Drama Reflection 12/11/09

1) Why do actors spend time in their training learning to role play in pairs and small groups? How would this help them in a stage or film performance?

Actors spend their time training learning to role play in pairs and small groups so that when they are in a play presenting it to an audience or filming a show they can use the techniques they have learned and be able to apply it. Actors also learn how to role-play small groups and pairs so they can learn other techniques from other actors and improve their acting.

2)Which roles were the easiest for you to play today?

The easiest roles for me to play today were the roles that most resembled me, for example; the 14 year old boy on the beach with his family. That role was quite easy for me to play because I am a 14 year old boy so I know how they would think and act. I know that acting similar roles is easier because it does not enquire me to go out of my comfort zone or to think harder about what I need to do.

3) Which roles were the most difficult? Why?

The roles, which were most difficult for me to play, were the ones, which I was not easy to relate to, or opposite of me. The roles which I was asked to play a 45 year old women was not as easy as playing the 14 year old boy because I am not an adult, nor a women. It took me a little more effort to come up with a proper role to play, because I had to think about what to do based on the things I have seen from other women of that age. This role was harder as well because I had to go out of my comfort zone because acting like a girl is not something I am used to doing.

4)How much of your "self" did you put into your role?

The roles which I could easily relate to, of coarse I put a lot more of my self into it because it was easier and felt more comfortable because I am often taking on those roles in real life. They also required me to put myself into character though so it was not as though I wasn’t acting, I was still doing it, but it just did not evolve me going full out acting something different from my usual self. The scenarios, which I had to act something that I would typically, not, I believe that I did a good job taking on those roles but I definitely could have gone more to an extensive rate, into character. By changing the level and pitch of my voice more and the way I moved (how fast, slow, crouched, etc) would have definitely helped me out, which is what I will do for next class.

Journal Reflection: Romeo and Juliet

1. What kind of research do you think the lead actors in the film had to do to prepare for their roles?

I believe that in order to prepare for this part the actors had to get a good back round of the character they were playing. In order to do so I think they would have to watch other versions of the Romeo and Juliet plays and movies, which would also help them figure out what the audience is looking for. Also, they might have acted out their parts while off stage in order to really understand how their character thinks and acts, like Heath Ledger did when he was playing the Joker in the “Dark Night.”

2. What were the most effective aspects of the setting/set design, use of music and costuming for the film?

I thought that the most effective aspects of the settings were from the angle, which the camera caught it in. Any setting can look a lot better or a lot worse depending on the view the camera films it from. I thought that the settings fit this movie for the updated version quite well because they had certain scenes, which were in front of a club, and I do not think that in the first version of Romeo and Juliet that they would be there.

I found the use of music good in every scene because it set the tone and helped you know the motion, which was being felt and the aura, which described weather the scene, was going to be sad or happy.

The costume in this film, to my personal opinion I thought felt the part to a degree. In the original play both sides of the family were very wealthy but judging by the clothes they were wearing you would not be able to tell that. You would have thought that they seemed a little more gang like, although you did know that Juliet’s side of the family had a great deal of money because of the size of her house.

3. How did the actors effectively use pantomime expressions and how did they alter their voices to fit their roles.

I noticed that Leonardo DiCaprio’s pantomime was very good in the scene which he had just killed Juliet’s cousin because when the camera zoomed in on his face he was very slow and had a lot of facial expression. It was very easy to tell what he was feeling. Another scene I thought he used a good job of pantomime was where he was getting in a fight against Juliet’s side of the family because of how he used his body to portray his actions to an excessive amount and his voice was very loud too.

4. Overall, do you think the film was a good adaptation of Shakespeare's original play?

I have not scene any other versions of Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare but based on this version alone I Think that it was a very good adaptation. The characters were all in role at all times and it seemed easier to understand because of the back rounds and sets they used as well as the use of props. I thought it was a good movie.