Peter Pan

Over the past few months, I have been doing theater as my afternoon activity at school, which cumulated in three different performances last weekend. The cast and crew had been preparing to perform the play Peter Pan and I am very glad to say that the performances were very successful.
In the play, I played Michael Darling. He is Wendy's youngest brother who goes to Neverland and becomes an honorary Lost Boy there. It was very interesting and different to play him, because he is a five year old boy from the Victorian age, which I have little personal experience anyway. After some trouble with acting out this character, I used my particular set of skills to my benefit and created him into a whiny and slightly annoying little boy.
My hard work, just like my fellow cast and crew mates, paid off a lot in the end. We, as a whole group, clearly had chemistry on stage and off that made the play, which put an important emphasis on the relationships between the fictional characters. We also became able to work together very well, which was shown by the success of the scene changes that were implemented shortly before the actual production.
It also showed in the success in each of the shows. There were no real problems that occurred at any of the performances. This is very unusual, as there usually is at least one night of every show I have been in where something goes majorly wrong. This happened in Kiss Me Kate, as almost the entire cast was sick for all three performances. It also happened in Bone Chiller, where during one of the performances, most of the cast forgot their lines in the third act and we had to improvise the majority of the act. We also had very good audiences that were very enthusiastic and invested in the play. There also was either a full or almost full house every night.
We also did extremely well in the area of creating an new interpretation based more on the original play, instead of the Disney film of Peter Pan. Our play used the interpretation that Neverland and all the characters from the island were created in Wendy's imagination. This was very important in our play, as it had a big impact on several different areas of the play. The sets from both the nursery and Neverland were very similar, to show that she took inspiration from her real life. The costuming also reflected this as well, as Captain Hook was the only character from Neverland wore shoes, as Wendy's imagination only fully completed Captain Hook's character, as he was the villain in the world and based on her mother's character. It also was reflected in casting as several characters played two roles, one from Neverland and another from the real world, to show how Wendy got he inspiration to create the characters she did create.  
After the success of Peter Pan, I am even more excited for the next production that I get to be in. We are putting on the musical Once on This Island and I will be in the ensemble. I can hardly wait till rehearsals begin after Thanksgiving break.


https://makingbelieve.wordpress.com/tag/peter-pan/

The Writing Center

After working on our "Romeo and Juliet" paper for a couple of weeks, Mrs. Guarino assigned my class to go look our papers over with Mrs. Swift at our school's Writing Center. I had my meeting with her yesterday, where she read my paper and gave me feedback on how I could improve my writing. I think that the meting was very helpful for me.

One area of my paper that we focused on was including more analysis of the actual play in my paper. She suggested to me that I include more of it by using my paragraph on language used in the double monologue. She suggested that I first present the lines as coming from the original text and then explain how they were altered and performed by my group. This was extremely helpful for me, as I knew before the meeting that I needed to include more analysis of the play in my paper, but was unsure of exactly how to do it. This was because of the fact that my paper is heavily center upon the double monologue, which was not originally part of the play, but instead created by my group.

I also benefited from verbally explaining parts of my performance to Mrs. Swift. I had to do this with the double monologue, as I needed Mrs. Swift to understand what it was without her  having to intensely read my entire paper. This is very important to improving my paper, as my whole paper is based on my group's work on the double monologue and more experience explaining it allows for me to be able to write about it in a more clear and precise manor.  

When I work on editing my paper, I will improve upon several different areas that were highlighted during my appointment with Mrs. Swift. I need to go over some of the grammar and spelling, again, as while we were reading it together, we both found small errors in these areas scattered throughout the paper. I also will work on including more analysis of the play in my paper, as I need to make the amount of analysis equal to my description of my performance. I also will consider dividing my paragraph on the language into one focusing on the original work and another focusing on the language included in our double monologue. This will help improve my paper, as I will be able to include more analytical writing about the play in my paper and make it easier to see that for the reader. 

