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Carrie Hope Fletcher's 'An Open Book' set

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Carrie Hope Fletcher's 'An Open Book' set

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Below you will find the first draft of the spoken word. Before starting the spoken word I thought about what the moon specifically meant to me. I wanted to make sure that not only was it relatable for other people and they can interpret it however they wish but I also had a connection to it that was private to me. That's also why I want to read it off of a notebook on stage to make it less personal and as if I'm reading a book or a journal that can be personal to each person in the audience and it lets them interpret it in any way that they want to as it feels more distant and disconnected from me on stage. After starting to write and getting blocks of writing I then asked a few people a few questions about how they viewed the piece. The questions included, "what did you think the piece was about?" and "How did it make you feel?" so I could get a grasp on who interpreted it how to ensure that the piece created an atmosphere of freedom for audience members to interpret it in their own way and connect to it individually. I also wanted to observe whether different language/words made people think differently.
I also filmed myself saying the draft so that I could see how it sounded when spoken aloud and where I needed to start thinking about where to add breaths and where to put more emphasis on certain sections.

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In this first session of choreography, I played around with a few different phrases and put them together to create the first part of the dance shown in the video above. I wanted the choreography to reflect the music therefore I used the style of contemporary and used the technique of word play within the piece to highlight certain sentences in the lyrics. There is a small section where I just walk which I want to create something to fit there but I’m not sure what that will be yet. However I already had an idea for the next section so like I stated above a put the phrases I had created so far together to have a video at the end of the session to go off of when creating the next section of choreography.

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I chose to take inspiration from this set as Carrie referred to the set as 'a door into her mind' and it conveyed a relaxed and comforting atmosphere that I felt would be a great environment for my performance as I wanted the audience to feel safe and comfortable to feel in whatever way that might be depending on how they interpret my piece and what it means to them as an individual. By creating a space that feels homely and a sort of safe space for each audience member, it means that the audience is more likely to take in more and have a deeper though process in what they take from my piece as they're in an atmosphere that feels comforting and free if judgement etc.

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For the second session, I played around with a few different variations of certain sections within the dance. I tried a few different leap options which included a surprise box leap and an arms across the chest barrel into an angel jump. I liked both variations but couldn’t decide which one suited the piece better and which one fit into the section of music better. I also created a couple of variations of a section near the end of the dance piece including different variations of moves such as a small turning sequence and small interconnecting pieces. This is all evidenced in the above and below videos.

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For the first draft, I had created the chord progression, strumming pattern, first verse and pre-chorus. I chose to use the 3rd fret and have the chord progression of Cadd9, G, D and Em. I wanted to keep it simple to make it catchy and easy to play live. My strumming pattern consists of D-D-U-D-U-D-U, D standing for down and U standing for up. Song-writing wise I wanted the lyrics to sort of paint a picture relating to dancing for example "The moves carry my body in bliss" referring to physically dancing and "the mild laughter in the background" referring to the enjoyable atmosphere of a dance studio.

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For my piece I used this sofa to create the homely atmosphere I was looking for.

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For my final performance this was the set. I felt that I was able to create the atmosphere that I had aimed for by incorporating dim lighting along with the sofa and my guitar leant up against it to create the illusion of a lived in space to build the homely and comforting atmosphere.

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For the 3rd session, I continued to create choreography for the dance and finished and finalised that part of my overall piece. I created small sections that I could fit into the empty spaces I had left from the previous sessions. I took inspiration from different dancers on instagram such as … who do a lot of contemporary dance so that I could incorporate new and challenging movements into my piece that could elevate my performance. I then fit everything together and rehearsed the dance as a whole. I couldn’t go as full out as I would’ve liked because of the limited room in my house. I hadn’t had as much rehearsal time at college as I would’ve liked because of different workshops and performances I was a part of so I put time aside outside of college to ensure that my piece was finished and I was confident with it.

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For the second draft, I started working on the chorus and how I wanted it to sound. What I mean by this is that I made the strumming pattern for this section slightly more upbeat to reflect the lyrics within the chorus. During the chorus I talk about what dance means to me and how it makes me feel so I wanted to make sure that the melody felt uplifting to convey these emotions. I then did a full run-through of what I'd created so far so the first verse, pre-chorus and chorus.

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After my performance, I collected some feedback from a uni students point of view so that I had feedback from several different levels to give me different perspectives on my piece. I found this incredibly useful as it solidifies that I achieved my aim but also gives me a great starting point for future projects and gives me specific things to work on and develop in order to enhance my future performances and bring my creativity to a new level.

