Gumbie Cat Choreography

I based my Gumbie Cat Choreography on the piece I did for my mini assessment. I wanted to include tap dancing in it because it is in the original production and it is also something I have been doing since I was 5 years old. 

The original Gumbie Cat, also known as Jennyanydots is known for her caring and motherly nature towards the kittens and other creatures as it says in the song "She is deeply, concerned with the ways of the mice, Their behavior's not good and their manners not nice

So when she has got them lined up on the matting, She teaches them music, crocheting and tatting".  I thought of how to transfer this idea to our concept of the fashion industry and I decided that Jenny should be a mentor for younger models, teaching them how to look great on the catwalk. This gave me the idea for the majority of my choreography. I would have three of the younger models come in to audition to model my new designs, however they are all really bad. Rather than just rejecting them all, Jenny's motherly instincts kick in and she decides instead to mentor them. The tap dance at the end is then a celebration of their sucsess when they walk the catwalk with ease after being taught by her.

When I began teaching my choreography, I decided to start with the tap routine because I knew this would take the longest to learn. Not everyone in the class could do tap so I had to think of steps that were simple to learn for non tappers but also looked effective. The good thing with tap is that it is easy to make look complicated, even if you are doing really simple things. It was most important to me that everyone could do the moves so that we could all be in time as this is a crucial part of tap dancing.

I used lots of shuffles, brushes and front and back taps as these are the simplest steps, but I also added in some more advanced moves such as tap springs and drops so I think this was a challenge for some people. I also found it a challenge for myself as I had never tought tap to anyone before so sometimes I would go to quickly for people.

There was a part in the music that kept stopping and starting. I intitially wanted to use this music for part of my tap solo but it didn't really go with the style. Instead I decided to make this part of the song a fashion show, with people coming down in pairs and doing a pose on every beat. This sounds simple but it was actually quite hard for people to learn as the music sounds very similar so it was hard at first for people to know when to come in. It took a few times to get it right as everyone had to be at the back of the catwalk by a certain time. Then not everyone understood what I meant about the positions at first. In pairs they had to do two positions to the beat, but at first some people took too long doing their poses. But after a few practises people finally got it and I think it looked really effective in the end. 

Styles of Scripts

Theatre:

A play script is different to other forms of script such as film and TV as there is a lot more dialogue in them. Stage directions are used for crucial moments of action, for example "Margeret passes the letter to Jonathan" or "Paul is sitting DSR. Matt enters aggresively from SL" However the majority of the script is dialouge which gives the director an actors more of an opportunity to put their own interpretation onto the story. 

Playscripts also feature all of the props, set and costume needed for each scene which is used as a guide for the director, set designer, lighting designer and actors so they can get an idea for 

When a new character comes on stage for the first time, a theatre script will give lots of details on what that character is like, including looks, personality, clothes, how they speak etc. This is included to help the actor portray the character in the way that the writer intended. It may also be important for characters to look/act a certain way for parts of the story to work so it is important to include this information. 

Film:

Film scripts have a lot more detail that theatre scripts. They usually include a lot of information about the set, here is an example from "Pride": A CLASH poster above the cooker, a Soviet flag beside it partially obscured by a life size cut out of Eartha Kitt. MARK walks in, wearing boxer shorts, and switches on a crappy little portable TV. TISWAS. Lenny Henry being gunged in a cage. He switches over. A wave of policemen charging a picket line of striking miners. He switches on the kettle..." They do this because film sets are a one time thing so it is extremely important for the set designers to know as much detail as possible so they can make it as accurate as possible. Sometimes film productions hire location managers to find places to shoot in, so it is important to put lots of information in the script so that they can find the most appropriate place.

