of the imagination, Tragedy

Some of the most important events to happen in Shakespeare’s play King Lear happen off-stage. This is especially important since most of what our group talked about was what happened off-stage. The scene is set with Edgar confronting his bastard brother Edmund. All of the family conflicts within the Gloucester family are pumping and ready to explode as the two meet. Edmund doesn’t really know that it is Edgar whom he is fighting but soon Edgar explains who he is and the way in which his father Earl of Gloucester died.  At this point the audience knows the major event to happen off-stage and that’s the Earl of Gloucester’s dying after meeting Edgar. Goneril and Reagan die off-stage during the confrontation between the two brothers. Edmund reveals that he has set in motion a series of events to kill Cordelia.

The off-stage significance is important because so many things are happening off-stage and never before in any of the Shakespeare plays that we have read as a class has this happened. The only equivalent in terms of death is probably Hamlet, but in Hamlet  multiple characters die on-stage. The amount of characters that died are similar, but Hamlet had the chaos of everyone dying right there  for the audience to make sense of. I think his reasoning for taking the deaths of the characters of King Lear off-stage was to highlight the moment at which Lear holds Cordelia in his arms and is powerless because he couldn’t reach her in time to save her life. Maybe Shakespeare wanted to highlight how vulnerable his characters were, that they had no control over what was going on. In that sense I think Lear is even more tragic than Hamlet.

While discussing the part, our group missed some of the significance that the scene set up. Only with close reading and re-examination did we discover that there was so much going on in this scene off-stage and on-stage. During our presentation, I think our highlight of the things that happened off-stage was so important to the mood of the play. Coming into the group, I didn’t realize how much of an impact this scene had on the play. The Gloucester family is so important to the play as the other story to follow beside Lear’s story.

After working with the group our favorite part, was the acting scene. Even though we didn’t rehearse it much, the acting came alive, and everyone was just having fun with it. It became more than a group project, and that was meaningful. We all made fun of Albany’s whining and how he was an honorable man but never acted upon it. I played Albany so it was especially fun to overact the scene and portray Albany as this wimpy guy. I think it was especially fun for us to just be able to act out our parts without any pressure and let our natural ability take over. The fight between Edgar and Edmund played by Douglas and Elina respectively was funny even though that wasn’t the direction the play took it. I think our performance was a lot lighter and comical compared to the actual portrayal. Overall I think each of our group members enjoyed it and we would be happy to do something similar as a group.

 

A Beautiful Dramedy

Generic characteristics, Psychological states, Stage techniques, The role of the imagination, The Winter's Tale, Tragicomedy

The Winter’s Tale is a play that requires major suspension of disbelief. It is at several moments more unrealistic than A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a play that contains fairies and pixies, and the king’s madness is more irrational than that of even Lear. Though thoroughly enjoyable and entertaining the story itself is a preposterous flight of fancy. The king is petulant and sullen without just cause, and his moods flicker at the flick of a switch. The queen’s resurrection is a fantastical, and a pleasant surprise in an ending that seems made for “happily ever after” end credits. Even Antigonus’ death, which is both grotesque and abrupt, becomes humorous and lighthearted in this story line.

However, in my mind the humor and fantasy are marred by the death of Mamillius.  This is my one point of contention and the only scene that ties the play to tragedy of any kind. But Shakespeare masterfully fills in the gaps left by the characters taken away by death; Hermione is reborn, Florizel, who is similar in age to Mamillius, comes to the kingdom as Leontes’ son by marriage, and Paulina regains a husband of proven virtue and honor.  All of the loose ends are tied, no one is left suffering or in pain, and it is sweet, but too good to be true.  Overall, The Winters Tale is a funny lighthearted tale that handles dark, loaded topics with just the right measure of sugar to coat over the uncomfortable patches.

Preparing to 'awake' and love the husband who wanted her dead and almost made her completely childless
Preparing to ‘awake’ and love the husband who wanted her dead and almost made her completely childless

Scene Staging in The Winter’s Tale

Stage techniques, The Winter's Tale, Uncategorized

In a number of the plays we’ve read this semester, we’ve seen Shakespearean characters take part in scene staging. One of the earliest examples of this was in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, with Bottom and the craftsmen piecing together a performance for Theseus and Hippolyta. Other cases of scene staging, however, have not been so explicit. For instance, in Measure for Measure, when Lucio coaches Isabella during her first meeting with Angelo, he acts much like a stage director would: providing guidance to his “performers.”The Winter’s Tale is no exception to this pattern of scene staging. In the play’s closing scene, we can see some of the previous strands of scene staging arise–especially with regards to Paulina. Orchestrating Hermione and Leontes’ reunion, Paulina takes on the role of  director in the final scene of The Winter’s Tale.

