task 3- David Jackson

1) Porto is about a journey and the first stage of our journey was the research the group’s main focus within this research period is really just playing getting to know our individual characters how we interact with one another and mainly to test our physical abilities with in an open space. The research part is very important as it is about increasing the identity further and getting us to the same level and understanding and finding out naturalistic interactions and making the Porto community grow. This is the time within a piece to not be safe in what we produce “physical training is the process leading to creative freedom rather than perspective set of techniques. Its purpose is to enable actors to become more transformable and more expressive”. Callery D2001 page 1: practical Guide to Physical Theatre (Theatre Arts (Rutledge Paperback). So it is our chance to be creative whilst in the process and research phase
Then once the research/resource stage is completed we move onto the score stage when outside eyes and the ensemble begin to develop the interactions also reassessing individual parts and group collaborations. Effectively the piece begins to take form and Porto has a stronger identity



2) The structure of the piece seems to be about different characters, personalities and relationships confined within one space, being brought into somewhere but somehow not being able to get out. The main narrative within Porto I feel is between Jai and Nicolas character and Blake and Amy here there situation seems a lot more complex and their relationship throughout is quite fast paced loud which brings a different element to Porto and seem more surreal. The use of repetition within the sections also shows unity within the ensemble and that new characters are falling into a way of life losing personal identities. Further more this helps make the narrative clearer that we are all the same we all came in here with a problem and are looking for a way out; even though some of us try to break out we get bought back in. The main focus is around relationships at the moment s like mine, Gina and Antoinette’s love triangle and Gavin and Amy’s which are quite similar which again shows we are all the same. We need to be clever when doing this as with physical theatre “The key distinguishing factor is a focus on narrative, character and storytelling”.

3) From the research stage I thought that I had a strong character. However through the ensemble work and group work my character has changed a lot. On the contrary I was not thinking about my emotional side very much I was stuck in the trap of thinking if I walked a certain way or interacted with another person then I would be conveying what was on my mind but I was not being true to myself so I went back to the research stage
and questioned myself and literally asked myself what is my character feeling within Porto if I felt distant from everyone else maybe its my character that feels separate so I when we went back to the ensemble pieces I knew to show I alone within a mass and it related to Paul's voice over when he said “Have you ever felt alone in a crowd?”. Which is what my character truly believes? Because no one relates to his message I am trying to share. So for now on I will ask myself would my character do this. Who would he talk to within the ensemble? And then through interactions with others my questioned will be answered. I feel that I need to get into my character more take risk and let go.


Bibliography:

Callery, D. (2001) Through the Body, A Practical Guide to Physical Theatre. London, Routledge
http://www.blackfishacademy.com/physical.htm