Measure for Measure: Performance and Evaulation

Despite enjoying the rehearsal process and watching my peers succeed in performing an admirable Shakespeare production, I was not happy with my performance in Measure. I could not get my head around the language of the play, and this meant, despite discovering an interesting and nuanced character in the duke due to very useful physical exploration, I fell at the first hurdle. In both performances I choked my words, and I am disappointed in myself because of this.

I think, in terms of my own character development, as this is what this blog focusses on, I was actually pretty successful. I found using a combination of the newly acquired Laban efforts and the Head Heart Gut Groin exercise I was able to build a more exciting physical character than I ever had before. I was more confident in my choices, and this lead to moments of comedy throughout the play, such as dancing to the raver's music, or my combination of the friar's blessing and a raving hand. I also found that I often knew exactly what how the Duke would react in certain situations, as my physical presence and my thoughts on what aspects of his personality were most prominent because of this presence showed me the way forward.

However, the part of the character I failed to nail was the connection of this understanding of the character to the circumstances given by the text. I did not focus on this early enough in rehearsals, as in previous productions learning my lines has always come simultaneously with rehearsing the scenes and the movement. Although this is often a perfectly adequate way of learning lines, it was arrogant to assume this would work with such a complicated and wordy text. I should have identified this earlier and put more effort into learning these lines when under no pressure. When I did eventually identify this problem, I felt pressure by the fact that it was taking me far longer than usual and this scared me. This pushed me into a cycle of panicking about the words and therefore forgetting them, which lead me to believe I did not know them even more. I found that, after a few weeks of this, I was struggling to regain my composure after any sort of stumble at all. This showed itself in the performance, and meant I lost much of my physical embodiment as I struggled to get myself back on track.  Had I worked on the two aspects of my character simultaneously, I would have provided a far stronger performance. 

Measure for Measure: Set

The Haçienda nightclub, Manchester

The set is simplistic, designed to be a sturdy structure that does not detract from the events on stage while capturing the mood of the setting and collaging some of the culture of 1989. The pillars are based on those of the Haçienda nightclub in Manchester, one of the leading spots for acid house music and owned by local Manchester legend Tony Wilson. The DJ booth at the back is also furthering the club aesthetic, and the smily face plastered to the back wall is an iconic logo that represents ecstasy and was also one of the main images used in association with the acid rave scene. It is built around 

the preexisting rostra that provides dynamic levels and is a solid centrepiece for any action that takes place in the show. Seeing the set allowed us to get a much better idea of the space we will be working in and to see what our surrounding will tell us about the world we are in.

Measure for Measure: Costume

My costume consisted of a large orange hoodie and a pair of orange dungarees with black pumps and tinted sunglasses, and a cross around my neck. Originally, I was set to wear dirty blue jeans, but the dungarees were judged to be more fitting. 

The costume was well designed, as it worked for both it's purposes. Firstly, it covered most of my face and body, meaning I was well disguised as the friar, and I could also easily switch out with the other actors playing the duke. It also did well to transform the character of the friar into a raver in disguise, as the hoodie and dungarees were similar to both the outfits of the time and a monk's habit. the orange was close to the traditional brown but more gaudy, a common theme of the time.

Measure for Measure: Class in Shakespeare

As we approach the performance, we looked today at class in Shakespeare and how it compares to that of the 1989 context. The class hierarchy in a Shakespeare play is as follows:

• Government/Court
• Religion/Church
• High Born/Gentry
• Law
• Low Born/City

We decided which characters were above which in the play; this helped us have a better understanding of our relationships to each other and how we would treat each other.

My character is particularly interesting because he moves between two classes, the Court and the Church. Although when undisguised he is undisputedly at the top of the hierarchy, when undercover as Friar Ludowick he is below the Court. This bears itself in the big reveal in Act V when he is unmasked. Escalus has just ordered his arrest, not aware that this is her lord and master. When he is revealed, instantly the cast changes from looking at him as an equal to bowing their heads in respect.

