Clown Research Project: The Blue Man Group!

I was always a little freaked out by the Blue Man Group (kind of sounds like an homage to human!) They always kind of scared me because they are essentially clowns! And for me, traditional whiteface miming clowns will always be creepy.

The group was started around 1991 by recent college graduates that were really good friends. They wanted to create a performance that was experiental and  thus the group was formed. The Blue Man group tells a story without really following a specific plot, and they tell this story non verbally of course.

The Blue Man was made to help humans view things in a different light. The Blue man is always exploring and questioning everything. This creative innovative group inspires audiences to think outside the box with their performances. Everything is a new experience for the Blue man.

They give us new perspective and are said to be foreigners to our culture which helps us see things from a different light. While the performances are not all the same, the overall message of each performance, the mission statement of the Blue Man group if you will, is to create a sense humanity, being alive!







"Blue Man Group." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 30 Mar. 2015. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Man_Group>.

Spring break is almost over...

...aaannnnd I've forgotten what our Quote of the Day was last time. Anyone remember? Audrey?

Here's the old post with the four clowning vids on it for your continued amusement. You don't have to worry about any homework on those unless you were absent and didn't watch them in class with us. http://the3220.blogspot.com/2014/04/clowning-vids-for-homework.html

And also for your amusement, a throwback pic of me and my best friend in high school. This was the final exam for our class' clowning unit: to perform for at least an hour on Pearl St. Mall. Which is a mall known for its street performers. Not a high pressure final at all...

Class today!

Okay, I just had to reflect on the scene that Bryan, Gustavo, Ashara and I did in class today! Given the task of putting on a scene with stock characters, we decided to do an elevator scenario.


We had the first person who just wanted to get to where they were going in peace. The obnoxious person on their phone, the creepy guy, and the person who has...issues with gas.


A twist that we added in was that the elevator got stuck and then Gustavo started passing gas. Eventually I died and everyone else was able to make it off the elevator alive wooooo!


It was really fun to do, I always enjoy doing non verbal scenarios!

No, YOU be a clown.

I had no idea that there are different types. I thought a clown was a clown was a clown. Now I realize the one I've seen most often is the Auguste style at the circus (or Ronald McDonald). I've probably seen the other kinds in movies or on TV, but I just assumed they were all lumped together in the same category. I also didn't know that hats were so important to creating a clown character. When I think of a costume, I first think of big shoes, billowy pants, scarves, and a red nose. While reading Be A Clown, I got pretty excited to try clowning because I love humor, but I've always used it with the voice and not physically. Now I get to try the other side and I have a feeling this could be my favorite part of class. As a side note for the people in class who are afraid of them, maybe clowning will actually help you feel less scared!

P.S. I really hope I get to try a spit take.

-Audrey

Clowns

Personally i have never really liked clowns i think that they creep me out. When i was reading the 'Think Like A Clown" part it was a very stereotypical movement and i feel like they over do thing like that. I do like making people laugh but i think its better like things with comedy of manners then with just acting clownish. Though some of the movements i do agree with like: Double takes, spit take (though that's grouse if you are the person they spit on) or even the running gags. Though i still think i'm bias because i just don't like clowns

Comedy of Manners

I am with Tatum when I say that Comedy of Manners is one of my favorite things to play. I personally like to dress well and use manners so it is so fun for me to take that, amplify it, then play out the most ridiculous scenarios. As with Tatum, I really like "Importance of Being Ernest" for it's dry, tongue in cheek, humor. Everyone is trying so hard to stay polite even though they are in a dire or precarious situation. Also, the "Importance of Ernest" is the only show that I really know of, besides "The Rivals", that utilizes comedy of manners. I am sure there are others, but I really do enjoy how Wilde portrayed comedy of manners.

Honk! Honk!

In reading "Be a Clown" by Turk Pipkin I noticed that a lot of what he was mention ing I knew and I have utilized before as a character. Although my characters were probably not meant to have these clown like qualities I adapted and used them. I also inspired me to maybe try and create a clown character. I do love to make people laugh so it really got me excited to try something new.

Scenes Dissected

Hello one and all.

Scene One: It was well done, the actors were comfortable with one another. But I agree with Ashara, it seemed a bit under rehearsed and there was room for a lot more exploration. Ashara's uncomfortable tactics read very well and were very entertaining. Jason had some strong moments but there were moments that were unfocused and some lines were dropped so I lost words.

