- When mistakes happened we covered each other well. We also used our initiatives to prevent mistakes from happening:
- When Kat put down the tray with drinks down at the side of the stage, Charlie drank them to prevent them spilling if someone were to accidentally knock them over.
- A Chair wasn't left on stage for the Interrogation / Room 101 for James to sit on, so before I knew I had to take James on, I walked on and placed a chair in the right place. I did this as quietly as I could, but I had a serious expression and looked at O'Brien so it looked as if I was working for him, organising things.
- We didn't have a box to put on Winston's head for Room 101, so Charlie used his initiative and put his jacket over his head. This actually worked quite well as we hadn't practiced with a box, and the jacket gave Winston a blackout and the sense of being trapped, but it also allowed the audience to use their imaginations. Moreover, as our play is very abstract, it worked quite well being representational.
- On the whole, everyone remembered the majority of their lines. Although at times there were a couple of stumbles, we all quickly recovered, making them barely noticeable.
- Physical theatre sections went really smoothly. We all remembered the movements, and there were no accidents.
- Everyone's characterisation was really strong. We all used our facial expressions and body language to the best of our abilities.
- I used my stance to create a contrast between when I am Mother in Winston's memory and when I am during Book Club and the two minutes hate. I lead with my forehead and was very inverted as Mother in Winston's memory, but when I was in the two minutes hate I stood taller and lead with my chest.
- I think our costumes all looked very fitting for the 1940s setting.
- I think that our set was very effective, although it was quite simplistic. The posters created the feeling of corruption, manipulation and dystopia. The fact that we left the chairs in the Book Club positions representing that everyone is always being watched. The fact that we sat at the sides whenever we weren't in Book Club or on stage also represents that we are always being watched.
- I really liked the fact that a blood capsule was used for when Winston's teeth were pulled out, as it looked really realistic.
What didn't go so well:
- The posters of the Party Slogans that we stuck to the curtains:
- Not all of the posters were pinned up (some were only attached with duct tape), so a couple fell down during the performance - however, this didn't matter too much as it symbolised that the Party was corrupt and that Winston was being mentally broken down.
- As we pinned the posters up, we should've taken the duct tape off, as when we pulled the posters down, we ended up with the posters getting stuck to our feet as we were walking about... however, if we wanted to become analytical, we could say that the Party manipulates you and becomes a part of you, whether you want it to or not!
- A couple of transitions were a little bit messy as chairs ended up in the wrong place, as well as props.
- As we hadn't rehearsed with props, the props were often forgotten (e.g. the chocolate and the coffee) and so were mimed instead. However, this actually worked well as the play is very abstract anyway.
- Not everyone was confident on their cue lines. I went to say my line in the interrogation, asking Winston his name, but was cut off by another cast member. However, this wasn't too much of an issue as they left a slight pause and gave me a look so I could say my line, and then they continued with theirs in a way in which it still made sense.
- Due to not doing a costume run earlier, and due to the costumes themselves, not all of us wore coats for the Book Club scenes. The idea of wearing coats was to show that it was "present day" and that we ere in a different location. However, I don't think this was too much of an issue as some characters in the Book Club completely overlap into different locations, so it kind of worked.
- We would pin the posters up with pins and not have duct tape on them at all, to avoid them getting stuck to people's feet.
- We would warn our audience that some scenes were violent and may be upsetting, as there were some younger audience members.
- We could have had a whiteboard saying "This week's book: 1984" turned to face front every time Book Club was happening - this would help the audience realise that it was a Book Club and not a school or anything. Alternatively, we could have had a little introduction at the beginning to welcome everyone to the Book Club.
- Our video projections could have been a little bit louder as we struggled to hear every word.
- Done more rehearsals with props and in costume.