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When creating my choreography, I took inspiration from the choreographer Josie Lee as a lot of her work is based in the style of contemporary which is my chosen style for my solo project. I chose the style of contemporary as I felt it was the best style to be able to fully convey emotion and get my message across to the audience. Josie’s choreography was a great inspiration as she uses different dynamics within her movements, e.g. sharp and soft motions, and focuses on technique (which is an important part of any dance piece) but also utilises dancers strengths such as jumps, leaps and turns depending on the music and dancer. I felt that by using Josie Lee’s choreography as inspiration I was able to fully show the emotions I wanted to covert throughout the dance piece and each movement had purpose and linked to the song lyrics to make it easy for the audience to connect with the underlying message.

https://www.instagram.com/josieleechoreography?igsh=a2ttMXVmYmY5bW0w

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This audio contains the bridge. For the bridge I slightly edited the chord progression from Cadd9, G, D and Em to C, G, Em and D just to mix the melody up a bit and try and create a slight bit of underlying contrast. I wanted the lyrics in the bridge to be more vulnerable by expressing emotions about how I don't always feel put together to show more vulnerability in contrast to the rest of the song that has a more joyful approach but I also wanted to link it back to how dance can be an escape for me. I wasn't 100% sure what to write for the last line of the bridge so I left that until I was able to come up with something that I liked and felt fit.

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For the spoken word and original song sections of my solo project I chose to take inspiration from the singer-songwriter Lyvia. In the past I was lucky enough to have a workshop with her where she spoke about how she writes her own spoken word and how she fits it with instrumentals by using the changes in music and the rhythm of phrases and she also helped us write our own small spoken words. I wanted to use this to my advantage and incorporate her advice into my solo project so that I could further develop writing spoken word as a way of expressing. Lyvia writes a lot of songs that incorporate spoken word within them such as her song “Patience”. For my piece I chose to keep the elements seperate, however I still linked them by creating an instrumental track of my original song to play in the background of the spoken word so that it is able to flow into my song. I decided to keep the two elements seperate so that I was able to utilise them both to convey the different phases in my message. By taking inspiration from Lyvia I felt I was able to create a spoken word that was easy to follow and worked well with the music and I was able to create a song that connected with the audience and was received well.

https://www.instagram.com/lyviamusic?igsh=MTZkdXFxbmVwM3EycQ==

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Here are a few images I compiled together as inspiration for my costume. I wanted to find a costume that had cool and dark tones like the moon but also something flowy to depict the delicacy of the moon.

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For the fourth draft, I worked on the second verse and created lyrics that hint at underlying emotions that are more vulnerable and similarly to the bridge linked it back to how dance can personally often be a helping hand to expressing myself. I then did a full run-through of what I had created so far which went first verse, pre-chorus, chorus, second verse, pre-chorus and chorus.

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In this draft, I did another full run-through of what I've created so far. I also slotted in where the bridge would be as when I created it I wasn't sure where it would sit in the song. I decided to slot it in after the second verse as that to me felt like the best place to fit it. I then played the second chorus afterwards but also decided not to include the pre-chorus as I felt it didn't flow as nicely as just going from the bridge into the chorus. This was all decided via trial and error and finding where everything felt right and natural to be. Finally, I decided to reduce the strumming pattern to D-pause-D-pause for the first few lines of the second chorus to create a contrast melodically as there are pauses which creates silence underneath the vocals creating a more intimate atmosphere.

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Above you will find an image of the costume I sourced for my solo project. I have also compared it against one of the inspiration images to show the similarity. I managed to find trousers that created the flowy aspect that I wanted but I also thought about some of the moves I had choreographed within my dance and decided that a long sleeve and tighter fitting top would be the best option in order to reduce the risk of injury as it wouldn't get caught or burn my skin when doing certain moves such as the back bend to slide on the shoulders, the bridge slide and the plank drop.

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For the sixth draft, I sorted out the section following the second verse. What I mean by this is I figured out the final line of the bridge to link back to how dance helps me, "it always brings me back to this". I then decided to repeat the "it's my past, present and future now. lifts me up when I am down" section of the chorus, again with the reduced strumming pattern to create that intimate and 'safe-space' environment/atmosphere, to slow down the song and add the line "it's all for little me" at the end to finish and create a nostalgic feel to the song but also have that personal connection to show myself how far I've come and why I have the passion for performing arts that I do.