Scene Two: I had so much feakin' fun in this scene it's not even funny. I enjoyed Mrs. Malaprop and her lack of observation and her hubris. But, a great deal of more rehearsal was required, but that was our fault. I felt like the connection with Gustavo's character was not there until halfway through as I became more comfortable and did not try to get laughs. I know that I did paraphrase a few lines so the memorization was there but not as strong as I would have liked it to have been.

Scene Three: I felt that Tatum was really working hard to remember her lines and therefor came across as unsure and unfocused. When the two cousins had their interaction I noticed that Nikki was flipping through pages in some of the book. This was funny because of the adjustment they had received the week before, but it read as if Nikki's character did not care about her cousin even though she had been dying to see her (if I remember rightly). It didn't quite make sense. I also felt that there were memorization issues there as well, I noticed Audrey and Nikki making long pauses and looks of terror when they were trying to remember their lines.

Scene Four: Good scene, but I felt that Mr. Absolute's energy was a bit too much and frantic at times. It funny when it fit, but after a while he seemed to stay on that frantic level. Because of the unfocused energy, I lost a lot of Mr. Absolute's lines so I was not always sure what was going on in the scene. Having Zane use his script on stage was, admittedly, distracting and it hindered his performance as the character and his movement.

And with that, I bid you good day.

Mrs. Malaprop Dress

"I'm sure I have done everything in my power since I exploded the affair." - Malaprop

Clown boy

 

Reading the article, Be a Clown by Sylviane Gold reminded me of how difficult and challenging it is to appear uncoordinated. I was intrigued about the idea of playing drunken 1/10th of a beat slower instead of just going with. Many actors say the best way to play drunk, is to play sober really hard, but here the actor McClure is saying to employ a mathematical concept of time to your acting and I have never even thought about acting in those terms before. I need some time to wrap my head around that concept before I can post again. Deep stuff.

 

Scott

 

Absolutely

This picture was my inspiration for my costume for Sir Absolute. I really appreciate how the clothes almost seem to make the character choices and movements for me so all I have to do is pay attention to what my body is telling me.

Scott

Body movement

Body buoyancy is the ability to move without restraint.  To glide through the air with a feeling of weightlessness.  It seems as though this feeling can only be felt when one understands their surrounds and an image is created by those interpretations.

The feeling of buoyancy is shown by the feeling of our arms rising after the wall exercises.  The after effects felt like my arms were floating up in the air without my control.  It was a very natural movement as in I didn't have to force them up using my arm muscle strength.

An introduction to clowning

So even though class was canceled today, I took some time to reflect on my past experiences with clowning in my high school theatre class.

Originally we were supposed to be doing mask work and molding a mask to fit our face, but the supplies didn't come in on time so it got modified to clowning and commedia del arte! Which I prefer so much more...

We started off with silent movies, watching the masters at their work! Buster Keaton, Charlie chapman, the classics. They encompassed the idea of a human cartoon which I feel is the true meaning of clowning and why it goes hand in hand with commedia. Both are forms of over exaggerated movement in theatre.  I anticipate we'll be watching plenty if silent films in this unit :)

Blog Posts Ahoy!

For more on what's up in class this week, check our official Blackboard site. For now, this is an announcement of the BLOG POST AMNESTY I am imposing on you. Catch up with all blog posts you have missed before next class meeting for partial credit.   ~Prof. Jenn

Tug o'war is fun. And tiring.
#matlife

Reviews are in

Chase scene

With Jason and Ashara, I really enjoyed watching the constant chase the two had worked out and I liked how Jason seemed constrained by his outfit yet his body fought to be loose due to his inebriation so he almost had two body positions. His top half was upright and straight with weak and wobbly legs for his lower half making it enjoyable to watch. Asharas ability to stand and be still when she was listening showed excellent body control because it made her character powerful. There was no fidgeting with her hands and when she did move they were strong movements. I would caution her about over using facial gestures and expressions and to suggest subtleness especially in intimate theatres (I know, I’m a hypocrite) because it almost made her character not as smart. Great scene.

Love Letters

All three actors represented their bodies well. What I mean is everyone in the scene seemed to grasp the underlining principle of proper body posting for who their characters were. Bryan’s ability to function so perfectly in heels shows a man with excellent coordination. Gustovo played his character smoothly, going from over towered by one character to eye to eye with the next and yet his body positioning and character stayed the same and he was able to work different nuances of going from weak to strong. I liked how Jordan stared out into nothing in her small monologue scene looking from the soldier and away. Her body positioning and stance, for some reason combined with the outfit and her look of distain made her seem like a women looking out over a desolate baron field ruined by locusts (sorry I didn’t see Cinderella) and that shows acting ability from simple body positioning. I really enjoyed this scene due to the high level of believe and intent from behind the actors in it.

