Performance Evaluation

We were successful in our performance for a number of reasons.
Firstly, we used the space well, as we adapted our pieces in order to fill the large performance space and our command of spacial awareness and proxemics meant we never lost control of the space. This meant the space did not seem intimidating and instead contributed to our performance, allowing us to truthfully interact with our surroundings and giving us a wider expanse of given circumstances to fool around with. We did this by having purpose in the space, heading where we wanted to go and knowing why we were going there, just as if we were entering a room in real life. We also made sure we were aware of or audience in the space, heading to a place which allowed the audience to fully connect with us emotionally without disregarding the expansive nature of the space.
We kept this command of the performance running by making sure we transitioned effortlessly from one scene to the next. Because we were all contributing our own scenes to an ensemble performance, it became a juggling act between all of us to keep the energy high - of one group dropped the ball, the energy is dead for everyone else who has to follow. This meant we had to keep wary that we were on our cues and knew how to hand the energy over. We did this by confidently ending the scene, either by exiting with purpose or ending on a strong moment. We then exited in character, let the focus drift to the new scene (which must begin immediately) then quietly drifting into a neutral position by the side. This way, the focus flows effortlessly from group to group.
Another thing we did well was play our physical objectives over everything else, something we were working to achieve in rehearsal. This meant we were able to truthfully deliver our lines as there was reason and meaning behind them created by truthful and purposeful physicality. We all made sure that this was on or near the top of our things to consider as we worked through our scenes, and from this everything else sprouted; the narrative, the subtext, the desire, and the text. We did this by knowing our physical objectively well and having lucid, simple physical actions.
By doing this, this opened up the ability to be playful, something that we all did very well throughout. This can be proved by the fact that no two runs were anything alike, as we responded to external stimulus and given circumstances created by one partners that made us change our physical and psychological objectives in order to explore new interpretations of the text. It made the piece more exciting for us, because we had no clue what was going to happen next, which makes for very exciting theatre that does not become repetitive and boring. There were a number of other ways we contributed to this, one being by grounding our voices. By focusing on correct breathing at instinctual moments, we were able to relax and not focus on the text or breathing, instead letting instinct take over, allowing the truth to rear it's head from inside instead of being pushed out unwillingly, becoming a false runt of a sentence. This trust in truth meant that the slightest change in external stimulus, for example the tone of another actor's voice or the distance they stand from you, can have a big impact on how things change and flow. Some of the most intuitive of us even ended up creating these changes for our fellow actors, feeding them given circumstances from which they can bounce off and create something exciting.
Despite the same scenes being played multiple times at points, there was not the feeling of anything being repeated. This was because we were instinctual, meaning each actors interpretation was different both every time they played the scene and and every time another set of actors played the scene. This also bounced nicely off the fact that the set was evolving constantly throughout as more and more actors interacted with it, for example coats being left on the hanger and chairs being pulled farther and farther from the table as more people sat and rose.

From learning this method, we are now prepared for when we work in future with those not applying a visceral method. When met with these actors, we know to really hit them with everything we have, shocking them into an instinctual reaction by not giving them time to think. It has become instinctual in us, leaving more freedom to provoke it in others.
There were a number of notes that we received despite putting on a successful performance, these included work in front of mouth articulation, vocal resonance, being able to always find our instinctual breath, and discovering the next level of instinct by pushing ourselves to try more risqué play.
We now also need to work on letting the technique become part of the subconscious, something we don't even need to consider, so that we can apply it onstage without thinking and instead focus on relaxing and letting things change as we work on stage. If we work towards our super and scene by playing our physical objective then consistently and well then it is near impossible to have a fake reaction, as our only reactions will be that caused by a real external stimulus, so will be truthful. We also need to begin to investigate subtext, and to develop our physical form for the character. A method to achieving this is by creating a provocative mental image and which embodies or personifies the character's situation.