lights, camera, cuts....

One of the classes we had with Steve was a poster class. Recreating film posters by chosing and positioning the right lights to create the right shaddowing and atmosphere.

I really enjoyed this class as i really enjoy photography, although we werent actually taking the photos. It was good that we were just left to find out ourselves how to get the right light and learn from our mistakes.

Having the photoshop class to edit the phots and turn them into the posters was good fun too, though quite hard navigating around photoshop as iv never used it before. I was quite happy with my outcomes. I didnt get them all finished but i liked what i managed.

Props class with Martin was great fun. Creating prosthetic cuts and bruises on ourselves was a bit of a challenge. Using materials you've never used before and having to measure out the right quantity so its not too runny but not too sticky, or not too pink or yellow. I tried out a cut on my knuckle first which turned out better than i expected. Injecting the fake blood into my fake skin was a bit tricky and im sure i almost injected it into my own skin a few times.

I moved onto a deep gash in my arm after i felt more confident and added lots of blood and bruising and dried blood. I attempted stitches, which was really quite tricky when you only have one hand to do it. I managed to get a few butchered looking stitches done. Never having had stitches myself did make it harder as i had no idea what they looked like except from Martins explaination.

But they seemed to look great. I wrapped my arm in a bandage to trick my mum. Her face was priceless when i took it off to show her. Although i had to give in and tell her it was fake when she started to well up whilst clasping her hand across her face....

Props

Another fun props class with Martin. We had an introduction to specialisms and props. Martin brought out a bag of clay and told us to create a face, we were going to be making venetian style half masks. It didnt matter if you did it wrong, just start again. theres no right or wrong. I love Martins classes. They're always fun and hands on and engaging. The masks eventaully dried so we covered them in glitter and graphite (i think thats what it was...?) and i attempted to create some pattern on the face using the glue gun. I was pleased with my finished mask. For something that had been done in half a day it turned out really well.

Im really confused to what i want to do now. I love it all. I love the hands on approach and the challenges props face. I love the thought of seeing a finished set on the stage all painted and put together and knowing it's my work. And i love the thought of seeing a finished costume on stage acting its part..... Hopefully the next few weeks will help me choose what i want to specialise in....Decisions decisions decisions..... Im looking forward to the next module but also not as the people iv become closest with are all designers or SM's. There are some lovely people doing Applied Arts though and im sure we'll get on well.

Fuerza Bruta

Fuerza Bruta When the video for Fuerza Bruta first started I had no idea what was going on. Well, even at the end of the video I still had no idea what was going on, but i enjoyed it! I loved the idea of the conveyor belt. It meant the guy could actually run as fast as he could and the audience could see his expressions and true exhaustion. It seemed like such a simple idea but it was so effective. I loved the lighting throughout the show, it was very atmospheric, i thought the water sprays that represented rain were a great idea too, it made the audience more involved with the show as it looked as though they were part of it. As well as the created stage in the warehouse, the audience were very much a part of the show. My favourite bit was the huge water box. I thought that was such a clever idea. I personally find anything involving underwater fascinating, but i just loved how simple they made it look. Suspending a huge tray of water above an audience of hundreds of people and moving it back and forth and up and down, it was amazing. I also found it quite tranquil. The lighting used and the clothes the girls were wearing as well as the music made it all very peaceful in a way.  I liked the smaller box of water too with the one girl in it and the guy strapped to the underside of it. I got the impression that represented his dream, but thats about all i understood about the production. I quite liked the stairway to nowhere too. And how he paused at the top as though he was contemplating the safer option of going back down or taking a chance and jumping into the unknown. I liked how he flew across the audience from his harness but still made the motion of running, as though trying to find his feet in this crazy, busy world. i didnt really understand the running through the walls part of the show. Maybe it represented blockages that he had come across in life but instead of backing down he bit the bullet and just went for it, therefore knocking down these barriers he had come across. Im not sure. I think if i could change anything id make the story easier to follow. I dont know if the audience were given a brief of the show, or a programme about what they were about too see. But from watching the clip we were shown, i didnt really catch on to any klind of recognisable storyline. I really liked when the whole show turned into a kind of night club. I think after watching an intense piece like that for a while you would need to just escape from whats been going on, and get into the feeling of the show, really interact with the performers and the show itself. But apart from the confusing story. I thought the whole experience of Fuerza Bruta looked amazing and fascinating, i loved the visual effects and the audience interactions, and i would love to see a performance for myself, and i shall be keeping my eyes open for any shows they're doing in the UK.

