Contrasting Classical Role - Portia, Julius Caesar.

Shakespeare's historical dramatisation of Porica Catonis, Portia, is the second wife to Marcus Junius Brutus, known as Brutus. She is the daughter of a Roman who took the side against Caesar. She grew so comfortable with being Brutus's confidante that she is extremely upset when she finds him troubled and he won't speak her mind. She kills herself by swallowing hot coals out of grief after Anthony and Octavius became so powerful. Though Portia has very little stage time, she's extremely interesting when looking at the play's dynamics in reference to gender. For example, she calls Brutus out; "Within the bond of marriage, tell me Brutus. Is it excepted that I should know no secret that appertain to you?" - that he's been keeping things from her and that because they're married there should be no secrets between them. She gets so fed up with him excluding her that she says by keeping her out of things, he's treating her more like a prostitute than a wife, "If it be no more, Portia is Brutus' harlot, and not his wife." This is an extremely bold thing for a women to say to her husband, to call him out on his neglect and poor behavior, something that would've been uncommon in both Julius Caesar's and Shakespeare's time - this is something that initially drew me to her character.

My monologue, taken from Act 2 Scene 1, in which Portia has found Brutus out of bed with obvious something is bothering him. One of the hardest things about my monologue is that if I personally was directing it in a scene, it would involve contact between Brutus and Portia, however as I am doing the monologue by myself - this will prove a challenge. I'm going to have to work hard at portraying everything that Portia feels towards her husband hiding things from her without having another actor on stage with me to make that connection physically real rather than just through the words I am speaking.

The Battle Sequence

I personally really liked how the battle scene has panned out as we have been able to take an artistic and creative approach to something that would usually be handled quite messily. Battle scenes on stage have the tendency to end up looking like awfully choreographed play fighting and I feel we managed to incorporate WW1 battle techniques - fighting from afar - in a way that wasn't so glaringly obvious. It's also useful to remember that in actuality, these are women in a factory, they're not going to be to stage a fully fledged battle sequence in the middle of their work space - they can however, have a pretty good artistic alternative.

By using the different levels of the wooden tables and steel-deck, we are able to explore not only the different levels that would look physically and creatively engaging, but also link back to the reality of WW1. By using different levels and having the cast come up and over the set, we're able to create a piece that's more intriguing than a boring battle sequence. The different levels also link back to the army's use of trenches back in the Great War and how they would fight using guns from afar rather than coming into contact; the way they would've fought in the Battle Of Agincourt.

As I've never held a gun before nor played a character that is both a man and in the army. It's interesting from an acting point of view to explore the different physical decisions needed to play the role effectively and creatively. It was also challenging in the sense that we had to remember to carry the male physicality whilst carrying out the sequence, because by dropping the physicality, the whole sequences loses the intended affect. The entire scene drops. The physicality needs to be held throughout the entire thing for it to be effective. So not only do we have to time the movements and walking perfectly to make it look effective, we also have to carry the male physicality throughout the entire thing - whilst holding the gun. Not only will this be a challenge for myself, as I have the tendency to forget about other things when I'm trying to focus on something certain, I feel it will be a huge challenge on the group as a whole as throughout the entire battle we have to rely on one another. We have to rely on one another to all keep the energy up, to keep with the timings and to keep the physicality up. Not only does this challenge everyone physically and creatively, but also individually because we all have to play our own part whilst trusting the entire group to make it work.

