Throughout this final project of theater production, I have learned many valuable lessons. I need to be more organized and be ahead of things. I need to communicate with my superiors and peers in order to reach the highest level of achievement and finally, be confident in what you do. This unit has really tested the class’s ability to work together. I feel that we all worked brilliantly and produced a fine piece of art.
In past units such as “Role”, I didn’t work as well as I should have. I couldn’t learn my lines and I focused too much on props. On the other hand I did really well in the small “Improv” unit we had. I really enjoyed that unit as well. I was able to portray my emotions and feelings through the small games and scenes we had without anyone knowing it. It was a swell time for me.
Personally I don’t recall too much on what has happened the past three years, but I know that I have developed my character as a human being, and on stage.
I can’t believe that my years as a drama student have come to an end. I haven’t chosen drama as a subject in IB as I need the other lessons to pursue my considered careers. Throughout the years I have learned many great things in Drama. I have become a better public speaker by projecting my voice more clearly and I’m not as nervous in front of crowds as I used to be. Looking back at my past evaluations, I see myself choosing the more technical sides of drama. This could be because I’m too lazy to learn my lines or just because I love working with my hands and mind producing something technically. I think it’s a bit of both. I would like to start off with saying thank you to Mr. Sarstedt for guiding me through these last 3 years in drama. I also want to thank my peers who were always good at giving constructive feedback and having an enjoyable time with. Thank you all!
fredag den 8. juni 2007
torsdag den 7. juni 2007
Opening Night: Evaluation 7 June 2007
WOW! What a show. Everything went smoothly except for two miner screw ups. (I was part of one of them.) The whole production team: actors, designers and directors met up early to get psyched up. We played bang as a warm-up game and I sadly lost quite quickly. We then chatted, put on makeup and ran through the final check list of SFX and LFX. The ninth graders had their productions first and they were surprisingly good. I expected something more elementary, but they were really touching. Finally with a small interval, it was time to prepare. Seb and I took our places in the tech booth and waited for our cue to begin. The play started out brilliant. Everyone did their part well and the crowd was captured. The lighting worked well to portray certain emotions and my sound really helped explain the setting and certain actions on stage.
All, except one actor played perfectly. Christi had missed nearly all of our rehearsals and lessons of preparation. She messed up a couple of lines and missed some cues. Besides that it was fine. She even managed to put on an alluring accent to add to the setting of the play. I must admit that I messed up too. While playing one SFX I accidentally pressed the space bar a second time initiating the next SFX. I quickly corrected the sound by stopping it. It managed to play for maybe one second so it didn’t affect the play much. I saw it as more of a foreshadowing of the somber tune to come.
When it was finished the crowd roared with satisfaction. They more or less portrayed the feeling we all had as it was done. I feel that everyone played an excellent part. The costume and set designers really pulled the whole play together with their props and clothing ideas. The actors managed to remember their lines and produced an amazing piece. The tech crew, even though behind schedule most of the time, performed almost flawlessly and finally the director; they were the core of this project. They organized the whole production and made us all work together. It seemed to go on and become a catastrophe, but managed to be a successful showing in the end!
All, except one actor played perfectly. Christi had missed nearly all of our rehearsals and lessons of preparation. She messed up a couple of lines and missed some cues. Besides that it was fine. She even managed to put on an alluring accent to add to the setting of the play. I must admit that I messed up too. While playing one SFX I accidentally pressed the space bar a second time initiating the next SFX. I quickly corrected the sound by stopping it. It managed to play for maybe one second so it didn’t affect the play much. I saw it as more of a foreshadowing of the somber tune to come.
When it was finished the crowd roared with satisfaction. They more or less portrayed the feeling we all had as it was done. I feel that everyone played an excellent part. The costume and set designers really pulled the whole play together with their props and clothing ideas. The actors managed to remember their lines and produced an amazing piece. The tech crew, even though behind schedule most of the time, performed almost flawlessly and finally the director; they were the core of this project. They organized the whole production and made us all work together. It seemed to go on and become a catastrophe, but managed to be a successful showing in the end!
Drama Lesson: 7 June 2007
Final lesson before revealing our production! The actual showing was is later today. As I said in the last post, I was going to find the last SFX for homework; and I did! I spent 2 ½ hours looking for the perfect SFX of roller blades. I searched through 30 websites before I found it. It was on the 16th or 17th page on Google search results. But man did I strike gold. I found the best SFX gallery ever. It has so many SFX for the simplest sound. I searched “roller blades” and received 38 pages of effects that all would have worked. This website was a miracle. I mean you could search for “jail door” and get over 400 different results all in super high quality. The website is: www.sounddogs.com. When I found the right effect I just copied it to my desktop and open it with Audacity. From there I amplified the sound and cleared some of the back ground sounds. I ended up with a top notch SFX.
