Welcome to Cavalier Theatre!
Mr. White's schedule:
3rd Period - Theatrical Productions III & IV
4th Period - Public Speaking
5th Period - Theatre Productions I & II
6th Period - Technical Theatre Stage Craft
Once per semester -- Theatrical Productions (3rd & 5th pd.) students must attend ONE non-JF play, write a one-page review of the play, and turn it in, along with a program, by June 6th. ...a complete list of area plays is posted on the Cavalier Theatre bulletin board.
Every Friday -- Quiz on the Thursday Lynchburg News & Advance Lifestyles Section! (3rd, 5th & 6th pds.)
Third Period -- Theatrical Productions
* Presentations the week of 5/21 *
Observe a faculty member of your choice as closely as possible over three days. Using the observation checklist (on back), look for what stands out about your teacher, and over-exaggerate it. You should be looking for the essence of the teacher and magnifying it, big time. The goal is a complete caricature.
Observe your faculty member from a distance so the teacher is not self-conscious. In front of a mirror or some friends, practice imitating their teachers’ walk, the way he/she holds the spine, his/her vocal rhythms, and his/her physical gestures and habits. Can you identify your faculty member’s physical tempos and rhythms? What aspects of you are similar to your faculty member? As you adopt the physical attributes, you should notice how they affect you, not just physically but also emotionally and psychologically. When do you feel like the teacher? Can you begin to see things from the faculty member’s point of view?
Questions to answer:
What type of music might best reflect this person?
What three adjectives might best describe him/her?
Can you think of a metaphor that accurately describes this person?
Then, through improvisation, develop a two-minute monologue (you’ll need to practice at home) in which you teach a class or reveal some other aspect of the teacher’s life. For your presentation, you should come to class as your faculty member, wearing similar shoes and clothes, and teach a brief class or lead activities using the rest of the students as your imaginary pupils.
Along with your monologue presentation, you will turn in a one-page paper detailing your observation checklist results for your chosen subject.
The point is to isolate what is unique about the teacher and exaggerate it—even over-exaggerate, as I said before. Above all, make clear choices, and commit to them.
OBSERVATION CHECKLIST
- Garment. What is distinctive about what this person wears? Make sure you notice jewelry, handbags, hats, and other accessories. Does this person have any “sacred objects?”
- Word choice. Are there particular words or phrases this person uses often? Does he or she use common language or more elevated language?
- Habitual gestures. What gestures does this person perform habitually? It’s fun to guess why a particular gesture to a part of the body may have developed.
- Spine. Is it straight, curved forward or backward, curved at the top or bottom, or lean to the side? Look for junctures between the spine and head, and the lower back and pelvis. Adjusting an actor’s spine can radically change how he or she reads to the audience.
- Body center. Most people lead from a particular place in the body—head, neck, chest, stomach, pelvis, or base of spine.
- Rhythm. Everybody has his or her own dominant rhythm—fast, slow, or somewhere in between. We also can have inner rhythms that differ from our outer rhythms. Look for the nervous tapping of fingers or darting eyes.
- Sense of weight. Light, medium, or heavy. This is not actual weight. Some very large people move with a lightness about them, and some people who weigh less can be very grounded. Watch for how people stand up from a sitting position or whether they go up on their toes a lot, as opposed to being back on their heels.
- Energy flow. Is it bound or unbound? Does the person let his or her energy flow out freely or do they keep it all bound up inside? Look at your subject’s hands and face. Does the person walk around with closed fists? Does a person have a wide-open smile or a tight-lipped smile? When the person gestures, does he extend the arm all the way out from the body, or does he stop it abruptly a few inches out from his torso?
- Vocal patterns. Start to identify pitch, rhythm, or specific breathing patterns. Does the person have a sing-songy voice? Does she have a breathy voice?
5/17 - Read Thursday's Lynchburg News & Advance Lifestyles Arts section! (Available in Mr. White's room, on the hall bulletin board, or in the JF library)
4th Period -- Public Speaking
5th Period -- Theatrical Productions
*Presentations the week of 5/21*
(see 3rd Period)
5/17 - Read Thursday's Lynchburg News & Advance Lifestyles Arts section! (Available in Mr. White's room, on the hall bulletin board, or in the JF library)
6th Period -- Stage Craft
** CLOSED-TOED SHOES REQUIRED **
Week of 5/21 - Dismantling Forum set.
5/17 - Read Thursday's Lynchburg News & Advance Lifestyles Arts section for Friday! (Available in Mr. White's room, on the hall bulletin board, or in the JF library)
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