Rachel C's Drama in the Community

Choir Meeting and First Rehearsal

2010-05-12T09:31:00.000-07:00

This will be my last blog! I am handing this in tomorrow and so would like to wrap up my experience as a whole, which will be fairly difficult as the hand in is before the event. Firstly I would say that this end part, our first story rehearsal (learning Jenny and Ben's script) has been the most enjoyable for me. I feel that this has been the most organic part of the process, Jenny and Ben wrote it and cast it and now we will be performing it on the day, for the entertainment of all the children in the community, this for me is what the process of Drama in the Community should be about. After all the Choir meetings and school visits I finally feel that after our big Choir meeting it has all payed off, it will be gratifying that after all the hard work I have put in, I will hopefully have a successful event to show for it.

Onto the meeting on Sunday. It went really well. Ed, Zoe and I each had the responsibility of communicating one section to all the choir leaders. Zoe did in the grounds when they will be performing, I took charge of the Singing Schedule and Ed communicated the full Itinerary, I was immensely nervous as I feel that my public speaking leaves a lot to be desired. Luckily it went really well, I held my nerves in check and communicated with them clearly and articulately, I was also able to answer questions that they asked, sometimes with the help of the team, which was great as we all pitched in on each others parts, this gave me a sense of community in itself.

All I can say now is, good luck for the event everyone! I am sure that with all the hard work we have put in we will have a fantastic day, lets bring the community together and have a fun and exhilarating final ever project at St. Marys!

...The End :(

2010-04-30T05:51:00.000-07:00

Just thought I would send a quick message to explain how I am feeling right now!

We just had our last Vision and Tech lecture and performances. If I were to use one word to describe all of them I would say FANTASTIC, but they were so fantastic I would also have to describe them as, visionary, inspiring, touching and entertaining!! I have learned so much doing the module which is now to be scrapped, like many of Pauls other modules, what a traversty!!! The reason that this feeling spills over into my final module of Drama in the Community is because the sense of community I have gained from Vision and Technology is overwhelming. This is the most important aspect of this module and I feel that this is something I feel on a different scale when I go to see a choir perform or for instance the feeling I got at the Ham Community day that I have previously blogged about, or the feeling of community gained by visiting one of the schools, which Patsy, Zoe and I did at the beginning of the week. The children were so excited to be a part of this event, although a huge emphasis was put on if there would be cake, and if so how much, and if so how could we possibly fit 4oo candles onto one cake as by the time you reached the last 100 the first 100 would have either melted or burned out! Kids do say funny things!

Hi there!!

2010-04-27T13:33:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone, I am back in cyber world, haven't blogged in ages... but I now have something interesting to garble on about! We did the family fun day at Ham House this weekend, it was fantastic, we all had a really fun day, painting the kids faces and playing games with them, all the time promoting for the 23rd.

We had lots of people interested in attending the day while we were walking around the grounds of the house. I feel that throughout this project I have had moments that have brought me back down to earth with a bump and reminded me what the module is all about. When we were paying games with the children I just felt in my element, not even because I love children, but because I feel that I am helping other people to enjoy their day, enjoy their time! Hopefully the kids we were playing with will remember how much fun they had for a long time, it is fantastic to know that you may have had an imprint in someone else's life, whether it be a child's or an elderly member of the community, this is what Drama in the Community is all about. I like to write about things that have really touched me as my journey has progressed, and I know I should probably write more about the logistics of the day, or the organisation that I am part in terms of my being a member of the quoir team, but I do not feel passionately about events management, I feel passionately about people, these are the times when I compare this project to the project I have loved most since joining St. Marys, which was TIE. TIE gave me the opportunity to work with children who have been placed into a Pupil Referral Unit, this changed my perception of whole groups of society, it gave me the opportunity to work on my people skills in the face of extreme difficulty. The reward was happy children, children that were interested in something that gave them the opportunity to better themselves and their situations for the first time in their lives, you cannot get much more community based than that, and they were my inspiration for taking this module.

I am going with Zoe to see another quoir in the morning and see if they would like to be part of our celebration of Ham Houses birthday!

Chat soon!

R x

Bell Ringing

2010-03-08T15:44:00.000-08:00

Just a quick post about my excitement of the bell ringing evening last week! Hannah, Charlotte, Sarah and I went to All Hallows Church in Twickenham last week to watch the bell ringing, with the idea that they will play hand held bells at Ham House as part of the Birthday celebrations. I know none of you will judge me if Im honest and I have to say that at first I was a bit like ah really, bell ringing, I had in mind a load of old people standing on an alter with bells in their hands ringing them! I was so wrong, you could ask my housemates and they would testify that I came back from the bell ringing feeling really excited. As you all know I haven't been and am still not very well, and he experience really cheered me up. The spirit of the people that ring was amazing, I found them happy, positive and friendly, but above all actually really talented! The bell ringing itself (''actual'' bell ringing- i.e big ropes that are pulled coming down through the ceiling) They almost had their own language between them. this was the first time this semester that I had a real feeling of community, which I was expecting to get earlier in the course, I think it was down to the fact that there were people from all walks of life there at the bell ringing, from little old ladies to young men, from old men to young women, and they were all on the same wavelength and all excited about our event, as were the members of the quior I went to visit with Zoe last week, although I will write about this when I am less tired and in need of pain killers and bed! Anyway I would really urge anyone thinking about going to the ringing to go. It was not just a demonstration, we actually had a go at ringing the bells, which at first for me was terrifying! I was really nervous, they had told us previously of how precious the bells are, they are in optimum position, each one for how it needs to be rung. This was a lot of pressure when it came to pulling one, we were told that you could end up on the ceiling! We managed with help to ring the bell properly and it felt really good to be experiencing something really new at the hands of others in your own community that you have never met before, I feel that this is the main aim of community based projects, to bring people closer!

