Blog by Caitlyn Ellis-Hillman - 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks Death and the Maiden en-us 2022-02-28 12:29:01 UTC 2025-10-04 00:53:31 UTC hello@padlet.com Blog - Weekly Post 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2069373740 What did we do?
For our warm up in this lesson we did breathing techniques, this entailed us moving around the space, we went around exhaling on a hiss sound, pretending to be cars, while other people stood around the room pretending to be petrol pumps. To refill us when we ran out.

What did you find challenging?
Going around the circle twice without running out of air was the biggest challenge because it was a big circle to get around twice in one breath.

What did you enjoy?
I enjoyed going around to different people that were pretending to be petrol pumps because I found it funny they all had different noises that they used when filling us up with air

Any feedback you received?
The feedback we received was to continue to do the breathing exercises to expand our lung capacity, as actors do it themselves for long sentences.

How you feel about it?
I felt uncomfortable and awkward to begin with but as everyone got into the exercise I felt more comfortable over time and started to enjoy the task more.]]> 2022-02-28 12:39:01 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2069373740 Blog - Weekly Post 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2073671780 What did we do?
For our lesson this week we worked on our improvisation skills by being given a mix of different character prompts, and then being put in a scenario with a partner.

What did you find challenging?
I found the character prompts challenging because you had to tailor your improvisation to that character with little to no time to plan it.

What did you enjoy?
I enjoyed being put in random scenarios because it created a challenge for me and this allowed me to broaden my skills in improvisation.

Any feedback you received?
The feedback I received was to try and use accents alongside my improvisation to the character prompts to add  more depth to my character and to challenge my processing skills.

How you feel about it?
I feel like I did this task well because I enjoy doing improvisation and having character prompts so combining them made a fun challenge that I feel I did well in.

]]> 2022-03-02 14:29:19 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2073671780 Blog - Weekly Post 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2073673656
What did we do?
In this lesson we did character building skills where we walked around the room as our characters for our peers to tell us how to undertake how we should perceive our characters movements and emotions. We also furthered our movement skills because we had feedback from each other to allow us to develop our movement in more depth.

What did you find challenging?
I found it challenging to get into my characters headspace quickly but after about a minute I was in the right headspace to take on my characters thoughts and feelings.

What did you enjoy?
I enjoyed getting into the headspace of someone else and becoming a whole different person because it's fun to put myself in someone else's shoes to understand the world through their perspective.

Any feedback you received?
The feedback I had from my peers was overall positive for my development of my character because they knew straight away what I was trying to portray through my walk.

How you feel about it?
I feel that focusing my brain on how my character would view the world helped me to understand what i would do with this character.]]> 2022-03-02 14:30:06 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2073673656 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2073718704 What did we do?
During this lesson we were told to make a PowerPoint presentation of a character with a character prompt for a peer in the class.

What did you find challenging?
What I found the most challenging in this lesson was overall picking what my presentation will be about because I was allowed to pick from a wide variety of topics.

What did you enjoy?
I enjoyed that we were given creative choice on what we specifically wanted to write about in our presentation, there were not big boundaries for what we wrote about. leaving us with ample choices for our creative abilities to use.


Any feedback you received?
The feedback I received from this lesson was to make the PowerPoint slightly longer than it was because it would have given the character more time to develop a longer story.

How you feel about it?
I feel I did a good job with the PowerPoint presentation because I enjoyed creating it and my peers enjoyed the ideas I used for the presentation.

]]> 2022-03-02 14:50:42 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2073718704 Blog - Weekly Post 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2073761402 What did we do?
During this lesson we were given scripts from the play Death and the Maiden, we were put into pairs that our tutor chose for us because he believed that we would be a strong pairing for the characters he gave us. We were then given time to read over the scripts and at the end of the lesson we did a short performance of what we came up with for the script.

What did you find challenging?
I found having to do an American accent for my character slightly challenging because I was more concerned with getting the script correct.

What did you enjoy?
I enjoyed staging it with the peer I was paired with especially because I  don't usually work with them that often so it was nice to bounce ideas off each other.


Any feedback you received?
The feedback I received for this task was they enjoyed the energy I presented for the chaotic scenes in my script, but also to not hold back with movement.