After the success of the my appointment with the Writing Center yesterday, I think I will use it again, as it clearly is a very helpful resource. I also will talk to not only Mrs. Swift, but the Writing Fellows, also, as they can help me when I am struggling on my writing. I think I can use the Writing Center as a way to go over my papers with other people, who really improves my work. I can also use them when I need someone to look over my writing to see if it makes sense and is answering the question I am being asked.  

After going to the Writing Center, I am more motivated to finish writing my paper and making it a lot better. I really benefited from the advice that Mrs. Swift gave me and will use it to make my paper better over Thanksgiving break. I better go and look it over now, sadly. I'll write back soon blogosphere!! HAPPY THANKSGIVING!! 

http://www.wisegeek.org/should-people-still-use-cursive-writing.htm

Double monolouge paper

Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" is one of the most famous plays in the world and has withstood hundreds of years of changes in almost all aspects of the world, despite not one word of the play changing. One of the main reasons that the play was able to do this was because of the importance it puts on the love between Romeo and Juliet, which is a timeless idea. Shakespeare illustrates the love between these two characters very well, which is extremely important in allowing the play to have the impact that it has had on the world. One way Shakespeare successfully portrays Romeo and Juliet's love for each other was the fact that they are extremely similar to one another, which was shown in our performance by the use of a double monologue, where Romeo spoke his monologue from the beginning of Act 2 Scene 2 at the same time as Juliet said her own monologue from the beginning of Act 2 Scene 2.The use of a double monologue, the similar language in the double monologue, the movement done by the performers in the double monologue, the costumes involved, and the set pieces used help illustrate this idea.
My group used a double monologue to help illustrate the similarities of Romeo and Juliet and the clear love that they have for each other. Both of the monologues used came from separate scenes where they talk about our love for each other without being heard by any other character, which shows that the two characters were speaking honestly about their feelings for one another. The double monologue my group used also benefits more than presenting the similarities between the two characters and their love for each other. It also helps directly relate the two very similar monologues that are included in two completely different acts and scenes in the original play to the audience to support the ideas about the common characteristics and strength of their love between the two characters. The double monologue also shows the short time span in which the play takes place, as it illuminates the majority of he unrelated action from being performed on stage typically in the play and converts it into off-stage activity that is mentioned infrequently during the double monologue. This is also supported by the three characters throughout the performance referencing the short amount of time that has taken place since Romeo married Juliet. The use of a double monologue in our performance provides extremely important support to the idea that Juliet is very similar to Romeo and they are deeply in love with each other.
The language used in our performance of the double monologue contributes to the ideas that Juliet is very in love with Romeo and they both has many different similarities between one another. Both characters' monologues used very similar ideas, such as the sky and its relationship to their significant other, like when Romeo describes Juliet in his monologue as  "the sun [who] kill the envious moon," relating her beauty to the sun and that it is no compare to the moons (2.2.3-4). Juliet also says a similar line about Romeo in her monologue as she compares "when he shall die, take him and cut him out in little stars, and he will make the face of heaven so fine that all the world will be in love with night and pay no worship to the garish sun," as she describes Romeo as being more beautiful than the sun and would should be made into stars (3.2.22-27). These references to the sky helps support the idea that is presented throughout the play that Romeo and Juliet were destined to fall in love with each other and die, as Shakespeare often refers to them as "star crossed  lovers." The idea that there are many different similarities between Romeo and Juliet and that they had a strong love for each other is supported in our performance by the language involved in the double monologue.
The body movements the performers did during the double monologue provides evidence to the idea that Romeo has many different things in common with Juliet and that they have a passionate love between them. When either Romeo or Juliet would say anything extremely important or related to the other character' dialogue, the person playing that character would say their lines louder and turn on the block where we were citing to face the audience. This put an emphasis on certain lines, such as when Juliet says "Think true love acted simple modesty./Come, night; come, Romeo; come, thou day in night;" about the idea that Juliet thinks that the true love she has for Romeo is not very ostentatious, but she is extremely excited to see Romeo (3.2.16-18). These lines also answer the previous lines Romeo said which he said in a louder voice and sat towards the audience, which was "The brightness of her cheek would shame those stars" about his option that Juliet is more beautiful than the sky (2.2.18-20) . This lines were "I am too bold, 'tis not to me she speaks," where Romeo thinks that Juliet is talking to him from her window, but realizes that she is not talking to him, which corresponds well to Juliet's other lines from this section of the scene. Both Bryn and I took pauses that were very important as they helped line up sections of dialogue from both characters. This allowed Romeo and Juliet to almost have a conversation using unrelated and unconnected . It also allowed Romeo and Juliet both talk about similar topics and ideas when they are not with the other or any one else. The body movements used by both of the actors in the double monologue also helps support Shakespeare's idea about gender roles and equality between men and women that he gives examples to throughout the play. This is because of the fact that Romeo and Juliet, as the body movements both the characters do is the same in our performance, despite the different gender that they both are.
The costumes used also played an important role in supporting the idea that Shakespeare created the Romeo and Juliet as very similar characters in our double monologue. Both Romeo and Juliet wore mostly red Medieval clothing to help illustrate the common traits that both characters share. However, Juliet's dress was a deeper shade of red and also had some gold scents to it. This was very different from Romeo, who wore a darker shade of red and black pants. The darker colors that Romeo reflects the idea that Juliet is a more innocent character than Romeo, as she has not killed anyone as Romeo has, which is what the later scenes performed centers around. This highlighted difference shows that despite this, their love for each other is so strong that it triumphed over the difficulties that they faced. The similar colors of  their costuming being very different from the counselor's costume in the other scenes performed, who wore a white robe, shows the similarities in the traits that they have, versus the other characters throughout the play. The color schemes used for our portrayals of the characters' costuming supports Shakespeare representing Romeo and Juliet as very similar characters who are deeply in love.
The set pieces used in the double monologue is an example of an aide to show that Juliet is a similar character to Romeo. There was a rehearsal block used for the double monologue placed in the center. This divided the stage into two separate halves, one belonging to Romeo's scene with the convector and the other for Juliet's scene with him. This represented in another visual way the two characters' common traits, as on both of their sides the only set pieces used was one bed on each side that was an almost exact mirror image of one another. The set was also very minimal, which reflected the idea that Shakespeare presented throughout the play, that Verona is the center of the world for the characters and what they know. This fact becomes increasingly important in the later two scenes done and that it is especially prevalent in Romeo and Juliet's views with  of the world. The ideas about Juliet have a deep connection with and many similar traits was sh,own by the set pieces that were used in my group's performance.
The use of a double monologue, the language involved in the double monologue, the body movements done by the two actors done in the double monologue, the costumes used for our performance and the set all reflect the idea that Juliet is very similar to Romeo and that they are each other's true love. This is extremely important to the play, because the strength of the love between its two main characters is the reason that it is so famous today. This is because their love allows them to connect to its audience, no matter the time or place where it is performed, as almost all people experience some type of love in their lives and the strength of the love that these two characters is what most people aspire to have in their own lives. The similarities between the two characters is also extremely important to the play, as Shakespeare uses it to explain the reason that their love is able to be as strong as it is. These two observations are then the reason that Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" will forever be known as the most famous play of all time.
Shakespeare, William, and Richard Hosley. The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet. New Haven: Yale UP, 1954. Print.