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Autolycus: The Wolf [Him]self

Character types, Class and status, Costumes and props, The Winter's Tale, Tragicomedy,

There is a great deal of talk talk about bears, lions, and other beasts such as wolves in The Winter’s Tale, but by the second half of the play, we realize that the only wolf we are going to meet is Autolycus. This is not to say that this rogue is simply an antagonist, though. He is a highly complex character who falls somewhere in between the realms of good and bad: the realm of mankind.

To start, it is important to mention that the name Autolycus means “The Wolf itself” and has an extensive background in Greek mythology. In short, the mythological Autolycus was the son of Hermes and the grandfather of Odysseus.  He is said to have been a great thief who had the gift of never being caught.  It is interesting that this is the meaning behind his name, especially after we see him stealing fleece at sheep-shearing festival.  In addition to this, he calls people “the herd” (4.4) after he completes this task.  As we all know, wolves typically prey on sheep, and therefore, the sheep tend to fear them. This fact of nature would normally lead us to believe that Autolycus is evil and wishes to cause the people harm. Yet this is not the case. The people (or the “herd”) don’t fear Autolycus because he’s not really hurting anyone with what he’s doing. It is more likely that he deems these people “the herd” not because he wishes them harm, but because he is extremely clever and cunning and can constantly outwit and win these mindless sheep-like individuals over with his charming personality.  It should also be noted that prior to this festival, Autolycus has been stealing sheets. There is an apparent sexual connotation here that brings to mind it the issue of Leontes, who thought Hermione was sleeping with King Polixenes. This links the latter half of the play back with the first and gives us reason to believe that Autolycus is a foil of Leontes. Autolycus uses his “profession” to his advantage and sparks a comedic element in the play, while Leontes is suffering the consequences of his false accusations and represents the tragic aspect of the play.

Autolycus appears in disguise several times (as peddler at the sheep shearing festival and later as a nobleman), tricks nearly everyone he comes in contact with by picking their pockets, and also captivates them through bawdy songs which are often about marriage, love, and sex. Shakespeare has presented us with a highly seductive character, which is likely one of the reasons why audiences and the people around him in the play seem to take a liking to him so much. His behavior is anything but honorable and he often speaks and sings crudely, but his songs are still expressed in a way that is artful and appeals to the senses and interests of his audience, and his deeds are almost overshadowed by his skillful wit and honesty with the audience.  Autolycus might bring to mind Milton’s interpretation of the devil in Paradise Lost; though he is acting immorally and takes on different forms, we cannot help but also feel some sort of sympathy for and attraction toward him as a character. It helps that he really conveys the plight of the working class and shifting times on a larger level.  We can see through his description of himself (4.4, 95-102) and also his actions that sometimes he works, sometimes he steals, and sometimes he begs.  It is clear through many of the plays we have read (especially through Measure for Measure and King Lear, in my opinion) that Shakespeare was aware that life was not easy for most people living in 17th century England. It was a struggle to put food on the table each day, but Autolycus makes light of the situation through his humor, and would therefore be appealing to and appreciated by this large portion of the population.

In addition to this, when we learn that he used to work in the court, it becomes evident that he also serves as a link between the royal world and the pastoral world.  He isn’t your typical member of the bourgeoisie. Autolycus always masters every situation he’s in and he is a jack-of-all-trades.  He is not unlike Falstaff in terms of his wit and general competence; there is no doubt that he is in control and very aware of what is going on around him. I might go so far as to argue that Autolycus is what the every day workingman might dream to be.  He is admirable in that he makes the best of his situation and doesn’t seem to be suffering, though he goes about it in a less than admirable manner. Even so, his character gives a sense of hope to the working class poor in the audience in Shakespeare’s time, and even today.

