Commedia dell'Arte Performance Task Peer Evaluation

Hello! Me again <3

Referring to my last post, I also have to do an evaluation of one of my peers. Their character had to be the opposite of my character so I chose to do The Witch because she is sneaky and evil but Columbina is sweet and kind. The witch was played by Amara

Evaluate their character based on what you know about the character

I think that Amara's character as the witch was quite weak. Witches are more serious and her performance was more entertaining. She wasn't evil enough to be a believable witch. She could have taken the role more seriously. She did try to play the witch but didn't study her enough and probably didn't practice her performance

How close did they come? What did you like about the performance?

Amara didn't come very close with her performance but some aspects were good. I liked what she was doing in the performance. The evil laugh wasn't the best but it was a good thing to add to the performance.

How can they improve their performance?

Amara can improve her performance by not giggling when she did her evil laugh! She also could have walked differently because it looked as if she was about to fall over. She should have walked more broadly. She didn't look very evil so she should have changed her facial expressions and used her eyes to take out to the audience.

What score would you give them out of 10 based on the Criterion B descriptors? Explain why

I would give Amara a five out of ten. This is because she showed that she had applied the techniques but not very well. Her performance did fit some of the descriptors of what we had to do but it was clear that the performance was unpracticed. She did not use a range of skills.

BYE! xox

Commedia dell'Arte Performance Task Personal Evaluation

Hello there! 

In class on Wednesday, we performed our final Commedia pieces for the entire class. As you know, I was Columbina! I now need to write o personal evaluation. 

What choices did you make for your rough draft performance?

In my rough draft performance, I chose to do a scene which shows Columbina helping her mistress to get dressed. I decided to curtsy at the mistress to chow that she had a higher status than me and it helped the audience to understand what was going on. As a take out to the audience, I smiled at them.

How much time did you spend practicing for the performance?

I spent a lot of time practicing for the performance. I practiced during the class time and also in my own time. I practiced most nights and also on the day of the final performance.

What specific feedback did you get for your rough performance?

My feedback was:

Lower you’re very tall, so try to walk a little lower

Good interaction with hair and such nice curtsy, head down when curtsy

Head down when you walk as an act of subservience

Watch some Downton Abbey and see how staff interact with Family

Less flitty/tippy toey and more “earthy” for walking/movement.

What did you choose to change for your final performance? 

For my final performance, I did not change too much. I made another take out to the audience where I do a curtsy at them. I took my feedback into consideration and kept my head down when I walked. I also looked down when I curtsied as my feedback suggested.

How did you feel your final performance went?

I think that my final performance went well because I kept to my plan and everything went well. The only thing I forgot was to keep my head down when I curtsied. I looked down but did not bow my head. Overall though, I think it went very well.

What specific feedback did you get?

My feedback was:

Nice take out to curtsy

Remember head down to be more tall actually bow head instead of just looking down

Interactions appropriate

Pick up item downstage instead of upstage so no back to audience

Look down when curtsying

How do you thing your performance compared to the stock characters in the video?

I think that my performance was different to the stock character of Columbina in the video. This is because I was following my teachers advice and was doing the performance in a way that she though was right. 

What score would I give my performance out of 10 using Criterion B descriptors? Explain why

I would give myself a  nine out of 10 based on the Criterion B descriptors. This because, I was able to use a range of appropriate skills in my performance, for example, a take out to the audience. I was also creative with my piece of work which I think deserves a high level.

Bye now! xox

Commedia solo performance

Hi!

In class last Wednesday, we watched some videos from the National Geographic. They described most of the Commedia characters in detail. We were asked to create a blog post about them but I have already done that in my post 'Stock characters of Commedia dell'Arte'. We were also told to pick a character to play. I chose Columbina. I did not write about her last time so I will now.

