Week Eleven

Monday 30th November
Today we had our double lesson but we also rehearsed for an hour after school. This was really useful as it allowed us to continue practising while we were still fully focused. We had Jake in the lesson, which allowed us to work out the lightning. In our double lesson, we ran through the play once to work out the lightning but also to perfect any bits that needed tweaking. Firstly in our distorted scene that is shown to represent Alice falling down the rabbit hole, the ending where I fall onto Jack and Emily we decided needed changing as it was awkward and looked messy. Instead of them creating a barrier for me to fall on, they push my back up and then the second time they push me back up while Katie and Morgan push me down. We also decided that the transitions between scenes needed cleaning up and also they need to be quicker. In between the interview scene and the first flashback scene, music was played where in this order: Katie, Emily, Me, Morgan and Jack walk on and hold three still images taht represent our character in this scene. It was funny as we all felt like we were on a catwalk but it worked really well because it showed a different side to the piece and also set the tone for the party. Our main final change came right at the end when instead of ending with Alice lying dead on the floor with the other characters surrounding her, Alice still lies dead on the floor but the other characters walk around her each taking turn in saying there motive. People say things like, "you cant treat people like this,","i loved you," etc. Using the circle of tension, made it look effective but it also created the feeling of suspicion for the audience as they have no idea who has actually killed Alice. The purpose of our after school rehearsal was to make sure we practised and practised so the piece was the best it could possibly be. The rehearsal went well and we are all excited to perform it on Wednesday.


Wednesday 2nd December
Today was the day of our final performance and it went really well. We had a run through first in all our costumes and it didn't get off the best start. During our distorted scene, when it came to the final part of the scene, someone accidentally let go of me and I tripped and bashed my head on the floor. Then when we tried it again, the lift didn't go to plan as they didn't have a firm grip while holding me. However apart from this, the final dress rehearsal went really. Then it was time to do our performance and it went ten times better than we ever imagined it to go. Everyone remembered their lines, it had much more pace and tension than when we had done it before. Thankfully the distorted scene went really as well. It was the first time we had performed it to an audience when we were in costume and they really enjoyed it and all told us how good it was. I overheard the audience discussing who they thought had killed Alice which really pleased me as this is what we hoped would happen. After watching it back in our lesson, the main things we pciekd up on that could have been improved was that the sometimes we spoke to quickly and it was hard to understand what we were saying and also the transistions could have been quicker and smoother. Another thing we noticed was that the pace was much better than it had been.

Overall, our devised piece went really well and it was so good to see all the hard work we had put in pay off. We made clear links to our stimulus, 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland,' and personally I think we managed to produce a really good modern version of the piece.

Alice drinking a potion after falling down the hole

Week Ten

Monday 23rd November
In today's lesson, it appeared we hadn't really progressed much but we actually had. We went through from the very start and worked out what parts needed to be worked. We were also able to correct small details that needed to be changed because they didn't quite fit. For example, Micheal says he went to a mates party but then when he was talking they had never actually met. It was only small details like these that needed changing but it made everything correct so that if the audience did recognise it then it would help with the clarity of the plot. As we went through it, we realised how many links to Alice in Wonderland we had actually put in. For example, at the party when they are getting intoxicated, life suddenly becomes disjointed much like how Wonderland appears to Alice.

Wednesday 25th November
In today's lesson, we were very limited as to what we could do as both Morgan and Jack were away, which left just myself, Katie and Emily. So as much as we had of the script, we went through it to see if there was any details we could add or adapt any mistakes in there. We then discussed different things we could wear that would match what our character says and acts like. I have a blue daisy dress that I am going to wear because we feel it would reflect the character of Alice but also links to what Alice wears in adaptations of the original story because from our research we found out that in many of the adaptations Alice wears ablue dress

Friday 27th November

Before school, I went to the Drama room to record the voice over for the police station. We recorded it using a Dictaphone because we thought it would be more professional and if I was stood on the side saying the lines then we thought it would distract the audience. Then during our after school rehearsal, we had some friends to come and watch so we could get an opinion from them. It went really well and we ran through from start to finish very successfully and our audience really enjoyed it, which was a real morale booster. In our last rehearsals before our performance, we will make sure we run through from the very start so we know what we are doing and also to improve the pace of our performance. 