The best part for me was learning the history of the bells and the church which originally stood in central London but was brought to Twickenham bit by bit, there were not enough people visiting the church as it was in London. We ascended into a room above what you would imagine to be the highest room in the tower, on a very small and scary ladder, where the bells are kept, with their ropes hanging through the floor into the room below. We were told that it would be unhealthy to sound the bells whilst we were in the room with them as this could be deafening! (not to mention the fact that when all bells are sounded at once the whole tower moves... noticeably!) On the pin board of the room below was tacked a picture taken in the 1930's. A small girl, her identity unknown, standing next to the largest bell possessed by the church, a few hundred kilograms from being a ton weight, she looked so small in her white linen dress. I felt so small next to that monster! It was a great night and a really exciting experience.

Getting Back on your Feet

2010-02-28T02:18:00.000-08:00

I have had a bit of what I would call a learning curve this month. As many of you guys will know I have been really ill and therefore a little out of the loop and although I have dragged myself to all meetings with Patsy, Ed and Zoe I feel as if I am floating away. I suppose this is a feeling one might get when organising an event such as this, which requires planning, contacting and then basically waiting... Im just feeling at a bit of a loss which is a shame.

In terms of practicality I am now starting to realise the difficulty, the inevitable difficulty i might add, of running two thirty credit modules along side each other. I am actually in the process of my exams in my media module, Advanced TV Studio Practice, this is really exciting but it is taking up so much of my time, and with feeling this ill I feel as if my other subjects are suffering, even though Vision & Tech is really exciting i have missed some, I think I will be getting inspiration from that module in an important way, motivationally.

There is something that I fear for this semester group wise, although Ham House Storytelling at Xmas was a great event, i feel that it could have been made better by a more lasting commitment to the project by some members of the group, however on the day as the stage manager I did not let this get to me and ruin my performance as what I felt I was on that weekend, a leader. It was great that people from the group actually even approached me to congratulate me on such a good job, I loved the feeling of being accepted by he group as a good leader and a depedaple individual in terms of osubject. The sad part is that I feel that some people are less enclined to involve people that have been away for some reason or another. Ihave missed my other modules as well as Drama in the Community due to illness, and although I havent been in uni this month I have been to all meetings with my selected gruop, no matter how ill I have been.

However I am feeling a little better and willl be as the title of my blog suggests, back on my feet with excitement and enthusiasm! I am intending to write a blog in the very near future about the quior plans, I am looking at the info I have first!

Have Fun Guys!

R x

Hmmm... am I boring?!

2010-01-30T05:01:00.000-08:00

Well, getting people to reply to your fabulously polite emails is harder than anticipated! Almost the same frustration I am feeling about my blog, to be honest, it is in fact a tragedy that I have not blogged for so long, the truth is, I don't really know what to say, after having a very interesting and honest conversation about my entry's with one particular Scottish gentleman I am a little discouraged! When looking back and reading them I do feel as if they are a little pale maybe in comparison with others exciting tales, and I do agree with the bizarre critisism that all I write about is Drama in the Community... well sorry!

I will now talk about Drama in the Community! loving the ideas for the new project, great carnivally theme, that will be fun! I am very pleased with my new job too! Upset I couldn't make it to see the quiors singing with Ed and Patsy this week though, sounded fun, there will be other opportunities! But as previously mentioned, people don't really reply as much as anticipated, but nevertheless am soldiering on making phone calls to telephones with no recipients and writing emails to addresses that seem to have no body ever in! Oh well, hope everyones well!

Rehearsal!

2009-11-18T10:16:00.000-08:00

We had a rehearsal today. I felt like we got lots of work done actually! There was one idea in particular I really like, I think the majority of the group really liked the idea. We will have a Q&A with Santa! The children, or their parents will be able to ask Santa any questions they might want to ask. This means that the material can be changed depending on who is asking the questions, this continues on from the idea I had about the fact that it is a family fun day, and therefore not just for children. This will be adlibed so obviously the person playing santa will have to be fast on their feet when questions are asked, the results of this could be quite comical!

Also we were having a little think about set, and I mentioned that it might be nice to have a couple of specific places where stories are told, so these place will have a static set that doesn't particularly change. I suggested a little rug and a Christmas tree, with some twinkly lights or something? This will give the area a Christmassy but also homely feel for the children and adults, to relax into the story.

