GCSE Set Design Model Answer

7/31/2019 GCSE Set Design Model Answer

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What the Examiner

Expects

Ref to two design ortech elements

Explanation howthey were used

Effects created Audience reaction

Style of production

Period or place

Correct terminology

Design

style

genre

period

costumes - fabrics,textures, colours,

details - justification

set - space andlevels

set - representationof location

health and safety

some integration ofdesign elements

Technical

style

genre period

lighting - colours,intensity, plot,special effects,projection

sound - live,recorded

props - use anddesign

integration ofdesign elements

1. Choose two design or technical elements used in this live theatreproduction from: costume, set design, lighting, sound, special effects

Choose one scene or section and explain how these elements wereused.

I am going to discuss Forty Tales of the Afterlives, a piece of contemporary

dance/physical theatre which was based on David Eaglemans book of thesame title. The book contains forty short stories describing what the afterlifemight be like and the theatre production interpreted ten of them through musicand dance or movement. I am going to discuss the set design and the lightingfor one of the stories called Adhesion. I saw the production at the PeterBurke Theatre on the 17th Februrary 2011

The production took place in a studio theatre and used a promenade formatso the audience and the actors shared the same space. Half of the space wasraised about two feet above the remaining floor space with curved stepslinking the two levels. Above these steps was a huge arch, fifteen feet highmade of the dead branches of ivy which had once surrounded trees. Hangingfrom this arch were lots of photographs of children and baby clothes andshoes. I think these belonged to the actors and they were hanging from thearch as mementos of their lives before they entered the afterlife, echoing thetraditions of many ancient cultures. This caused me to think about my life andthe items I would use to remember my life.

Most of the space was surrounded by plain white walls, 8 feet high, curved atthe corners in front of which were more trees/large bare branches, some ofthem 12 feet high. Two enormous projection screens hung in the roof space

either side of the performance space, slanting at an angle so they could beseen easily from the floor. The raised level was surrounded by plain blackwalls and, in the centre of the upstage wall, there was an old, batteredwooden door. Even before the play began, the door made me think of a routeto another world, a world I couldnt see but which intrigued me.

The flat white walls and floor helped make it quite a neutral space which didntspecify a particular time or place - allowing it to represent the locationsdemanded by the different stories. It also brought to mind our traditionalimages of heaven as a very white place, suggesting purity.

The trees were used by the actors; they held them upright as they movedamongst the audience and they used them to define the spaces used for eachdance, moving the audience around the space so that each dance took placein a different place and the audience had a constantly shifting view. This madethe whole experience very active and engaging for the audience. The treesgave a very natural feel to the space, reminding us that death is a naturalprocess.

Adhesion is a romantic story and dance and it was performed as a duetbetween one male and one female dancer. The other dancers formed a small

circle of trees in the centre of the space quite close to the large arch. Theaudience gathered outside this circle and the dancers moved through thetrees into the space, giving the impression that they were creeping through aforest for a secret meeting. The fact that this dance took place in a smallenclosed space added to the sense of secrecy and intrigue. At the end of the


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dance, the trees moved slowly to form an avenue, almost as if the couple weremarrying.

The trees and the white walls also made it possible to use very exciting lighting.Most of it came from follow-spots positioned in each corner of the space. As thelighting was sharply focused and from quite a low-level, it gave very strongshadows, accentuating the dancers movements and body shapes. It was alsovery flexible lighting, allowing the action to take place anywhere in the space.

The low level also meant it picked up the trees, casting shadows of the trees ininteresting and moving shapes, giving movement and dynamism to the scenes.

The lights also changed colour for each different story, creating different moodsvery quickly. The romantic pinks and blues used for Adhesion contrasted withanother story which used deep reds to suggest a more military tone. Thecolours were made stronger by the use of white walls which picked up thecolours so the whole space seemed to change with the lights.