During the lesson I received some help from Mr. Sarstedt setting up the speakers and cables. I then ran through some volume tests. Then I used a helpful SFX cue program. You import the sounds in any order you wish and it plays them in order just by a simple press of a button. It was a great help as I used to open various windows in iTunes with separate SFX. That was a mess, but now I’m organized.
After importing my SFX and running some more volume tests I joined the rehearsal that was running. My cues were perfectly timed. It was a relief. Finally after several weeks of preparation I was able to run my first sound rehearsal. I had a created a cue sheet earlier and the program was working like a charm. However I rather annoyed to here from the directors that some of the sounds weren’t quite what they wanted. If they had kept closer contact with me, they could have told me that earlier. Now I had to find new sounds, and even delete some completely. My cue sheet originally consisted of 9 complete SFX. After a quick rehearsal the directors told me to cut out four SFX, leaving me with only 5 SFX. I also had to change the organ grinder tune to something more somber. But hey, that’s what happens when the directors only focus on the acting.
After school we all decided to meet up again to run through it all once more. It was an unorthodox run through with so many stops to discuss the scene that it made the tech crew crazy. Every scene one of the actors stopped to review his/ her lines or discuss a possible improvement. That’s not the point of a run through. The discussion is left for after the rehearsal. Seb and I were very nervous about the showing as it all looked very messed up during rehearsal and we were missing one of our actors. We hoped for the best and feared the worst.
During the lesson I received some help from Mr. Sarstedt setting up the speakers and cables. I then ran through some volume tests. Then I used a helpful SFX cue program. You import the sounds in any order you wish and it plays them in order just by a simple press of a button. It was a great help as I used to open various windows in iTunes with separate SFX. That was a mess, but now I’m organized.
After importing my SFX and running some more volume tests I joined the rehearsal that was running. My cues were perfectly timed. It was a relief. Finally after several weeks of preparation I was able to run my first sound rehearsal. I had a created a cue sheet earlier and the program was working like a charm. However I rather annoyed to here from the directors that some of the sounds weren’t quite what they wanted. If they had kept closer contact with me, they could have told me that earlier. Now I had to find new sounds, and even delete some completely. My cue sheet originally consisted of 9 complete SFX. After a quick rehearsal the directors told me to cut out four SFX, leaving me with only 5 SFX. I also had to change the organ grinder tune to something more somber. But hey, that’s what happens when the directors only focus on the acting.
After school we all decided to meet up again to run through it all once more. It was an unorthodox run through with so many stops to discuss the scene that it made the tech crew crazy. Every scene one of the actors stopped to review his/ her lines or discuss a possible improvement. That’s not the point of a run through. The discussion is left for after the rehearsal. Seb and I were very nervous about the showing as it all looked very messed up during rehearsal and we were missing one of our actors. We hoped for the best and feared the worst.
tirsdag den 5. juni 2007
Drama Lesson: 5 June 2007
Today was a very busy day. While the whole class was rehearsing, I was editing and finding the needed sound effects. It was incredibly hard to locate the exact sounds. I was almost pulling my hair out trying to find the right SFX. The whole lesson was spent in front of the “black Mac”. My eyes grew more and more weary, but I had to keep working as our next lesson was the final rehearsal and the tech team hadn’t had a tech rehearsal yet. As you can tell I was behind schedule. I think this was due to the lack of director involvement with the tech crew. I think the directors were too focused on the actors. The directors should have kept Seb and me on our toes more. Acting is a major benefactor to the quality of the final production, but the acting is further enhanced by the technical side. The tech effects help dramatize scenes and clarify the setting and/or mood of the scene. Basically the tech crew should have received more attention from the directors giving us the necessary feedback.
During the lesson I found and edited three SFX. I only needed one more sound, the darn rollerblades. It was nearing the end of class and I just couldn’t sit in front of that screen a second longer. I spent the whole lesson glued to the screen. I guess I’ll just have to take the rest home and do it as homework.