Body Paraghraph

There were points where both characters paused in the double monologue, which played an important role in supporting the idea that Romeo is very similar to Juliet. These were very important as they helped line up sections of dialogue from both characters. This allowed Romeo and Juliet to almost have a conversation using unrelated and unconnected lines. These pauses allows the double monologue illustrates the idea that Romeo thinks very similarly to Juliet, as they both talk about similar topics and ideas when they are not with the other or any one else.
The costumes used also played an important role in supporting the idea that Shakespeare created the Romeo and Juliet as very similar characters in our double monologue. Both Romeo and Juliet wore mostly red Medieval clothing to help illustrate the common traits that both characters share. However, Juliet's dress was a deeper shade of red and also had some gold scents to it. This was very different from Romeo, who wore a darker shade of red and black pants. The darker colors that Romeo reflects the idea that Juliet is a more innocent character than Romeo, as she has not killed anyone as Romeo has, which is what the later scenes performed centers around. This highlighted difference shows that despite this, their love for each other is so strong that it triumphed over the difficulties that they faced. The similar colors of  their costuming being very different from the counselor's costume in the other scenes performed, who wore a white robe, shows the similarities in the traits that they have, versus the other characters throughout the play. The color schemes used for our portrayals of the characters' costuming supports Shakespeare representing Romeo and Juliet as very similar characters who are deeply in love.