There were also some candles (battery-operated) positioned in the arch andaround the edge of the space in some of the trees. These gave a very beautifuland delicate light between the stories and added to the romantic effect forAdhesion. Some light also came from the projection screen which were used toshow a live feed of the movement, mixed form several cameras. These wereoften in close-up, sometimes with visual effects so they gave quite an abstracteffect.

The lighting and set were integrated to give a very flexible space which wasvery dynamic but also very beautiful.


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2 How effective do you think the use of the design/technical elementswas in your chosen scene or section.

(This answer is part 2 of the design/technical elements question)

Adhesionis a very romantic story which explores the question why somepeople stick together, often in surprising pairings while others, who seemideally matched, split up.

The trees, held by the other actors were slowly moved into a small circle bythe other actors, giving just enough space for the two dancers in the duet.The audience gathered all around the trees and the two dancers creptbetween them into the circle. It successfully gave the impression that thedance was taking place in a clearing in a forest and this added to theromantic tone of the dance, a tone which was created initially by theromantic piano music. It was almost as if we were seeing a secret, intimatemoment and this made the audience feel privileged.

Using the trees to define a small space within the space as a whole focusedthe audiences attention on the dancers faces and bodies, and this wasvery effective in making it a very intimate dance.

The video screens showing live feed of the dance were above theaudiences heads for this dance and slightly behind, meaning that wetended only to glimpse the action on the screen and tended to focus only onthe live action. However, the extreme close-ups used for filming this dancegave an abstract quality to the projections. We were aware of largesweeping movements and this added to the romantic tone withoutdistracting us from the intimate scene.

The lighting for this scene came mostly from four follow-spots, one in eachcorner of the space. They were at quite a low level, just high enough to hitthe dancers over the audience heads but low enough to throw shadowsfrom the trees. The fact that they were follow spots not fixed spotlightsmeant that the light was constantly moving, giving a dynamic quality. Thelow angle and the shadows this created enhanced the shapes of the actorsbodies very effectively.

Two of the followspots in opposite corners used a pink gel for this sceneand two used a blue. This might have been to suggest the male/female

characters but I think it served to give a romantic quality. They were softcolours, very much in keeping with the mood of the dance. These colourscast the audience in a soft light, too and the colours reflected off the whitewalls of the set which further enhanced the gentle, delicate mood of thispiece.

Some accent light was provided by the (battery) candles dotted around thetrees positioned by the walls and by the central arch. These were also veryeffective in creating a gentle, romantic mood. The girl dancers flowing reddress added to this again.

All of these features were highly effective in creating a clear mood for thispiece and the audience was enthralled by it, not wanting to move, perhapsbecause they felt they were watching something secret, almost as if theywere voyeurs.

Analysis of the design/technical elements

Reasons they were used

in the way they were Evaluation of

effectiveness

Awareness of integrationof elements

Justification of ideasoffered

Terminology


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Choose one live theatre production you have seen during yourcourse. Explain what impact it had on you. You should refer to how itwas staged, the acting, design and technical skills

The production which made the most impact on me was a production calledForty Tales of the Afterlives, a contemporary dance piece based on DavidEaglemans book of the same title which describes many possibilities forwhat the afterlife might be like. I saw the production at the Peter Burke

Theatre on 17th February 2011. The section that made particular impact onme was a dance called Circle of Friends which suggests that the afterlifecontains only the people who you were friends with in the living world.

Not only was this a very beautiful dance but it was also very engaging forme as an audience member because it forced me to move around duringthe dance so that I felt as if I was almost participating in it, as if I was part ofthis afterlife.

The production was a promenade, taking place in a largely white space

with curved white walls and white floor, although one wall was black.Surrounding the space were trees about twelve feet high. At various pointsin the production, these were carried by the actors and used to define adifferent space for each dance but, for this one, they were arranged aroundthe edge of the space, helping me to feel close to the action. I felt as if Iwas in the magic forest where much of the action seemed to take place.

