Toby Saddleton Before I was selected into the group I am currently in for my showcase, I was working with another group and we came up with the following idea: “In today's lesson (16/9/13) myself and my group have come up with the idea that our showcase is going to be based on a 'prisoners of war' based theme and we have done a slow motioned piece based on the song 'hero of war' by the band Rise Against which is also related to war. My group and I have based it so that our characters breach a door when the music stats (one at a time) and then after we all duck to cover as we are being 'fired' at. Then one by one the people we are acting with (Nathan, Junior and josh) are killed and then the people that are fighting with us end up capturing us. The whole piece of music is based on a flash back within our showcase.” – My post on blog spot.com After that idea, I was put into my current group and our first idea was: The second idea for the showcase which myself Tom, Dan and Kyle had thought of was that it was based in New York and it was after the 9/11 attacks and we altered between the rioters and police officers in the show. Within the play we have sections where we focus on certain characters so it gives them a chance to 'tell their story' which relates to the topic we are doing (‘everyone has a story'). In the showcase we have it so that the play starts off with news reporters who are reporting about the riots so that the audience knows what we are talking about.” Blogspot.com When performing idea 2 we would have liked to play it in the school’s gallery theatre as there is more space for us to perform ad also the audience are rather close and can feel involved.

venues to perform in

The round house from outside

The inside of the Roundhouse…                                                                                                                                            I believe that the roundhouse is a good venue to perform in as it offers a wide range of space for acting and a large capacity for the audience. It would be good to perform in front our audience as it has a dark atmosphere to it and it can allow us to move freely along with the audience. Also it can be set up with a stage so we can perform in with a crowd in the round or with a normal set up. Personally I believe that the circle set up is better as more people feel involved with the showcase (Victorian themed – Sweeny Todd scene along with music + monologs with other characters e.g. Edward scissor hands and Sherlock Holmes) and we can find it easier to perform because we are including them and it is right in front of them instead of a distance. I want to include the audience with the showcase as it will build a chilling atmosphere that the audience will not be able to get away from as it will always be following them and it can be quite tense as we will be performing it right in front of them.     This is an example of what it would be like if we didn’t have the stage area set in a circle. We would be on a stage and perform. Which would be easier for lighting but it would be harder to create an exciting atmosphere for the audience.  

Idea 3 for showcase

We wanted to looked a piece of music that could fit into a mood/scene of our showcase and would have an effect on the audience as well as show how are characters are feeling. In this idea we wanted to have some seriousness in it so we have included the idea of a young boy called Dan who gets peer pressured into taking drugs and drinking booze at a young age and over the years he gets addicted to them, his mother has died and we never know about the dad yet he is mentioned in the arguments etc. Dan is raised by his oldest brother and they live with each other, there are 3 brothers in total and the middle aged sibling (who was close with Dan) finds out about the drinking and drugs and tells on him. The rest of the showcase is about the consequences and how Dan is pushed over the edge and how we see a dramatic change in him and all the siblings.

Second Idea for showcase

The second idea for the showcase which myself Tom,Dan and Kyle had thought of was that it was based in new york and it was after the 9/11 attacks and we altered between the rioters and police officers in the show. With in the play we have sections where we focus on certain characters so it gives them a chance to 'tell their story' which relates to the topic we are doing ('Everyone has a story'). In the showcase we have it so that the play starts off with news reporters who are reporting about the riots so that the audience knows what we are talking about.

Lesson Ideas

In today's lesson (16/9/13) myself and my group have come up with the idea that our showcase is going to be based on a 'prisoners of war' based theme and we have done a slow motioned piece based on the ong 'hero of war' by the band Rise Agaianst which is also related to war. My group and I have based it so that our characters breach a door when the music stats (one at a time) and then after we all duck to cover as we are being 'fired' at. Then one by one the people we are acting with (nathan,junior and josh) are killed and then the people that are fighting with us end up capturing us. The whole piece of music is based on a flash back within our showcase.

Idea's for showcase.

In my showcase I think that my group should do little short stories, some can relate to each other and others can be completely random. So one could be about a family member or someone close passing away (idea inspired by another group) and then maybe another story could be about life in a supermarket like Tesco.

Positive Influences

So the actor I would say I admire the most is most likely the famous Tom Hanks. His skills in acting is very wide ranged and incredible as he has the capability of changing character very easy and making audiences believe that he is a different person. For example in his most famous film 'Forest Gump' we as views believe that he a slow learning man but with the capability to do many things that people can not, he is very gifted at most things he does. The reason I admire Tom Hanks in the movie is that his skills of remaining in character through out the whole film and he also makes us feel sympathy by using the body language and facial expressions as well as tone of voice eg at the end of the movie Tom Hanks is crouched down talking to his wife who had passed away and he starts to cry and the tone of voice he uses makes us feel sad and sorry for him as he is speaking whilst weeping.

I also like how Tom Hanks can use his dramatic skills to create a serious character in the movie 'Saving Private Ryan'. In this he has to lead a team of solider as well as himself to try and save and rescue a soldier in a different platoon. Already, we can tell that these are two very different characters and Tom Hanks has very well played these characters who are the complete opposite. Tom also maintains his voice through out the movie which shows that he is less likely for him to do a different accent.

In relating these skills to our play 'Lord Of The Flies' I believe I have shown the audience my emotions by using facial expressions and projection (tone of voice) for example when my character 'Jack' get's annoyed he would raise his voice (project) and when he was angry he put on an aggressive face (facial expressions). Also by using hand movement (body actions) it shows the audience how 'Jack' was feeling without saying much and it shows his emotions.

What I want to improve.

I want to be able to improve my accents/seriousness within a characater as I am uually the type of actor who likes to do comedy sketches or do something funny. I don't mind playing a serious character as I can see my character building up an atmosphere however making people laugh is pretty entertaining for me as I can improvise well and come up with random situations.

What I think needs improving...

After watching the footage of the beginning of the play I feel that we (the people doing the plane crash effect) can try and Improve it so that we all stay in the "stage area" and then maybe try and experiment with the sound of the plane crash if we can't find the sound that sounds better than keep the one that we currently have.

The character of 'Jack'

As the class of 10H4 are aware I play the main villain Jack. The very sarcastic,scary and vile school boy who turns the majority of the children on the island into wild savages who kill one an other. Over the course of the past week or show I have not shouted as much as I was at the start of the play as it could of ruined my vocal cords and it makes my character seem more evil. I think that one problem with my facial expressions is that you can't really see them as I have long hair for the time being, in the next week or so i intend on getting it cut so that the audience can see that I am a sweet innocent boy at the start but then then in to a wild 'animal' as the play continues.