Outline for Paper

• Introduction- 

• Importance of love and its portrayal on "Romeo and Juliet" 

• Simple explanation of performance 

• One way Shakespeare was able to be successful in his portrayal of Romeo and Juliet's love for each other was the fact that they are extremely similar to one another, which was shown in our performance by the use of a double monologue, where Romeo spoke his monologue from the beginning of Act 2 Scene 2 at the same time as Juliet said her own monologue from the beginning of Act 2 Scene 2.The use of a double monologue, the similar language, the body language done by the performers, the pauses between some of the lines in the double monologue,the similar reactions of both characters, the costumes involved, and the set pieces used help illustrate this idea. 

• Body Paragraph 1- Basic information on double monologue and direct effects

•  Description 

• Shows similarities between Romeo and Juliet towards audience more easily

• Compared them directly despite different times when the separate monologues were said 

• Body Paragraph- Language

• Similar lines

• Uses similar metaphors

• Almost conversations

• Body Paragraph 2- Body language and pauses

• Louder when similar lines or important lines 

• Faced audience on important lines 

• Body Paragraph 3- Pauses

•  Helped make it so that the lines matched up

• Allowed more time to express reactions and body language 

• Helped draw focus to important lines

• Body Paragraph- Reactions

• When not speaking, both lost in thought 

• Excitement when Romeo and Juliet almost talk to each other

• Desire for the other character to come to see them

• Body Paragraph - Costuming 
• Red costuming for Romeo and Juliet 
• Different from the consolers white robe which makes them more distinct
• Gold symbolizes Juliet's innocence compares to Romeo's darker red and black shows violence 
• Body Paragraph - Set
• Rehearsal block divides the stage
• Set mirrors each other and the same

