independent project portfolio: eleanor anne rice...

INDEPENDENT PROJECT PORTFOLIO: ELEANOR ANNE RICE13STHEATRE HL WORD COUNT: 2858

Theatre HL Independent Project

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction.........................................................................................................................3Preparation..........................................................................................................................3Workshop Structure........................................................................................................5Critical Evaluation.............................................................................................................15Appendices Appendix 1..............................................................................................................17 Appendix 2..............................................................................................................18 Appendix 3..............................................................................................................19


Introduction:

For my Option B Independent project I chose to lead a workshop based upon the theatrical genre of Melodrama. As a topic that had never been introduced to me in school I wanted to explore something new and this was the perfect opportunity to investigate into melodrama. What initially interested me was the focus on emotion, and the communication of these emotions to an audience.1 Since I was going to be teaching students who were beginning their two year course in drama I wanted them to be able to take away transferable drama skills. Thus decided on focusing the workshop around creating a bank of emotions that they will be able to access and portray on stage when necessary, though obviously through the medium of Melodrama. After researching into what made a good workshop I decided that an informal setting with constant interactive discussion would be far more successful than just presenting information to be absorbed.2

Preparation:

After deciding that melodrama was going to be the focus for my workshop I brainstormed the main elements, why I am passionate about it and what I want my students to take away from the workshop and this helped form the basic structure of my workshop.

Figure one. Melodrama planning brainstorm. Hong Kong, August 27. 2013


1 A. (n.d.). Melodrama Unit [DOC]. New Zealand: Tki.org.nz.

2 Rabinowitz, P. (n.d.). Conducting a Workshop. The Community Toolbox. Retrieved from http://ctb.ku.edu/en/tablecontents/sub_section_main_1113.aspx

http://ctb.ku.edu/en/tablecontents/sub_section_main_1113.aspx




As seen in the brainstorm, the initial goal was obviously for students to develop a deeper and more mature understanding of Melodrama and the skills used within this genre. However this evolved into more a focus on emotion - the key aspect of melodrama, and it was decided that I wanted students to leave with a bank of emotions that they can access throughout their years in theatre and be able to use voice, stock movements and characterisation to present these emotions to an audience.

Figure Two. Workshop planning brainstorm. Hong Kong, August 29. 2013

A plan was then created for the workshop as seen above. Basically the workshop was to run for one hour and fifteen minutes and consisted of a warm-up and then an activity were there would be an explanation of the character, their associated emotions and then a following walk-around inhibiting the characteristics of the particular emotion and character. This was then repeated for other characters and the session concluded with a devised piece. After receiving feedback I quickly realised that the session was too boring and not as interactive as I would have liked.

In order to better the workshop and encompass not only the knowledge of Melodrama but also that learning can be fun and interactive, a new structure was created. The time of the workshop was also confined to only 45 minutes.


Figure Three. Revised lesson plan. Hong Kong, September 3. 2013

Workshop Structure:

Introduction: First I had everyone sitting in a circle, and as an introduction we went around the circle

and I asked them to give their name and one weird thing about themselves, for example;

my name is Ellie and a weird thing about myself is that my pinky toe does not bend.

Before I started, I explained that I hoped the workshop would be fun and interactive and I

also then set expectations. These being if there were any questions don’t hesitate to ask

and of course I stressed that they should treat me with the respect they wished to be


treated with. I decided that I wanted the workshop to be more of an open forum so that

students were more receptive and bonded with me in the small time we had together.

Next I clearly stated the goal of the session and what I wanted them to achieve by the end

of the 45 minutes, which was to acquire a basic understanding of stock emotions and how

they can be presented on stage.

After this was explained I wanted a to gain a basic understanding of what their prior

knowledge was and how familiar they were with the topic, so while remaining in the circle, I

began a small discussion with leading questions around what melodrama was.

