Gavin Thatcher Blog Task 4

1/ As the creative process turned from the 'V' stage to the 'P' stage of devising, and Porto started to come together as one cohesive performance, what were the common themes and issues that were beginning to emerge through the basic fabric of the piece? Despite the individual journeys, what shared experiences tied the community together apart from their state of liminality? Discuss with clear and succinct examples. (300 words)

The ensemble all shared the state of liminiality, however there were other themes and issues that developed throughout the piece. In particular all individual characters had a sense of journey. The journeys that existed were all in different phases. Some characters were merely beginning others were coming to an end. The idea of a journey ending was a key element of Nicola’s character who by the end of the piece would end her journey within the confines of Porto. This is antithetical of mine and Sarah’s journey which was a fairly new interaction that had the potential to develop beyond the world of Porto.There was also a sense of history that accompanied all of the characters. This was addressed scenographically through the signifier of the bags that the ensemble carried them. The actions of the characters also suggested that there was a history to the individual as their reactions were affected by that sense.The ensemble, although made up of individual characters did still engage with each other as a whole throughout the piece. The first key moment that this occurred was during Nicola’s entrance. The ensemble had a mutual reaction (although notably reactions were not the same, there was still reaction in some form). This created sub-groups and other interactions. It directly commented on how people interact with each other in certain environments and situations.Another moment where the ensemble were tied together through events that took place within Porto was after the ensemble section reprise where Leyna’s character tried to take a photo of Jay and Nicola. As this action from Leyna’s character had developed throughout the piece, the ensemble collectively objected to this action and became complicit in trying to obstruct Leyna who became more frenetic in her actions as she tried to take more photos, but to little avail.


2/Critically evaluate the transition of Porto as the ensemble moved from the studio into the theatre space. What were the strengths and weaknesses of this phase and process? (400 words)

As the ensemble moved in to the theatre space from the studio there were further developments in the piece. Initially there were logistical problems of the chairs. Due to the differences in spatial dimensions of the theatre space, the chairs had to be slightly reconfigured in order to use the entire space. The chairs also caused logistical problems throughout certain sections of the piece in regards to lighting cues. Repositioning was required so that the action on stage could be lit and subsequently seen by the audience. While at times this logistical element could be considered frustrating, the change in placements allowed new things to be discovered by the performers as a means of problem solving.The greatest difference after moving to the theatre space was the full realisation of the periphery work. Concerns of the periphery work being too distracting when in the studio space dissipated somewhat with access to the larger space. During this shift in space the periphery work did develop in itself. This largely due to the the performers interacting with their new surroundings. In particularly the back stairs, pillars and bars at the back of the performance space.There were certain disadvantages during the transfer to the theatre space. Most of these were technical related. For example, performers had to become more spatially aware of their surroundings due to lanterns being on stage left and stage right at foot and head height. This meant that on occasions the lanterns were knocked by performers and were subsequently out of focus for other moments within the performance.With the dimensions of the performance space being different to that of the studio, sight lines were slightly altered at certain moments of the performance to what the ensemble were used to. This required the performers on stage to be constantly aware of the sight lines and lead to some slight reworking of material. This was particularly crucial to floor work that took place. If it took place too far down stage then certain members of the raked audience would be unable to see the material.

“Physical discoveries made in an initial session cannot possibly hold true given the momentous shifts and discoveries that occur” (Graham, Hoggett - Pg.36)

The advantage of this phase of the process was that all of the work developed further still. With a new space and newly configured moments on the periphery, new interactions were discovered and developed that may not have emerged during the studio research and scoring phase.


3/Critically evaluate the growth of the performance over the three shows, with particular emphasis on your own role within the piece. Did the RSVP model continue to apply even at this final stage of the performance piece? Discuss with concrete examples. (500 words)

“Once the structure and content of the work is set and rehearsed, we go on tour to test it out, gathering feedback along the way. Charlotte spends the first leg of any tour tweaking and re-rehearsing the work, to ensure it is the best it can be” (2009 - Company Information & FAQs)

While the performance was not drastically changed there were new elements that emerged and aspects of the performance that were reworked. The pre-set was a large element that was reworked from a performer and technical point after the initial matinee performance.

“these were those unique minutes between entering the performance space and the start of the performance proper. These minutes are there for the taking...” (Graham, Hoggett - Pg. 21)

As Graham and Hoggett suggest, the pre-set is a theatrical device in itself. It was used in Porto to establish that the audience had entered a liminal space and were intrinsically linked with the performers’ personal journey. However, the problem emerged that the audience had entered and settled quicker than anticipated. This therefore meant that the audience sat watching the entrances as if it was the actual performance. This caused issues with pacing for the audience. Performance wise, the performers were encouraged slightly speed up the entrances. From a technical standing, the house lights, which were initially very dim, were increased in intensity. This being a typical theatrical signifier that the audience can engage with to realise that the actual performance hadn’t begun.Interactions and organic development continued across all three performances. This was particularly notable in the periphery work. In the case of Sarah, Amy and myself; we never had any set choreography for the periphery work. The work was different every performance. This allowed for a more organic interaction development as it was driven by character impulses. With our interactions being different every performance the relationships were never a victim of stagnation. They retained a freshness and truth to them. At certain moments throughout the performances due to the nature of mine and Amy’s interaction I felt physically sick because of the stress that Amy caused my character. This visceral response allowed my character to develop both emotionally and physically. The stress culminated to the point of our main section where it was effectively released.There were also moments relating to the ensemble that were different over the three performances. When Blake is sat on the chair with his suitcase and the ensemble are gradually bout in to join Michaela and Marie’s walk towards him, although the blocking is always the same, the ensemble is never bought into the sequence in the same order. Due to individual interactions throughout the piece certain characters may react differently to the ensemble sequence and get pulled in at different points in different performances.This was also the case during the final moments of the piece. The ensembles reaction to Leyna’s attempt to take a photograph of Jay and Nicola was always the same internally, however, physically the ensemble efforts to stop her doing so were different each time. This was crucial at this moment of the performance as the audience needed to believe and engage with Leyna’s desperation to get out of the space. The organic nature of the genre allows a sense of freshness to exist within the performance which is constantly changing and developing.

Graham, S, Hoggett, S. (2009) The Frantic Assembly Book of Devising Theatre Oxon :
Routledge

Vincent Dance Theatre (2008) [online] [Sheffield] http://www.vincentdt.com/faq.html [accessed 14/05/09]