I want to kidnap Frank to come with us every weekend! He came in and told us a story that he had come up with in about 2 minutes at the beginning of the rehearsal! It was brilliant he was talking to us about some storytelling techniques that he likes to use when performing. Like pronounciation and really enjoying the words for example. And enjoying the material and using body language to connect with the audience, I will definitely be taking his advice on board, and remembering all of the tips form the storytelling module last year.

I believe we are all writing our own stories this week, so good luck people!!

x

OOOOH Ghost Tours!!

2009-11-16T12:51:00.002-08:00

Hi guys, haven't blogged for a while!
Would just like to write a quick post about the inspiration of the ghost tour! It was excellent, for anyone that went, how much did you love the old guy?! He was brilliant!

He got me really thinking about storytelling technique, as his dramatic pauses were brill! Also I was thinking that the guy who took us round the house mentioned that they do a ghost tour for kids! It makes you think about when you were little, remember telling ghost stories with a torch to your friends and all freaking each other out? hilarious! Don't really think ghost stories would be appropriate for a Christmas/winter theme, which is a shame because kids love being freaked out.

Really glad we have decided to have some of us walking around the house in character as this will give the weekends a real feeling of authenticity for not only the children, but the adults too! It would be funny to whisper a bit of adult humour into their ears occasionally, make it more about the adults as well, after all it is a FAMILY fun day after all!

Thinking its really great that we are now having a meeting every Wednesday as well as Friday mornings as I think rehearsal is paramount at this stage in the game. Great to hear all the stories on Friday! Absolutely loved the idea of approaching the children in character and letting them choose what they want to hear, I would say probably the most effective way to get the best out of kids... letting them get their own way in a sense!

Any way bloggers see you all on Wednesday!

P.S Zoe don't make me run around again!!

x

Hhhmmmm...

2009-10-19T16:25:00.000-07:00

Hi there my little fellow bloggers! :)

I can't sleep! had the longest day ever today! Was just having a think about Cardboard Citizens last Monday. Was really wondering what was going on with us, well speak for yourself Rach, what was going on with me? Don't get me wrong I totally loved it, although I think maybe only two stories were needed. I just so did NOT want to get up and join in, usually I would go for it and really get involved! The most ridiculous thing was the fact that I actually wanted to! There were some situations where I was itching to get up and try to make a difference. Why didn't I get up and do it? There was a few of us there that did not get up and join in and i know we all had ideas. Why??

Thats all, just a wee query! If you guys know why you didn't, that might tell me why I didn't. (If you see what I mean?!)

R x

Initial Thoughts!

2009-10-12T18:55:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! Welcome to my blog! I'm not going to lie, I am a little computer illiterate so this may take me a few attempts to sound like myself! I would like to use this space to create a diary of my personal journey and the journey of the group. I will also apologise in advance for chatting on and on and on and on... as I tend to do!

In our first lecture at the beginning of the module I was relieved to learn that our writing doesn't have to be totally formal, which is great as I will begin by saying that I had a wicked time on our first visit to Ham House, the whole thing seems really exciting! We all, as you already know (you watched it) got totally inspired by the gardens. Jenny, Sharmilla, Hannah, Zoe and myself got a bit excited, and possibly carried away whilst devising a small peice of theatre in the gardens. We all devised something fictional or factual about something that had happened in the gardens, and as we are not so hot on the history of natioinal trust properties (yet!) we went straight for the fiction. Everyone else went down the fictional route too, which did actually have some hillarious consequences- ie Chantelles group, of course I am referring to 'the affair with the languages teacher' scenario!

Anyway, the girls and I found a little spot with boxes and four grand looking seats consuming the edge of the space, kind of in a circle. As we know Jennie is a budding little writer so she started a poem about four fairies that live in the Ham House gardens. These faireis are the creators of the seasons. I think we had the seasons idea as, I know for me anyway, Autumnal weather is the most obvious of all four seasons in many ways. I was winter, Sharmilla- Autumn, Hannah- Spring and Zoe - Summer. As Jennie told the group the poem, we emerged from the boxes we were hiding in, to eventually come together as one.

Obviously and as usual, I was thinkling about this small performance on a ridiculously grand scale, make-up to represent each season, costume to match and a silly amount of fairy lights! I imagined this as did the other girls performed in the cold winter at night, or at least when a little dark... we want to make it part of the Christmas Fun Festival. I think it will make the performance a bit more magical, with the Christmas spirit and all that.

I have to admit that we did all get really carried away and assumed that the rest of the group would love the idea of doing it at the festival, so I was a little gutted to learn that everyone wanted to save it for the summer's 400th Birthday celebrations. I just feel that the atmosphere wont be the same in the warmth of the summer.

I am also thinking about how exciting it is to have total creative control as a group and the house and gardens are amazing! I mean even if we never peform the fairy thing, I think it's really important that we were so inspired on our first visit to the gardens. It just goes to show for me how influencial a space can be. Also I am planning on getting my hands on 'Community Performance: An Introduction.' Will let you all know how I get on!

Promise my next entry wont be this long! Have fun!