ACT 3 PROLOGUE

"Thus with imagined wing our swift scene flies, in motion with no less celerity, than that of thought." On imagination's wing do we move quickly onto the next scene. "Suppose that you have seen the well appointed king at Hampton peir embark on his royalty, and his brave fleet with silken streamers the young Phoebus fanning." Imagine that you see the well equipped king at Dover with his entire fleet. The fleet fan the sun with their banners. "Play with your fancies and in them behold, upon the hempen tackle, ship boys climbing." Let your thoughts run wild and imagine the ship boys climbing up the ship's rigging. "Hear the shrill whistle, which doth order give to sounds confused." Imagine you hear the whistle, giving out orders across the ship. "Behold the threaden sails, borne with th'invisible and creeping wind, draw the huge bottoms through the furrowed sea, breasting the lofty surge." Picture the linen sails being driven by the strong wind as they sail through the high and harsh waves. "Oh, do but think you stand upon the rivage and behold a city on th'inconstant billows dancing, for so appears this fleet majestical holding due course to Harfleur." Imagine you're standing on the shore, watching a city float on the sea, you'll have an idea of what this majestical fleet looks like on it's course to Harfleur. "And leave your England, as dead midnight still, guarded with grandsires, babies and old women, either past nor not arrived to pith and puissance. For who is he whose chin is but enriched with one appearing hair that with not follow these culled and choice-drawn cavaliers to France?" Leave England, silent as midnight, guarded by grandfathers, babies and old women. For what male who is old enough to have a single hair on his chin would not want to follow the fleet into France? "Work, work your thoughts and therein see a siege." Think long and hard, work your thoughts, and imagine you see a siege. "Behold the ordnance on their carriages, with fatal mouths gaping on girded Harfleur." Imagine the large canons with their huge mouths aiming for Harfleur. "Suppose th'Ambassador from the French comes back, tells Harry that the king doth offer him, Katherine his daughter and with her, to dowry, some petty and unprofitable dukedomes." Imagine the French ambassador returning to Henry to inform him that the king offers his daughter Katherine along with some unprofitable dukedomes. "The offer likes not, and the nimble gunner with linstock now, the devlish cannon touches." Henry doesn't like the offer and the nimble gunner gets ready to light the cannons. "And down goes all before them." And down goes all in it's path. "Still be kind and eke out our performance with your mind." Still remain kind to us and indulge in our performance with your imagination.

WOMEN AT WORK

This is an extremely interesting watch and listen; the memoirs of a munitions factory worker during WW1. Mrs Hall's words really show how hard these women worked every single day, 10 hours straight, just to help contribute to the war. It was really interesting to hear how Mrs Hall had been working with women who's husbands had all died at sea, this just shows how common death was in their lives and how they literally just had to move on - something that we're trying to incorporate and explore in the setting of our piece. The fact that the conditions in the factories were poor and extremely - the explosive powder everywhere - its hard to even imagine how someone may have navigated their way through and worked everyday. That sense of the danger and risk of factory work is something I feel we could place emphasis on in our opening as it truly was a dangerous place to be! It'll not only add some colour to our opening piece, but it'll also give it some true depth.

Listening to actual accounts of people's experiences as a munition factory worker is really interesting as it allows me to draw ideas and information from real life stories that I can incorporate into my female character. It gives me the ability to give myself a realistic back-story to work from and a mindset to work with, i'm able to back up my story and ideas with actual evidence and fact taken from another person's account of their life. It enables work to be more truthful and authentic as you are able to draw conclusions and ideas from actual truth, rather than a fictionalised idea of what you may have thought the truth was. By doing actual, historical research, an actor can only positively develop from it when created and developing a role as you are able to make connects and draw from authenticity. I will definitely use this video and the information I've taken from it to further my development of my female character.