During the lesson I found and edited three SFX. I only needed one more sound, the darn rollerblades. It was nearing the end of class and I just couldn’t sit in front of that screen a second longer. I spent the whole lesson glued to the screen. I guess I’ll just have to take the rest home and do it as homework.
torsdag den 31. maj 2007
Drama Lesson: 31 May 2007
Today I had a very successful lesson. Ragnar and Sebastien even decided to help me. We got hold of the “Black Mac” and gained permission to download Audacity. It is an awesome sound editing program that is easy to use and works brilliantly. Next I began editing the SFX I had already acquired from previous lessons. I finished converting the SFX and editing three out of eight that need adjustment. Now that Audacity is available in class as well as my home, I can work constantly and faster. I showed Mr. Sarstedt my nearly complete cue sheet. Hopefully I can finish next class editing and acquiring the needed SFX.
Later the same afternoon Ragnar and I got together and further edited one SFX to make it some like an authentic radio broadcast. I must say that I’m very proud of what we accomplished. At the same time we recorded Ragnar’s sister’s voice for one SFX that included, “Fly sheppie, fly!” As I said before, this was a very successful day with much progress. I learned that small kids need much persuasion to say even the most normal of things into a microphone. The deadline is coming up and I’m still behind schedule, but now that I have Audacity only a few steps away, I should be back on track by the end of next lesson. Now it’s only up to the actors to learn their lines so that lighting and sound can be added. The sound and light aspects will greatly improve the quality of this theatre piece.
Later the same afternoon Ragnar and I got together and further edited one SFX to make it some like an authentic radio broadcast. I must say that I’m very proud of what we accomplished. At the same time we recorded Ragnar’s sister’s voice for one SFX that included, “Fly sheppie, fly!” As I said before, this was a very successful day with much progress. I learned that small kids need much persuasion to say even the most normal of things into a microphone. The deadline is coming up and I’m still behind schedule, but now that I have Audacity only a few steps away, I should be back on track by the end of next lesson. Now it’s only up to the actors to learn their lines so that lighting and sound can be added. The sound and light aspects will greatly improve the quality of this theatre piece.
onsdag den 30. maj 2007
Drama Lesson: 30 May 2007
Today was a very productive day. The tech crew (Sebastien and I) started out by working out the exact amount of colored lights needed. We were given the necessary materials and began working. The chosen colors, rose purple and straw were perfect. We traced around the slide holders and cut out the various slides. Mr. Sarstedt told us to touch the slide as little as possible with our fingers as the heat from the lamp could cause the grease from our fingers to burn. I found that really interesting. Mr. Sarstedt then showed Sebastien how to work the lighting. The various knobs and switches were a little confusing at first but then became clearer for Sebastien. While he was controlling the lights, I helped Mr. Sarstedt install the new slides to their positions. My acrobat like teacher mounted the scaffolding and soared up like a monkey. I on the other hand stood 3 meters below keeping the scaffolding sturdy and moving it when ever Mr. Sarstedt was finished with one lamp and had to move on to the next.
Today I learned few facts about lighting that I already knew. The only new concept was the actual installment of the colored slides. I had a bit of a boring lesson. As you can see from the pictures on the right, we had a busy lesson concerning lights. I feel that Sebastien learned much valuable information on lighting design and application.
Today I learned few facts about lighting that I already knew. The only new concept was the actual installment of the colored slides. I had a bit of a boring lesson. As you can see from the pictures on the right, we had a busy lesson concerning lights. I feel that Sebastien learned much valuable information on lighting design and application.
onsdag den 16. maj 2007
Drama Lesson: 16 May 2007
Sebastien and I are a little behind schedule. We should have completed our cue sheets and found all the SFX, but we haven't. Mr. Sarstedt helped us out a little by bringing a book to class concerning all the technical aspects of theater. He allowed us to photocopy some pages and use them as guidlines for our roles. I photocopied some pages to help me fully understand sound effects for theater production. I now have "An Introduction to Sound", "Sound Effect Sources" and an example of a cue sheet. This will give me plenty of information to begin thoroughly taping together SFX and portraying them correctly. Next Sebastien and I visited the "Tech Room". It is located in the back of the photocopier room. It controls all the lighting and sound for productions.
We looked at all of the equipment in awe.
We returned to class and dicussed various opinions on the play. The rest of the class was a little bit of a waste of time. I read through my sheets of paper and began mingling with the actors. Even though we did a little more investigating, this lesson wasn't a very productive one.
Alex
We looked at all of the equipment in awe.
We returned to class and dicussed various opinions on the play. The rest of the class was a little bit of a waste of time. I read through my sheets of paper and began mingling with the actors. Even though we did a little more investigating, this lesson wasn't a very productive one.