Through all of this, it becomes quite difficult to characterize Autolycus as a predatory wolf. He is always honest about his intentions from the start. He never presents them as honorable, and although his intentions aren’t pure in any sense of the word, they are not really “evil” either. His crimes are what we would consider relatively petty, especially when juxtaposed with the crimes of King Leontes.  And we cannot forget that Autolycus’ actions eventually lead to reconciliation and harmony at the play’s end. It is undeniable that he is a complex character who is difficult to define explicitly, but we might all be unified in the notion that in all of its mystery and chaos, Act 3 scene 3 was setting us up for the entrance of a character of this nature. Through Autolycus, laughter and joy are brought into a play filled with tragic undertones, and beyond all of the fantastical elements we are presented with on stage, we finally meet a character that is truly human.

Cordelia the Fool

Doubling, King Lear, The Fool

Scholars have long debated over whether or not the same male actor was meant to play both the roles of Cordelia and the Fool in King Lear. Regardless of Shakespeare’s intention, there are similarities between the two characters.

Like the “all-licensed” Fool, Cordelia insisted on being true to herself by maintaining a high level of honesty. She can be considered a brave female character who dared to deviate from the norms of society, one of which was to tell her father the king what he wanted to hear. Despite knowing that “nothing can come of nothing,” Cordelia refused to affectedly flatter her father like her two elder sisters did. She and the Fool both possessed a nimble mind that other characters lacked. Influenced by the teaching “The heart of fooles is in the mouth: but the mouth of the wise is in their heart” from The Book Ecclesiasticus, Shakespeare had Cordelia say nothing to indicate that she is the wise one, just like the Fool who opened Lear’s eyes to the truths that he was too blinded to see.

However, Cordelia is also a fool in the literal sense of the term. She was uncompromisingly honest to the point of being stubborn. Rather than saying nothing, she could have expressed her genuine love for her father while still upholding her dignity. At the tragic ending of the play, Lear said “And my fool is hanged” to refer to Cordelia’s unjustified death. Lear calling his daughter a fool in this context is an expression of endearment towards the only daughter who really loved him but was too “foolish” to say anything beyond nothing.

The Scene in the Court – Measure for Measure Group 4 Reflections

Class and status, Generic characteristics, Measure for Measure, Prose passage, Stage techniques
Examination of Froth and Clown by Escalus and Justice | Photo Credits: BBC

Looking back to the day we had to act out the scene highlighting Pompey and Escalus (2.1.136-256), there is no denying that coordinating the rather tricky Shakespearean language entwined within the scene, the appropriate atmosphere of the characters and the setting and the limited resources (and not to mention ability) into a cohesive portrayal of this particular scene was initially challenging. However, being able to retrospect the challenges in recording the scene, and both understanding and analyzing the significance of the scene only gives an opportunity to once again appreciate the genius of Shakespeare in breathing life into what would be just merely physical movement, voices and props.

Before we had a chance to look at our dialogue we knew that we had to refrain from using the books on stage while filming. The productions we had seen of Shakespeare’s plays were powerful because the actor not only interpreted each line in his/her own way but also because they were able to look out into the audience and convey their emotions to the audience. So, the first thing that popped into my mind was a teleprompter. We’ve seen simple technology such as this being used on a daily basis in so many different TV shows and what we were taping was a video so in that aspect it worked out perfectly. When we finally read the scene we realized it was very apt to use the prompter because it was a court scene. Using the chair for Escalus to sit down and face his back towards the audience was a decision we took since he was the authority in that scene. Simple actions from Froth, Pompey and Elbow like stepping forward to present their case (i.e. read their parts) each time really immersed us into the roles as novice actors.

Unknowingly, a typical tribunal type of atmosphere arose from just our positioning, which eventually became necessary to get the feeling for the more serious questions regarding the actual law that was to be enforced and the type of crime that was committed. The second most important dramatic technique, attempted, was the idea of Pompey reciting the four lines alone as both Escalus and Elbow phase out of the line of sight of the camera to emphasize a sense of cynicism in the justice system presented by Shakespeare because it illustrates the persistence of certain deeds, and even the possibility of helplessness in erasing that same persistence. Just as Pompey critically derides Escalus’s duty to the law, “Does your worship mean to geld and splay all the youth of the city,” the selected scene that was required of us definitely gave the opportunity to not merely enact but to feel, at the very minimum, how the language woven within the directions of how the props and setting would be displayed creates the right atmosphere in thinking on terms like cynical justice or corruption. Hence going back to what was mentioned earlier, this is just a taste of the genius in Shakespeare breathing life, which can be appreciated only when one has attempted to enact that selected scene.