Columbina
She is the perky servant girl to one of the higher status women. She wears better clothes than most of the other servants because she is the lady's personal made. She always has a basket and dresses like her mistress or a skirt that falls slightly below the knee. She is a petite and attractive girl but also a strong, confident character. She is a mix of all the different characters. Most of the time, Columbina is unmasked, but her eyes are made pretty with makeup. Sometimes, she wears a mask that covers just her eyes which is also quite pretty. When she is standing still, one leg is straight, and the other bent. She leads with her hips to show off her features. She walks with a small flick of her foot and has a bounce to her walk. Her hands are usually placed on her hips. Columbina has a gossipy voice which varies in pitch depending on her mood. She is in love with Arlecchino. She has a very strong relationship with the audience. She often flirts with the audience and shows them that she also thinks that the rest of the characters are making fools of themselves. Columbina is usually at the center of everything that happens in the plot. She has a very strong influence on the outcome of the story. Her animal is a dove.

Columbina Mask

Columbina and Arlecchino

Columbina and Arleccino

I chose to play Columbina because she is a very feminine character like me! She is quite a main character and I like being main characters because I get the most experience from doing more. She is an extremely interesting character and I really enjoyed researching her. 

In class we made a small mime scene with our characters that lasted around 15-30 seconds long. We had to act on our own just to show who the character was. My scene shows Columbina helping her mistress get dressed. I decided to curtsy at the mistress to show that she had a higher status than me and to help the audience understand what was going on. To invite the audience into the scene, I smiled at them and gave a small nod of the head towards them.

I got feedback from my teacher because she watched my draft. She said that I need to walk lower since I am a tall person naturally. She also said that I had a good interaction with hair and did such nice curtsy, but my head needs to be down when I curtsy. I should keep my head down when I walk and also be less tippy-toey but 'earthy'. At the same time I should try to stay perky though to keep to my character description.

When I do my scene in our next class, I will do it slightly differently. I will try to have a few more interactions with the audience and try to keep them 'in' the scene. I will also, follow my teachers advice and keep my head down a bit more. I will change my scene a little by using a basket as a prop but keep the story line of it the same.

Evaluation for another Person (Nafisa S)
My teacher asked us to evaluate someone else's performance from our group, I chose Nafisa. She was playing the first actress who is an aristocrat. The first actress/actor leads with their shoulders. In Nafisa's scene, she walks in with the first actor then another man asks her to dance so she dances with them. She did not use any props.

I think that her scene was very clear and it was obvious what she was doing. Nafisa should have at least said goodbye to the first actor because she just left him alone and went to dance. During her performance she did not smile which is what the first actress always does. She should be more confident because that is her character description and also make herself bigger to show that she has power. She never interacted with the audience which is one of the most important things to do when doing Commedia. Overall, she just needs to be more confident in herself so that she feels more comfortable playing any kind of character.

Are Commedia dell'Arte characters relevant to modern day audiences?

HELLO!

This was a question given to me by my drama teacher. I had to think about it for a while but I think I got it figured out. Here is my answer.

I think that the characters are relevant to modern day audiences. I think this because if we look closely at our lives, we see there is an Arlechinno, Capitano and Pantalone in the modern day! There is always a person of low status (poverty) an outsider (foreigners) and someone at the top of the food chain (government). 

In my own life, I see many examples of these characters. Since I live in Bangladesh, there is poverty all around me. Every day, I see people begging on the street and trying to sell things to others. I also see many foreigners here who have come here for work like my dad. And right at the top we have the Bangladeshi government who have way too much power to me. 

It's the same with TV shows. There is most defiantly someone who is worth nothing to others like a side character. Then there is the outsider, the loner who is always alone and trying to be someone else. Then, of course, there is the main character who the show revolves around.

To me, Commedia dell'Arte is linked to everything around us. We may not notice it, but it is.

Bye! xox 

Stock characters of Commedia dell'Arte

Stock Characters in Commedia dell'arte are not very well known. Three of them are quite well known to people involved with drama and theater though. They are, Arlechinno, Capitano and Pantalone. 

Arlechinno
Many believe that his name literally means 'little devil' because of Commedia dell'Arte's Italian origin. He is played as a servant which is mostly to Pantalone. His costume is a tight fitting jacket that reaches his waist and long, tight pants. The pattern on his clothes are random shapes of the colours green,yellow,red and brown. His shoes are small, flat and black. He also wears a thin black belt. Arlechinno is clumsy but graceful at the same time. His voice is gruff and hoarse from selling on the streets. His mask is almost like a carnival mask. It has quite a low forehead and small roundish eyes. Most people would say that his animal is either a cat or a monkey.