At the Mad Hatter's Tea Party

Week Nine

Monday 16th November 
In our double lesson, first of all we finished the final scene, which is where the suspects learn what has happened. We ask more questions so we learn what happened after the second flashback ended and then the final line reveals what Alice. The line is, "A body has been found in a ditch near to where the party was held. We believe it to be Alice's body. So Charlie Doorm, Jason Hatton, Elizabeth Hart, Michael White we are detaining you for further questioning regarding the death of Alice Kingsley." This relates to our stimulus as Alice falls down a hole to get to Wonderland which in this case is ditch. Also we chose the surname of Alice to be Kinglsey because this is what it is in other adaptations.
After we had finished the final scene, we decided it would be a good idea to have a full run through from start it finish and record it so we can see what it looked like. It went surprisingly well but we found some things that need to be improved. In the first scene, my fall didn't go as good as it had before because I couldn't get my feet to slip so it looked messy. The lift went well because I tensed my arms and body so it was easier for Morgan and Katie. I was embarrassed by my face in the performance because I looked gormless when I was meant to be looking scared, so I need to improve on my facial expressions through out the piece. The second scene ran really smoothly with the only down side being Katie stood up to soon. The third scene had good facial expressions and voice clarity. Something I noticed was that I fiddled with my hair too much so I need to use gestures appropriate to my character. We all noticed that it was quite funny in places without it intending to be. For example:

Elizabeth: Are you stupid?

Charlie: What do you mean?

Elizabeth: I mean. Are you a stupid?

I like this part as it adds humour to the piece. Scene 4 ran smoothly but the major issue came in Scene  5. It had a huge pause, due to forgotten lines which meant it broke the tension. However when I laugh at Michael and yell at him, my facial expressions and voice matches with the mood of my character. We noticed that for some of it Michael stood around like a spare part, so we need to either give him my lines or get him to do something else. The final scene went well and looked excellent. A major issue we all noticed was that the pace was slow so we need to speed it up. 

Wednesday 18th November 
In this lesson, we sat down and thought that maybe we could add something onto the end to build up the tension. After the final line, we thought it was a good idea to have a silence and then all the characters shouting that the didn't do it and blaming it on other people which gradually got quieter. This worked well but we wanted to go and try different ways in which we could do it. The idea we eventually went with was Charlie starts off then Jason joins in, then Elizabeth and then finally Michael and it gets louder. We chose this one because we thought that it sounded more effective and would create suspicion in the audience's mind. Then there will be a blackout and then it the lights will come on to reveal Alice lying on the floor dead and the others surrounding her, like the first scene.

Thursday 19th November
We rehearsed after school today and after we had taught Jack the final part we had added yesterday, we had a run through and showed it to some people so we can see what other people think of it. It probably went the worst we had done it, which was a shame because it was our first time showing other people. Although we made some mistakes, it turned out to be good as it allowed us to see what parts need changing and what they liked as a audience.

Alice looking down the Rabbit Hole

 

Week Eight

Monday 9th November
In our lesson today, we had a run through of the scenes we had created so far. This was helpful as it allowed us to see what needed improving and what went well. It was also very useful because it allowed Jake to come up with ideas on what the lighting would be like and then he was able to tell his ideas to us. It was helpful as it allowed us to see how we could create added tension and the best ways in which the audience would enjoy it. The lightining would be dark when we learn what has happened to Alice and during the first scene and then when they are ebing interview the lighting will be bright. We then continued working on the second flashback when the characters confront Alice. When Michael, Jason, Elizabeth and Charlie are talking about Alice, one of them calls her a bitch. With our target audience being 12 year old, we think that this is a suitable word to use. They will have heard it before and have most likely said it themselves, so they will be familiar with what it means. We didn't just us the word bitch in there for any particular reason we all agreed it was suitable word in describing Alice's character and is word people would use in that situation. In our next rehearsal which will be after school, we will continue to work on this scene and develop it further and then work out how to show what happened to Alice.