How you feel about it?
Overall, I felt positive about the task in hand because I enjoyed the creative aspect which lead to further my ability to take on big movements.]]> 2022-03-02 15:09:14 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2073761402 Writer Profile 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2168275958 Vlamdimiro Ariel Dorfman was born on May 6, 1942 in Buenos Aires and since 2004 has been a citizen of the United States. Ariel Dorfman nationality is is Argentine-Chilean-Amerian occupations include novelist, essayist, human rights activists and playwright. He also has a wife and 2 children. He attended and later worked as a professor at the University of Chile]]> 2022-05-03 13:17:00 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2168275958 About The Play 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2168863647 Death And The Maiden was written as a play in 1990 by Ariel Dorfman.  Death and the Maiden had a reading at the Institute for Contemporary Art in London on 30 November 1990 the actors where: Paulina as Penelope Wilton, Gerardo as Michael Maloney and Roberto as Jonathan Hyde.

A workshop production was staged and opened in Santiago Chile on the 10th of March 1991. Then was world premiered on 9th of July 1991 at the Royal Cort Theatre in London.

The original language of the play was Spanish and was later translated to English .


The play was then adapted into a film in 1994 by Roman Polanski. starring Sigourney Weaver, Ben Kingsley and Stuart Wilson.


An opera based on the play has been composed by Jonas Forssell.

In the play was nominated for 1992 Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play.

Setting and time period
The play is set in chile or any place effected by the authoritarian militar dictatorship that were in power in the 1990 in a beach house. However the play does not have any specifi time perio and can be set in the present day. Much like how my performance was set in the current year of 2022.




 
]]> 2022-05-03 19:30:31 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2168863647 The 9 questions of Utah Hagen 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2168916233 I played Paulina Salas from death and the maiden she is about 40 years old she is married to Gerardo Escobar. She had an interest in being a medic student and enjoys listening to Schubert until some unfortunate events occur that change her perspective on everything. She is deeply private, paranoid, and fragile, suffering through the social appearances that her husband's position demands. Paulina speaks of her mother in the play and to me they seem to have a good relationship because paulina is shown stealing a jack for a car to so her mother can keep hers and gerados one. After the unfortunate events paulina doesn't have any aspersions of her own as she just want justice for what happened and for Roberto to suffer



The first 3 scenes takes place after midnigh when Gerardos car breaks down on his way back home and from scene 4 onward take place the followin morning. The play is ment to be set present day in a beach house in Chile. The majority of the scenes take place in the living/ dinning room area.

 

4.  WHAT SURROUNDS ME?  
(Animate and inanimate objects-complete details of environment) 
In the Play script it is written that Paulina and Gerardo are isolated living in a house on a cliff. The ocean is at the bottom of the cliff. This scene is set in the living room/kitchen of their house, however, when we performed this particular scene we only used 3 chairs in the space, as we had a minimalistic set to work with and the rest came from our imagination.


5.  WHAT ARE THE GIVEN CIRCUMSTANCES?  
(Past, present, future and all of the events)
The given circumstances for Paulina in this scene is that she wants Roberto to confess to the awful torture and rape she suffered years ago. For her to get a sense of closure she will release him if he confesses and kill him if he does not. Paulina believes that if she gets the confession from Roberto she will be able to move forward from her dark past and that in the future she could start retaking her classes in medical training and get her life back on track. Throughout this scene she is also juggling the relationship she has with her husband as she tries to justify and explain her reasonings for tying Roberto up to Gerardo as he is concerned her wellbeing and manic behaviour.


6.  WHAT IS MY RELATIONSHIP?  
(Relation to total events, other characters, and to things) 

Paulinas is married to Gerardo however at the point in time of this scene their relationship is unstable due to the fact that Gerardo doesn't agree with what she is doing but she assumed that he would be on the same page as her about it as it has stemmed from the trauma of her past experiences. 
Paulina has no real relation to Roberto as he is a stranger that gerado brought home to say thank you for taking him home when his car broke down. To her however she believes that he is the man that raped and tortured her all those years ago because of the way he speaks, laughs and the phrases he uses.  To her he is a stranger- thought to be her perpetator.

7.  WHAT DO I WANT?  
(Character's need.  The immediate and main objective) 

Paulina wants justice for herself and so her objective of the scene is to get Roberto to confess because she can't live without knowing who the perpetrator was. She believes that by getting Roberto to confess she can move on with her life. Her other objective is to make her husband to understand her need for closure and to go along with her extreme ways of getting it.

8.  WHAT IS IN MY WAY?  
(The obstacles which prevent character from getting his/her need) 
In this scene Gerardo is an obstical for paulina to over come as he doesn't fully believe her claims and he wants her to take the proper proceedings by going through law informants, to get her justice. However she has the physical power in this scene because she is holding Gerardo at gun point.