The scenes are much shorter in film scripts because the scene changes every time they move place or time. So for instance there could be a shot of one person in the front room and then a shot of someone else in the kitchen and they would be seperate scenes, whereas on stage you could have a set of a kitchen and a front room and both actors could be on stage together in the same scene. Here is a screenshot of a page from "Pride" so you can fully see how short film scenes are:

Film scripts also have heading at the start of every scene, similarly to how theatre scripts have stage directions at the start of every scene to tell you who is in the scene, where it is set and when. Film scripts also have this but layed out in a different way. You need to put if it is inside or outside, where the scene is set and what time of day. For example:
Ext. The Street. Day time.
Ext stands for outside and Int stands for inside. This is a quick way of getting a lot of information in before the scene has even started. 

TV

TV scripts are more similar to film scripts in terms of format and dialogue to description ratio. However there are some important differences. 

For example, in re occuring dramas such as Coronation Street or Eastenders, the script writers don't have to worry too much about the details of the set because it is more than likely that the sets have been the same for a very long time so the director doesn't need to know a lot about it as there is a mutual understanding of where they mean. For example if the script said "Whitney is sitting on the bench", the director would know where they meant, but in a film or even a play they would need much more detail, for example "Whitney is sitting on a black bench alone in a park near a tree."

Costume Evaluation

Jennyanydots Evaluation

From the beginning of this project I have wanted to put Jenny in a fur coat. A fur coat was appropriate for many reasons, first of all, in the original production of cats, Jenny wears a fat suit at the beginning of Gumbie Cat. I didn’t think a fat suit would work for our production as we were portraying humans not cats, so it would look very strange if Jenny suddenly seemed to shed her skin and it may also be seen as quite offensive. A fur coat is big enough to pad her out and hide a pretty costume underneath so it seemed like the right choice. A fur coat would also pay homage to the original production. Jenny was also a fashion designer in our concept and fur coats are something fashion designers stereotypically wear.

I am basing Jenny’s costume on the style of fashion designer Zandra Rhodes. This is because they are both older designers who are still relevant to the industry today and don’t let their age stop them. Zandra’s style is very bright and unconventional and Jenny’s original costume is bright yellow and orange so it seemed to fit to me.  For this reason I decided to design Jenny a bright orange fur coat. This seemed like a good idea until I started to look at the prices. I had a search online and to buy a ready-made orange fur coat would cost anywhere between £90 and £250. I decided to look at fabric instead but this was also very expensive. One metre of fabric could cost £45-£200 so to make it from scratch was even more expensive. These prices were way above our budget so instead I went into the high street to see what I could find. After no luck at the charity shops I had a look in some mainstream shops. I found a black and white fur coat for £35 in H&M. Although this was an extremely good price compared to what I’d seen online I still wasn’t sure if the colours were right. I looked in my local fabric shop. They had material for £10 per metre. I knew I needed 3 metres so this would cost £30 which is similar to the price of the one in H&M. However the fabric shop didn’t have any orange fur either or any other bright coloured fur, so I decided my best bet was to buy the coat from the shop. Even though the colours were not as bright as I’d originally planned, they still created a funky pattern so it still worked with my original idea for her outfit.

Zandra Rhodes is infamous for her statement pink hair so I decided to add this to Jenny’s costume. At first I was going to get a wig that was in a similar bob style to Zandra’s, but when I looked online none of the wigs in my price range looked very realistic. Although her style is crazy I didn’t want her to be a joke. So instead I  found a longer pink wig that looked more realistic and only cost £5. At first I was worried that it would affect how well I would be able to dance due to its length but luckily it didn’t hinder me at all. However I did get very hot in it and the front of it often went out of place when I was dancing on stage so it required constant fixing when I was backstage.

I also had problems finding a pink leather skirt, or in fact a pink skirt at all in my size so I ended up buying a yellow skirt. It was still bright and actually fitted Jenny’s original colour scheme even more so it was a good choice. The only problem was it was a little short so I had to wear some shorts underneath so that I could dance without worrying about the skirt coming up. I then decided to stick to the original colour scheme and bought an orange top to go with the yellow skirt. By the time I bought the top there were only a couple of weeks before the show so I really left it too late to make it myself and put all of the rhinestones on.

