Tuesday 22 May 2012

Hampshire: Notes on Hull Truck Theatre Company's DNA at the Salisbury Playhouse

Notes on Hull Truck Theatre Company's DNA at the Salisbury Playhouse

Open ended stage with shallow apron
Aims: show ‘the group’, individual vs. group, show society on small scale,
theme of responsibility
Style: Overtly naturalistic, transcript-like script
Genre: naturalistic piece with dark humour and tragic elements
Set-non naturalistic
Preset
·         Mat on floor: didn’t cover whole stage – covered in QR code
·         8 banks of 4 plastic blinds along the back = create cyclorama
o    Flaps serve as entrances and exits
·          Dim house lights, Fingerprint scan, DNA sequence projection, occasional grille silhouette. Darkness = sinister
·         Static noises: pattern-less, set the audience on edge
·         Lights snap off and music increases. Projection remains
Field
·         Minimalist: rectangle of bright green Astroturf. Sometimes longer (when Leah is leaving)
·          Lit from above but stretches US: rectangular shape matches shape of grass (close and cosy, enclosed, together)
·         Projection: clouds, sky, birds, moving. [identified scene = motif]
·         All grass pulled out together for final scene. Length = empty
·         Brightest scene/detached from other scenes: audience gets to know characters better
·         Grass progresses across stage in different scenes
Woods
·         Only time flaps used as entrance/exit
o    Makes space seem enclosed and separate/more immediate: gave woods depth
·         Projection: started long branch silhouettes but gradually became more tangled and complex
o    Mirrors plot: shadows of people moving through trees [shadowgraph] = creepy, unnerving, guilt
o    Shadows combined w/ flaps = danger, entrapment, atmosphere and tension
·         Flaps open when Adam is found: reveal all characters (except John Tate)
Street
·         1st à Office windows = urban environment/faceless outside world
o    Low strip of light across stage
·         2nd à (phone call) video footage of street w/ cars and houses. Diagonal and pans, like walking up a street on a slope; shaky, hand-held camera shot
o    Mobile phone = SFX
o    Trains, cars SFX, stereophonic: gives sense of movement (suggestion of outside world)
o    Two low strips of light across stage from side to side, 1 DS, 1 US = big shadows in opposite directions
·         3rd à wall w/ graffiti = urban and contemporary
o    Urban/moral decay, danger but also acceptance of danger
o    Low strip of light across stage
Sound
·         Field at end: birdsong (Leah not there to fill silence OR Phil listened to Leah all along: birds = not listening to Richard)
·         Naturalistic sounds for Richard/Cathy scenes
·         Music during scene transitions and revealing of Adam (v. dramatic as blinds turn)
Lighting
·         Non naturalistic
·         Head height and thigh height side lights = dramatic shadows (guilt, hiding, two-faced characters [?])
·         Sculpture profile spots: two horizontal strips across stage
·         Field lit from above near audience = effect of slanted daylight
Costume
·         Cathy: (Bright colours shows personality and boldness/ confidence), more confident in heels than Lou
o    start: black bodycon skirt, white shirt w/ loose school tie, purple puffer jacket, bare legs, high tops
o    middle: yellow crop top jumper, purple top under, pink/red leopard print skirt, bare legs, high tops
o    end: shiny red bodycon dress w/ belt, red stilettos (status and power ‘dominatrix’)
Acting moments
·         John Tate: retelling of Adam’s death (the last scene with John Tate)
o    Interpreted as the most guilty: body language – tries to hide behind Danny (blocking alerts the audience)
o    Lowers head, lack of eye contact, arms crossed, chin lowered = defensive (CONTRAST with previous aggression)
o    SR compared to previous CS – shows he is wary of Phil
o    Stands up straight at end of retelling – faces the group ‘he’s dead’ = acceptance/reassurance – still in charge. Moves on
o    High pitched voice = nervous or angry
·         Phil: finds out about fat postman