9.  WHAT DO I DO TO GET WHAT I WANT?  
(The action: physical and verbal, also-action verbs)
Paulina heavily relies on threatening their lives with a gun to ge the confession she wants from Roberto and compliance for Gerardo.]]> 2022-05-03 20:14:02 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2168916233 Rehearsal 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169775145 2022-05-04 11:52:43 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169775145 Show Talk 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169778758 2022-05-04 11:55:49 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169778758 Showreel 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169779704 2022-05-04 11:56:45 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169779704 Show Talk Notes 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169790407 1. Can you give a concise synopsis of the play and the personal journey your character experiences within it? 

The play has 3 main characters, Gerardo, Paulina and Roberto. Roberto is believed to be the perpetuator of what had happened to Paulina. Paulina will do anything to get what she wants even if she has to manipulate and control her husband Gerardo. 

Paulina's personal journey within the play is that her trauma has took a toll on her mental health, making her experience erratic decision making. Paulina ties up Roberto and she believes he is the man who had tortured and raped her, Paulina is dealing with her trauma and is trying to have a normal life again after her horrific experience.

2. What are the major themes involved in the scene you have chosen and how are they explored?

Power - Paulina has power over Gerardo and Roberto, due to the gun she has and the state of madness and anger she is in. She also guilt trips Gerardo into doing what she believes is right.

Justice - Gerardo's idea of the justice system is completely different to Paulina's, she would rather have the justice in her own hands and get revenge.

Anger - Is a strong theme throughout the chosen scene, as she is frustrated at her husband for letting a random stranger in her house, also because Gerardo didn't believe Paulina when she accused Roberto of being the perpetuator.

3. How did the use of movement impact on your performance?

It showed power dynamics especially with the staging we had used because we showed levels of control. Paulina has a gun and this movement impacted my performance because it showed authority over the other characters.

4. How did the use of vocal technique effect on your performance?

I was shouting a lot because my character Paulina is angry because Gerardo wasn't listening or believing what she was saying. So it caused her to get more angry and inevitably making Gerardo act in a counterpart to defuse the situation.

5. What was the most challenging aspect of the performance and can you give an example of the methods you used to overcome this?

the American accent was the most challenging aspect of the performance because I am not used to the accent. I overcame this challenge by asking for help from people I knew with authentic American accents. To make sure that my partner and I were doing the same style of accent, I would follow the way he used his vocal techniques. If I got stuck I would ask my tutor for help.

6. Can you evaluate the success of the performance? How could you improve it? 

The success of my performance was the portrayal of my character because I displayed my character authentically. I could improve it by working on my American accent, so I displayed a more authentic accent.
]]> 2022-05-04 12:06:37 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169790407 Costume Design 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169884898 think about class, personality of character, the time period

The play is set in present day, however was written in 1990 so we set our performance to be in present day 2022 however I gave a nod to the 90's with my costume being a stern top and dersingown that also showed the class of paulina and Gerardo being upper class as Gerardo works for the president. I decided to do a half up half down hair design because she had just woken up but wanted to seem slightly put together as I thought this would fit her personality very well.

The photo above is a costume concept design I found on the internet


]]> 2022-05-04 13:14:54 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169884898 Prop List 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169910821 Gun for Paulina to wave in her husbands face
Three chairs for scene use]]> 2022-05-04 13:30:10 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169910821 Trailers, youtube link, interviews of actors 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169915940 The first link is a link to the trailer of the movie. I think although it's not the full film it give you a good idea of what the characters are like without having to see the full thing and it gave me an idea of how I should play paulina.




Its interesting to see what the actors think of the film and how it should be played and to see the affect it takes on them physically and mentally.


https://youtu.be/MxR1pHaMpcY
https://youtu.be/tyhpBggNdyQ]]> 2022-05-04 13:33:04 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169915940 Any research you feel is particular to your character 654914 https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169927992 Paulina Salas is a 40 ish year old woman who was studying medicine until she was unfortunatel  kidnapped by the governments secret polic.due to her dealings with the resistance when her country was under military dictatorship. When kidnapped she endured horrific torture and rape,during g which she refused to give up colleagues names including Gerardos. Although she was freed she never fully recovered from these events as a result she never finished school and is incapable of looking towards the future.]]> 2022-05-04 13:39:45 UTC https://padlet.com/654914/Bookmarks/wish/2169927992