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• to enable you to demonstrate an advanced understanding of contemporary acting

and performance practice in a professional production context
• to enable you to contribute to the collaborative creation and individual realisation of performance for a public audience
• to enable you to act in a full-scale, multi-modal production as one of your major course outcomes, showcasing the benefits of working in an integrated performance environment
• to encourage you to consider critically the economic and social context of your acting

and performance work, and to develop entrepreneurial strategies for its future trajectory
• to encourage you to consider the societal, economic and political impacts of your artistic production and to engage wider publics in its presentation

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Purgatorio: Lead Artist with Natasha Harrison & Writer Samuel Evans 

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Purgatorio: Lead Artist with Natasha Harrison & Writer Samuel Evans 

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In the collaborative group of Purgatorio, I was introduced to how the following few months would be approached.

• Natasha is a director, specific in movement directing
• Sam is a dramatist, community artist and writer

Together their approach was to work with a script, written by Sam, one that is autobiographical where a given storyline with a narrative and characters would be developed and embodied through movement. New and different, both of their focus would work hand in hand together, ultimately continuously developed in the process.

As Wimbledon College of Arts is a college where the learning is open and expressive for students to be creative, given a freedom to find their own journey, I was excited to form my own pathway into the world of Purgatorio!💗

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To have stable background research, the first weeks I looked into the world Purgatorio. As I am a visual Artist, I took many notes and kept a variety of visuals.

Each of these photos speaks to me, for there are similarities and differences between each shaping the world of Purgatory. As I observe, the location is an island mountain where people are either walking up or falling down the mountain. Their bodies are fragile, in hope to get to the top, walking on bare feet. I find the nakedness of their human selves to be captivating, for they are surviving as sole humans. Raw and on sturdy hard ground, I can see a determination in strength and hope to survive through the fragility (seen physically in their bodies and colours). The two photos on the right are both in black and white with shades of light from the sun radiating onto the top of the mountain. I symbolised this to mean there is 'light at the end of every tunnel.' (Bottom right photo) Humans have fallen, collapsed on the floor, some are trying to get back up in hope for the light to keep them going.

These visual elements symbolic of meaning, drew me to wonder what it meant in relation to the script?

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Where is the light at the end of this tunnel? 

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Where is the light at the end of this tunnel? 

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As I read through the first few drafts of the script, this pointed question "Where is the light at the end of this tunnel?" became significant in my process. With the focus on Marcelle, I wondered how the other characters in the narrative helped navigate to get towards the tunnel (top of Paradise).

How does the journey towards the tunnel look like?

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Discovering Purgatorio through Movement - Lessons with Phoebe Stapleton 🏞🐍🦅

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Discovering Purgatorio through Movement - Lessons with Phoebe Stapleton 🏞🐍🦅

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These four characters were of interest to me. As I read through the script in lessons, I felt the truest but still to be challenged; each character with layers of complexity.

• Marcelle, an actor, is taking on a role of someone gone through sexual assault resulting in heavy trauma - an experience one singular person is very much affected by and challenged through another person. How does one cope with an experience so heavy and painful, and putting it on another to deal with?

• the Jury members - Martha and Michelle, have character traits opposite of each other. Martha is empathetic hopeful whereas Michelle is more dry, sarcastic. Has a layer of 'I do not care' but she deeply does.

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Making Sense of the Script Through Timelines ⏳

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Making Sense of the Script Through Timelines ⏳

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The Onion Layer is a key multi-model component that became the framework. This is an early image that shows three layers. The inner layer is Marcelle's trauma, being the focal point of the piece where his narrative is the 'root' that forms, affected by the other layers around him. But to get to an onion's most inner layer, being Marcelle, a lot of pealing has to be done.

In our scheduled and independent studio rehearsals, the onion layers were extensively questioned looking insightfully at the drafted scripts, and we filled the gaps in each onion layer with our own imagination. A key component to our multi-modal production, had been and still is:

How do the three layers function?

Who from each layer can speak to one another?

How does it feel pealing each layer, what will happen to Marcelle?

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Script Analysis Lessons with Samuel Evans 💭✨

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Script Analysis Lessons with Samuel Evans 💭✨

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To unpack these questions:

How do the three layers function?

Who from each layer can speak to one another?

How does it feel pealing each layer, what will happen to Marcelle?

Having Samuel Evans in the space was very nice, I really enjoyed working a few lessons with him in our studio space. To get to know the writer of a piece is very crucial to work as authentic as possible. Kind and humble as he is, he was very open with us about his story, where we were allowed to ask questions about him that we discovered from the script. In the lesson I did not ask as many questions, but tried to just really listen. I learn about someone this way - to let them talk and observe how they are.

For Sam, who LOVES POTATOES🥔 , he posed us the question applicable to the world: How do we help people in trauma? I found this a very delicate question. One difficult to answer alone. For each person will have their own opinion and way of healing, and in realisation found this to be what the piece's journey was going through. Each layer of the onion trying to help Marcelle, who has gone through trauma, but in different ways and coping with it in different ways.

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Since the first draft, Martha was a character where it seemed noticeable of how she was like. At first I found it accessible, predicting Martha to be: empathetic and with a heart full of kindness. But then found her to become more layered. The more layered she became, the more I found her to be related to me. I found it hard to figure her out, just like I am with myself. To unpack Martha, I began by the basic notes:
• Martha is the newest member of the jury group
• She is old but acts young and has a young mindset
• Has very good intentions, means well, but that can become too much for the other jury members ('devil's advocate')

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📝the Actor's "Homework" - Script Notes & Analysis📝

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📝the Actor's "Homework" - Script Notes & Analysis📝

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A multi-modal way of working has been with new drafted scripts throughout the process. As an actor I found the practical and theoretical methods to intertwine. A skill that was challenged is working ahead with the dramaturgical logic. When in practice, with the scripts in our hand we identified:

the locations of each scenes

what characters

context of the scene

As an ensemble, we used studio chairs and measurement tapes to map out the layout of our performance. This gave a very clear image of the onion layers (3-4 worlds). As actor Martha jury, I took consistent notes of blocking in the jury world, and found Martha to move when she had a purpose.

Martha wants to help out Marcelle, for him to get to the top of the mountain, and convince the others to do likewise

Cross the stage when giving a clear opinion, to persuade

remains standing on the block when in deep observation

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Collaboration work with Kaja and Liss: Opening Movement Sequence ⏱🩰

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Collaboration work with Kaja and Liss: Opening Movement Sequence ⏱🩰

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With Kaja and Liss being the movement directors, I was inspired in how this one personal story, that is touched upon the universal, can be expressed through movement. As in earlier lessons from Phoebe's movement classes, combined with our own, we began by exploring with improvisation and play in the space. I discovered that a new language - physical - can tell a story on how trauma is felt and how one longs to overcome it.

Walking around the space, a movement sequence created from our our focus on each other in the space. We used breath as the starting point, and became a gradual symbolism later on: the tremendous pain felt in each one in a time that is running out. With our objective to get to the top of the island mountain, we found ourselves to be an ensemble of actors in Purgatory aiming to overcome their trauma.

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Start of Martha Jury - First Bullet Points

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Start of Martha Jury - First Bullet Points

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These are main bullet points about Martha. But the journey of where she comes from, how is she in the world & what her objectives are were to be further detailed! ✍🏼👵🏻

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💗 Good Check-Ins means well productive Rehearsals! 💗

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💗 Good Check-Ins means well productive Rehearsals! 💗

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(Image of one of the earliest rehearsals)

Apart from being Martha Jury, I wanted to become involved in the check-ins & logistics. To sustain a positive up-lifting group dynamic, we began our rehearsals by telling each other how we feel that day. I am a sensitive person, I attract other people's energies so it meant a lot to me to see how each person in our group felt when coming into the space. As we are dealing with personal themes, personal yet felt upon the universal, trauma and love in family can also touch us as Artists.

Therefore, we began in a circle, welcoming everyone into the space. Sharing one or more words, we heard each other how we felt and it created a very good and also, complex group dynamic. A major learning curve for me has been maintaining these check-ins and group dynamics, I felt that the importance drifted, therefore I focused on the communication as a group, making sure we stayed on task, came into the space with the energy capable to move forwards.

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I learnt in this lesson that the Drag Performance element added lightness to the dark themes in our performance. For a person who is a drag king or queen, they express themselves on an Art platform that highlights in an exaggerated expressive way who they are - big and bold! I found this so fun to learn about from Karma because their own opinions and care was really shared amongst us as a group. I think this brought a very positive learning towards the lip sync and drag characters who could then devise their own characters further.