ACT 2 PROLOGUE

"Now all the youth of England are on fire, and silken dalliance in the wardrobe lies."  Now all the young English men are inspired and want to fight. All their non-army/party clothes are in the wardrobe stored away. "Now thrive the armorers, and honour's thought reigns solely in the breast of every man."  The armorers are thriving and every man in honoured to be fighting. "They sell the pasture now to buy the horse, following the mirror of all Christian kings with winged heels, as English Mercury" Men are selling their cows for horses so that they can follow the king into battle as if they had winged heels like Mercury. "For now sits expectation in the air, and hides a sword, from hilts unto the point, with crowns imperial, crowns and coronets, promised to Harry and his followers." There's a sense of anticipation in the air - everyone's ready to fight. The images of the glory they'll win eclipse the actual thought of fighting. "The French, advised by good intelligence of this most dreadful preparation, shake in their fear, with pale policy, seek to diver the English purposes." The French have been forewarned and are quaking with fear. They seek to divert the English plans with tricks. "O England, model to thy inward greatness. Like little body with a mighty heart." Oh England, you may be small physically, but your inward greatness outshines everything. You're like a little body with a huge and mighty heart. "What might'st thou do, that honour would thee do, were all thy children kind and natural!" There's nothing you couldn't do if all your people were loyal. "But see thy fault, The French hath in thee found out, a nest of hollow bosoms, which he fills with treacherous crowns and three corrupted men."  But France have found your weak spot, 3 corrupted men whom have been bought with gold. "Have for the gilt of France - O guilt indeed!, confirmed conspiracy with fearful France and by their hands this grace of kings must die." They have agreed to conspire with France in exchange for money. "If hell and treason hold their promises, ere he take ship for France, and in Southampton." They will kill him before he even sets foot in France - if hell and treason allow. "Linger your patience on, and we'll digest, th'abuse of distance, force a play." Stay with us audience, we'll create a play that conquerors space and time. "The sum is paid, traitors are agreed." The traitors have been paid and agree to the act. "The king is set from London, and the scene is now transported, gentles to Southampton." The king travels from London to Southampton. "There is the playhouse now, there must you sir, and thence to France we convey you safe and bring you back, charming the narrow seas, to give you gentle pass."  You must imagine that is where the theatre is and that is where you must sit. We will take you to France and back again, giving you a gentle voyage. "For, if we may. We'll not offend one stomach with our play." We don't want to make anyone sick with our play. "But, till the king come forth, and not till then, unto Southampton do we shift our scene." The scene won't shift straight to Southampton until Henry appears. 

Physicality

When inhabiting a generic male walk, not only do you have to think about the obvious physical differences but also how they may impact and contribute to the way in which a typical man may walk. I focused on how they would hold themselves first and foremost; particularly placing empathsis on the fact men broader shoulders and smaller waist, in comparison to women, and how that may impact on physical stance and walk. It was also really important to think about how they may distribute their weight and swing their arms when travelling from one place to another. I found looking at all these different attributes extremely interesting and helpful as in previously roles when I may have been playing a male, I never put a large amount of thought into their physicality as physicality is something I find generally quite challenging. However, by breaking down the different parts - like first looking at the fact they larger feet, inhabiting those feet and how they may feel, before moving onto other body parts before putting them together really enabled me to achieve a successful physicality for a male character. By looking at each generic aspect of male physicality allowed me to explore that singular characteristic in greater detail than what I might do usually, this not only allowed me to develop the physicality even further, but also enable me to look at physicality in a way I hadn't necessarily explored in great depth before.

It was really useful to think about the male physicality in general and developing our individual physicality before adding the characteristics and role of an army soldier on top as it allowed us to really refine our movements and build layers before developing it into a character. As many of our character's are going to be in an army scene at some point, it was useful to look at how the male physicality may change when put in that position of a member of an army. Simply by looking at how the solider may walk and distribute their weight opened up a world of physical character choices that I hadn't thought about. It will definitely be useful in further rehearsals when we begin to develop the scenes and characters in greater depth, as I will be able to think about to this workshop and the different aspects that helped me develop a physicality I was confident in.

It was really interesting to simply walk or run around the room inhabiting that male physicality. I found that I held chest out to almost emphasise the broadness of the shoulders, I walked with my legs further apart to accompany the male anatomy, I found I swung my arms out whilst walking more than I usually - amongst other things. By comparing the way I walked as a male and the way I naturally walk as a female, it was compelling to see the stark differences that were so blatantly obvious by physicality. For example, during my natural walk, I generally distribute my weight quite lightly, whereas when I was walking as a male, I found myself walking quite heavily. The differences between a generic male walk and my natural female walk are going to be really intriguing to look at further and cooperate into my role as a munitions factory worker playing a male part. Looking at the differences of how men simply hold themselves when they're resting in comparison to women was also engaging to explore as they're generally extremely different. Women tend to cross their legs when sitting down, almost trying to take up as little space as possible - whereas men are the complete opposite - sitting with their legs apart, generally not thinking about the amount of space their taking up. When I was travelling home after this lesson, it was comical to see how truthful those two stereotypes genuinely are as all 3 men sitting around me sat with their legs unnecessarily wide, one even with one of his legs stretched so far it was out in the aisle. By observing men in real life as they walk and sit, I am able to develop a physicality that not only looks realistic, but also remains truthful and authentic.