We also transferred the ideas of class into the 1989 environment:

• Government: Thatcher and the Tories
• Religion: 1960s Hippie Generation "old wave"
• High Born: More privileged ravers, those with connections
• Law: The police and criminal justice system
• Low Born: Working class ravers and promoters

This helped us modernise these relationships with each other, and also to expand our knowledge of who we were in this alternate '80s Shakespearean world.

Measure for Measure: Proxemics

This rehearsal we took a first look at proxemics and how to command a Shakespeare play onstage. We were instructed to perform a line or two from the show and decide where it seemed most appropriate to deliver it from. 

There were a number of things to consider: firstly, our stage is thrust, so it is performed with the audience on three sides. This drastically changes the rules on where you can stand on the stage, as you are almost always hitting some part of the audience, and have your back to another part. 

Secondly, we have to take our characters into account. We were asked to debate where on stage lies the most power, and this differed depending on our opinions and our characters. For me, two places showed appeal - up stage centre, and the downstage corners looking in. The first allows a full view of the stage and the audience, therefore seems regal as you are in a way 'above' all others, looking down on the rest (this is also where we ended up staging the throne, so this reinforces my original thought). The second position seemed powerful because it meant i could see the entire stage from the audience's perspective, so it was as if I was omnipotent, standing on the edge of the world and looking in. Both of these positions suit my character well. 

The final thing to consider is the text. What is your character saying? if it is pleading and feeble, an upstage corner or downstage facing up may be appropriate as it put's you in sight of those you are addressing while hiding you form the audience, almost handing over the power. If it is contemplative, the downstage corners are again useful as they provide the image of someone looking in at the world, commenting while not necessarily changing anything.

Measure for Measure: Researching the World

1989 was a year of change amongst the young people of Great Britain. It was for many a dreary and hopeless period of Thatcherism and near poverty, particularly for those in Northern working class towns, yet a new music movement united the youth into a party fuelled rebellion against the conservative norms of the past decade. New dance clubs such as the Haçienda and Shoom played psychedelic dance beat tracks that incited people to dance for hours on end. This was often fuelled by the party drug ecstasy, hyping up the crowd and allowing them to carry on for hours without exhausting themselves. The music was also played at free parties hosted in abandoned warehouses or factories that were unregistered. Hundreds or thousands would turn up and cram in for the night, dancing until the sun rose. These parties were quickly jumped on by the media as a danger to society, promoting deadly drug use and unsociable and aggressive behaviour among the youth of Britain. Ironically this was often the opposite of true, as MDMA would lead to feelings of intense love and happiness, meaning many previously violent or thuggish football hooligans were transformed into smiling, dancing "hippies" almost overnight, after trying their first pill.

Shaun Ryder The Autobiography


To further research the play I reread Shaun Ryder's autobiography. Shaun Ryder was the lead singer of the Happy Mondays, one of the bands most heavily involved in the acid house rave scene, and this book provides a great insider's look at what it was genuinely like at the time. It also touches on the periods before and after, so provided some much needed context for how the scene came about, and what effect it had on society and youth culture.

Measure for Measure: Dance Rehearsals

Our show opens with a dance piece set to 'Love Can't Turn Around' by Jesse Saunders based on the movement and dance routines of the 1989 rave scene. The style was very free and careless, and emanated the passion and love for the music, often vigorous and violent. The scene was linked closely with the discovery of the new party drug MDMA or 'Ecstasy', therefore it was also important to include this in our piece. As well as adding to the loving, carefree, "ecstatic" feelings experience while raving, ecstasy has an effect on the face and body, making everything feel lighter and making the jaw and tongue swing uncontrollably and widening the eyes. I incorporated this into the dance routine and physicality of the opening, meaning the style of the dance was far more accurate. Ben, our movement director, taught us a few basic movements, including the 'Running Man' and a basic side step, then got us to experiment with moving our bodies and practice capturing that raw feeling. He showed us videos of some of the raves so that we had some idea of what we were emulating, including the one below:

I felt confident doing these movements, so as well as just copying the dance moves Ben taught us I also tried to copy a few of the moves from the videos and improvise with some movements that fit the style. Overall the piece was high energy and opened our show in a dynamic way, designed to draw the audiences attention and really wake them up before the opening scenes, as well as establish the world the play lives in.

