Props in the space

The space we chose was naturally for an adult themed performance as is on the back end to a primary school. Therefore the space is hidden away from children and is not an easily accessible place. The site its self had objects such as a ladder, pole and graffiti marks on the wall which led us to the idea of a shanti house. The idea of a shanti house was hard to create in terms of how the rest of the space was and its location. We discovered shanti houses to be in over populated and poor areas therefore having it behind a school would contradict the idea as people who live within a shanti house dont have an education. To develop the idea of being in a secretive, adult themes area we chose to do a shooting gallery. A shooting gallery is a meeting point for people who want to take or sell drugs. Its also known as a 'crack house'. Naturally the asthetics of the piece allowed us to go further with this idea. Even the floor was mouldy and slodgy to step in! On the day of the scratch performance we set our space up to become more visually pleasing. We used objects such as needles, condoms, images, food wrappers, rope and drugs. Using the objects was a good idea as it made the space come to life exactly how we had imagined it. To also compliment the space, there was already a graffiti mark on the wall therefore we used cardboard and spray paint to create more. Overall in terms of props in the space is was set out very well. We were told in our feedback to do less acting within the space as how we created it was enough to take the audience on a journey. A lot of the props we used was a symbolic way of representing the drug house we wanted to create. Also we didnt consider the impact of rain on our space as during the scratch performance the rain had ruined a lot of what we created. However it also created a dark atmosphere to what we were creating. Next time we will consider the weather as a means of creating and work around any possible disasters. 

Images that were around our space

We printed off the following images to show the audiences the harsh reality of what goes on within a shooting gallery. One of our mentions for feedback was about not acting so much in the space and instead let the atmosphere we have created come to life. To develop this feedback the idea of keeping with these pictures perfectly describes what goes on within the space without having to act any of it out. The audience may also be up to interpretation as to whether of not they think this is a happy place. The images were stuck on the walls of the space in an unorderly fashion to further represent the clutter of the site. 

Past lives of characters

Within our site we wanted to reflect the characters previous lives by taking the audience on a journey where the visuals within the space (e.g a voice recording and booklet) resembles their past. This booklet shows what the drug taking characters were and how they got to where they are now. When doing our research into shooting galleries and who is in them a lot of what caused them to be this way are bad influences, family issues and relationship. Usually marijuana is the gateway drug before they begin to take class A drugs such as heroin and cocaine. Therefore the booklet describes all of our research is short passages to attract the audience. 

Questions arising from the site

To get a clear understanding of the deep struggle of living in a shantytown I researched some of the disadvantages of living there.  One of these disadvantages was how over populated the place was and fires can spread quickly. This shows how unorganised the place is and gives me a little insight into how most of the general society may feel, which is a bit vulnerable and not safe. This is why I suggested that our characters should have and their own kind of background story and life of their own so that doesn't seem like a play, and so that we show the audience that the for lack of support has in fact on the general society. If we were to do this it show that our site is a microcosm of that society. However  I know it can't fully be a representation of that society, as we need to still have the idea of a shooting gallery. But these are still just ideas not concrete plans.

Questions arising from the site.

Does the history of nature of the site suggest a particular subject matter, theme or form?

The site is in a quite isolated part of the school due to the fact that it’s inaccessible without site staff members. This is because the site consists of the school boiler room, which can be dangerous if messed around with by students. The site has always remained a boiler room ever since the building was first created, and that’s it’s function; to control the temperature of the school. 

What text/images/music does the site suggest?

The site can be considered a creepy, desolated area due to the fact that nobody is ever there and in order to access it you need a security key card. The actual site itself is also urban because of all the empty space, the striking design, the fact that it’s hidden so whatever happens inside cannot be seen nor heard, and the eerie aspects of it like the destroyed landscape. Because of this, the site creates an eerie atmosphere and suggests texts and images that relate to death, destruction, unwantedness, corruption, and danger. The music that is suggests could be deep, heavy, creepy music. 

Does the site allow the employment of unusual configurations of spectators?

The site has an abstract design to it, and it’s not like a traditional theatre or traditional site. Because of this, it would be easy to have an unusual configuration of spectators.

Where are the spectators?

The staging is a promenade set, and so the spectators would be involved and immersed into the performance. This means that the spectators can follow the actors around throughout the set and feel as part of the performance.

Where will the action be in relation to the spectators?

The action will evolve around the spectators. The action will be taking place throughout the whole duration of the performance all throughout the space, and the spectators will be thrown into the performance to feel as if they are actually there and actually part of the performance. 

Is the relationship between the spectators and performers fixed or changing? 

The performance cannot be predicted. He actors will have a duty to perform and to interact with the audience members, but we do not know how the audience members are going to respond, and so though there will be fixed aspects of the performance, it may also change in relation to how the audience members react. 

Do the dimensions, sufaces, textures and material conditions – the shape, proportion, height, length and disposition of the architectural elements of the site – suggest theatrical styles, devices and dramatic forms to be used? 

The site contains a lot of destruction and damaged textures and surfaces. The site dimension is also closed off which creates a feeling of being trapped. The materials in the site mainly consists of damaged objects, such as broken bricks, broken stones, holes in the floor, and other elements that connote destruction. The site is also large in width, length and height, which means that a lot can take place at the same time throughout the site, which is what we want. All these aspects connote to corruption, and a damaged society. This is useful because it links into our idea of having a ‘Shooting Gallery’ or a ‘Drug Pit’, full of drug addicts who have destroyed their lives through the use of drugs. 