Alex
torsdag den 3. maj 2007
Drama Lesson: 3 May 2007
Today the class split into their usual groups: actors, directors & designers. Sebastien and I started out by having a meeting with the directors. We spoke about the sound effects first. We agreed that a closing window and similar SFX would be extremely hard to coordinate with actors as we only have a limited time on this. We then spoke about lighting options. We decided on colors, effects and types of lighting that was needed. I then spoke to Mr. Sarstedt about what colors the Performing Arts Center already had. THey had all the primary colors, which wasn't sufficient for our play. We needed a special purple which wasn't avaliable. Mr. Sarstedt then said we should just buy
one from a store that he has done business with for earlier productions. He brought out a color
example booklet. Sebastein and I ran through it countless times and came to the conclusion of a purple not too dark, nor too light. It's just right. Mr. Sarstedt then suggested that we should also find a neutral color to use as a plain or normal light. It was to cover the cold blue stare of the halogen bulb from the lanterns. We chose a straw like color and he approved contently. The rest of the lasson was spent
reveiwing the play looking at lighting. ( If you refer to the side panel which is
titled "Production Lighting", you can see the to extra colors needed for
this production)
Alex
one from a store that he has done business with for earlier productions. He brought out a color
example booklet. Sebastein and I ran through it countless times and came to the conclusion of a purple not too dark, nor too light. It's just right. Mr. Sarstedt then suggested that we should also find a neutral color to use as a plain or normal light. It was to cover the cold blue stare of the halogen bulb from the lanterns. We chose a straw like color and he approved contently. The rest of the lasson was spent
reveiwing the play looking at lighting. ( If you refer to the side panel which is
titled "Production Lighting", you can see the to extra colors needed for
this production)
Alex
onsdag den 2. maj 2007
Drama Lesson: 2 May 2007
After a quick breifing from Mr. Sarstedt about tech aspects such as cue sheets and other useful tips, Sebastien and I started reading through the play and getting a general idea of what had to be done. I wrote up in my script where SFX had to be added and what kind of sound effect it was. Then Sebastien turned on his computer and we spent most of the lesson checking out websites for good SFX, listening to recordings and
taking note of what we had and didn't have. We even managed to acquire some of the needed SFX
right there on the spot. To end off the lesson the whole class played Bang!
as a result of our hard work. As a seven time Bang! champ, I was embarassed to be knocked out as the 4th or 5th last. Ow well, at least I enjoyed watching the rest of the game.
Alex
taking note of what we had and didn't have. We even managed to acquire some of the needed SFX
right there on the spot. To end off the lesson the whole class played Bang!
as a result of our hard work. As a seven time Bang! champ, I was embarassed to be knocked out as the 4th or 5th last. Ow well, at least I enjoyed watching the rest of the game.
Alex
lørdag den 28. april 2007
Tech Crew
Today our initial roles in the production were handed out.
The people who wanted to be actors became actors and the people who
wanted to become designers, became designers. The directors were
already chosen as they had to cast the roles of the production. I wanted
to be part of the design crew which I became.
Sebastien will be handling the lights and I will be handling
the sound. Since I have worked with either option before I let Sebastien
choose which part he would rather do. I then took the sound aspect as
he wanted to do lighting. We will be helping each other out if there are
problems and give each other constructive criticism.
For this play there are quite a few sound effects that need to be located,
altered or completely made from scratch . It is a challenge, but hopefully
a fun one.
The people who wanted to be actors became actors and the people who
wanted to become designers, became designers. The directors were
already chosen as they had to cast the roles of the production. I wanted
to be part of the design crew which I became.
Sebastien will be handling the lights and I will be handling
the sound. Since I have worked with either option before I let Sebastien
choose which part he would rather do. I then took the sound aspect as
he wanted to do lighting. We will be helping each other out if there are
problems and give each other constructive criticism.
For this play there are quite a few sound effects that need to be located,
altered or completely made from scratch . It is a challenge, but hopefully
a fun one.
onsdag den 25. april 2007
Drama Lesson: 24 April 2007
During class today Mr. Sarstedt introduced the play we would be producing. He chose Tennese William's "The Long Goodbye". It is a one act play that deals with Joe and the memories of his mother's death and his sister's fall from grace. It is a "dream play" set in a mid-western American city.
We all took notes on what the First Reading and discussed it a little. The class knew who was doing what so we decided to complete our First Reading. We all joined in playing different roles at different times. It was fun to experience people's varied reactions to the play.
