DANCE (Cry evaluation)

In this dance performance i think that i showed good interpretive skills, however i need to develop and work on my technical skills. One example of this is that when i performed one movement my ankle gave way, this means that i need to strengthen the muscles especially in my ankles, i am going to do this by making sure i am appropriately warm up before dancing and complete regular foot and ankle exercises. This is so the muscles become stronger and i can support my movements more, especially for more challenging dance performances like this one. Another thing i want to work on is my balance, i have been working on this but i think this is something that takes time to develop and isnt something i can fix easily, especially in this dance i would like to be able to perform my ponche's with more confidence and with the correct technique.

On the other hand after watching this performance i think that i showed effective characterisation throughout, this dance was choreographed with a strong story-line behind it (based on Alvin Ailey's childhood blood memories of growing up in Texas with his mother during the 1960s). I can perform this with my eye-line lifted for the majority of the performance, this improves my overall projection, i think i performed this with appropriate facial expressions that suited the piece and allowed me to share the background of the solo with the audience. This is something that can still be developed and i am going to continue to work on this before the next performance. Furthermore i have been working on incorporating the costume into the choreography, for example i clasp the skirt material and throw it to the side, because the costume is an important part of this piece i felt this was important, and after watching my performance back i was happy with the outcome.

DANCE (WWRY Preview evaluation)

For this performance we decided to put together two numbers from We will rock you to create a dance number that was appropriate for this show. During this performance i think that i have good characterisation, this was important to me as this was a musical theatre piece therefore it is essential for the cast to show a story-line through the performance. Through doing this i used appropriate facial expressions to portray a story, furthermore the characters we were playing were prisoners, therefore we had to show this through our faces by appearing scared, lost and confused. I think i did this effectively throughout the performance, in addition to this i think that i showed good musicality in this dance. I have been working on this is in my rehearsals and lessons so that i can pick up accents in the music and reflect this through my movement. I have also been working on my technical skills, for example in this performance i think my extension was good, this was especially shown through the reaches to each other and the audience, during this i had effective extension in the arms, meaning i had kept them strong and stretched to full potential.

However after watching back this performance i noticed a few things that i think i need to work on before my next performance, one example of this is my fluidity between movements, this is because even though i can do each individual movement, sometimes the motif looks broken. I need to work on ensuring that all of my transitions between movements are smooth and fluid. To improve this i am going to make sure i am more confident with each part of the choreography so that i can easily move from one movement to the next. Another thing i need to work on is my eye-line, although i have been working on this and i have seen a big improvement with this, there are still parts of this performance where my eye-line needs to be lifted. This is something that i think will improve as i become more confident with my overall performance.

DANCE (Dance show - media piece evaluation)

In this performance i think that i had good extension throughout the performance, one example of this was when in cannon, we turn and roll with our arms extended up and out. When watching this back i noticed that i did this well, i am happy with this as extension is something i have been working on throughout rehearsals. One way i have improved this is when learning movement material, make sure i look in the mirror to check my extension, in addition to this when i start learning something i fully extend from the beginning early rehearsals. This is because then my body gets used to the muscle memory and i can perform this well. As we had spent a lot of time working on this dance i had effective movement memory, i was aware of what was next at all times, this allowed me to be able to have good focus throughout the performance as i didn't have to think about what i was doing too much, as a result of this i think that i had good eye-line. This is something that i have noticed a gradual improvement in the last few performances as i have gained more confidence on stage, this is something that improves an overall performance as when your eye-line is lifted it helps engage with the audience and share the performance with them.

On the other hand i think i could have improved my overall expressive/interpretive skills, this is because we choreographed this dance with a string theme that is carried through the piece. I think that i could have used more of these skills to help show the content and meaning behind the movement more. For example i could have used facial expressions that were relevant to the piece, facial expressions help show emotion through performance, this is something i need to work on more. Additionally something else i noticed when watching this back was that my projection was not as good as it could have been. Although i had good eye-line and extension, i think i could have used more energy and taken on the theme more to communicate and perform this better. As a result of this, in my next dance rehearsals i am going to work more on performance compared to technique, this is because i think i have not focused enough on this and i am noticing what i need to improve on whilst watching my performances back.

WWRY (Final show evaluation)

What character work and vocal skills/performance skills have I applied, to give an effective group performance? Explain.

