Workshop (3) - "Opening Sequence"

To begin this lesson, we read through this number again to ensure that we had remembered our timing. We then began staging this number. We combined mine and Lewis's idea by having us all start in different positions - me, Rob and Lewis stand in one line, with James and Ollie in front (these positions ensure that we can all be seen, and the fact that we all stand still it intrigues the audience to what is going to happen).

We decided that we wanted this piece to be physical and show all of our characters but weren't initially sure where to go after our positions. Therefore we began by deciding what we wanted to include and where. We knew that we wanted a lift of some sort on the line "think you know where you stand", however we weren't sure what lift we wanted - therefore we tried out a couple:

• First lift:   We tried me being lifted up in a crucifix position by Ollie and Lewis. James and Rob then lifted my feet up so I was in the air horizontally. I was then manoeuvred in to a chair position held by Lewis and Ollie. They then swung me forwards and backwards and then threw me (safely!) to the floor, with me ending on one knee crouched down.
• Second lift:   We tried a pencil lift, with Ollie and Lew picking me up just by my legs. Rob and James stood behind ready to catch me, as I then fall backwards into their arms. They lower me slightly so my feet are on the floor, and then lift up slightly, so I ripple upwards and forwards and then land on the floor on one knee crouched down.

We preferred the second lift out of the two as it looked more impressive as I am higher up and have less people holding me. I also have to have 100% trust in all four of them, especially James and Rob as I fall backwards into their arms. I was quite proud of myself in this lesson because I was brave enough to try out these risky lifts. As I am being lifted for this section, we thought that this could be my character's section. We changed my character slightly to become a dancer. We move from our two lines into one before my two solo lines - this is to represent a line for an audition. To portray this idea clearly, we all do a couple of stretches in this line whilst I say my lines. Before I get lifted, Rob and James shake hands (as if James was successful at the audition and Rob was the judge congratulating him) - as I realised this was happening, I then do a quick pirouette (as if in attempt to show what I can do and that I should get the job). Ollie and Lew then pick me up and then I get dropped into James and Rob's arms and then thrown to the floor. The purpose of this was to aim to present how difficult the performing arts industry is and how unpredictable it can be.

We thought this would then be a good place to move on to a different character. Due to the lines at this point, we thought we should move on to Ollie as this businessman next (as the lines "completely different land" and "surface sometimes cracks" made us think of a businessman who has travelled to an important meeting that doesn't go as planned). To create a busy city scene, we perform the Frantic Assembly technique of "round-by-through" movements (which we previously used to create a busy scene in our own version of a scene from "Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time"). The boys all interact by using these movements, whilst I am on the floor as quite an aggressive beggar to make Ollie's character feel more uncomfortable, as well as fulfilling the stereotypes of a busy city setting. It made sense for me to be a beggar, as I was already on the floor crouched down from my scene - so I roll over from one knee into a sitting down position miming holding a cup.

Due to the line "and your life is different than you planned", we thought we could then have Rob's character scene of a newspaper editor. We thought that he could be a bit depressed in his job - perhaps he thought this was the job he wanted to do but didn't realise how hard it would be). We wanted to form an office for Rob, but didn't want to bring on tables and chairs - also we wanted to make the whole piece very physical and abstract. Therefore, Ollie became a chair (by going on all fours) whilst I became the table (by standing up and doing a table top position, so my back is completely horizontal and perfectly flat). Rob would sit on Ollie and lean on me, whilst James and Lewis kept bringing over paper to Rob and putting it on my back.

We didn't get time to block James's scene, but we know that we would like to have him writing a letter to his lover (to present him as the old romantic type) whilst the other four of us would form pairs and act as if we were in love, doing some sort of movement piece. Between each scene we go back to our opening positions to show that we have changed perspective.