Stephanie Pearson Journal Entry 6

Journal Entry 6

This week in our FMP rehearsals we have managed to add several new scenes which are at the beginning of the sequences.  We have managed to completely block these new scenes out with the camera work, but they have to be improved as some of the camera shots are really quick so the camera people need to be really focused to get the video clarity.  Transitions also need improving and we are starting to work out the permanent positioning of set in the space so that we can start working out the areas these set needs to be put off stage.   We have managed to get a wireless radio signalled headphone system which we have managed to use successfully within some of our scenes, and have found out that they work extremely well as we, as performers, can hear the original sound and voices from the film ‘The Shining’ while the only sound the audience will be able to hear is the soundtrack to these scenes and, and our voices live in the space.  The other thing which has changed is that we want the audience to see the original film as well as our DIY version of ‘The Shining’.  So we had the idea that we could have three laptops or screens on the long technical operating table facing the audience, so that they can reference what we are doing within the live space to what is happening in the original film, creating a different aesthetic layer, and to overwhelm the audience in a good yet strong way.  As a group we have had to change some of our scenes as in who will be operating or who will be working with a camera as Chris has missed two FMP sessions.  This meant that we weren’t able to cast him as an actor, camera operator or technical operator, so this made it more difficult for the rest of us to work on the new scenes quickly as some of the camera shots were hard to do as we have a small group and most of our group needed to be actors.  This then made it difficult in transitions to the next camera shot as we will have to change the person who the camera will be moved to, making the camera shots not clear and, the clarity of the video shaky and not straight.

After this week of rehearsals I think that the performance is going good as we almost have all of the body made up, as we have only a few more selected scenes to complete after the Easter holidays.  Personally I think after we have completed all of the scenes we want in the performance, we should work and discuss as a group on what parts of each scene we could keep or cut out if we think they are irrelevant to the context we want to show.  This will then leave us with a more condensed, clarified context of the story, and so that it helps keeps the audience’s attention by not getting bored, and it will also help keep the performance time to a shorter length that what the original film is.  I also think that in rehearsals we should start practising with the original film instead of the cut clips we have so we can get a better sense of the quickness of transitions, and give us more incentive in the organisation of moving of set.