Warm-Up: In order for everyone to get comfortable with each other I wanted a fun warm-up, but one

that still embodied melodrama. Thus melodramatic simon says.3 This was based upon

getting a better idea of their initial knowledge of melodrama and allowing them to be more

comfortable with the group. Because melodrama is so exaggerated some students may

find the situation a little uncomfortable to be so showy in front of strangers. Therefore this activity was a great ice-breaker because everyone had to be silly and over the top

together. I, “Simon”, called out stereotypical stock situations that may be found in

melodramas and the participants had to act out that situation and emotion, obviously

extremely exaggerated. If they did a specific action without it being “Simon Says” then of

course they are out of the game.

Situations are as followed:

✦ Simon says grieve

✦ Simon says be frightened of the villain

✦ Simon says look in horror as the villain captures your one true love

✦ Be a strong hero

✦ Simon says be a man in love

✦ Be a woman in love


3 Stephenson, A. (n.d.). Melodrama [PDF]. TES.

✦ Simon says make an evil plan

✦ Be proud you just saved the damsel

✦ Be angry

✦ Simon says be overwhelmed your hero just saved you

Figure Four and Five. Simon Says. Hong Kong, September 6. 2013

Exercise one: Out acting (5 mins)The first exercise was used to explain stock emotions and their place in melodrama and

exaggeration. Different characters in melodrama have their own set of stock emotions and

do not portray the emotions that they are not in their set.4 For example the villain does

not feel love whereas the hero and damsel in distress does.

There were two lines of students, line A was given the emotion of sadness and line B the

emotion; excitement. However they can only communicate this emotion through their

actions, facial expressions and voice. But the catch was the emotion through their voice

could only be communicated with the tone since the only word they were allowed to say is

sausage. Then they faced the person opposite in the other line and attempted to out act

each other. This meant being bigger and more exaggerated than the other actor, which

introduced them to heightened acting and to show the emotion with actions.5 When I said



5 Brian, G., & Joseph, A. (n.d.). What is Melodrama. WiseGeek. Retrieved from http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-melodrama.htm

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-melodrama.htm




stop, one line moved down to the next person, so they had a chance to do the activity and

interact with a few different people. This activity repeated 3 more times but they had to

choose an emotion themselves.

Feedback: Leading Questions:

•Why is emotion important in melodrama?

• Is it hard to communicate emotion without talking?

• With specific emotions did you communicate specific characters?

• Why would you associate that character and that emotion?

Figure Six, Seven & Eight. Out Acting. Hong Kong, September 6. 2013

The Melodrama story structure: An essential part of melodrama is the plot structure. The overall concept being that good

always triumphs over evil6 and there is always an observance of moral justice.7 In every

melodrama the basic structure and stock characters are always the same. In order to

introduce this to the students, I found a very short but stereotypical Melodrama script

which embodies all these concepts which would be used to discuss the basic plot

structure.8

Script:

Villain: You must pay the rent


6 Brian, G., & Joseph, A. (n.d.). What is Melodrama. WiseGeek. Retrieved from http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-melodrama.htm7 CVR Performing Arts. (n.d.). 19th Century Melodrama. 19th Century Melodrama. Retrieved from http://www.cvrperformingarts.com/drama/Theatre_history/Melodrama/Melodrama_facts.htm8 Stephenson, A. (n.d.). Melodrama [PDF]. TES.





http://www.cvrperformingarts.com/drama/Theatre_history/Melodrama/Melodrama_facts.htm




Heroine: I can’t pay the rentVillain: You must pay the rent!Heroine: I can’t pay the rent! Hero: I’ll pay the rent. Heroine: My Hero!Villain: Curses! Foiled again! 9

I chose three students to come up to the front and I told the story using them as the

three main characters, this allowed the students to understand and learn visually and

interactively. I did not read out the script, instead I described what the characters would

be doing and thinking and the chosen students improvised and acted this out while I was

explaining.


• What was the basic plot?

• Are there any similar modern day stories?

• What emotions are visible in this melodrama?