How is the climate of the site apparent as a subject matter? 

Although the site is very enclosed, it doesn’t actually contain a roof. This means that we cannot control any harsh weather conditions, such as rain. So if it rains it may be a problem because both the audience and actors will become wet and cold, which can be uncomfortable. However, this can actually be used to our advantage. If it starts raining, it will add more depth to the performance and add to the atmosphere of depression.

Criticism of the site and performance

Criticism of the site and performance

Having feedback on our site allowed us to completely change the way we thought about the space and devising it. At first we chose to make the performance relevant to where the space was situated for example on school grounds. However we took bits of the space that we were able to respond to such as the idea of secrecy. 

The feedback we received was very critical however allowed us to take a step back and realise the potential of the space we were unable to see at first. The teachers said our performance was just a play in the site. I was able to understand this criticism as we didn't respond to the space as much as we could have. Our performance could have incorporated the found materials in the space and point out interesting aspects to the space.

To reflect on the criticism given i believe we need to develop our ideas further and not settle for a basic idea (our original idea being an affair scene). To ensure our ideas are developed correctly we need to stay connected to the space. The task "Look, see, notice" would help create responsive ideas. The ideas created from the space can also be developed from the architecture and situation of the space. We have begun to do this in the new found space. We have noticed that it is hidden from younger children, therefore immediately the space reflects adult scenes. Adult scenes may include: Sexual scenes, drug and abuse scenes. All of which the site may be suggestive of due to its naturally hidden nature. 

Secondary research

Images the space reminds us of

Our site responds to this type of living space as it is minimalistic and cluttered with unnecessary objects such as a broken ladder. We wanted to base our site around a shanti house type place otherwise known as a shooting gallery. We considered the type of characters that would be in the space and this was people associated with drugs. The characters would be of a working class and have very little in their life which is why they turn the drugs. Naturally the site it hidden away from children therefore this idea was perfect in response to the space. 

Primary Research

Media that relates to the space

Songs of the space

This song is called Matches in the pool by Dave Porter. The song makes me think of the space as its like being in a hysteria. The high pitches and elongated sounds makes me think of looking through the space in slow motion and noticing everything as if it isn't normality, as if it isn't right. 

Another song from the series breaking bad, this song is called The Bike lock. I chose to use songs from the series breaking bad as it relates to the themes of the space, such as secrecy and adult themes. This is a mellow song which reminds me of the feeling of zoning out. As the space is a private and unseen area it arises the themes of being on drugs. Characters that come to mind are those who are on hard drugs and have no awareness of reality. The space creates these thoughts as its dirty and private. A person on drugs wouldn't care about where they are just so long as they get their fix and they wont be seen doing so. 

Images of the space

The space

The Space

When finding a space located within a school its challenging enough as it is due to its limitations. Limitations include fire escapes, hazards and disruptions. When choosing a space we wanted to work in we had to consider options such as availability, weather, safety risks and more. To help us make a decision on an interesting space we decided to learn about the history of the school. 

The BRIT School was a hospital in the war time, therefore it was a place of loneliness, pain and death. Rooms were used as operating rooms, morgues and resting rooms. Our group wanted to keep in mind the feeling of escapism as this was a natural feeling bought from the war to a soldiers home. Therefore our initial chosen space was outside a fire exit. The main area of the place of hospitality was in what is now known as the theatre rooms, therefore our chosen fire exit was underneath those rooms. 

Problems arose in the space we had chosen. Understandably it was underneath a main fire escape therefore we were already aware that any props we wished to use were unable to be flammable, this already had caused many limitations. The props already in the space were interesting as it included abandoned wheelbarrows, bricks, soil bags, plant pots and an old-unused fridge. When analysing the space we noticed it was enclosed and there was graffiti on the walls as well as an uneven floor. Themes arose such as affairs, drug shooting galleries and shanti homes. However due to the amount of limitations we had to change spaces. 

What to do when analysing the space:

A good exercise to use when choosing themes that arise in the space is to analyse it in detail. I see, i notice, i wonder. The idea is to see something in the space for example: A light. The following step is to notice something about what you have just seen, for example: The light faces towards the ceiling. The final task is to wonder something about what we saw and noticed, for example: I wonder how the light manages to brighten the entire room if it only faces the ceiling. This task is useful as we were able to zoom into specific parts of the space and narrow down specifics which may contribute to creating the themes of a site specific performance. 

The new found space:

We were given the opportunity to explore more areas of the school due to the unfortunate circumstances in finding an initial space. Luckily we found a space similar to the chosen one which actually offered more for a performance. The space is slightly larger and the floor is covered with even concrete however a thin layer of mould/moss which creates a grotty theme. There is a brick wall that blocks the space from the neighbouring area which is a primary school, therefore this evoked themes such as secrecy and a sense of adult themes happening behind the wall. Interesting props within the space are a set of stairs in front of a double door which again gives a sense of blocking and discomfort. There was areas of the bricks walls which had been graffiti'd however had dimmed in colour. Moreover there was an old wooden ladder which was painted white however the paint was chipping in the weather conditions, the ladder also had graffiti which presented a space where people go to express something. 

Themes produced in the space:

• Passion
• Secrecy
• Discomfort
• Expression
• Enclosure
• Unhygienic
• Unclean 
• Adulthood 

The chosen space

The situation of the space:

The chosen space is in the area called 'Yard' located in-between the boiler room and changing rooms.