I took some notes on my immediate thoughts and facts on the play. I plan to be either sound or lighting designer or both. The setting was in a busy city therefore sounds of trucks, cars and pedestrians should be present. I also noticed the sounds of radios being played in the background and the slamming of windows. The mood chages from mellow to mysterious to gloom, tense and awkward. This presents some good chances of lighting to show these mood changes. Lighting such as purple and red or other dark colors could be a good choice.
This class was a good introduction to the play and I look forward to begin working with it.
Alex
We all took notes on what the First Reading and discussed it a little. The class knew who was doing what so we decided to complete our First Reading. We all joined in playing different roles at different times. It was fun to experience people's varied reactions to the play.
I took some notes on my immediate thoughts and facts on the play. I plan to be either sound or lighting designer or both. The setting was in a busy city therefore sounds of trucks, cars and pedestrians should be present. I also noticed the sounds of radios being played in the background and the slamming of windows. The mood chages from mellow to mysterious to gloom, tense and awkward. This presents some good chances of lighting to show these mood changes. Lighting such as purple and red or other dark colors could be a good choice.
This class was a good introduction to the play and I look forward to begin working with it.
Alex
Drama Lesson: 24 April 2007 (Notes)
First Reading - Everyone is present
Everyone has to take notes on their specific task at hand:
Actor
Everyone has to take notes on their specific task at hand:
Actor
- Theme
- Characters
- Challenges
- Style
Designer
- Theme
- Style
- Technical aspects
- Planning ahead
Director
- All of the above
- Casting
torsdag den 19. april 2007
Drama Lesson: 19 April 2007
During class today we talked about the stages of theatre production and read through plays. There were too many actors, so all the plays we found didn't have enough parts with enough lines for all the actors. This resulted in not finding a suitable play. Mr. Sarstedt said he would find a play for us, so it'll all work out in the end. I want to be a lighting and/or sound designer. I really enjoy the whole creative process of designing a light show or pattern and creating strands of sound and incoporating it all into a production. I've done it previously and really enjoyed it.
The class itself was not incredibly productive, seeing as we didnt actually accomplish much in terms of finding a play, but I did learn what "strike" was. It is the very last stage of theater production where everything is taken apart and cleared away so that the next performing group can manage without difficulties. There was a funny episode in class today where Caroline called Yosra so that we could find out what role she wanted in the production: actor, designer or director. She couldn't decide on which one to chose. Finally we got it out of her and we resumed looking through mountains of books for possible plays. That's it for today!
Alex
The class itself was not incredibly productive, seeing as we didnt actually accomplish much in terms of finding a play, but I did learn what "strike" was. It is the very last stage of theater production where everything is taken apart and cleared away so that the next performing group can manage without difficulties. There was a funny episode in class today where Caroline called Yosra so that we could find out what role she wanted in the production: actor, designer or director. She couldn't decide on which one to chose. Finally we got it out of her and we resumed looking through mountains of books for possible plays. That's it for today!
Alex
torsdag den 12. april 2007
Drama Lesson: 12 April 2007
During class today we discussed our new and improved developmental workbook.
Instead of carrying heavy workbooks, we will be blogging class evaluations,
typing up assignments, posting photos from class exercises and scanning notes. I
feel that this change has both positive and negative sides. It is neater and easier
to read, the evaluations are handed in as soon as a blog is posted and money is
saved by not having to buy expensive workbooks. On the other hand, it is easier
to write up evaluations and feedback when it is still "fresh" during lessons.
After that discussion we moved on to a warm up game where everyone had to bend down from a standing position to a kneeling position, in unison. This was a little tricky and even though we had improved from our first attempt, we still couldn't quite keep at the same pace. Finally we completed a practical exercise. It was again a "teambuilding" exercise. It was trickier to complete as we did it out in the sun. As everyone glanced up into the sky, we were blinded.
Otherwise we all performed well.
Alex
Instead of carrying heavy workbooks, we will be blogging class evaluations,
typing up assignments, posting photos from class exercises and scanning notes. I
feel that this change has both positive and negative sides. It is neater and easier
to read, the evaluations are handed in as soon as a blog is posted and money is
saved by not having to buy expensive workbooks. On the other hand, it is easier
to write up evaluations and feedback when it is still "fresh" during lessons.
After that discussion we moved on to a warm up game where everyone had to bend down from a standing position to a kneeling position, in unison. This was a little tricky and even though we had improved from our first attempt, we still couldn't quite keep at the same pace. Finally we completed a practical exercise. It was again a "teambuilding" exercise. It was trickier to complete as we did it out in the sun. As everyone glanced up into the sky, we were blinded.
Otherwise we all performed well.
Alex
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