I am happy with my overall performance for this show, this is because although i still made mistakes and things went wrong, this was the most confident i have performed in a musical. I wanted to perform my character, Brit showing different characteristics that would show that she is a bohemian, i think i did this well, for example as a general rule the bohemians acted in a very different manner to the GaGa's and therefore i had to act in a different way to these character to be able to show this effectively. One representation of this is that my facial characterisation was a lot more expressive in contrast to the other side of people, the GaGa's look very synthetic and the bohemians are a complete opposite, i used things that i thought would mimic a natural reaction to something. For instance when Scaramouche says that coming with us would be boring, i would look confused and slightly offended, this compares to when she says that we could be killers, i would look a lot more proud and impressed that she gets that impression from us. I am glad that i was able to perform this character with confidence as i think this is a key part of her personality, she is very proud to be a bohemian and isnt afraid to show this off.

I think that the vocal quality of my songs was good, i had warmed up enough to make sure that i could have the correct intonation when singing, this is something that i had found challenging in previous rehearsals so i am happy with the way i performed it. I had worked on harmonies and timing with the other actors in these songs, this time had paid off because we had been determined and focused in rehearsals and therefore we were all confident with the way it was performed. We all respect each other enough to find solutions that work best, for example when rehearsing Headlong, we chose harmonies that were in each of our vocal range, this was so individuals didn't feel pressured to perform something wrong and potentially mess up a group performance. Because of this we were able to perform this well,  think this song went well, everyone brought enough energy to it to show off our characteristics as well as building up to the next scene where the audience first see the Heartbreak Hotel. Additionally in I want it all me and Liv had great on stage communication, even though there was a small section where one of the lines got missed out, we were able to keep up the energy and improvise around this enough to cover the mistake. This is the first song about these characters, this means that we had to have enough communication to show this was a duet between the two, one way we did this was by moving around each other with ease, this suggests that we are comfortable around each other, as well as this at the end we hold hands and raise our arms up, this shows that we are united as a pair, which tells the audience about our characters and relationship.

During the performance i was able to change characters easily, for example after the interval i changed from Britt to a GaGa and then to a yuppi followed by a bohemian. This complimented the whole group performance as along with the rest of the cast we were able to perform different scenes effectively enough to tell the audience a story. As a company we were able to perform one vision well, because this was the largest ensemble number, this was difficult to rehearse, for example when not everyone was there or if not everyone was focused enough, there were a lot of distractions, however we were capable of working as a team and being determined enough to create something that was of a high performance quality we pulled through. I think that i fitted into this performance as i had adopted the characteristics of a GaGa kid, this included a fabricated synthetic smile that suggests that they think they live in a perfect world, in addition to this when we perform the robotic choreography i kept my torso very stiff to show this effectively. I had rehearsed this enough to contribute to how the ensemble looked as a whole, it was important this this had a lot of energy as it is the opening number of the second act.

What did I learn this lesson?

The whole process of We Will Rock You has taught me the benefits of rehearsing as an effective musical ensemble, before this i don't think that i fully appreciated the qualities of rehearsing like this. Putting extra emphasis on things such as positivity, support and enthusiam has allowed us an ensemble to create something really strong as a final project. I have learnt that performance isnt just about making sure that as an individual you are doing things right, it is important to help out others with things that they may find more difficult than you. This allows the whole group to improve and grow rather than just yourself.

How effective was my peer support and communication skills for the benefit of the group performances?

I think that my on stage communication with the actor playing Meat was really good, we were easily able to cover mistakes that occurred. For example we missed a line in I want it all, however we were able to disguise this with characterisation, this showed that we both had good focus throughout the performance as we were able to quickly find solutions to problems together, without actually discussing our options. This happened again later in the performance, we were unable to hear the band playing and therefore didn't know where we were in the song. To avoid singing the wrong verse that wouldn't fit to the music we decided to improvise some 50's dance movements, to fit in with the rest of the scene, although we missed some of the song i think this was a good decision as we still were doing things related to what was happening and unless you knew the song, audience wouldn't have noticed too much. This was beneficial to the group performance as a whole as it gave a long enough amount of time to realise what was happening and they could then join in at the correct time for their lines and the end of the song was completely in time.

Another example of this is during Seven seas of rye the band were playing too fast than what we had choreographed to, this meant that we had not had time to do the full routine. There is a section of the dance were everyone faces in towards each other, we used this as an importunity to make a decision on what we were going to do, this is an example of good communication during a performance as, as an ensemble we were quickly able to make choices that would benefit the ensemble performance.

How could our performance and preparation have been improved?

Although i was happy with my performance i still think there are many things that could have been done to improve, i think if i had worked more closely with the other actors in my scenes and songs to make sure that we were all completely confident on words, i think this would have allowed us to explore characterisation more, although i was happy with my  characterisation i think i could have experimented a bit more. I should have spent more time singing with the people i was with in the show instead of by myself or with the track, this would have allowed me to get used to what it would sound like better and then i think i would have felt more prepared. Additionally i think there were some rehearsals that i wasnt determined enough, once one person in a company doesnt feel positive this can spread easily, i think if there was generally more positive attitude throughout the process some rehearsals could have been better and then we would have more time to pay attention to detail.

I also think if we had had the oppertunity to practice with the band more earlier on, some sons would have sounded better, this is because singing with live music is very different to singing with something that is pre recorded. I would have liked this and feel as though we could have worked closer with the band so that we had more of a mutual co-existance rather than them just serving as a backing instrumental to the vocals.

Despite these things i think that generally this was a good performance and the cast worked together well, we were able to move past problems and obstacles that we were faced with and still managed to create an entertaining performance that was enjoyed by audience.

WWRY (Dress rehearsal)

What character work and vocal skills/performance skills have I applied, to give an effective group performance? Explain.

I am happy with how my character is developing, i think i am performing this with more confidence than previous rehearsals, this is because i have spent individual time researching into my character more. I think this time has allowed me to understand who my character is more and therefore i can put this character into the performance and communicate with the other characters, to eventually create group performance. I think the last few rehearsals have allowed me to develop the relationship between Meat and Brit more, this is something that i wanted to do as the audience need to see that they are in love, and on early rehearsals i don't think i was doing this well enough to show this. However i am happy with my progress as me and Liv have more communication throughout the whole performance, such as subtle actions like exchanging smiles and looks and holding hands, although these are very small improvised things, the audience will pick up on them and therefore will understand what the relationship between these characters is like. In addition to this they will be able to understand how this is different to the GaGas as they do not have any natural human reactions. Contrast between these two groups of people is very important to how the show works. Additionally i also think that my projection has improved throughout this process, this is something that i think has come from growing confidence, but i think this has also helped me develop this character. Because my character confident and outgoing, this is something that helps portray her better.

What am I finding challenging?

Personally i found this rehearsal really difficult as not all members of the cast had learnt all of their lines, this meant that we kept having to stop and start as people needed cueing. As an effect of this, half of one of my scenes was cut as lines were jumped, this really shocked me and i had to quickly adjust to the situation, however this cut out a lot of dialogue that explained what was happening in the scene and i feel if this happens in the performance it will leave audience members unsure of what has happened. As a result of this the rehearsal ran overtime and we were still unable to finish the run and my cast are going into a performance without a smooth run without being stopped, this has made me nervous for the performance and i am worried about how it will turn out, however i think that if i stay determined and have an open minded attitude towards these harder rehearsals we will be able to move past it and still have a good performance.

What did I learn this lesson?

I think this lesson has prepared me for mistakes that may happen in the show, for example is somebody forgets a line or misses a chink of dialogue out i think i will be able to keep the scene rolling without causing much of a disturbance. I can do this by either adlibbing or skipping some of the text to fit what the other performers are saying, this means that at least what the actors are saying flows without not making sense. This has taught me that i need to fully focused in all rehearsals and performances to be able to make up for mistakes like this, i think that if i make sure i can do this along with the rest of the company we will work together as a successful ensemble.

How effective was my peer support and communication skills for the benefit of the group performances?

During this rehearsal i was able to help out other members of the cast who were unsure of their lines, for example one actor forgot their lines and during my scene and i was able to offers them support by changing my dialogue to fit what they have improvised, this meant that although he scene didn't go as planned, it still went relativity smoothly. As this rehearsal generally didn't go very well, many cast members were feeling disheartened, this also dragged down the energy of the whole rehearsal time, however i tried to keep as open minded and positive as possible and as more people started to adopt this attitude the general mood was uplifted. This helped bring up the energy and people started to feel more determined to move on with the performance so we can have a good final show.

How could our performance and preparation have been improved?