• Which are the three main characters? Figure Nine, Ten & Eleven. Telling the Story. Hong Kong, September 6. 2013

Character Exploration:

Using the three main characters identified in the melodrama story (villain, hero and damsel

in distress), I had the students explore these characters and the emotions that they think


9 CVR Performing Arts. (n.d.). 19th Century Melodrama. 19th Century Melodrama. Retrieved from http://www.cvrperformingarts.com/drama/Theatre_history/Melodrama/Melodrama_facts.htm





are associated with them, as exaggeratedly as possible. Because as known melodrama

emphasises and exaggerated the characters and the plot in order to communicate that

emotion.10 It started with everyone walking around in neutral and as I start to talk about

and explain a particular character students will start to inhibit what they think the

characters certain characteristics are, like emotions, movements and voice. Then they

began to interact with each other all as the same character and afterwards we regrouped

for a smaller feedback session asking: What were the similarities with peoples

interpretations? Which were the main stock movements? What emotions were present?

What inspired your character? Then this is repeated for the other two main characters.

This was an important exercise for melodrama because it firstly helped distinguish the

difference in emotions for all three characters whilst also letting students explore for

themselves what they think that character would be doing.11 It’s also interesting to

discuss where the impressions they have of the characters come from, because nowadays

our understanding of melodrama comes from comics and cartoons.12 This exercise was

very active and got everyone involved physically and vocally, and also continued to

develop the exaggeration. But it also made students realise that the characters in

melodrama are one-dimensional.13


•Which emotions are associated with which character?

• Where does our impression of what these characters are like come from?

• Physically how was the character portrayed? Stock movements, posture, gestures

etc.


10 Brian, G., & Joseph, A. (n.d.). What is Melodrama. WiseGeek. Retrieved from http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-melodrama.htm11 A. (n.d.). Melodrama Unit [DOC]. New Zealand: Tki.org.nz.

12 Brian, G., & Joseph, A. (n.d.). What is Melodrama. WiseGeek. Retrieved from http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-melodrama.htm13 A. (n.d.). Melodrama Unit [DOC]. New Zealand: Tki.org.nz.









Figure Twelve, Thirteen & Fourteen. Character Exploration. Hong Kong, September 6. 2013

Introduction to stock movements:As a group we discovered (as I had predicted), that during the character exploration, when

a character was mentioned there were similarities between the way people conveyed the

character whether it be through their posture of specific movements they chose. This next

activity leads on from that but also solidified their understanding. I presented to them a

bank of specific stock movements that are used in Melodrama’s, stock movements being

a specific pose or movement which communicates to the audience a particular emotion or

feeling.14 This is a demonstration and imitation activity used to provide students with a

bank of basic stock movements which they would then use in the subsequent activities. It

also reinforced that in melodrama actors were classically trained and given a set of

particular movements for certain emotions.15 This activity was done with everyone

standing in the circle and I would demonstrate and they would copy. It was important when

going through the actions to make them as big as possible.16 During which I was asking

questions such as; what does this action communicate? Which character would use this

movement? etc. I also stressed the importance of being exaggerated and melodramatic as


14 Artsedge. (n.d.). The Kennedy Center: ARTSEDGE - the National Arts and Education Network. ARTSEDGE: Acting Up, A Melodrama. Retrieved from http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/educators/lessons/grade-9-12/Acting_up_a_Melodrama.aspx15 CVR Performing Arts. (n.d.). Melodrama Techniques. 19th Century Melodrama. Retrieved from http://www.cvrperformingarts.com/drama/Theatre_history/Melodrama/melodrama_techniques.htm16 A. (n.d.). Melodrama Unit [DOC]. New Zealand: Tki.org.nz.

http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/educators/lessons/grade-9-12/Acting_up_a_Melodrama.aspx




http://www.cvrperformingarts.com/drama/Theatre_history/Melodrama/melodrama_techniques.htm




possible to convince the audience of the emotion they are presenting. This is because

audience members understand these movements and when the verbal cannot be

understood they can instead interpret body language.17

The stock Movements:

✦ Grief ‒ Head down, shoulders rounded, hands cupping the face. Raising the shoulders up and down, with a sobbing noise, is optional.

✦ Fear ‒ Face turned to the right side, with the right hand to the mouth, fingers curled under touching the top of the palm.

✦ Horror ‒ Eyes wide, mouth open, both hands to the cheeks with the fingers extended.

✦ Strength ‒ Body straight, chest up, hand to forehead, with the palm facing the audience and fingers curled slightly.