Capitano
Though his name sounds like 'captain', Capitano is a bit of a loner. Wherever the story is set, he is not from there. Because of this, he often pretends that he is more important than he really is to people of higher status. So because they locals do not know him, it is easy to convince them he is something he is not. His costume usually has a military look to it. He has a feathered hat and often, large boots. Whilst on stage, he has a large presence and is made to get attention from the ladies and therefore be intimidating to men! His mask has a long nose, like a crocodile, and also a bristly moustache. His animal is mainly known as a cross between two aggressive dogs: hunting dog and a mastiff. His voice has a very deep base to it. His feet are always plated on the ground in a way to occupy as much space as possible. His chest is pushed forward and his back is straight which gives him a formal look.

Pantalone

Now he, is most defiantly at the top of the Commedia dell'Arte food chain. Pantalone has money. He is always obeyed since he controls the finance. His costume includes a tight jacket with tight, long, red pants. He also wears a loose black cloak and yellow slippers. His hat is a red woolen skill cap. Pantalone is tall, yet scrawny. His mask has a long and hooked nose. It also includes bushy eyebrows and a moustache. His beard is very pointed that stuck out in front of his face. He back is bent over from old age. His feet are close together while his toes are strangely spread out. He cannot walk very fast due to his stance. His voice is very high pitched. His animal is most likely to be a chicken or a turkey.



If you would like to know more, you can visit my source for many of my Commedia dell'Arte posts: http://shane-arts.com/commedia-stock-characters.htm

xxxx

Stereotypical clique Masks

Hello! On my last post I talked about three stereotypical people in secondary schools;  the girl everyone loves, wanna-be popular and the teachers pet. I have also designed masks for them.

Teachers Pet

Ok, this one is pretty simple because a teachers pet wants to look smart for their teacher. The colours are basic and the design is simple. This is the mask I think a teachers pet would wear. Tut-always pleasing the teacher!



Wanna-be popular
This one is full of colour and designs. This is because, People who try to be popular, end up looking awkward and stand out. This mask STANDS OUT. It has small motifs on the sides and ribbons on the ends! I think the mask is quite cute

Girl everyone Loves
This mask is so pretty! It is butterfly based. It has a really cute flower in the corner and swirls. It also has cool pink eyeliner around the eyes. I like the dark pink outline around the edge which I really like.

Stereotypical Cliques of Secondary Schools

Hey!
In Drama today we were discussing what the stereotypical cliques of secondary schools were. We went into partners to do the task. My partner was Sapphire. This is the link to her blog: sapphirefaruque.blogspot.com

We found that there were loads of different cliques in every school-over 15. We managed to narrow it down to six; Girls worshiped by all, nerds, wanna-be populars, new kid, teachers pets and the trouble makers. I'm going to talk about three, you can find the rest on Sapphire's blog.

Girls everyone loves
These girls are always dressed to impress. They wear the latest fashions, have the cool accessorize and are adored by all. When it comes to hair, it's always styled in a new way. The reason she is popular is not because she is pretty but because she is so nice to everyone. That is why everyone loves her. She walks with a small skip in her step because she is mainly happy. He voice is slightly higher than a normal persons but not over the top. I called her Katrina because it's a cool name and sounds fun.




Wanna-be populars

These are the people that follow popular people EVERYWHERE. They try to dress the same and act the same but it always ends up going slightly wrong. For example, they over-dye their hair blonde, and it goes orange. They talk in an annoying voice most of the time which to them sounds cool. They never really date anyone but try to flirt with others in an awkward way like fluttering their eyelids too much or staring for too long. I named her Nixi because it's an awkward name that not a lot of people have.






Teachers Pet
They always just suck up to the teacher. Whenever the teacher makes a comment, they agree, even if it's for more homework! They dress quite smartly to impress the teacher and their hair is always neatly tied back or combed nicely (depending on the gender!). In class they speak with a clear voice and use a wide range of vocabulary but out of class they are usually a completely different person. They do stupid things with friends that a normal kid would do. They just think that if the teacher really likes them, they will get better grades. I named him Samuel because it's a smart name that sounds posh.