The actors, who were all wearing identical black dance leggings and long-sleeved black tops with the logo of a tree on, began the dance in pairs. Themusic for this piece was quite whimsical and based around percussioninstruments - bells and glockenspiel - with some strings to add a sense of

romance. A voice narrated the story over the top of the music. The actorswere spread all around the space so we, the audience, had to move, partlyso we could see but also so we were not in the way.

Two huge screens with live video feed hung above the space so we couldsee the dancers and also see ourselves. This was very effective in addingto the impression that we were participating actively in the dance ratherthan just watching passively.

Each pair of actors began with two thin sticks about 40 cm long on the floorbetween them. As the dance began, they picked them up, using only theirfingertips and keeping them in the air only by maintaining the pressurebetween them. This demanded great co-operation and silentcommunication between the actors and this made a strong impression onme. It also suited the story which is all about points of contact betweenfriends so the action expressed the theme of the story very simply andpowerfully. All the time, the actors maintained eye contact with each otherand very still expressions. Their movement was very poised and delicate,as if the contact between them could be broken by any aggressive action.

All the action was perfectly synchronised so the impression as you looked

across the whole space was of a sea of identical movement.

What the Examiner

Expects

Ref to one section

Ref to nature of impactmade on candidate

Answers focusing on onlyone aspect will be self-

limiting (wont be able to

get full marks)

How was the impactachieved?

Performance

style

genre

period

voice - accent, pitch, tone

movement - gesture,posture, physical skills

facial expression

interaction with othercharacters

Design

style

genre

period

costumes - fabrics,textures, colours, details -justification

set - space and levels set - representation of

location

health and safety


Technical

style

genre

period

lighting - colours,intensity, plot, specialeffects, projection

sound - live, recorded

props - use and design

integration of designelements


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The lighting, from followspots in each corner of the space had a gentle bluecolour, quite rich and this enhanced the warm, gentle tone of the story. Thefocus of the lights was quite wide, allowing for all the actors to be lit.

As the dance developed, each pair joined with another pair. Each pair wasstill connected by the sticks but now their movements interacted withanother pair, making the patterns seem more intricate and delicate.

Then, the actors all joined into a huge chain, linked by the sticks still heldonly at fingertip, which began moving around the space. Some of theaudience were trapped inside the chain and they had to move around theactors to help disentangle the knot. Gradually, the chain moved into atighter circle, spiralling until the climax of the music when there was a snapblackout.

This piece had such an impact on me because it made the experience veryinteractive. Rather than just sitting and watching, I felt as if I wasparticipating and involved. It was also very beautiful to see the actors allmoving at exactly the same time all around the space and this wasenhanced by the music and the lighting. The concentration needed tomaintain the contact between actors was also very impressive.


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Explain how successful you thought the opening section of thisproduction was in making an impact on the audience

This is part 2 of the question above

The opening of this production was very unusual and it had a hugeimpact on me, affecting the way I viewed the rest of the production.Unlike a traditional production where the audience enters and then

there is a blackout and a pause and then the start of the performance,it was as if this production had begun before any of the audience wasable to enter the space.

We were greeted by one of the actors wearing a circus ringmastercostume, with black leggings and a red tail-coat, and led in smallgroups of three or four through the door of the auditorium. Immediately,we found ourselves in a narrow tunnel made by the other actors whowere all carrying fir branches. It was very dark and the only light camefrom the (battery) candles, some held by the actors and some hanging

around the edge of the space. This gave a very creepy atmosphereand it was unnerving to walk into. The smell of the fir branches wasvery evocative of Christmas and of magic. We could hear delicatemusic playing. As we walked along the tunnel, we could feel the touchof the branches or, occasionally, the hand of one of the actors. Again,the effect of this was to make it quite a nervy entrance to theperformance space.

It made me feel as if I was making a journey into the afterlife, almostinto a Greek underworld and the effect of this was to make me feel asif I was part of the production.

