Live Theatre Flashcards
Costume, Hair and Makeup
Monstorous Stories by 6th form RGS, at RGS Concert Hall. Symbolic and naturalistic way.
Connor: dressed in school uniform with browny-green zip up hoodie over top. Scruffy appearance communicate doesn’t take attention to appearance as too busy looking after mother. Dull colours infer Connor dependable as brown depicts this and green illustrates healing and nature highlighting connection with nature and yew tree as well as trying to heal after hearing diagnosis. Improvements: Grey tie highlighting confusion towards feelings as grey related to confusion
Connor Mother: beige dressing gown with grey joggers underneath and black Uggs.
beige dressing gown: ill health as similar to hospital gown, colour infers calmness and relaxation. Better: bigger gown to show she is thin and weak because of ill health.
Layers depict ill health as she has less energy to move about so has to wear more layers to stay warm.
Make up: face painted white as doesn’t have much colour and energy due to cancer. Better: more shadows created using dark eyeshadow around eyes to communicate tired and weak.
Hair: Both hair hidden under woolen hat. Identifies relationship and mother lost hair to cancer treatment. Better: Connor occasionally took off hat to show scruffy and unkept hair highlight not caring about appearance as too occupied looking after mother.
Physical and Vocal skills 1 character in first moments
A Christmas Carol by 6th form RGS, at RGS Concert Hall.
Moment where Jacob Marley come from hell as ghost to warn Scrouge of fate where lives a life of eternal torment: communicate being tormented and trapped in hell: wrangles and wrestles with chains restraining him (ensemble holding chains) convincing as looks genuinely physically restraining and as if are preventing him from escaping hell. Created sense of hell on stage even though inside Scrouges house. Improve: more flowing gestures to communicate to audience character is ghost.
Vocal skills: to show ghost entity. Lower voice with grating sound on vocal chords sounds like being tormented in hell. Excellent diction and articulation to warn Scrouge as audience can hear defined words as if teaching Scrouge a lesson.
Improve: actor had moments to be quiet and sinister to further teach Scrouge strong lesson
Physical and Vocal skills 1 character in second moments
Moment where flashback to 7 years prior to ghost visit, first see Jacob Marley scream “Crachet” to summon employee. He pitched shrill and demanding tone which effectively illustrates how unkind boss with no sympathy for workers. Nasty tone towards employee shows he is villain.
Improve: occasionally shrill and crack voice, revealing young actor playing role, slightly taking away from gravitas of character.
Uses expansive gestures to show confidence then suddenly has heart attack. Actor shows well as clutches chest then reaches at as if looking at death then flops and lets muscles relax
Improve: less subtle, audience may not have noticed dying until flopped onto table, letting muscles relax. Could’ve done more to show struggle with breathing and more obvious clutch of chest.
Sound Moment 1
Arrival of Marley’s ghost from hell:
live sound effect created through bells on door which Marley enters which are mechanically rung from offstage. Sound from time period as bells create live cacophony which gives sense of chaos as supernatural - bells ringing themselves
subtle underscore tinkling chains + loud resonant booming recorded sound effect, implies opening giant vault door like door to hell.
underscore of piano playing live discordant music , disonant notes in order which sounds sinister
evaluate:
effective with chains, music underscore + sense of echoy hellish vault reverberating underscore, but busy sound design, at times competing with Marley’s voice
could be times when volumes lowered + cold wind sound effect to imply how desolate and lonely Marley was in hell
Sound Moment 2
Ghost of Christmas past transports Scruge to past of old school
Live music on piano golden hour, beautiful + dreamy, piano appropriate for time period + sounds whimsical - very effective
improve: should’ve been louder to cover up shoe shuffling of other actors
Music underscore stops when talking of Scruge being left along then new music plays on piano which has melodies in, sound like music box, nursery rhyme which is child-like and reminiscent of childhood
improve: with busyness going on, mica of actors turned up and characters in past could’ve had reverb on voice to sound dream-like
Lighting Moment 1
Announce arrival of Marley’s ghost from hell:
bright fresnel low to ground in wing, uplighting stage left - indicate presence
haze from machine on stage captures light to create sharp + bright beam of supernatural white light from door where ghost enters
cold white light shun through sharp and fragmented gobo, directed into Scruge’s apartment - cold and frightening place
Lighting state has snap change to cold, white hard-edged profile spotlights shinning down on Marley from behind him, slightly upstage - terrifying silhouette with chains hes engulfed in
evaluate:
clever use of direction and colour of light as cool, white and blue tones create frightening + scary atmosphere,
white light could’ve been red gels - stereotypical idea of hell - communicate idea to audience + make more terrifying - intended effect
Lighting Moment 2
Fresnels lit behind gauze, creating low uplight behind gauze revealing new portion of stage where children play in playground
Improve: lighting bit dark - higher percentage = easier to be seen
Ghost holding lantern with LED lights inside to symbolise light shinning on Scruge’s past
Scruge talks about not being lonely as had characters in books, actor opens book has LED lights inside - uplights face - intention to create warm atmosphere as happiness
Purple, white, blue fresnels pointing towards centre stage when fantasy book world happening - playful colours - give sense of fantasy and magical creation, and dream-like world
