I Am A Lake
Live theatre is an important part of our arts culture. I will be analysing the live performance of I Am A Lake directed by Jane Johnson and presented by Mudlark Theatre on March 1 at the Earl Arts Centre. I Am A lake focuses on the hardships of a domestic violent life and the way they survive and forgive each other, hoping to have a better life In a small excluded area in Queenstown, based in the 1980’s.The criteria I will be using to critic I Am A Lake is the performances by the actors, the director’s artistic decisions and the technical design.
The actors within I Am A Lake shaped the performance, making it a stronger ensemble piece and a success. One of the actors I am going to talk about is Travis Hennessy who played Nugget.
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Trees were placed at either side of the set to frame the setting. Logs were also placed DSR and DSL, this was a representation of where the younger version of Alice would commonly go to play and look at the mountains with Nugget. There was a see through curtain at the back of the stage where each character placed themselves when not in the scene, this gave the characters purpose on stage. The table placed centre stage provided the main space for characters to communicate and connect. An example of the use of the table was when Nugget and Alice would sit around the table - he would tell her stories and helped Alice with her schoolwork. To represent the kitchen, a kettle and radio were placed USL and a tin box the mum had her alcohol in. In this performance, it was clear that some characters more commonly used certain areas of the stage and used the same to enter and exit most times when leaving. Nugget more frequently used DSR and the mum used USL. This was done to indicate when the characters were leaving the house, going to their bedrooms or a different part of the house. To show that Alice had a connection with both the actors she commonly used the whole stage, which served as a purpose of her movement. The use of sound effects in I Am A Lake engaged the audience by using voice overs. For example, Alice reflecting on the memories of her father helped the piece become successful as it had a powerful emotional effect on the audience. To make the lake credible the value of the sound effects shaped the audience to believe it was there. For example, instruments were recorded and played to make the entering and exiting more interesting. To allow the actors to embody their characters, the costumes were chosen wisely to make them come to life on the stage. To symbolise the characters coming from Queenstown, the Mum and Nugget wore plain and brown-based clothing.
Most of us ignore the mundane details and sounds that occur everyday in our life, but when these sounds when carefully added to a performance can add depth. For example, the usage of a car transition during the car scenes throughout the show is subtle, yet dually functions as an effective background noise during the lull of conversation as well as maintaining the illusion that the characters are driving in a car. Another key background sound used at the beginning of the play is the sound of the shower running after Robert leaves to take one. This
The major conflict is when Mr. Burns tries to take over and kill others one by one. Most people preferred to see the play without reading or doing any research prior to watching the show. Therefore, when the audience saw the poster of “Mr.Burns” in the lobby some of them had thought that there was only going to be two survivors because in the poster there were only two people sitting by the fire. However, this play only had one surviving protagonist by the end of the play because Mr. Burns had killed others one by one. As far as costumes and set designs the crew members had done a great job showing the audience the transitions of three different times such as the past, present, and future.
So this was not my first time at the University’s theater. I arrived early in hopes of finding a good seat, and saw a number of tables set up across the stage. In addition
Theatre reflects the society in which it is in. Use of particular elements of drama and production in Harrison’s Stolen and Keene’s Life Without Me and evokes the audience’s engagement and understanding of the dramatic meaning that is created. By exploring the development of the character’s personal concerns the audience can effectively engage with and consider the cultural issues expressed in these two plays. By highlighting and exploring these key issues the audience is challenged and confronted with a representation and reflection on parts of Australian culture. The thematic issues and concerns of both plays include – Racism, Discrimination, Persecution, Lack of Respect, Identity, Belonging (or lack of), Discovery and the issues of Home.
Stage directions are essentially little blocks of text in between before dialogue which explain unspoken details of the scene. For example, the stage directions might indicate that a white character is standing or sitting while an Aboriginal character is crouching or kneeling. This physical positioning reinforces the power imbalance between the characters. (pg. 91) “Moore River settlement, Australia Day 1943, a very hot afternoon. Mr Neville, Mr Neal, and Matron are seated on a dais.”