✦ Love Expressed (Male) ‒ Chest held high, right hand crosses the chest and rests on the upper left over the heart, then opens out to the right and the loved one.

✦ Love Expressed (Female) ‒ Chest held high, head cocked a bit to the side, opposite leg goes out with foot pointed, hands under the chin, fingers entwined and bent at the first and second knuckles (almost praying), hands go toward the loved one, smile on face.

✦ Evil Planning ‒ One eyebrow up, the other down, a grimace on the face and hands rubbing together, if it is a really good plan, the fingers twiddle.

✦ Pride ‒ Chest up, hands with knuckles to both hips, legs slightly apart, a balanced look.

✦ Anger ‒ Both hands shoulder high, eyebrows pushed toward each other, face tense with a grimace, hands in tight fists.


17 CVR Performing Arts. (n.d.). 19th Century Melodrama. 19th Century Melodrama. Retrieved from http://www.cvrperformingarts.com/drama/Theatre_history/Melodrama/Melodrama_facts.htm





✦ Overwhelmed ‒ Chin up bringing the face to look up, one arm dropped limp to the side, the other hand open with palm towards the audience on the top of the forehead.


•Which character would use which emotion?

• Which emotion?

• Do stock movements help communicate emotion?

• How do stock movements help

communicate emotion? Figure Fifteen, Sixteen & Seventeen. Stock movement Demonstration circle. Hong Kong, September 6. 2013

Action and Response exercise:Using the Stock Movements they had just been taught, I had everyone split into pairs and

label themselves A and B. This exercise is an action and response exercise,18 I gave a

specific character to both A and B, then A had to pull a frozen stock movement that

indicated an emotion of that character. After the count of 3, B then responded with a

response emotion to A using the correct stock movement. The movements had to be

extremely exaggerated and obviously indicate what emotion they feel towards the other

character. This is repeated two more times with different combinations of the 3 main

characters.

This was a great activity because not only did it practice the skills they have been taught,

but it also promoted character interaction. While on stage the characters must react to



each other and stay present within the scene, this was done through the use of stock

movements because the audience knew what the character was feeling towards what was

happening without them having them verbalise it. So this was is a chance for students to

think about what their character would do and how they should respond to each other.


•What changed when you had another person to react to?

• Was it hard to think on your feet?

• How do you stay present within a scene?

• How important is exaggeration? Figure Eighteen, Nineteen & Twenty. Action and Response. Hong Kong, September 6. 2013

Devising and Sharing The devising was an important part of the workshop because it consisted of bringing

together all the skills and techniques taught to create a piece of melodrama based around

a script I provided. What I wanted to instill was the use of stock movements and voice to

convey the emotion of the particular character and I wanted to see them staying present

in the scene and responding to the other characters portraying the emotion they feel in

response on stage. It was also a chance for them to use language because a large part of

the emotional connection in melodrama in an exaggeration and extension in the

language.19 There were 3 people in a group and using the 3 stock characters we explored

today they were able to showcase their understanding of the workshop. I also gave them a

list of the descriptions of the stock movements that could be used in their piece.

Feedback after each performance:



•Were they present in the scene?

• Was this a successful piece of melodrama? How so?

• Did they use the stock movements to communicate the stock emotions?

End DiscussionTo conclude the workshop I had the whole group reconvene together in a circle and have

a small discussion. In order for everyone to have their say we went around the circle one

by one and sum up the workshop in one word. Then I asked some other questions that

were free to discuss which were; What was the goal of the workshop? Was the goal

achieved? Do you think you will be able to take the skills learnt today and apply them to

other aspects of drama? and finally do you like melodrama!?

