I performed my monologues for my advisor this morning, and I'm pleased to say that she liked it. Kym said that I was well rehearsed and very committed. Thankfully, her advice was very constructive and not at all harsh. I told her that after the performance, I felt drained; I had used up my energy and had none left. Kym advised me to be more aware of how I use my energy. It doesn't have to come out all at once, but in controlled bursts so that I don't get tired too quickly. Just because I'm not releasing all of my energy doesn't mean the audience can't sense it. I'll have to adjust my method to account for that. I also need to be aware of the energy coming from other characters. Just because I was the only one performing doesn't mean that there aren't other characters on stage. For example, in The Crucible monologue, I'm supposed to be surrounded by the high council. They're giving off energy in response to my energy, and I need to have that register in my perception. It will make my performance all the more convincing.
I definitely need to have more variety in my characters; they could have been developed more. A lot of my movements and gestures were the same. I need to branch out more in order to truly create convincing characters. A lot of what I did had purpose, but it needs to be more defined; some of it seemed half-hearted. When playing multiple characters, I need to be aware of making them very different from each other. With the Shakespeare characters, I was only switching from wearing a hat to not wearing a hat to tell the difference. I could do so much more; such as changing my voice or posture, the way I walk. These are all useful changes that I need to keep in mind to further develop my method.
Overall, I'd say that my method is off to a great start. But there's so much room for improvement. Over time, I can figure out what to add or what to take away. Only experience will tell. As I play more roles, I can figure out what parts of my method I need to change. I performed my best for my advisor, and I'm just hoping that it was good enough.
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The Senior Capstone Project Journal of Aaron J. Holt
Документальная прозаUpon completing his senior year at the University of Minnesota, Aaron J. Holt put his theatrical skills to the test. Tasked with creating his own character development method, Aaron drew from various methods. Then, to prove that it worked, he had to...