Although my final costume was not the same colours as I had designed, I still managed to create almost the same look which worked with the influences of Zandra Rhodes and the original Jennyanydots costume. Here are some pictures of my final costume:

 

 

Rum Tum Tugger Evaluation

I based Rum Tum Tugger’s costume on rock star Alex Turner and the designs from this year’s Burberry show at London Fashion Week. I chose Alex Turner because his personality is very similar to Tugger’s, an arrogant show off with lots of female fans. They also both do similar hip movements when on stage! Alex’s style is very similar to what was on the Burberry cat walk this season. Patterned shirts with plain black trousers, long coats,scarves and sunglasses. There was a definite 50s vibe about the outfits but they were also very sophistaicated and something that I believe Tugger, who was portrayed as a young model in our adaption, would wear.

I decided to give Tugger a leopard print coat because it related to the leopard print pattern on his original costume. It was quite long and this could have restricted him when dancing. The sunglasses and scarf also could have hindered Tugger’s performance.

Rum Tum Tugger’s final costume was similar to the style of Alex Turner. He wore a shirt, blazor and jeans all in black. Although these all made it very easy for him to dance and move in, I think he should have had a splash of colour/ pattern in there even if it was a leopard print scarf that he wore when he wasn’t dancing too much. Here are some  pictures of his final costume:

 

 

Bombalurina Evaluation

I based Bombalurina’s costume on Lady Gaga’s red lace outfit she wore to the Grammys. I chose red lace as Bombalurina is supposed to be a feisty and saucy character and red was also the main colours of her original costume.

I found it difficult to find any red lace of the right size and price, so instead I decided to get some white lace and dye it red. Lady Gaga’s outfit was also very see through and I didn’t think this was appropriate for a college production, so instead I thought I could get a red leotard or swim suit and adapt it by putting red lace over the top and sewing the lace arms and legs to it.

The costume would be an all in one suit so that would make it very easy for her to dance in as Bombalurina has a lot of dancing to do. However as it is long sleeved and full length, she may have got very hot under the lights.

Bombalurina’s final costume was completely different to my design. It ended up being a black dress which I don’t think represents her character as well and makes it harder to dance. However it took a lot less time and effort to make as we didn’t have to dye or adapt anything. Here is a picture of the final costume:

Dance For Camera UPDATE

I recorded my first 30 seconds of my dance for camera. However when I went to edit it, the clips had been deleted by my younger brother! So I need to rearrange a time with my dancers to film it again. 

I have also had a change of ideas. I want to keep the same song and style but I have changed the narrative. I am now going to use the song with lyrics. The lyrics are about feeling trapped and wanting to break free. So instead I am only going to use one 10 year old dancer in the park and another older dancer in a dance studio. The younger dancer represents the older one as a child. The older dancer feels like dance has just become work for her, she wants to go back to her childhood when it was for fun and she could dance freely. As she dances in the studio, she imagines her younger self dancing in the park. There is a big moment towards the end of the song where I envisioned the older dancer doing a huge leap and effectively jumping into the park with her younger self. They then complete the end of the dance together.

Here is the song with lyrics:

Script Writing Review

Script Review:

First Draft

Strengths:

I have got a lot of dialogue in my script as this is something I am strong at. I think I have captured the range of emotions felt by each character throughout the scenes. For example, when Joy believes that Pete is secretly married, she starts to call him Peter and her sentences become shorter. "Joy: So what's your one called then? Don't think I'm stupid, Peter, I can work it out. We should never have trusted you, you're all just the same! Well guess what! I will not be your floozie! Two weeks training? Yeah right you're just going back to see your wife!" I have also tried to represent different voices by trying to add in little bits of ideolect, for example Jerry always says "it is" or "you know" at the end of his speech. I think this makes the characters seem more realistic and gives them their own individual personalities.

