Notes on presentations

Blue/Orange- Joe Pen Hall

2001
-who really is insane and crazy?
- Racial issues
- Social darwinism
- author was very comfortable in writing
- a single orange
- orange = "sanity"
- inside of the orange is blue


Spring Awakening

1906
- talks about "growing up"
- sex
- not normal
- what is normal?
- morality
- generation gap
- deals with social issues no one wants to talk about it
- whole black box is the set
- two kinds of lighting

Tribes
- deaf boy
- blue and green
- kitchen scene
- super normal lighting

jesus hopped the a train
- a man is imprisoned for shooting a cult leader
- takes place in prison
- four characters
- deep and controversial issues about faith, morals, and ethics.
- when youre in prison youre not living your life is paused so time to reflect

solo theatre piece notes

Robert Lapage (technology) You could do a solo theatre piece of a monologue about the tsunami
Stanislavski (life experience) Realist (method acting)
Bertolt Brecht
Anne Bogart
Tadashi Suzuki
Artaud
Peter Brook
Julie Taymor (puppets)

Notes on Isms

Romanticism: Feeling > Thought, the search for a greater truth. Flamboyant and extraordinary sights. Sounds are melodramatic. Works like Frankenstein

Realism: Something Audience can connect to. Linked to naturalism. Started in Russia. Realistic images and method acting is prevalent. Famous works include those of Tolstoy.

Naturalism: Everything arise from the natural. You don't leave out the ugly. Detailed images, prostitution, poverty, etc. You hear uncensored things. Examples include Miss Julie and those of August Strindberg.

Expressionism: The use of Illusions, distortions, and a philosophical belief that dramatizes emotions more than the external world. You would hear trippy sounds and see illusions. The most important thing is the authors message. Famous works include those of Edward Munch.

Impressionism: Not Realistic but depicts scenes as a dance of light. Mood is crucial. Nature would be seen. Examples would include Monet, Ubu Roi, and August Strindberg.

Feminism: More of a political movement than a kind of theatre. The concept that Women are equal to Men. Not better but simply equal. Examples would include The Dolls house By Ibsen, and works by Laura wade.

Surrealism: Releasing the creative potential and bring out dreams, juxtapositions. Sounds would include vocal, daily life sounds, nonorthodox musical compositions. Lots of Freud's psychological theories. Famous playwrights include Artaud. Famous plays include "A Play Without a Title"

Absurdism: Belief that human beings exist on a purposeless and chaotic universe. Example's include the works of Samuel Beckett and waiting for Godot

Class Presentation on Post- Modernist play

The Pillowman by Martin Mcdonagh

Basic summary: A writer and a writer’s brother are arrested under the police force of a totalitarian government. The location is not specified. We just know that it runs as a totalitarian government, which already provides insight in to the concept that state has complete power over society. The writer is accused of murder because there have been murder cases resembling his violent stories.

Post modernist techniques: Post modernism is raw. The Pillow man is raw. The play focuses on very real life issues such as abuse, state inflicted oppression, and murder. The play also focuses on very real life feelings such as cynicism and struggles between the reality of truth and justice.

What I would do as a director: Whilse reading the play I imagined the play set in three different settings but all on the same stage. The lighting would be dim throughout most of the play and I imagined frequent use with shadows of Tupolski, Katurian, and Ariel during the interrogation. I also imagined the scene with Katurian and his brother Michal with more lighting so the expressions could be seen on their faces to highlight their tragic brother love. However, the most significant part of this play is the stories within the play. I imagine the flash back of the stories to take place on the stage right next to the reality of the police office in order to juxtapose “reality” and fiction. I imagine each transition to take place in the form of a spotlight landing on the scene/setting taking place.  

The Pillowman by Martin McDonagh

Gut Reaction

- Actually very realistic

- Raw

- Dark

- Connected. It shows the dangers of a cycle

- Actually entertaining in the sense that it was interesting to read not that the topics covered were in any way light hearted

1. The Pillowman is the story of a writer and a writers brother who are arrested under the charge of murder and eventually die.

2. The Pillowman is an allegory (?) about the extremely continuous and dangerous affects of abuse.

3. The characters: Katurian, Michal, Tupolski, and Ariel

The location: An interrogation room in an unnamed totalitarian state, a home, bedroom. All in an unnamed totalitarian state

The transitions: The Pillowman takes place in a totalitarian government. The police can act without moral justice and ignore proper court procedures.

Central ideas: The idea of allegory, society, life, what defines art, fact, illusion, truth

Genre/style: Mystery, Dark comedy

For me, Pillowman is about truth and justice and how distorted both of them can be. I think it was written in order to get the audience to reflect on their own perspectives regarding "what is right? and is perception reality?"

Martin McDonagh
- Irish playwright

The pillowman was written in 2003
Main inspiration was from McDonagh's collection of short stories and Grimm brother's stylistic elements

The play won several awards including the Laurence Olivier award for best play and critical acclaim.

PLAY REACTION QUESTIONS BEGIN HERE

1. This play is a reflection of contemporary theatrical styles in that it is incredibly bold. The Pillowman adresses a very real problem that has been dealt through the history of human kind but can be seen as especially prevalent in modern society: the illusion of truth. The Pillowman shows how simply the concept of "truth" can be distorted.

2. The Pillowman had a bit of everything. However it was mostly realism and dark symbolism.

3. Yes I believe that McDonagh is alive because he is willing to take a risk by delivering his message in an unconventional way.

4. Definitely. I think that Pillowman can relate to any period of time but especially now because I feel that modern society has a number of restrictions on a number of different aspects in life and to define the clear difference between reality, illusion, and justice in such confinement is hard.

5. I think that mixing styles would be appropriate for producing The Pillowman because of the variety of ways in which this play could be approached. I think a realistic style would be most fitting considering the raw content the play deals with.

Symbolism

Symbolism
- late 19th century movement
- emphasis on internal life and dreams
- aim is to make audience interpret imagery and ideas to internal truth
- the emphasis on imagination and spirituality
- Mainly an opposition to realism and naturalism.
- Rejected the concept of displaying raw harsh reality


Manifesto: An emphasis on internal life and dreams and aims to make audience interpret imagery and ideas to internal truth. The belief that absolute truth could only be described indirectly through metaphors and imagery pertaining to internal truth.

Background: late 19th century movement of french and belgian origin

Images: Symbolic figures on set. Either the actors, signs, colors. Could essentially be anything that conveys meaning.

Sight: metaphorical figures. Symbolism could be delivered through color, characters, and etc.

Sound: Sound that pertains to the central meaning of the play

Skills: ability to portray accurate metaphors either in physical forms or through script and feeling within in the play

Works: Henrik Ibsen, Aton Chekov (symbolic pessimism)

Representative Art:

Representative Music: Claude Debussy-Clair De Lune

Representative Play: The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekov