Woman in Black sound

Question 1

Live sound

Answer 1

• Kipps stepping into metal buckets which rattled and clanged
• made to look accidental
• happened in the opening minutes of the play where the audience were on edge waiting to be scared
• expectations of the audience were met and there was laughter when they realised the tension
• effective moment in making the audience jump
• effective moment in foreshadowing darker events
• slamming of the wicker trunk, creaking when travelling by horse and cart
• added to atmosphere and made the world of a play within a play seem more realistic

Question 2

recorded sound for atmosphere

Answer 2

• beginning in the abandoned theatre, Kipps motions to ‘Bunce’ who begins the sound effect of a busy London street
• the diegetic sound conveyed location for the audience especially when set was very sparse
• atmosphere of railway station and hotel were also conveyed through recorded sound
• come from all directions to immerse audience
• faded in slowly and complemented the action
• Gifford Arms- background chatter cut out when Mrs Drablow was mentioned- conveying that she wasn’t liked and an atmosphere change

Question 3

recorded sound for plot

Answer 3

• to portray the ghostly accident
• sound came on suddenly and surrounded audience
• loud volume especially the screaming, making it uncomfortable to listen to
• the fact that the sound came from all directions allowed audience to understand Kipp’s experiences
• amplification made the screaming sound distorted as it reached its highest volume
• added impact as the noise was ‘otherwordly’
• diegetic sound made audience feel sympathy for Kipps

Question 4

recorded sound to build tension

Answer 4

• when kipps was alone in the house overnight, there was a repeated sound of 2 notes played
• gradually built in volume, levels stayed low and tempo was steady
• initially it went on and off but then stayed constant like a heartbeat
• built tension as Kipps was visibly affected by the noise and audience couldnt see where it was coming from
• sound was traced behind a locked door and rose tension as audience was scared for what Kipps may find
• the low volume sound was contrasted by a high volume scream which filled the theatre as Kipps touched the door handle
• shocked the audience and broke the tension that was building
• low level sound started playing again so tension rose as there was now a clear connection between the sound, the room and the woman in black

Question 5

recorded sound for jump-scares

Answer 5

• sudden, high volume use of recorded sound
• screams were clear examples of sounds being used to shock
• clear moment when kipps was travelling by train and tension was low as he was simply completing the journey to Crythin Gifford
• moment when another train went past and sudden, loud noise reminded audience that the play was going to scare them
• using sounds in this way at moments of low tension meant the audience could never fully relax and were in a heightened emotional state- much like Kipps during his experience