1st draft of written task

Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" is one of the most famous plays in the world and has withstood hundreds of years of changes in almost all aspects of the world, despite not one word of the play changing. One of the main reasons that the play was able to do this was because of the importance it puts on the love between Romeo and Juliet, which is a timeless idea. Shakespeare illustrates the love between these two characters very well, which is extremely important in allowing the play to have the impact that it has had on the world. One way that Shakespeare was able to be so successful in his portrayal of Romeo and Juliet's true love for each other was the fact that they are extremely similar to one another, which was shown in the scenes that my group performed for our analysis.
My group performed the section of Act 2 Scene 2 with Romeo speaking to Juliet in her balcony, while she does not see or hear him. The majority of Act 3 Scene 2, where Juliet speaks to herself about her passionate love for Romeo and then is informed by the Nurse that Romeo was banished after he killed Tybalt, was performed by my group to help illustrate this idea. My group also acted Act 3 Scene 3 out, which is where Romeo is told by Friar Lawrence that he was banished by the Prince as punishment for murdering Tybalt as opposed to being executed.
My group used a double monologue to help illustrate the similarities of Romeo and Juliet. This double monologue was done by Romeo, played by Bryn, and Juliet, who I played, performed two separate monologues at the same time. These monologues came from separated scenes where we talk about our love for each other without being heard by any other character, which shows that the two characters were speaking honestly and from their hearts. When either Romeo or Juliet would say anything extremely important or related to the other character' dialogue, the person playing that character would say their lines louder and turn on the block where we were citing to face the audience. This put an emphasis on certain lines, such as when Juliet says "Think true love acted simple modesty./Come, night; come, Romeo; come, thou day in night;" about the idea that Juliet thinks that the true love she has for Romeo is not very ostentatious, but she is extremely excited to see Romeo (lines 16-18). These lines also answer the previous lines Romeo said which he said in a louder voice and sat towards the audience. This lines were "I am too bold, 'tis not to me she speaks," where Romeo inks that Juliet is talking to him from her window, but realizes that she is not talking to him, which corresponds well to Juliet's other lines from this section of the scene.
There were points where both characters paused in the double monologue, which played an important role in supporting the idea that Romeo is very similar to Juliet. These were very important as they helped line up sections of dialogue from both characters. This allowed Romeo and Juliet to almost have a conversation using unrelated and unconnected lines. These pauses allows the double monologue illustrates the idea that Romeo thinks very similarly to Juliet, as they both talk about similar topics and ideas when they are not with the other or any one else.
The costumes used also played an important role in supporting the idea that Shakespeare created the Romeo and Juliet as very similar characters. Both Romeo and Juliet wore red Medieval clothing to help illustrate the relation. Juliet's dress was a deeper shade of red and also had some gold scents to it. This was very different from Romeo, who wore a darker shade of red and black pants. The similar colors compares to the counselor, who wore a white robe, shows the similarities in the traits that they have, versus the other characters throughout the play. The darker colors that Romeo also reflects the idea that Juliet is a more innocent character than Romeo, as she has not killed anyone as Romeo has, but that they still love each other despite this and the challenges they faced.
The set pieces used is an example of an aide to show that Juliet is a similar character to Romeo. There was a rehearsal block used for the double monologue placed in the center. This divided the stage into two separate halves, one belonging to Romeo's scene with the convector and the other for Juliet's scene with him. This represented in another visual way the two characters' common traits, as on both of their sides the only set pieces used was one bed on each side that was an almost exact mirror image of one another.

Reflection on Final Performace of Romeo and Juliet Scenes

As we finished working on our scenes from "Romeo and Juliet," Mrs. G asked us to write about the success our group has at portraying Romeo and Juliet as similar characters  in the Shakespearean play. We did this by using a double monologue, similar body motions between Romeo and Juliet, and diplomat colored costumes for the two characters to help illustrate this point, among many other aspects of our performance.
We worked very hard to improve in many different areas from our previous draft. My group worked on adding more moment and blocking thought the later two scenes. This new blocking made the audience more engaged in our performance, as our first draft contained all three actors sitting or standing for the almost the entirety of the performance. I, also, did similar movements to Bryn, the actress playing Romeo, we made it more clear that our two characters were very similar. An example of this is when we both flopped down on our respective beds as a way to react the the news that Romeo is banished.
My group also worked very hard to cut down lines to shorten the scenes and performance as a whole. This was shown by the fact that movie was a whole minute shorter of the final draft than the first one. It was also helped by all three of us becoming more comfortable with our lines, blocking, and script, which allowed us to go slightly faster.
Despite the progress in this area, we could have cut more down from some of the scenes. This was especially true of the third scene that we performed, which was between the counselor and Romeo. This scene has a relatively complete and happy ending. This is completely different from the scene my group used with Juliet and the counselor, as Juliet is extremely distressed about Romeo's banishment in the end. Th scene can, also, be confusing when the Nurse's character is combined, as they both talk to each other, which needed to be cusps from the scene, and they reference some topics, such as the Nurse seeing Juliet, that do not make a lot of sense to happen at the end of one person's conversation with romeo. A good place to have ended the scene might have been after Romeo's speech about wanting to kill himself if he was banished.
The costumes and props added several different layers to our performance, the color scheme used for the so's tunes, with Romeo and Juliet wearing red and the counselor wearing white, showed the differences between the couple and the counselor. It also shows how well Romeo and Juliet fit together and are very similar, as they wore the same color. The sword that Romeo used in his scene with the counselor also added dramatics to his scene, as it raises the stakes for both the counselor and Romeo, as he proves he is willing to take violent steps to deal with his banishment. It also works to show how similar Romeo is to Juliet as she also claims that his banishment is causing drastic personal effects.
Throughout the presses of working on this performance, I improved in many different areas. I worked on my abilities to read Shakespearean text allowed,newish greatly improved. This was extremely challenging for me, as I have dyslexia and it is sometimes harder for me to read out loud. I also gained more confident in these abilities, which greatly increased my stage presents. I also had to practice at being louder, as I often drowned my voice when I had to speak against Bryn in our double monologue. I also became better at helping developing my groups blocking, which is something I had never really done before, but always wanted to get to try.
Overall, I am extempore let proud of my groups performance. We worked really hard at it and succeeded in accomplishing our goals. I can not wait till we have another performance in class, so I can become even better and feel the same pride in my work.
    http://youtu.be/asocO6UX3J4