Costume, Hair and make-up
1st character in 1st moment
When Jacob Marley returns as a ghost from hell
Costume: traditional black victorian suit - black connoting death + negativity
Suit covered in fabric sheds look like heavy cobwebs draped all over costume + talcum powder dust embedded in suit - convey death and decay like dust of grey gravestone upon him
Damaged and crumpled black top hat + roof of hat peeling off - show tortured in hell
plastic chains, oversized links clipped to elbow knees of costume - spiders cobweb threaded and mottled with grey, silver and white
Make-up: ghostly white foundation + heavy black eyeliner smudged around eye - demonic look
Hair: long hair has white hair gel combed through
Evaluate:
effective conveys Marley in Victorian era + ghost + associated with death
creative as ensemble interact wiht costume and manipulate chains
colour black funereal
make-up denotes non-naturalistic figure from afterlife
Improve: CHM quite tame, could’ve more extreme
e.g. prosthetic and latex to give scars on face and hands to show audience injuries acquired in hell
Costume, Hair and make-up
1st character in 2nd moment
Marley still alive:
Costume:
identical to dead Marley except it’s pristine black top hat with black cravat tie from time period + long black overcoat - looks negative, shadowy character - no colour to costume like no colour or kindness to personality / vitality to life
Effective in showing transition of Marley from life to death although could’ve had more symbolism and symbolic use of colour to show Marley will suffer in hell
e.g. red in costume to symbolise demise into hell
Hair:
curly hair coming out from hat
look slightly messy - difference with pristine costume conditions
Make-up:
very neutral - nothing to emphasise age - actor playing still look young
e.g. eyebags + foreshadow going to hell with more red around eyes
Costume, Hair and make-up
2nd character in 1st moment
Scruge in own home:
Costume:
Taken off coat to reveal black waistcoat + white unbuttoned shirt + black trousers
plain + simple costume + naturalistic Victorian
Improve: nothing in costume conveys character as greedy, mean man yet to transform into a nice character, more colour for symbolism
e.g. red threaded into costume design to show if he doesn’t change ways, he’s destined for hell
Hair: Side combed extremely neat and precise hair do - reflects personality - neat and precise person
Make-up:
Use of performance space
Moment 1
Ghost of Marley bursting through stage left bookcase
clever use as area of stage looked like set decor - turned out to have function of entrance/exit - gave element surprise
Effective as ghost meant to be alarming/surprising/shocking so when actor use performance space to spring from totally unexpected performance space, audience feel shocked
Improve: ghost spending scene substantially down stage left - meant to be powerful so going centre stage show powerful figure in Scrooges life
Marley also surrounded by ensemble holding his chains - fill space more, rather than 1 singular actor - denotes to audience how powerful + fearful character he is imposing on Scrooges life
Effective as space of stage which audience previously thought was backwall, is lit up, so space behind gauze is revealed - additional souls in hell - effective use as audience totally surprised - stage had more depth
also helped believe Marley in hell with lots of suffering souls -more frightening scene
Improve: space/areas on stage filled more with souls from hell behind bed curtains /trapdoor in floor - show surprising existence of evil, demonic characters
Use of performance space
Moment 2
Ghost of christmas past transporting Scrooge from bedroom to past in school:
Scrooge touches ghost garment - use of space completely transforms from both being centre on very bare stage to space being filled by children running round dynamically, using floor as if scraping snowballs to show playground
Young Scrooge centre stage on suitcase - know important character therefore use successful in telling story line
Young Scrooge looks lower in levels on stage than Scrooge - shows young is someone with low status + older Scrooge worked hard to give self status with mean + rude behaviour
Improve: few children playing games to show school yard - space still looked sparse - more effective if children in audience space - breaking fourth wall (extending PS) more actors filling space to convey busy and lively playground - would’ve made clear juxtaposition when Scrooge sat alone not managed to make any friends
Set and props in one moment
‘A Monster Calls’ Old Vic Theatre. Aim of play to show Connors emotional journey through brechtian style and physical theatre
Moment where Connor meets Yew Tree
Set create Yew tree - long ropes gather to look like scruffy branches of tree - brown create clear location for audience that tree outside as brown connotations of earth
lareg tree created tense atmsophere for audience as tree bigger than Connor
Slow movement of set of tree indicate how tree is old and wise and created meaning for audience
non-naturalistic design gave impression Connor thinks all a dream and tree isn’t actually real
Rugged rope looks further highlighted scene set outside - created atmosphere as clear tree old and not come walking for many years
Improve: younger audience may have found depiction of Yew Tree, too abstract and confusing - better if ropes had vines and leaves wrapped around them…
Props create atmosphere + meaning as Yew Tree berries placed on floor which Connor picks up to put in pocket - created sense tree was real as berries couldn’t get there without tree bringing - berries red to indicate tree angry Connor isn’t understanding stories. Tense atmosphere as red associated with blood, as audience member, I was scared for Connor.
Improve: Highly effective but to com time more Connor grab torch to show dark and late at night, needs torch to see Yew Tree