The set was simple, and it had a lot old fashion furniture that you don't see that much unless you have grandparent that still have old style furniture. The theater was small and minimalistic and help the audience feel closer the
While a decaying plantation can be represented in a backdrop on a traditional stage, placing the production in front of an actual surviving plantation would add a heightened effect, putting the audience in the scene. The production would be staged at night, not only to emphasize the secrecy of the first scene, but to present the play at a time when the heat of the day as begun to cool. For placing the audience, typical risers and chairs would never fit, for it would ruin the old Southern aesthetic. Instead, a semi-circle of tables and chairs, would line the production, as if set for an outside banquet. The tables would have to fit the time period, as well as the full table-setting on them.
What being Hispanic means to me is mainly opportunity. I say opportunity not only in terms of my educational interests, but my social and cultural ones as well. For example, one area in which I 've seen myself taking advantage of these opportunities is theatre. Over the past 3 years at DePauw, I have been very involved with DePauw theatre, and this past year especially, have taken leadership roles within the department. This involvement has opened my eyes as to exactly how little people of color are represented within theatre, not only in acting roles, but especially in leadership roles.
The frequent use of stage effects in Tennessee William’s A Street Car Named Desire makes it evident that the themes are not simply expressed just through dialogue, but also music and sound. The authors intent is to use these effects to set mood of a specific scene- or the whole play; to propose an idea, or an action; to show feeling of a character, and to let the audience know what he or she is thinking. These elements are not perceptible to the eye such as a prop but hearing and analyzing the sound and music in this play can create dramatic devices and ideas. It is the sound designer’s task to read the text, analyze the authors indications, collaborate with the director, and to mix or edit sounds. Williams used metaphors in his stage directions
Backstage areas of the theater, dressing rooms, rooftops, corridors, and, of course, the stage all provide deeply detailed to perfectly contain the characters in the film. Printed couches, scrawled “congratulations” notes, flowers and flickering light bulbs adorn our hero’s dressing room. These spaces are each decorated to look authentic. Color also plays a large role in “Birdman”. The stage lighting shifts dramatically throughout the play within the film and this theme often bleeds into the backstage of the St. James Theater.
While both stage and screen portrayals were highly acclaimed there are some similarities as well as some marked differences in each interpretation. On the surface, the first difference noted between the stage and screen versions are the sets. The stage version describes the setting of the play, the Younger family living room, as a
Space is used in theatre in order to clearly imply to the audience where the action is taking place. The minimal props on stage allow the audience to interpret the performance in their own way and gives the play a sense of originality. An example of space is identified when actors are switching between scenes in Gallipoli and scenes in Australia. To represent times at war a long black box positioned down stage is utilised by actors to jump over and sit in front of to resemble a trench; giving the notion that the scene is set in war. On the other hand, the actors perform up stage behind this box when presenting scenes in Australia to create a clear distinction between the two settings.
The stage design gives the impression of the characters being in two separate rooms, the positioning of blocks and pillars helps again to demonstrate this. This intricate attention to detail enables the performance to be compared so similarly to the movie adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic, although the ‘big screen’ enables more room for a fast change in setting and shots, Rourke does a phenomenal job trying to create this illusion which works so brilliantly. The night before the wedding or you could refer to it as the ‘stag and hen do’ was an unexpected twist that the audience definitely did not see coming. Again, the revolving stage was used to represent the divide between the women and the men and to compensate for the lack of space that the stage could carry.
The productions of this play were successful through stage design, lighting crewing, and acting. Those three aspects made the quality of the play stand out to me, as an audience member. The production of the set design of the play was a good effort. The set design for the play staging aims for the sweet spot between feeding adult nostalgia and satisfying a new generation of children.
In fact, they resemble elevator doors and are even automated. Both the doors and the wall take the play in a different direction than the world of Ancient Greece, but the tapestries, are similar to the National Theater's. When summoned, two attendants bring out a wide, plain red cloth that is thin and almost stretchy looking, resembling a tongue lolling out of a mouth more than the National Theater’s