Romeo and Juliet Scenes - 1st Draft reflection

                          In class for the past  two weeks, I have been working with my group on our combination of multiple scenes , where I play the character of Juliet. My group’s goal in our performance is to support the idea that Romeo and Juliet are very similar in “Romeo and Juilet.” Yesterday, we recorded our performance of our first draft of these scenes. After watching the performance on my iPad, I made several observations of our work and also noticed several important improvements that could be made to our scenes.

          I think that my group did a very good job at making progress on our scenes. After Bryn, who plays Romeo, and I made notes about  the emotions we displayed in the separate scenes we were not in before recording it, the emotions became more clear to the audience and helped support our claim  that Romeo and Juliet are similar. We also increased our understanding of our lines, which let us have less trouble with reciting them and behave in more ways that support our thesis. Bryn  and I, also, were able  to act in a similar manor to each other, especially in our movements, such as when we both fell down on the bed in our respective scenes. Adler, who plays Friar Lawrence and the Nurse, also uses his own body language and tone in his two scenes to separately contrast to the behaviors of Romeo and Juliet in different ways, such as his calm manor about Romeo’s banishment in his scene with Romeo and his frantic anger over Tybalt’s death in his scene with me.

          Despite our excellent work, there are still some areas that need to be improved. Our performance itself was too long, as it took eight minutes and 30 seconds in total to shoot. The re are certain scenes that are longer than others, as the monologues in the beginning are  very similar to each other and fit similar timing that is needed for a double monologue. This is not true with the later scenes, especially the last scene with Romeo and  Friar Lawrence. The length of this scene can be explained by the lengthy monologues by both the Friar and Romeo.  The other scenes do not have monologues from more than one character, as in the second scene and  the first scene is a double monologue, where Romeo and Juliet are saying their monologues at the same time for the majority of the scene.
My group also need to develop more blocking in the last two scenes. As a viewer of the performance, someone might think that the scenes got boring after the first scene, because the first scene was very dynamic and including more movement, while the later two scenes have very limited movement. This can be fixed by going through the two scenes and adding more blocking to help convey the similarities between Romeo and Juliet.
     I am excited to share my ideas about our scenes with my group. Hopefully, we will work together with our own ideas to make our scenes even better.


http://cdn.theatlantic.com/assets/media/img/mt/2014/10/Romeo_Oh_Romeo/lead_large.jpg

In class writing

My interpretation of Juliet as being very similar to Romeo is shown through my acting during the first two scenes where she is present. One of the most important ways that their similarities are shown is how Bryn and I are going to do a double monologue and do very similar stage directions. I am also going to draw the audience's focus to me in important sections of my monologue where Romeo and Juliet are saying similar quotes or almost responding to each other by speaking louder than both Bryn and myself in other sections of my monologue during these areas. I also will turn to face the audience when these sections occur, drawing not only their attention in a auditory way, but also in a visual sense, as the movement will draw focus onto me even more.
In the second scene, I will also work to establish the similarities between Romeo and Juliet, but in different ways. I will work to develop a similar relationship between the counselor/ the Nurse and Juliet and Romeo and the counselor/ Friar Lawrence. I will work on doing this by showing my trust in the counselor/ the nurse with my body, such as by having my arms open and standing somewhat close to the counselor/ the nurse.