We found it very enjoyable working on this project despite everyone’s initial hesitation towards group projects. Everyone in this group was extremely cooperative, which helped a lot considering we had to do a number of retakes (close to 20?). One scene that stood out for us was the one between Escalus and Pompey regarding Pompey’s nickname. We all laughed out loud during the “bum” comments because we didn’t realize how hilarious they were until we recited the play.

 The scene showed us  a very different dynamic to Shakespeare’s work in that it showed comedy, however, it also illustrated his ability to created striking conversation. The scene the group did was not an introduction to the types of subjects the play addresses, but also the kind of quick hitting, “right back at you” type of dialect. In addition, while it was able to delineate multiple dynamics, it showed a very interesting lens in that it portrayed class distinction by way of vocabulary which was a bit new to me when it came to Shakespeare. All in all, he believes that sometimes we lose sight of the meaning behind Shakespeare’s work because of the language, but if we take the time to find the power behind the dialogue, we can gain a better understanding of the play, the times, and Shakespeare himself.

 

 

Clowns, Skulls, and Melancholic Musings: Group 3 Critique

Class and status, Costumes and props, Death and dying, Hamlet, Prose passage, Rhyme and pattern, Stage techniques, Tragedy, Verbal texture

Savage Chickens- Hamlet

Satirical Summary of the gravedigger scene

The graveyard scene in Hamlet is one of the most iconic moments of the play often referenced out of context, and as a result many of its important details go missed.  As a group, our initial meeting focused on planning and logistics.  We wanted to do Shakespeare’s work as much justice as we possibly could in light of our modest situation, and what became readily apparent was that even if nothing else was available Yorick’s skull had to be used as a main prop. Something that we all felt as a profound truth in this experience is that Shakespeare’s plays were certainly meant to be seen, heard, and performed. There is undoubtedly so much more to be learned from playing one of his characters instead of simply reading the lines.  As fortune would have it we were able to use an area of the Baruch Performing Arts Center that allowed for ease of filming, the sound of our voices to carry well to our amateur filming apparatus, and also for our characters to be positioned in a way that we felt truly made the scene come to life.

Reid by far had the most challenging task in portraying Hamlet; a character whose tendency to branch into soliloquy made his portion of the scene the lengthiest and most long-winded.   His task in our practice readings, and finally in the ultimate performance was preventing the words from melding together and becoming a drone. His use of vocal inflections and varied expressions, a result if his familiarity with the piece, brought the character to life, making what could have been a boring recitation into a worthy theatrical effort.

For Nolan, embodying the character of Horatio really helped him to understand the importance and significance of this character. Horatio was the one person that Hamlet had full trust and confidence in. Where every other relationship he has falls into disarray, the one he has with Horatio stays constant and cordial. This certainly allows the reader to delve further into the mind of Hamlet, but for the actor playing Horatio this effect is even more profound. Horatio has very few lines in the gravedigger scene so he has plenty of time to observe and ponder Hamlet and his sudden return to Denmark. He’s the first individual to truly see the changes that Hamlet experiences, the first person to understand the implications of what actions are to come, and the last person alive to see how these necessary events unfold.

Karina was fascinated by the depth provided by a character that is so often glossed over.  She jumped at the chance to portray the comic relief, whose few lines and small role held so much life and character and spoke volumes of the tone and mood of the play itself.  It was a very different experience seeing a character portrayed, and being the character yourself. Speaking his jokes, singing his songs, ‘sitting in his grave’ added a layer to the play that reading lines in a book failed to provide.  The gravedigger provides exposition from an outsider’s point of view, he is a common man who faces death not with melancholy or petulance, but with rationality and realism.  As Hamlet stated “the hand of little employment hath the daintier sense” (5.1.70),and after digging an imaginary grave for seven minutes it is easy to see why humor and honesty would be necessary to make the most of the gravedigger’s vocation.

One thing for sure, it is very easy to see how easy it is for Shakespeare’s work to be represented differently in each production. Lines and scenes can be interpreted differently by different directors and actors causing these variations. We each had different ideas of what the scene would look like and it was especially fun having the opportunity to let the scene flow forth from each of our minds into physicality. We got to collaborate and create a shared organic vision for the scene, and share this interpretation with others.

Variations of the scene in film (Mel Gibson vs. Kenneth Branagh):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbxMhvcxJJc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXixlEy5Gfc

Exploration into the importance and properties of Yorick’s skull

Pianist’s dying wish: human skull used in performance


King Lear and the emptiness of appearances.

Costumes and props, King Lear, Stage techniques, Tragedy

King Lear opens with Lear disowning his favorite daughter for her honesty and rewarding the empty flattery of her older sisters. Lear also rejects Kent, a loyal man who seeks to help Lear realize his error. Shakespeare examined the problems of valuing the appearance of the virtues and morality in many of his plays. Angelo in Measure for Measure and Macbeth are examples of powerful men who display the appearance of virtue but are secretly great criminals. Lear goes mad rather than face the truth that his daughters’ protestation of love was only empty flattery. Lear as a king holds the appearance of virtue but acts in a manner that directly opposes morality. It is only when he ventures into the heath with the Fool and Kent and is faced with the storm that he begins to understand the world as it really is. The irony is that the play’s most moral men all end up on the run in the heath. Each holds an appearance that is at odds with their character. They hold the likeness of the mad and the poor while the wicked live in opulence.

Shakespeare’s Substitutions

Doubling, Measure for Measure, Stage techniques

In Measure for Measure, Shakespeare takes characters and plays with their identity, to the point that most people in the play have dual identities.  The best examples of this are: the Duke, Isabella and Claudio.  This duality creates two sides to each person, and in some cases it creates a private side and a public side to each person.  In the case of the Duke he is a man of power, yet he does not like to be in the public eye.  He is lenient when enforcing lesser crimes and for the most part is considered to be a good man.  When he needs to enforce the law, he shrinks away, putting another man, Angelo into power to clean the streets.  The Duke disguises himself as a friar, a very private figure; one who is often isolated from the world within the walls of a monastery.  He plays both sides, and in doing so, avoids blame for any actions he may have done.

Isabella is Claudio’s sister, soon to become a nun.  She is called upon to help save her brother, Claudio, who has been imprisoned and sentenced to death for sexual relations out of wedlock.  Claudio asks her to try to use her feminine charm against Angelo, the man the Duke left in power in his absence.  He hopes that she will do anything to save the life of her brother.  It is revealed that the only way to save Claudio’s life is for Isabella to sleep with Angelo.  Being a woman of God, she refuses, and the friar (Duke in disguise) suggests pulling the “bed trick”.  This entails switching Isabella for someone else; in this case it is Angelo’s fiancée Mariana.  This swapping is yet another instance of hiding someone’s identity in hopes of coming out of the situation untouched.

Finally, we have Claudio, who has been sentenced to death.  He is in jail and begged his sister to help him.  The bed trick was successfully pulled off, yet Angelo did not keep his word, as a result Claudio was to die by morning.  The Duke in disguise comes in and suggests yet another swap.  This time, they will say that Claudio has been beheaded, but they will send the head of a pirate in its place.  Then Angelo will be satisfied and Claudio can escape/be released once the Duke returns (receiving a pardon).  One of the themes of this play is concealing identity in order to avoid a punishment.  In other words, they don’t want to become victims and face the law, whether it is an eye for an eye, or as Shakespeare put it, measure for measure.

Shakespeare Fashion Craze: Royalty

1 Henry IV, Costumes and props, Imagery, Stage techniques, Verbal texture

The repetition of a particular metaphor type in a William Shakespeare play can signify and complement a theme of the play.  In Henry IV Part 1, the repeating metaphors that stand out to me relate to dress and wardrobe.  In a play that is concerned with the crown and the role of royalty, dress metaphors are especially appropriate when considering that a king can simply “wear” the crown or be the crown.  Specifically, does the occupation of the throne automatically make every action of a king royal or does the content, the spirit or the motive of the act define royalty?

This observation is why I liked Prince Henry at the end of the Act I. The idea that, “when  this loose behavior I throw off,”  is like him suggesting that he can change his roles like his clothes and throw off that tattered jacket of adolescence for a more appropriate garb. ( Act 1, Sc. 2, 213) Instead of taking the title or royalty and the responsibility that comes with it, Henry shows his understanding of what royalty is by doing the exact opposite. Rather than take it for granted that all of his actions are seen under the guise of the crown, he does the dastardly and goes in cahoots with thieves. He’s taking to defining royalty on his own terms rather than adhering to the expectations of others.

In a plot line where the occupation of the throne seems to be on the mind of anyone with any relation or claim to the throne, it is interesting to see a character who is not crazy about the responsibility of the crown rather than be dazed by the glory of the title and instead opts to con everyone into accepting whatever he wills to deliver as long as it is not thievery. It’s almost like a plot of a Guy Richie movie.