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ISP Rehearsals using chairs with Blocking - Jury in deep observation 

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ISP Rehearsals using chairs with Blocking - Jury in deep observation 

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                     💥Technical Rehearsals💥 

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                     💥Technical Rehearsals💥 

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When it came to the technical rehearsals, there was a big focus in the set design. Our focus shifted from how us actors see it,  to how the audience will understand the 3 worlds (present on stage). As a jury member, I found it important to find my objectives for when moving from the block to either downstage or upstage. As the rehearsals have always been in a studio room, I naturally had more intention to move about the space. But the space difference in a rehearsal room and the stage was quite big. For the studio I had more room around the blocks. On stage, there were restrictions due to the lighting (specific of a squared lighting which established the Actor's world) and being near the wings. The columns and block became the jury world areas. As I stood throughout the tech rehearsals, there was a higher level of importance conveyed for the jury members to want to get to Paradise, and therefore needing Marcelle/Marcie to make it to Paradise. I found myself to move down from the blocks and column when intervening with the other worlds, and especially when I had a very opinionated comment. To stand behind (as in the picture) or on the columns/blocks was vital for in the dramaturgy and characterisation. I found there to be a very clear logic for the jury members are always present, deeply observing and analysing Marcelle/Marcie's journey and that Martha would become very invested - standing on the blocks but with a gesture always leaning in forwards, fixating eyes on the other jury members, and a fast-paced walk for time in Purgatorio is running out.

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Something very relevant for the jury world is our relationships with one another. Martha is an optimist always hoping for the best becomes concerned when other jury members are not taking this journey seriously, especially with Barry jury. In collaboration with Ata, we had discussed a lot how we can find moments to show our relationship - what it is like. In these units:

Unit 8.3 - Chicken Shop Chips

Unit 9.0 - Club Scene

Unit 14.2 - Trauma is Universal

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Visual Drawings of Blocking - Difficult ⚠️

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Visual Drawings of Blocking - Difficult ⚠️

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As I helped out with the stage management, a key task was to make visual drawings of the blocking. A bird's eye view layout allowed for neat concise drawings to be created. Squared drawings represented the blocks and columns and little figure drawings are the key people present on stage. I found myself to understand the logic of the narrative more as I took myself on a visual journey of how worlds were represented on a stage. The columns/blocks always present in each unit signifies the jury are present in all worlds - never leave. As I drew each world, I found details that worked within the staging. One is the lowering of the table which was a clever design by peer, Karl, who proposed that the table could function for the family scenes and the club, the use of the same props for different settings allowed a cohesive design. But a challenge from this is who of the actors could move the columns and blocks, and how all of this would make sense not just to us, but also to audience members. Due to this, I really struggled to continue with these drawings a practical rehearsal times called for continuous re-working of blocking and transitions. I decided to focus on the practical solutions within the lesson, to leave these drawings but use the knowledge of the staging I gained from this to bring into the rehearsal space - especially helping out Karl who focused on transitions - and we together (shown on another photo + post) ended up creating a finalised transition map.

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Healing through Performance Drag Therapy
In a lesson with Samuel Evans, we discussed how he went to a therapy where drag performance became a way of healing for him. With our production being naturalistic and meta, drag performer, Karma, came to teach us about different drag Artists that exist in the world and taught a lesson on drag make-up. Very interactive and invitational, I used watercolour paint (on paper) and eyeshadows (on my face) as the tools for the looks. In a group with other jury members, we had a very engaging chat that if the jury members were to go wild - like going out at night - what would they look like? How bold can Martha become? I found orange to be her colour. An orange color that connects to her personality too! As I googled color orange representation, it states "orange is often described as an energetic color. It may call to mind feelings of enthusiasm and excitement."

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cute group selfie!

In the world of Purgatorio, the use of film was another multi-modal component that established the aspect of "meta." The function of film was to heighten Marcelle's logic as flashbacks.

We filmed all scenes late at night dark enough to have the right atmosphere: ominous and threatening. The group dynamic was efficient, we talked ahead of the filming how to use time wisely. At the start I was not part of the film team as I was not needed, but Nahal asked if I could be a helping hand with the equipment. With responsibility and present on set, I learnt along the way key aspects to the process of filming the scenes:

Filming on a moving bus, which does not happen on real film sets, was tricky - we had to adjust our positions being very "on the go" with the filming making quick rational decisions

With Matt I looked specifically at how each person was in shot and that the objective was seen clearly using the right angles (for example a bird's eye view vs. a zoom in on Marcelle)

We found out that we were on two different buses (going and back), where the light had changed from black to blue. What was first seen as a problem turned into a creative element in our production, where Nahal merged the colours very well together.

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Dress Rehearsal - Final points before Showtime!

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Dress Rehearsal - Final points before Showtime!

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Some final key notes I picked up that remains within me is to:

always remain present on stage (an actor is never switched off)

keep up the high energy throughout the entire act

know your transitions and if another person is not there to do theirs and a column/block/chair need to be moved - just move it!

stay in the blocking areas of your "world" - mostly important for jury members

the opening transition movement sequence has to be very sleek and tight - have that actor awareness of the space around them, move with the intention of having a secret and wanting to get to Paradise

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Final week - given a delicious ice cream from Minn! 💗

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Final week - given a delicious ice cream from Minn! 💗