As we left the tunnel, in the middle of the promenade space, we weremet by two more actors, dressed in the black costumes with tree logoworn by all of them, who gave us a fortune cookie, saying, Welcometo your future! The fortune cookie had the name of one of the dancesinside - mine was Circle of Friends - and this made me feel intriguedas to what that story would be like. When it came to that part of theproduction, I felt as if it was playing out my future and I took particularinterest in that dance.

Then, it began snowing inside the auditorium, which was very unusualand exciting and caused a gasp amongst the audience. As the musicreached a crescendo, the fir tunnel disappeared as the actors movedto the edges of the space and our attention was directed by twofollowspots towards the door in the black wall.

The narration for the first story was played and, after a few seconds,the music began. It was very powerful music. Then, the door creakedopen, smoke emerging from it and an actress, backlit by a verypowerful yellow light, walked out and began the first dance. She wasdressed like all the others but with a silver choker and corset and

striking black lipstick and eye make-up. Already, I had been swept intothe action and felt as if I was taking part in all the stories that followed.

What the examinerexpects:

Identification of theopening of the play

Evaluation of the successof the opening in makingan impact

Reference to technical,design and performanceskills

Awareness of integrationof production elements

Reference to audienceresponse


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What the Examiner

Expects

Ref to one section

Ref to nature of impactmade on candidate

Answers focusing on onlyone aspect will be self-limiting (wont be able to

get full marks)

How was the impactachieved?

Performance

style

genre

period

voice - accent, pitch, tone

movement - gesture,posture, physical skills

facial expression interaction with other

characters

Design

style

genre

period

costumes - fabrics,textures, colours, details -justification

set - space and levels set - representation oflocation

health and safety


Technical

style

genre

period

lighting - colours,

intensity, plot, specialeffects, projection

sound - live, recorded

props - use and design

integration of designelements

Choose one live theatre production you have seen during your course.Explain what impact it had on you. You should refer to how it wasstaged, the acting, design and technical skills.

I am going to discuss a production of A Handbag by Anthony Horowitz, whichI saw at the Peter Burke Theatre on December 10th 2010

This is a black comedy, naturalistic in style and set in the present day. It

describes the attempts of a group of young actors to rehearse for a productionof The Importance of Being Earnest. Gradually, it emerges that they are notordinary teenagers but that they are locked up in some sort of secureinstitution.

The play had a strong impact on me for several reasons. First, the naturalisticacting meant that all the characters were totally credible and I felt empathy fortheir situation. I thought the way the play withheld the truth about their pasts,only revealing details bit by bit drew me into the story and helped me toengage with it. Thirdly, the design was very clever and enhanced the playsthemes of disguise and pretence very subtly.

The character of George is onstage throughout the play and he is directing theproduction of The Importance of Being Earnest as well as taking the part ofJack Worthing. He showed great variety in his responses, being patient andvery caring towards Rose, the weak-minded girl playing Lady Bracknell, butlosing patience with the other characters as the rehearsal begins to fall apart.

It was in his scene with Kinsey that he had the most impact, though. Thesetwo characters knew each other before being committed to the institution andit seems they were guilty of a crime similar to the murder of Jamie Bulger. Inthe scene, they reflect on their lives before the crime and after it. Georgebegan the scene quite cross that Kinsey wants to drop out of the play. He isstanding downstage centre, a strong stage position and his stance isconfident, hands in his pockets. He begins with quite a confrontational tone ofvoice, snapping questions at Kinsey, looking him in the eye.

This changes gradually as Kinsey begins to describe their arrival at theinstitution, being led through countless doors. Even though he wasntspeaking, you were aware of the actor playing George remembering this forhimself and his body language changed. He dropped his head, looking to thefloor and then slowly made his way to the chaise longue. As he sat on it, his

shoulders seemed bowed and he clasped his hands in his lap, almost wringingthem. This was not enough to take the attention away from Kinsey but it didadd to the naturalism of the scene. I was suddenly aware that George wascrying and this made me feel great sympathy for the character, despite hiscrime. The way the play gradually made me feel sympathy for characters whohad done some terrible crimes had a big impact on me.

