Pig... the end

http://vimeo.com/23301267

Ashley's Post Show Thoughts

Pig.

Well guys, we did it. And it obviously got great response. To be perfectly honest, I am really proud of us. We pulled it out and the performance was strong and it got great hype!

What I think is most reputable about our piece was the fact that it was a strictly ensemble piece. We all needed each other to pull it off, no one left out. Everyone was a vital part in the creation of the piece and everyone really relied on each other. I think everyone really came through and we did a wonderful job putting together a very lofty ensemble piece. No one was left behind. All cogs of the clock were working.

So, here are my thoughts.

Overall, I thought the performance went well for me personally. There was like one notable line flub that I experienced because of someone else's dropped lines but I think I pulled it out. What I tried to do the night before was examine all the notes that I had been given during our past runs and other rehearsals. I wrote them all out on a piece of paper that I could read clearly, I also reread all my text work and spoke each one of my lines the way I wanted to deliver them during the performance. I also envisioned Bernice's physicality and went through the show in my head with me keeping that physicality the entire time. I think the prep work really helped in the performance in the end.

There are a few things I wanted to address that I learned about this process after examining it outside for a few days and discussing with friends.

1. Talking about the past and making it relevant to the present. I think what was present in all the play projects was the notion of several monologues that told a story, revealing something about the past. I think a trap that actors easily fall into is reminiscing in the "historical" aspect of the story rather than living in it in the present. I think it is really easy for individuals to not keep it current and achieving an active objective. If the monologue is not active in its need to get a point across or tell someone something, it falls apart. There were some moments in almost every play project where I think actors struggled with keeping stories about the past present and relevant in the moment.

2. The notion of feeling during a scene. Something I would like to correlate between something I learned in Icons during Movement class and performing big was the notion about playing the feeling or feeling while you are in the scene. I never really understood's Matt's emphasis about going as far away from feeling as possible until I endure these two exercises. During my icons round 3, I honestly felt like SHIT and that I was doing horribly in my transitions between icons and that it wasn't seamless, but I just kept going knowing that my goal was to get through the exercise. The feedback I received after my icons was that it was the complete opposite of how I was feeling. I felt like it wasn't going very well at all but apparently it went pretty well and I received great feedback from my peers. With Pig, the aftermath felt great, hearing good things about the play project etc... but I felt really weird inside the entire time. Basically in the end what I learned on a first hand level is the unreliability of "feeling" something during a scene and how it is not smart to play emotion. It is all about the homework you have done, listening and staying present with your scene.

3. One of the personal note and feedback I received after play projects was the notion of commentary when in a scene. I find it very hard to play comedy sometimes, because I have a "ashley" within me who is always laughing at herself, etc... Bernice and George as the comedic relief in the play was something I did not realize until after the performance. Let me explain. I have struggled with this all year, but playing comedy is really hard for me sometimes. I struggled during animal projects with my naked mole rat being too funny and quirky. I would take myself out of her and laugh at myself. I hated when I did that to myself but it is something I struggled with and it came through during pig. Specifically during the dancing scene with Irene and Bernice and the Conga music. It took a lot of effort from me not to laugh at myself during the entire thing and I think that came through a little bit of me commenting on my performance. I received feedback from a peer about it and I think it was very important that I heard about it. It was something I was a little disappointed about and something I struggle with with playing comedy. Something to work on!

Anyways, I am really proud of us. Good job guys.