Marry Who

All three actresses in this scene showed proper body positioning and carried themselves well. That said I was a little sad to see Tatum’s character in the scene to be so brief. I think Nikki wins costume award and I enjoyed how she held herself and walked, it reminded me of a queen bee, buzzing almost, especially with her use of the hand fan. Audrey had put in a lot of work to appear daft as a character and I liked how she appeared to be overly upright and proper but her lines said she didn’t care about such things. I think this was the hardest of the scenes due to the complexity of what was going on between Audrey and Nikki’s characters so to incorporate so much blocking and movement while maintaining proper body posture between the two was impressive.

Father Son

Zane could play a king in any Shakespeare play and do so convincingly. His stance as a soldier was awesome because just by standing he portrayed confidence and strength and his words come out strong and deep from his position of power. From an acting point I was extremely disappointed in myself for going to a high level too early and being stuck there, I had told myself repeatedly not do that but I did it anyway. From a body movement perspective I was satisfied that I maintained the posture and body positioning that I started with.

What an enjoyable day of class Friday was.

 Scott.

 

 

First Scene
I loved it! Jason and Ashara did an awesome job! It was an interesting contrast between a drunk and a sober(very smart) characters!

Second Scene
Brian and Gustavo and Jori also did amazing! Brain was hilarious at being a woman! Everyone's faces were awesome!

Third Scene
I think that we did pretty good! I don't know if we can really comment for ourselves but i think we did awesome as well.

Fourth Scene
Scott you character was big and funny and awesome! Zane did awesome too but i think you could have done more if you didn't have a script but hey that was hard to remember anyways you guys still did awesome!

Overall i think everyone did awesome if you couldn't already tell ;)

Rivals tableaux

How lovely you all are!!

Quote of the class

#matlife

(Not to be confused with the insurance company of a similar name...)

Scene Review

First Scene

Jason and Ashara did a nice job. Jason broke up his lines in strange areas and I wasn't sure if that was a character choice or not it seemed to work in places. Ashara could have been a bit louder.

Second Scene:

Brian and Gustavo had very good onstange energy in their scene, tactics were well played, Brian could have slowed down just a bit! Jordan had a nice ending to the scene with Gustavo.

My Scene

In my HUMBLE opinion I thought I played Lucy well with the proper tactics. She was in an awkward situation not having any of the books Lydia requested. Nikki and Audrey did a great job playing off each other's energy.

Fourth Scene

Scott was absolutely hilarious. I would have liked to have seen more in between levels of anger instead of the extreme right off the bat. When Zane was able to look away from his lines, everything flowed well!


Great job to everybody!

Scene Critique

First Scene: It was fun to do. The movement was a bit sketchy and seemed slightly awkward at points. It would have been nice to rehearse a bit more for it. We were a bit stiff. There was a lack of trust in the scene.

Second Scene: Everyone was brilliant. It would have been nice to see a bit more pure interaction with Absolute and Lydia. It seemed a bit artificial. There was a bit more artificiality during the top of the scene but it vanished when Brian and Gustavo relaxed into the scene.

Third Scene: This was fun. Tatum was a bit off. She didn't seem comfortable with the role. I would have liked to see her pick up the bottle when it fell. The flipping through the books was distracting. It didn't seem much in character. The ending was nice.

Fourth Scene: Lines need to be worked on for Zane. It would have helped his character development to have the confidence in knowing his lines. The movement was entertaining. A little less would have been nice but I liked that they weren't really planted. The volume when Sir Absolute dropped his energy in his speaking to undercut his lines was lost as well. It was hard to understand some of the words. Slowing down just a tad would have helped as well.

These were great. Can't wait to see the next thing we do.

Theatrical stillness

While reading this section, I was reminded of the still standing tableaux in the Ziegfeld Follies show. They did a lot of still standing poses, creating pictures and stories because it was less riske.

There is a lot of power in the still standing picture. And with the exploration of avant garde movement, taking still standing a little bit further by using slow moving transitions created a powerful image.

It's a different way of movement and creating a message still by....being still! This also reminds me of an improv game that I really love called "slide show" you use still standing pictures and two people will explain the meaning of the slides, always a fun game to play.