Review of our performance and what I have learnt

I am very pleased with how our performance went. We had spent the day perfecting and polishing our performance. We needed to mainly get rid of any lulls in the performance and lack of energy. If we earn a lull it was allowed but otherwise we had to keep the energy up to keep the flow of the play. We spent most of the day filling in the gaps and by the end of the day I was very happy with our preparation.

We did some activities to warm up our voice and body. We learnt how to speak from our stomach not our chest. By doing this you could make considerable differences to how you spoke. It helped with projection and with the perception of the lines. Depending on the tone of your voice when you deliver a line it can be perceived differently. We warmed up our body in the room where we waited for our performance to start. We did some rolls and voice warms up incorporated into them. However apart from that we stayed calm and tried to conserve our energy for the performance later. We were advised not to eat junk food as it could make us hyper. We were advised to keep ourselves hydrated and to not 'lose our heads.' Even though I was nervous and excited I tried to follow these instructions. 

For the play we wore jeans, a white top, braces, mine were black and white checked and black boots or lace shoes with our hair tied back. This was to reflect the Skinhead look .

When it came to the actual performance I feel we performed very well, perhaps even better than any previous rehearsals. All our lines had been learnt and not only that, they were delivered well, with conviction and with emotion appropriate to the character we were playing. All the physical elements worked according to plan and based on feedback from the audience they looked very good and clean. This was very positive as the play was mainly physical and without the physical element the play wouldn't have been as hard hitting. There were no lulls that I was aware of. Our transitions were tight and precise. The play flowed all the way through and the energy wasn't lost. Everyone contributed to the energy and we worked well together. Without that the play would've completely failed and therefore it was key that it worked as well as it did. 

The only critic I would have is that our braces came off during the performance which may have drawn audience attention away from the story slightly. 

We had great audience feedback and this made me even more confident in the performance I had just done. I didn't expect to touch the audience in the way I did, but the only people I have to thank for that is the director and my fellow cast.

What I have learnt about acting?

This term I have learnt so much about the art of acting. I have learnt different techniques because of the style of the play, but I have also learnt a lot from the detail that we put into the play; detail that I never thought a play could hold without being a complete disaster. I have learnt a lot about transitions and how a play can fall apart just because it has bad transitions and I have found this to be true. If you keep stopping a starting   it is no longer a story, it is a series of lines put to actions. Technically that is what a play is, but an audience and actor should get so much more out of a play and I feel I have.

I have learnt about working as an ensemble and sharing the work load. Even if you're not the one talking you still need to be engaged and play a character or the whole play and characterisation is lost, both for the audience and for the cast. However when you do have lines you have a responsibility to perform them well because the lines belong to every member of the cast.

I have learnt about physical theatre, a style I hadn't experimented with at all until Blackout. Though challenging, both for body and mind, I think it is an amazing way to bring a play to life. Using people as props also captures the meaning of ensemble because you are bouncing off and using each other to form the play and story unfolding in front of you. It gives a third dimension to the play and keeps the audience engaged in a play where, at time, may be hard to follow.

I have also learnt a lot about my strengths and weaknesses. I can now say that I have a better and wider understanding of the world of acting. However I also have a better and wider understanding of what I can and can't do. One of my main weaknesses is planning my spacial awareness. I can use the space for a given scene, but I don't plan ahead meaning my actions my hinder the next scene. My placement on stage will mean I need to move awkwardly across the stage, breaking the flow. 

I have thoroughly enjoyed this terms work and feel the final piece went well and the preparation leading up to it has made me a better actor. I look forward to our next performance and I hope what I have learnt will help me.