I think I have got a good structure. It is quite fast paced. There are two opening scenes where the audience get to know a bit about Joy, Dimp, Pete and Jerry and then by the 3rd scene, the characters meet for the first time, so it all happens quite fast. There is a big build up of tension in the middle from when Billy kisses Joy, Dimp tells Jerry that Joy is cheating on Peter, Jerry doesn't want to tell Peter but finally gives in, then when Peter finds out there is a huge argument between Peter and Joy before Peter goes away to China. In China, Jerry and Peter get thrown over board in a storm. Then neither the audience or Joy knows whether they are alive. Joy then finds out that it is Dimp's fault that Peter thinks she has been unfaithful and she ends up falling out with her too. It as if everything keeps going wrong and it seems for a while like there is no way there could be a positive outcome. My play is not a tragedy so there is a happy ending. I had to make the structure of the play fast paced because I have a big story to tell in a limited amount of time. I think this makes the play more exciting to watch/read as you are hit with a lot of action, rather than waiting around for the main story to get going.

I feel like I have created a range of characters with different personalities. Dimp is shy and unlucky in love, Joy is confident, beautiful and popular. Jerry is married but still messes around and doesn't really take life seriously, he can't understand why Peter cares so much for one girl but at the end of the day he realises how happy she makes him and doesn't want to hurt his friend. I think it is important to create a range of different characters to make the story more realistic but also because different people in the audience will be able to identify with different things in each character's personalities.

Areas That Need Developing: 

I need to improve the representation of the relationship between Joy and Pete. At the moment I feel like too much of it happens off stage and I need to display it on stage. I thought about things that people look for in a relationship and ways to show your love/affection for someone else. I came up with three things. The first one is to stand up for them, I have included this sort of already in scene 7 when John starts to get aggressive towards Joy when she doesn't want to take him back so Pete puts him in his place. However at the moment I think Pete is too violent, for example: "Peter: Now you listen to me, boy. You leave Joy alone alright? If I ever see you come round here again I'll knock you straight out, okay?" I think he needs to be less violent because I don't think girls would be impressed by threats, especially in the 1950s when my play is set. The second thing I want to add to my script is a scene with the couple confiding in each other. This would show that they trust each other but also that they listen to each other and this would make their relationship more convincing. The last thing is also something I have already started to do. I want to add a scene where they give/recieve a gift. I have started this already in scene 8 when Pete gives Joy a necklace, however I want to develop it so that there is more of a build up to the moment he gives it to her to show it is an important part in their relationship.

I need to finish my script in the final draft so that the story is complete. I am not sure exactly how to end it yet, either with the proposal or the wedding itself. Ending it with a wedding would give it that fairy tale "happy ever after" feeling but it might also be quite cheesy, whereas a propsal shows that they want to be together but also leaves the story more open. What will their friends/family think? Will anyone else try and get in their way?

The last thing I need to do is focus on staging a lot more. At the moment I have a clear image of what I want to happen but I am not writing it down on the page, expecting readers to know how I imagine it when of course thats impossible. So for instance I need to give more information about characters when they first enter, what they look like, what they are wearing and what they are like. I also need to think about positioning more so using "USL, DSR" etc as this would be easier for a director to understand my vision and also for actors to get a better idea of how to perform and create these characters on stage. 

Final Draft:

I decided to alter scene 12 after a few people who read it thought that it wasn't very realistic and I have to say I agree. In my first draft, Dimp saw Billy kiss Joy so decided to ring up Pete at the navy base to tell him what happened. Pete wasn't there so instead she left the message with another sailor who eventually spread it round to everyone else on the base. "The lights go down. After a few seconds a soundtrack plays of men talking to each other. It is the sailors gossiping about Peter being cheated on by the girl he couldn't stop talking about." First of all it is very unrealistic for men to gossip like that, especially in a navy base where they would be very busy and wouldn't have time to worry about stuff like that and also it probably would have been very hard for Dimp to find the number for the navy base, especially as it was quite far away from where she lived. Instead I have changed it to Dimp writing a letter to Jerry about what she saw. Writing a letter fits in a lot more with the era of the play (50s) and writing to Jerry fits more into her personality. Dimp is not a horrible person, she's just upset and confused about her feelings. She chooses to write to Jerry as they had a connection at the beginning and also because she doesn't really want to hurt Pete.