Setting the scene

1970's Las Vegas restaurant After our briefing and after our group had chosen to do a 1970s Las Vegas Casino restaurant scene, we took time to come up with a rough idea of what we all thought we should do. We all had roughly the same kind of ideas to have some funky bright costumes and a couple having drinks in a vegas themed restaurant being served by Elvis and a show girl. I came up with the idea to have an image of vegas projected to look like window in a restaurant at the top of a casino over looking the strip. We had a little explore of the costume department and rumaged around the props store room to find some items to portray our ideas of 70's style vegas. On Thursday we all met at RSAMD at 9am for a nice early start. We tidied the Chandler Studios and folded away the chairs while we waited for the van full of goodies to arrive. After the van was unloaded we started to put the set together. None of us were overly happy with the projector screen. I suggested we just project the image onto the blacks but this was dismissed as apparently it wouldnt work. We sent a couple of the group to paint the bar black and managed to convince Fiona there was no way we were using the hideous lime green material she'd found. After we'd set up the projector screen and dressed the tables we decided to try and disguise the projector frame by draping red material over the legs and across the top to look like curtains on a window. Then someone came up with the genius idea (thats i'd mentioned earlier) to take away the projector screen and just project onto the black curtain.... We filled up some wine bottles full of ribena and water and Jackie set to work to make some little cocktail umbrellas for add a bit of bling to our vegas theme. We dressed the tables with some lovely candleholders. Chris went out and got some poker chips to put on the other table to continue our casino theme. Poker chips, cards and rolls of sterling.....luckily we were able to borrow a few dollar bill notes from another group to cover our twenty pound notes. After lunch when the painted bar had dried we set it on top of the steel deck and draped some red material around it. Then it was time to get all dressed up. Mischa looked the part in her sparkly green sequin dress, pink sparkly shoes and feather head-dress. I looked very colourful and 70's in my pink and brown swirly dress and head scarf. John was our lovely Elvis bar man in his white PVC Elvis outfit. And Sarah stood in as my date in her sexy grey suit and bright pink shirt. John found some great Frank Sinatra music and managed to add in some casino noises like slot machines and roulette tables. Melissa did a great job creating a romantic atmosphere with the lights. And Sophie added the final touches to our costumes. I really enjoyed the day and i think the group worked well minus a few small dissagreements. It was really good to put all that we had learned together to create a set that portrayed our theme well. We split the group into what we all felt comfortable doing, but all came together and put our skills together to create this great set. It was a really good day and i think we managed our time and our resources really well. It was really interesting too see the other groups themes too. We all had really different ideas and sets. Everyone did a great job i think :)

PP1A- The first few weeks

The term began! After our two days of Culture classes and a slow and relaxing start to the term we finally got given our module briefing pack and our timetable for the next 6 weeks.

It was exciting to finally get started with TPA. The first few days were very long. Lots to take in and get your head around, as well as trying to find your way around the Academy. But i enjoyed the management and technology classes, i was glad that i'd had a bit of a head start with studying technical theatre at college as im pretty sure i would have been extrememly confused and scared if i hadnt known the basics.

Although the moodle classes were a bit long it was worth it as here I am making a blog! It did seem like it was very complicated but i guess by practice you get used to finding your way around the site.

When we got stared down in Speirs Locks that was when i got excited. The studios are lovely, so new and spacious. I enjoyed the design class. It was really interesting. And quite fun creating a situation and carrying it on to research areas and find out suitable ways of making it into a hypothetical theatre production.

The pyrotechnics class was great fun, even though it meant coming into Uni on a saturday! Feeling a little out of my depth to start with i eventually got stuck in wiring up the pyros. I was quite chuffed with my groups little show, even if some of them didnt go quite according to plan. The final big pyro show at the end was great fun. And after recieving my certificate in passing the Pyrotechnics course im still pretty scared of fireworks...(although technically they're not like the pyros we use in theatre..)

And then came along the Applied arts introductions....yey!  Scenic art was first, scaling up an image got me a bit flustered but when i got into it i enjoyed charcoaling away at my class mates faces...not literally. A tour of the paint shop and a little peek at the panto set design was pretty exciting too.

Next up was set construction. I got a feel for the power tools and after i made my octopus i helped cut out a sun and waves for the panto so now when i go see it and point out my great work :-p The day went really quickly and i really enjoyed just getting down to business and being able to have a shot with the tools and create our own little masterpiece.

The night at the Opera came next, i didnt really know what to expect but i thoroughlly enjoyed the night. My first experience of an opera was a good one. Even though i had no idea why they were throwing a dummy up in the air with a sheet...

Today was costume which i loved. Even though my sewing lines were a little out of the lines i had fun creating my medievil hood. Although it would have been more fun if we'd made something a little more useful. I mean....when am i ever going to wear a medievil monk hood.... But i really enjoyed the day and think that costume may be the road i take.

Tomorrow is props which im very excited about. After seeing everyones gorey cuts and wounds i cant wait to slit my arm open and go home and scare my boyfriend and mum!

The first 5 weeks at RSAMD have been great fun and very interesting. Iv met loads of lovely people and the lecturers are so down to earth and easy to talk to.

I cant wait to find out what the next 3 years have in store for me!