I think if everyone had a mutual respect for each other and had made sure that they were completely sure on all lines then this rehearsal would have gone better, however because some of the cast hadn't done this, i feel as though this rehearsal was slow and we were not able to have a full run through before the show. Because of this i do not really feel 100% ready to perform in front of an audience. Although this is not just down to one or two people i feel as though everyone in the cast should take on this responsibility as when you do not learn your lines, it doesn't just affect you but everyone else in the cast,  and it doesn't show an effective ensemble.

FREELANCE (Planning my showreel)

What needs to be included in my showreel?

• Headshot
• Name and contact information
• We will rock you
• Cry
• Peter Pan Solo (Never growing up)
• Antigone
• Bugsy Malone
• Cell block tango
• Singing audio to go over videos that do not have a good sound quality

FREELANCE (Showreels)

Three examples of Showreels.

This is an example of a showreel featuring a young British actress, there are a few reasons as to why i don't think this is a good example. Firstly it is very short, at just under 3 minutes and 40 seconds i don't think this is long enough to show somebody's full potential to a casting director or agent, in addition to this i don't think she has given enough attention to detail, especially in terms of characterisation. For example i don't think the first clip is relevant enough to include in this because it didn't really show off any of her skill. I felt as though it was put in place just to lengthen the clip, as well as this there was no background information to who the characters were or timing of when it was, expanding on this there isn't any contact information that people may want to be able to enquire about employment. I think she should have considered lighting and video quality more so that it looked more professional, this looks like it has been poorly edited by someone who has very little experience, naturally i think casting people are going to be more drawn to the clips that look the most put together complete with production values, and if there is a performer that s using this as a means of getting casted, this is something that should be considered. On the other hand she has chosen two different characters, this shows casting directors that she is a versitiale performer who can take on different types of roles and show contrast between them, this is something that i think is very good to highlight as it is something that people will definately be looking for.

I think this is a better example than the first, firstly it is slightly longer which gives more a chance to show off more footage, however although she has included a variety of songs from different shows. I also thought that she has a good mix of what look like rehearsal videos or stages clips where you assume that they have only been shot for the purpose of this showreel and examples of her actually performing in a production. She used two slightly contrasting clips from the same show, this was good as casting directors could be looking at how a performer can interpret characters in different ways, in addition to this she is in full costume which shows how she can look physically different for roles which is something that casting people also look out for. It looks very professional as there have been different camera angles used and the use of a good and appropriate head shots and contact details at the beginning and end, i also thought it was a positive that she has chosen this as the thumbnail for the video, if i was a casting director or agent this would make my search easier as i could see if her physical appearance would fit the role they are looking to fill. However i think this could have been improved if she had some background information such as names of songs and what show they were from, the clips of songs could have been slightly shorter, i felt as tough some of them dragged on slightly more than i would have expected, this  is because in a show reel you want to show someone as many different things you can do in a short amount of time. As well as this, this is a musical theatre show reel therefore she should have more footage from other disaplines such as acting and dance, shoe maybe could have introduced her songs herself by saying a few lines before to set the scene more and help show more characterisation, she only had one photo that was dance related, she could have had more pictures and even videos from shows or rehearsals.

This was one of the best showreels i found, because i felt although it was quite short it contained so much relevant footage that casting directors and agents would be looking for, like the second one i found there was a mixture of rehearsal and performance videos. I think this shows that this performer is a committed hard worker, it gives the impression that she gives full effort and characterisation in every rehearsal, what is a great attribute in this industry. She has a range of songs that she performs with the names and shows displayed on screen as well as the date performed, showing that she is a versitiale singer, she has also picked songs that show off the best qualities of her voice, for example when she sings "something sweet" she chose this because she can hit the higher notes at the end of the song well. This tells audiences what kind of singer she is and the types of roles she would be bets suited to, she has also included clips of her dancing showing that she can be a musical theatre performer as she can do a range of different things to a high standard. I also think that each song has an appropriate amount of time that it is played for, not too short that not enough is shown but not too long that you get bored and want to stop watching. She also has chosen a good thumbnail, for the video as it has a very simple picture of her, that meets a lot of the criteria for a good headshot and her name and a clear title of what the video is, this means that her "look" is shown at a first glance before she has even shown what she can do. I do think that she could have shoed more of her acting skills, perhaps a short monologue or an introduction or a few lines before some of the songs she chose to perform, but overall i thought it was a good show reel.

WWRY - Singing With The Band

What character work and vocal skills/performance skills have I applied, to give an effective group performance? Explain.