Kinseys speech about doors was a key moment in this scene and it was fittingthat doors played a big part in the set design. Almost all the action took placedownstage and the set was divided into two white-walled rooms by a wallrunning across the centre of the stage with a large doorway in it. Through this

doorway, you could see into the upstage room which was built to have adeceptive perspective so the barred door in the upstage wall seemed muchfurther away than it really was. This helped to give a sense of the frighteningscale of the institution and helped to enhance the clinical, cold atmosphere


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created by the fact that almost everything was white. The naturalistic detailssuch as the moving security cameras positioned near this barred door and theposters explaining the rules of the institution, subtly scaled to add to theperspective, were very helpful in making the play believable.

These naturalistic details contrasted with the few props and items of scenerythe young actors had managed to gather and these were designed to lookunrealistic - the book case was clearly painted on a flat board, for example.

This contrast helped to express the idea of the play within the play very wellindeed. The fact that the actors were wearing unfinished costumes withtracksuit trousers and T shirts under their Edwardian style costumes helped toadd to this idea. These devices helped to create the impression that thingswere not as they seemed, fitting for the theme of disguise and pretence in theplay.

The lighting was also very naturalistic and was designed to look cold and quiteblue, as if the light was coming from cold strip lighting. More light, giving theeffect of bluish moonlight was coming through a barred window high up in thestage right wall and this created interesting shadows. The lighting state didnt

change until the end when the alarm sounded and the lights were dimmed andwe were aware of flashing red lights through the barred door upstage. Thisgave quite an unnerving ending as we realised that the characters we hadengaged with were about to be locked up again.


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Explain how successful you thought the opening section of thisproduction was in making an impact on the audience

This is part 2 of the question above

When the play began, I thought I was seeing a production of TheImportance of Being Earnest.

Although she was too young for Lady Bracknell, the actress playing therole was wearing a long, red Edwardian dress, in keeping with the partand was seated on a chaise longue, sitting elegantly as a woman wouldhave done in those days.

The actor playing Jack was standing just behind her and they weretalking with the upper class, clipped accents you associate with the play.Jack was holding a teacup and saucer.

Then Alan, playing Algernon, entered rapidly and delivered his line. Therewas a long pause during which the other two looked at each other, bothlooking disbelieving. It was clear that something had gone wrong and theaudience began to laugh uncomfortably. We were wondering if they wouldbe able to get out of the situation by one of them ad-libbing.

At this stage, we thought the actors had got their lines wrong but then thecharacter of Jack said, Youre a twat, Alan. We realised that thecharacter of Alan had made the mistake, not the actor playing the part.This was a very clever device to introduce the idea of the play within aplay and the idea that everyone in the play was unable to be themselves;they had all taken on a disguise or new identity.

Of course, the use of the word twat and the fact that the character ofGeorge suddenly dropped his posh accent in favour of his more normalvoice with its dropped letters and slang diction, presented a huge contrastand this was a source of comedy in this moment.

This moment had great impact. It began as an uncomfortable moment butbecame a funny moment and one which expressed the key idea in theplay.

As the scene developed, with the characters speaking in their real

voices, not their Importance of Being Earnest voices, we began to noticethe naturalistic details in the set, especially the bars, and we guessed thatthis was not an ordinary group of young actors. The subtle way this factwas introduced had a strong impact on the audience and we empathisedwith them as a result.

What the examinerexpects:

Identification of theopening of the play

Evaluation of the successof the opening in makingan impact

Reference to technical,design and performanceskills

Awareness of integrationof production elements

Reference to audienceresponse

Documents

GCSE Set Design Model Answer