Alice playing croquet

Week Seven

Monday 2nd November
Firstly in our lesson today, we started off with the opening scene. We thought that because it was a formal interview that the characters needed surnames. To keep with our stimulus, we thought that the characters surname should be linked to the part they represent. We also decided that the character of Charlie should be more like the Dormouse instead of the Cheshire Cat because of the way she acts. Without purposely looking we found that the way Emily played the character, made her appear timid and shy like the doormouse and not smiley and brash like the Cheshire Cat. The names are: Elizabeth Heart, Charlie Doorm, Jason Hatton and Michael White. We then had a run through of this scene and the first flashback. We thought that while the characters weren't talking they needed to be frozen so it wouldn't distract the audience.
We all agreed that our distortion scene needed work and had to be changed because we didn't really like the way it was. We felt it didn't look distorted enough and it needed to be more distorted.It looked very mis-matched and under rehearse and didnt create the tension and suspense we wanted it to. Instead of going straight in with the music, we started a fresh with no music. The first bit we changed was the very start, which was done in slow motion. Instead we tried it doing tableauxs (still images) which were held for a count of four. As Alice isn't involved in this part, I watched the others and gave them feedback on how it looked. When Emily and Morgan push me forward, they did it more forcefully, so it represented Alice falling down the rabbit hole.  We felt that in our original idea that Emily and Jack were stood there doing nothing so when it came to pushing me everywhere, we involved all of them so it will show from early on that everyone has a reason to dislike Alice.  Then instead of being pulled back by Emily which felt awkward I am now pulled all over the place by all of them which gradually moved backwards. We kept the lift the same and when I landed, Emily and Jack held there hands together and I was lowered on to them and then back up and then lowered again before being bought up and pushed down.  As we were practising it again, by accident my feet slipped and I fell down. We all started laughing once they knew I was all right and then we looked at Miss, who said how good it actually looked. So we decided to keep it as I could make myself do it again. We practised with music and then we recorded it and watched it back. We all agreed that it looked so much more effective and more distorted than  the original idea.
We then began to work on the second interview scene and we came up with the questions that needed to be asked and how the characters would respond to them. After a while of practising and coming up with ideas, we voice recorded it on my phone so I could type it for the following lesson.

The script:
Police Officer: Alice has been reported missing.
All: Missing?
Elizabeth: It doesn’t surprise me.
Jason: She’s probably in her bedroom, waiting to be found. She likes attention that Alice does.
Michael: Missing? What do you mean missing? Her parents are gonna kill me.
Charlie: Missing? Are you sure? It doesn’t sound like Alice at all.
Police Officer: What was the true nature of your relationship with Alice?
Michael: Erm, just a friend. Er, that’s it, just a friend.
Jason: Well, I’d say we were friends but I don’t know about that.
Police Officer: Did you want you and Alice to be more than friends?
Michael: Well. Er, no.
Jason: No. Really no, no. That’s a no go.
Police Officer: A witness is willing to say the opposite of your previous statement. Is there anything you wish to say?
Michael: Er, well, she was just a family friend. That was it, just didn’t want her to be anything more.
Police Officer: Witnesses at the party say that you had an argument with her, Charlie.
Charlie: Well I did.
Police Officer: Well why did you lie about it in your previous statement?
Charlie: I didn’t lie. I just hadn’t got to that bit yet.
Police Officer: Was it because if you did you’d give yourself away?
Charlie: Give myself away to what. You’re not suggesting that I did something to Alice.
Police Officer: You don’t seem that bothered by her disappearance, Elizabeth.
Elizabeth: Huh, why would I? I want nothing to do with her.
Police Officer: Did you confront her at the party?

Wednesday 4th November
As I had typed the script up, the first thing we did in lesson was have a run through of this scene. After we had done this, we began working on the second flashback which is set straight after the first flashback has ended. While I was standing there, all the other characters would stood talking about how much they hate Alice while Michael was trying to be a peacemaker. Charlie and Jason are trying to persuade Elizabeth to go and argue with Alice but doesn't go until she learns Alice called her a stuck up cow. Then when Elizabeth does go followed by the others, she and Alice argue and then Elizabeth shouts that no one would care if Alice was dead. This is when Michael steps in and it is revealed that he is in love with Alice.
This was all we managed to get finished in the hour. Next time, we need to further develop it to give Elizabeth more of a reason to want to go over to Alice becasue we dont thinks she has a good enough motive to kill Alice or enough anger to go over and talk to her in the first place. Also we need to finish the scene and to the final part where everyone learns what happens to Alice.