o    Doesn’t visibly react – doesn’t want people to see his emotions
o    CS – shows dominance. Brian/Cathy SL, Leah USR
o    ‘This is a bad situation’ – calm, soft voice, puts a reassuring hand on Brian’s shoulder but then tightens grip: shows he won’t be stood up to
o    loses control and resorts to violence  - grabs Brian w/2 hands around face and back of his neck, held v. tightly = dominance physically + mentally ‘we’ll take you up to the grille…’ he is calculating, not fazed by violence, cold. Not governed by emotion
o    returns to normal while Brian’s posture closes: wraps arm around him, cries, feet together, knees bent
o    Tone of voice softens, pause, ‘we’ll kill you’ = draws attention to line, separates it from other lines. Delivery contrasts w/ meaning = more unnerving
o    Phil: manipulation w/ Br/Ca but physical aggression w/ Richard to establish dominance. Impresses John Tate w/ cleverness
·         Phil and Leah: Field
o    Phil doesn’t know how to respond to Leah so ignores her
o    End scene: tried to comfort her but awkward – side hug = uncomfy w/ contact, offers sweet. Never before so shows his feelings/her importance
o    Eating crisps/suicide: faf before eating crisps = OCD. Leah: ‘Phil, this is it…’ Phil opens crisps = anti-climax and shows he knows her well (she won’t do it)
o    Starbursts: v. specific actions. Unwrapped them and laid them out
o    Waffle – frustration at being interrupted. Frustration = actor? Effective?
o    Hat = Leah. Gone when she is gone. Phil SR, Leah SL, Phil cross legged, Leah hugs knees
·         Leah: talking w/ Phil
o    Talks fast –fill silence, eye movements – always looking at P, jiggling, wringing hands, fiddling w/ grass
o    Timing of lines: pauses make audience/Leah uncomfortable, not Phil. Reflects Leah’s insecurity ‘Are you happy?’ realises what she says, hurries to cover it up
o    Slow pace in these scenes despite Leah because P doesn’t respond
o    ‘Phil, Phil, Phil, Phil, Phil, Phil’ does it to get a response. Variation.
o    Tolerant of his silence. Rarely questions it. Often only looks to see if he reacts then goes back to talking
o    Bonobo scene: flops to ground after suicide on back, knees up. Half-sits to check his reaction. Flops back…goes into ‘sex, sex, sex,’ looks to see for reaction. Sits up and gives up
·         Brian: before and after
o    First woods scene: Pulled on by Richard, internalised body language (feet together, arms folded or wrapped around him, turns slowly, brings head up then down and starts to cry quietly)
o    Shaken by Phil = floppy to show lack of control
o    Insane: open posture – feet apart, arms swinging, chest out, face up, smiley expressions
o    Exaggerated movements, doesn’t maintain eye contact, ALWAYS moving, unnerving and unnatural, different, BIG CONTRAST
o    ‘lets hold hands’ grabs hands, energetic. ‘shut up’: sits cross legged, arms folded, finger to lips USR
o    Reverted to childhood
o    Plastic bag: obedient to Phil: stood still straight DSL
o    Ineffective: eat dirt (there was no dirt: hard to reconcile naturalistic acting w/ non naturalistic set here)
·         Cathy:
o    Returned from police station w/ Richard: stood DSL and spoke out to audience = proud of herself/excited, not fazed by situation
o    ‘shut up’ – frowns, turns and moves US, turned towards group = needs acceptance of group, cares what people think. Wants excitement not consequences
o    She steps forwards at mention of Adam’s death – voice grows louder, becomes defensive but excited, leans forward
o    Admitted about policeman: CS in centre of group/attention. Looked around at everyone = proud. But when she realised she’s wrong she immediately backed down – tried not to be noticed. Moved to edge of group + stayed quiet
o    Mentioned using violence to get Adam out of the hedge: matter of fact, defying a challenge
o    Relishes describing threatening to tear his eyes out – smiles, looks down or out, as if imagining it, likes violence
















Phil and Leah
I did not take this picture












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