Critical Evaluation:

I believe that the workshop was very successful and this was demonstrated not only in the

final devised performances but also in the feedback I received (see appendix 3). All

students were enthusiastic with the performances and there was definitely evidence of

using stock movements and voice to convey a particular emotion and character. However

in a few groups there was a lack of commitment which I felt was due to a lack of

confidence and not wanting to feel silly. As the leader of the workshop I found it important

to lead by example in hopes it would also let people come out of their shells more and not

be afraid to be loud and big. Thus when I presented and discussed I was very over the top

with my gestures and voices but I think this was good because it kept students engaged

and interested in what they were learning. But with melodrama they have to be over the

top for it to work which groups eventually found out whilst watching others. The feedback

also showed that 100% of students agreed that the workshop was fun and interactive. I

was pleased with this because from the beginning I wanted the workshop to be more

personal and on an equal level with the students20. This shows that the students were

also comfortable in the workshop which probably helped lead to the success of it because


20 Rabinowitz, P. (n.d.). Conducting a Workshop. The Community Toolbox. Retrieved from http://ctb.ku.edu/en/tablecontents/sub_section_main_1113.aspx





they would only be comfortable being very exaggerated and showy in front of strangers if

they were in a relaxed and unworried environment. The last discussion as a group and the

performances both indicate that my goal of the workshop was reached and they were able

to take away applicable drama skills from the day.

In order to improve my workshop I asked for feedback on what students thought was

missing or could be more focussed upon. The most common answer, other than nothing,

was more games. So next time instead of spending a lot of time of specific skill based

activities I would try to set them in more of a game format where they are still learning but

learning through playing the game. Next time I would also hope to have less time spent on

discussion and more time on the practical and building up skill bases. This is so students

aren’t just sitting and waiting for someone to give the answer and instead explore and find

out for themselves.


Appendix 1 - Stock Movements Handout

Stock MovementsGrief Head down, shoulders rounded, hands cupping the face. Raising the shoulders up and down, with a sobbing noise, is optional.

Fear Face turned to the right side, with the right hand to the mouth, fingers curled under touching the top of the palm.

Horror Eyes wide, mouth open, both hands to the cheeks with the fingers extended.

Strength Body straight, chest up, hand to forehead, with the palm facing the audience and fingers curled slightly.

Love Expressed (Male) Chest held high, right hand crosses the chest and rests on the upper left over the heart, then opens out to the right and the loved one.

Love Expressed (Female) Chest held high, head cocked a bit to the side, opposite leg goes out with foot pointed, hands under the chin, fingers entwined and bent at the first and second knuckles (almost praying), hands go toward the loved one, smile on face.

Evil Planning One eyebrow up, the other down, a grimace on the face and hands rubbing together, if it is a really good plan, the fingers twiddle.

Pride Chest up, hands with knuckles to both hips, legs slightly apart, a balanced look.

Anger Both hands shoulder high, eyebrows pushed toward each other, face tense with a grimace, hands in tight fists.


Overwhelmed Chin up bringing the face to look up, one arm dropped limp to the side, the other hand open with palm towards the audience on the top of the forehead.

Appendix 2 - Melodrama Script


ScriptAppendix 3 - Feedback and results

FeedbackWas the workshop fun? ________Was the workshop interactive? ________Was the workshop educational? ________

What would you improve? ________

Was the workshop fun? Was the workshop interactive?

Was the workshop educational? What would you improve?


Bibliography: A. (n.d.). Melodrama Unit [DOC]. New Zealand: Tki.org.nz.

Artsedge. (n.d.). The Kennedy Center: ARTSEDGE - the National Arts and Education Network. ARTSEDGE: Acting Up, A Melodrama. Retrieved from http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/educators/lessons/grade-9-12/Acting_up_a_Melodrama.aspx

Brian, G., & Joseph, A. (n.d.). What is Melodrama. WiseGeek. Retrieved from http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-melodrama.htm

C. (n.d.). Melodrama Techniques. 19th Century Melodrama. Retrieved from http://www.cvrperformingarts.com/drama/Theatre_history/Melodrama/melodrama_techniques.htm

CVR Performing Arts. (n.d.). 19th Century Melodrama. 19th Century Melodrama. Retrieved from http://www.cvrperformingarts.com/drama/Theatre_history/Melodrama/Melodrama_facts.htm

Rabinowitz, P. (n.d.). Conducting a Workshop. The Community Toolbox. Retrieved from http://ctb.ku.edu/en/tablecontents/sub_section_main_1113.aspx

Stephenson, A. (n.d.). Melodrama [PDF]. TES.




















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