I changed the part in scene 7 where Pete confronts Johnny because I felt that Pete came across as too violent. The purpose of this encounter was to show Pete standing up for Joy but I don't think she would be impressed if Pete was so agressive in fact it might scare her off. This is the original version: Peter: Now you listen to me, boy. You leave Joy alone alright? If I ever see you come round here again I'll knock you straight out, okay?" I don't think this line really fits in with his personality as he is portrayed as a caring, loving guy. I have now changed it to: "Pete: Now you listen to me, boy! I don’t want to see you around here, giving Joy or any other girl grief, ok? Johnny: Oh yeah? And what are you going to do about it? Pete (Grabs Johnny by the shirt.) Don’t make me do anything." Although it is still authoritive it is not agressive and it shows that he cares about her as well as the rest of her friends which is something Joy would really appreciate.

I have now got an ending for my script. I decided to end it with Pete proposing to Joy. I thought this was a better ending than a wedding because it would have to jump too much in time and also could make it seem quite cheesy.

Rosas Danst Rosas Review

Rosas Danst Rosas was originally choreographed in 1983 by Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker. It was performed by 4 dancers from the Rosas company. In the 1997 film, which was directed by Thierry De Mey, there were 18 dancers, including Anne herself. 

The film is set in an abandoned school in Belgium, this makes the film site specific. The dancers, all women, perform in the empty classrooms and corridors. Their costumes are grey over sized shirts with black skirts, this makes it seem like a uniform which relates to the school setting. The costumes are dull and shapeless and this reminds me of something you would expect to wear in a prison or mental health institute. 

Repetitive, minimalist, pedestrian and abstract styles are frequent throughout the entire 1 hour 40 minute film (the stage version was only 8 minutes long). This is a signature style for Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker and the Rosas company, as a year before Rosas Danst Rosas debuted, Anne choreographed another dance called Fase, which was praised for its repetitive and minimalist movements. The dance is split up into 8 sections, Moving In, Floor, Chairs, Building, Glass, Lying Down, Inner Court and Coda. However, I will be focusing on only 4 sections, Floor, Chairs, Glass and. 

The key actions in the Floor section are roll, push up, arch, fall, breathing in and out and fragmentation. It begins with an establishing shot of four of the women standing with their backs to the camera. You can hear their footsteps as they each run through the corridor to the window, this is effective as its it creates quite an intense atmosphere. It is filmed behind a window frame and as it pans it look as if someone is eerily watching them move. 

The dancers stay still for a moment, then suddenly all drop to the floor in unison. There is no music so you hear them all crash and this causes quite an impact. The camera changes to a close up of the dancers on the floor. they roll, push up and contract all in unison. You can hear them all breathing which adds to the intensity I mentioned before. This whole section is 8 minutes long. At the start of the piece is very slow but the movements suddenly become very fast. I think the use of extremes of speed was made very effective with the use of close ups as this built up the tension. There was then a long moment of stillness which created suspense before the dancers sped up again. 

Dance For Camera

Initial Idea

The song I will be using is "Shatter Me" by Lindsey Stirling and Lzzy Hale, however I will be using the instrumental version. The song sounds very mystical and fairy - like. 

My idea is to have three girls aged around 10/11 to dance together in a park. They will all wear pink floaty dresses with their hair in two buns and glitter on their faces so that they look like fairies. I have decided on fairies because I think it fits the sound of the music and will make it look magical and mystical. I am using the park because it has connotations of innocence and child hood and these are themes I would like to convey through my dance. This is also why I have chosen to use younger performers. I have to be careful with my chosen location of a park as I could accidentally film other children without their paren't permission. Luckily there is a small park near my house than no one goes to very often as there is a bigger park near by. 

The style will be ballet/contemporary. It starts off very floaty and dainty but the music builds up to make the dance more powerful and strong.