This was the first rehearsal that we spent singing through all of the music with the band compared to just the piano or a backing track. Because we were using our voices for a long period of time, before we started the lesson with a vocal warm up t make sure that no one would strain their voice especially this close to the show, we did exercises such as scales in different keys and tongue twisters, this helped me reach the lower notes in my songs that i am not used to singing and usually find challenging. During the larger ensemble songs
i worked on making sure that i am performing as part of a group rather than lots of soloists. For example in one vision, we were working heavily on timing especially for the section where the lyrics split and one half sings one line followed by the other half singing the next, at first this was challenging. However after moving past this i we were able to listen to each other so that everyone knew what was happening, to be able to successfully rehearse and perform these kind of songs there needs to be a mutual respect for everyone in the cast, one example of this is taking on a responsibility of learning all song words (and dance movement). I find these rehearsals much easier once i know all of a song as i don't feel pressured to pick it up last minute and risk letting down the cast, therefore i am grateful that i spent time individually learning the lyrics and melody for this song before rehearsing it with the band and other performers. On the other hand when rehearsing smaller ensemble songs such as I want it all, Headlong and Crazy little thing called love, i found that other skills such as showing communication during the song was more prominent compared to respect for each other, this because when working in a larger group it is more likely that you do not know all of the cast members as well and therefore do not necessarily know how they work best in a rehearsal environment. My performance communication with the other actors i am performing with has definately improved, i have noticed this especially in Crazy little thing called love as me and Liv are a lot more comfortable interacting with each other to portray our relationship to the audience. Because i am double cast and my character dies at the end of the first half the songs i perform have different characters singing them for example the smaller ensemble songs i am Britt and the larger i am playing either a yuppie or a gaga, i think i portray these different characters well. One example of this is that during the gaga songs i am very robotic and synthetic in my movements and facial expressions etc, however in my Britt songs i am a lot more free and improvised this shows the contrast in the two sides of Planet Mall.

What am I finding challenging?

I found that in this rehearsal, because there was the whole cast plus the band, people were getting easily distracted and quickly losing focus, i noticed this most in One Vision when the lyrics split into two groups, because this was challenging, some people in the group were not being respectful and were doing things that would distract others. This was something very difficult to move past as it was difficult to keep an open mind when things are not working out greatly, however because we were very determined to get this done so we could move on to other things that needed working on, collectively we were able to work through this and successfully rehearse this song to a good standard. Although i have spent time learning crazy little thing called love i am still struggling with the lyrics, this is the first time we have sung through this and neither of us are completely sure on what we were doing, because this composition is slightly different from the original both of us need to spend more time going over this before the performance. In addition to this because this was the first band rehearsal we found that the tempo was slightly off in some songs, which created issues as the singers were either singing too slow or too fast to keep in time with the music, however this then meant that the song didnt sound right.

What did I learn this lesson?

This rehearsal has proven to me that a mutual respect for each other is incredibly important so that you work through things at a good pace. This allows you to be open minded about other peoples ideas and be able to listen and be willing to help others who may not pick things as fast as others. As you gain mutual respect you can begin to do things for others as well as yourself, one example of this is making sure you learn all of your lines and lyrics so that rehearsals can run smoother.

How effective was my peer support and communication skills for the benefit of the group performances?

I think in this rehearsal my peer support was effective throughout, for example when we were going through songs, if the tempo was either too fast or too slow, i was able to communicate this to the musical director when needed. This helped the overall group performance as we were able to correct this ready for the final performance, as the musical director was then able to feedback to the drummer who kept the beat and rhythm for the music.

How could our performance and preparation have been improved?

I could have improved our preparation by making sure i was 100% sure on all lines and song lyrics, this would have made the rehearsal for Crazy little thing called love more effective, for my next rehearsal i am going to be more responsible and show my respect for my other ensemble members.

WWRY - Set Designing

We spent this lesson working on the set for our production, this was done collectively so that everyone in the company had a say in how it looked and was designed, this was a good process for our cast as for this project we have been focusing particularly on working as an effective ensemble. We each took turns in sharing our ideas, during this activity we were all able to demonstrate our ensemble skills such as listening to others and keeping our minds open to new things. Collectively as a group we found this activity the best way for set designing as some people had ideas that were completely different to anything that anyone had suggested, this allowed us design the most creative set, that everyone was the whole cast was looking forward to performing with.