Alice on a tree while listening to her sister

Week Six

Monday 19th October

In today's lesson, we continued to work on the first flashback where Alice arrives at the party. To make it feel more like a party we put some 'rave' music on that you would hear in a club or a party. This really helped as it allowed us to loosen up and the dancing didn't look awkward like it did before. It would also show the audience that the people are at a genuine party as it didn't look like a party before. We had to adjust the sound so that we could hear ourselves talk. The flashback scene went well as everything went the same as we had already done. We then worked on the second interview scene where the characters learn that Alice has gone listening. The sort of questions were 'What do you think happened to Alice?" "What did you say to Alice?" etc. We then refreshed our memories over the distorted opening scene. We decided to swap Jack and Emily's role when it comes to the lift as we felt it went smoother when Emily was the support. It went well but it just needs to be tidied up around the edges and in some places it seems a little disjointed and doesn't flow, which is something we will need to work on. 

Wednesday 21st October 

In the lesson, we picked up where we had left off in the second interview scene. After trying it for a few minutes, we felt we were repeating ourselves and we were saying the same thing as we had done in the flashback. We just felt it really wasn't working and it was becoming boring as it was repeating. While we were discussing this, we felt that the opening flashback needed more detail as there wasn't a strong enough reason as to why Micheal would want to hurt Alice, so we rehearsed the flashback again adding more things for Micheal to say and adding little hints as to what happens in the later. 

In the next lesson, we will come up with ideas as to what can happen in the second flashback and then rehearsing it, so we will find a way of doing the second interview scene which will link into the flashback. 



Alice and the Cheshire Cat after she has fought the Jabberwocky

Week Five

Monday 12th October
In today's double lesson we pushed on and developed the first flashback. Before doing this we sat down and worked out the motives of each character as to why they would want to kill Alice

Elizabeth (Queen of Hearts): Mad at how she has treated Charlie and wants revenge for her.
Charlie (Cheshire Cat): Mad at how she has been treated by Alice and sees red and accidentally kills her.
Jason (Mad Hatter): Fed up of Alice constantly following him around and he kills her to prevent her from doing this any longer
Michael (White Rabbit): Doesn't want to be Alice's babysitter any longer and when she makes him leave he accidentally kills her.

The most obvious in my eyes are Elizabeth and Charlie, one who hates Alice and one that is the wronged best friend. If I were the audience then I would feel that these two are the most obvious and it would surprise me if it were the other two as I felt like this I talked to my peers and they agreed with me. After talking about this a bit longer, we came up with the idea that Alice had killed herself accidentally, perhaps she had been running away from the party, hit her head and fell and died. This was based upon An Inspector Calls, where no one directly kills the deceased but they play a part in the events leading up to her death. We liked this idea as it wasn't obvious and it would surprise the audience when they watched it. We also thought that Michael would have a crush on Alice which is why he wants to be near her.

We then went on to work on the first flashback. What we came up with was that Alice arrived at the party with Michael, much to her annoyance, and quickly left him. She then begrudgingly goes over to talk to Charlie. During their conversation, Alice makes a sly remark about Charlie's dress, which she fails to see. She then has to go to Michael during this time Elizabeth and Charlie fight. Alice then goes over to flirt with Jason, who she fancies but their conversation is disrupted by Charlie who learns Alice dislikes her. The two argue and before Charlie leaves she says 'I wonder why Michael even likes you.'

Today's lesson was really productive as we managed to get a lot done.

Wednesday 14th October
In our single lesson today, we briefly had a run through of what we had so far. We then went onto perform the whole thing we had got so far to an audience. This went really well as they mostly understood what was going on, which was really pleasing. They gave us feedback and told us what they enjoyed. Rosie told me I had to loosen up and not look so nervous when I am getting picked up, which is something I knew I needed to work on. We also considered changing Charlie's character inspiration to doormouse because the Cheshire Cat does not reflect the character as we think the character of Charlie should be shy and timid the opposite of Alice.The feedback was really positive and gave us a lot to improve and consider when we next rehearse.

Alice trying to fight off a pack of cards