Great Expectations: Lesson 3

The rehearsal process is getting more and more exciting as we devise more. The beginning is all starting to come together and looks really good. I am also excited about working with people that I may not have particularly worked with before. Having people from both groups mixed up into one is really nice, and I feel like I am learning even more with them. Today, we started off doing some exercises, walking around and being our characters, taking on both their physicality and mentality to get us ready for rehearsals, so we can embody the character. After, we split up into our two groups and we all ran through the first scene again and again to make sure that we had remembered it, and we could sharpen it up. We incorporated new ideas into the first scene, but also managed to work through many other scenes as well today. After Magwitch and Pips scene, we see Pip and his Chorus running through the gravestones (us) trying to get home. Half of the room cross their arms and the other put their hands on their hips, whilst we are all tutting at Pip. I think it looks really effective and not only is a great visual but by all making sounds; it gives more of a tense atmosphere. Then, we all leave the stage except Chorus and Pip, who perform the scene in the Gargery Parlour with Mr & Mrs. Joe. The Chorus is really good and from an audience point of view, it is clear and successful. The aspect of physical theatre in the piece is strong, and I believe that physical theatre being incorporated into such a classic play, gives it an edge. After running through beginning to the end of scene four, where Pip encounters another convict, we sharpened what we had done so far and annotated our scripts, reminding us all of cues and directions.

Great Expectations: Lesson 2

This week we were getting cast, and before they told us which character we were playing, we did some warm up exercises and then had to walk around the room in neutral. As we were walking we would have to change into the different characters that we had watched and read. First was Estella, head first, moving forward with her chest, making her look more superior. I also emphasized this by using facial expressions and looking people up and down to show her authority. Next we had to walk around as Mr Joe, leading with his hips a little bit, and bending his back to show his age and posture. Also by being more unhygienic, around the room acting as Miss Havisham (Light and floating slightly) and Mrs. Joe (Leading with her chest to try and show an authority and aggression). We were then split into two groups, act one (Miss Niven) and act two (Miss Goodall). After we were given our parts, and I was cast as Estella. We ran through some lines with small groups and talked about ideas for the play and how we would play our characters. We then all got up and with Miss Niven; we all devised the beginning to the play. We all come in from different corners of the rooms in small groups and find a space in the room. Whist we listen to the Chorus (Pips thoughts and memories) we stand neutral, until they all say 'Pip.' and repeat it three times. When they say this, we all have to join in, in sync and say the word 'Pip' in the way that our character would say his name. For example, I am saying it in a more commanding and authoritative manner, as if I am calling him. This gives the audience an introduction to all of the characters in the very first scene, which I think is a good idea and will make the piece a lot clearer. After one of the Chorus' say '...graveyard.’ All of the characters that aren’t Pip, Magwitch or Chorus, find a different space in the room and physically turn into a gravestone, all kneeling on the floor at the same time. We then all see the scene in which Magwitch is asking Pip to steal a file for him, still kneeling on the floor. I think that the beginning has been devised really well and gives a really good impression of the play in just the first scene.

Great Expectations: Lesson 1

On the first lesson back, both groups were together and we watched the 2012 BBC, televised version of Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. We all focused on many different characters and the personality, object and appearance of those characters. I think that it was very useful watching a modern day version of the novel/play as it really helped understand different characters and of course what the story is about. After watching this, we were all given scripts of both act one and act two, and did a read-through. I think this helped all of us understand the roles more, but also it was interesting to hear and read characters that were different to anything we had ever done before as a company, and also exciting to realise how much character there was. In a sense that Dickens characters are very bold, which gives all of us a good idea of all the characters and how we could play them. After spending the lesson reading through the majority of the script, we were told we would be cast the week after. It was extremely interesting being able to read many different types of character in the read through, because it gave us a sense of how all the characters are, which I think will definitely help with the final performance, being able to understand characters.