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To create the desired instrumental of the song I used an editing software that I was familiar with called MixPad Multitrack Recording Software. I recorded the instrumental in segments and then edited them together. I also overlayed two different recordings to create a section that I wouldn't physically be able to play live due to the fact it includes both chords and fingerpicking simultaneously but I thought this was the perfect opportunity to experiment to create and develop a more interesting and technical sound.

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Reflecting from the last draft and the feedback I received I rearranged some of the spoken word to create more flow withing my piece and convey the emotions I want it to. However, the feedback was mostly positive and very insightful into how it made everyone think. I have included a picture of the quotes that stuck out to me the most but the quotes that specifically stuck out to me include "made me emotional and think about myself... the love a woman can have for another woman, the softness, gentleness, supportiveness about it, not just body and looks, them, their worth", "about someone who is always going to be watching over you and bring you peace to your loudest/lightest/darkest moments", "a significant other who has passed away" and "That even when you feel as if though there is nobody to speak to to give you the light to brighten the darkness that succumbs in your mind, the moon will still shine and guide you until you can find your own light and no longer feed into the thoughts that consume your mind.". These were really helpful as it proved that people were interpreting the piece in their own way but also have a similar underlying message and it gave me confidence moving forward.

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For the final draft, I did a full run-through of the completed song. I decided to alter the strumming pattern at the start to slow down the song to give it a more gentle feel and make it easier for the audience to take in the lyrics. I changed the strumming pattern to D-D-D-D-D-D etc and then when it gets to the chorus it changes back to the original strumming pattern, D-D-U-D-U-D-U. I felt this also helps the song to progress and gives it somewhere to go rather than being flat the whole way through. I also then decided to change the strumming pattern to revert to the D-D-D-D-D-D variant for both verses for the same reason as the first verse and then go to the chorus strumming pattern for the bridge as well. I felt by changing this little element it really elevates the song as it includes a variety of both strumming patterns, chord progressions and volume to make the song catchy and memorable for an audience.

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For the image being projected onto the stage in the background of my performance, I wanted to have it be my own photography to continue to create that sense of originality by having the majority of my solo project to be created myself/ be my own original work e.g. choreography, spoken word and original song. This meant that I had to take photographs of the moon in several different phases, chose the clearest pictures out of a variety of shots and edit the chosen ones together to create the desired image I wanted for my piece to link back to the selected quote "like the moon, my brain has phases". By editing the photographed phases into one image, it meant that no matter what part of my solo performance was being performed the moon image projected would be reflecting a phase of my performance.

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Here you can find the first draft of my song lyrics. Below you’ll be able see them written out with several different annotations including circles, underlining and crossing out. I did this whilst creating the lyrics to highlight different sections and words to make sure that it all made sense, not only word wise but also within the music and the beats. I also rewrote a few sections because I decided I wanted to create something that fit better and got my underlying message across better, also making it more personal to me.

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Below you will find the finalised lyrics to the song. I wrote the whole song out again so that it was neater and clear what the final lyrics were. I am happy with the way it turned out. I think with more time I would’ve been able to think more into the lyrics and use more writing techniques such as metaphors to really enhance the song, however with the time I had I am pleased with how it turned out as it still conveys the message I want it to.

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Here is the 3rd draft of the spoken word. I decided on the phrase to be repeated and came to the conclusion that I should use the quote title of my piece "like the moon, my brain has phases" to repeat to create that circular structure that reflects the moon. In this draft I finalized the structure and order of the piece and split it up into a format where it is obvious where I take breaths and breaks when reading the piece. By adding these spaces that represent breaths/breaks it ensures that the piece flows correctly and each sentence is highlighted and the audience hear and take in the emphasis on certain words/sections.

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After reviewing the last draft I felt that something small could be added to just finish of the piece so in this final draft I created another small paragraph of work and refined it before then finding a place to slot it into the 3rd draft to create the final piece. I made sure I was happy with the place I had put it in and went over the piece as a whole. This gave me the chance to ensure I was happy with the outcome of the spoken word and that the personal hidden messages were conveyed to an audience whilst also keeping the freedom aspect of it being up to their interpretation to make it personal to everyone. I hope that I manage to achieve that in my solo project performance on the 18th April 2024 and have a piece that people can connect to and that makes them feel by using several different techniques such as metaphors, personification, emotive language etc.

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"Like the moon, my brain has phases" - spoken word