Measure for Measure: Concept and Character

Our show, Measure for Measure, is a tale of state oppression and corruption in Vienna. Our concept for the show is to modernise it so that it is set in Northern England, 1989, during the 'second summer of love'. This setting has been chosen because of the remarkable similarities between the themes and zeitgeist of the two time periods. In the original play, the city is rife with brothels and parties, and sexual liberty has reached a point that is deemed unacceptable by the government. In 1989, the discovery of ecstasy and the acid house dance music craze lead to a wave of illegal raves and parties mixing the music, drug and youth cultures together in a powerful movement. This was portrayed by the media as a terrible and dangerous thing, and the government made efforts to shut these down using the police and by passing new anti rave laws. Therefore it is clear how the story may be transferred into an environment that will connect more with a contemporary audience.

I was cast as Duke Vincentio, the head of state in Vienna who hands over control temporarily to Angelo in order to view the city from an unbiased pair of eyes, seeing who is in the right and who has succumbed to the lure of corruption. I am playing the duke in Act III and Act IV Scene 1, as the part is being played by multiple actors. During this time, the Duke is in disguise as a friar so I will have to incorporate these mannerisms into my character. Also, because the part is being played by multiple actors, it may prove beneficial to include certain aspects of the other actors' portrayals into my own character in order to make clear the character is one and the same.

Measure for Measure: The Eight Laban Efforts

The next piece of character development we worked on as a cast were the Laban Efforts. These are based on a series of movement characteristics created by Rudolf Laban, they are split into 4 sections, each with opposing extremes:

• Fluidity: Staccato or Legato
• Speed: Fast or Slow
• Drive: Direct or Indirect
• Weight: Light or Heavy

From these four characteristics, it is possible to chop and change a number of them into eight three-dimensional "efforts", extreme versions of characters that reflect their movement objectives. These are:

1. Dab: Fast, Direct, Light
2. Flick: Fast, Indirect, Light
3. Punch: Fast, Direct, Heavy
4. Slash: Fast, Indirect, Heavy
5. Glide: Slow, Direct, Light
6. Float: Slow, Indirect, Light
7. Press: Slow, Direct, Heavy
8. Wring: Slow, Indirect, Heavy

To figure these out for ourselves, we got into neutral and explored first the four sections on their own, then each of the efforts one by one. They are useful for character development as it is possible to provoke an emotional response from a physical stimulus, therefore Laban is a brilliant way to explore physicality based on estimations about how a character feels. This is particularly useful for Shakespeare as a strong physical presence is vital so that the nuances of the words are not lost on an audience disengaged by a lack of physicality on stage. On top of this, our show is based in a physical environment; the Acid house dance music movement of 1989.

For the Duke, I found that the Effort that fitted best was Glide, as it best encompassed the Duke's caring yet regal presence. I played with float, but found that the Duke had too much of a purpose in the show to not be direct in his actions, as this would connote a regal character that does not seem to care about his duties, making him unlikeable.

Measure for Measure: Head Heart Gut Groin

For our initial rehearsal, we began some character work based on the four main areas of the body, these being the head, heart, gut and groin. Each of these four areas have many traits or characteristics associated with them.

• The Head: often associated with intellect and the brain, a character who is thoughtful, intelligent or quick-witted and curious may manifest itself in the head. This can pull the head in front of the body, making them seem nosy or interested in the world, or it may pull them up taler, making them seem self-important.
• The Heart: situated in the chest, the heart is often regarded as the centre of the body and the home of the soul, particularly in Elizabethan medical beliefs. It is associated with compassion, love, and the ability to be emotionally connected. A maternal or bold character may lead with the heart. Leading with the chest also creates a primal, dominant shape that can exert power.
• The Gut: used to digest food primarily, the gut is associated with gluttony and greed, as well as bravery and stoicism. A character that leads with the gut may seem fat or comfortable, as it contorts the body into a slumped position with terrible posture
• The Groin: the house of the sexual organs is quite obviously associated with feelings of sexuality and animalism. Often the most villainous characters lead from the groin, connoting dirty minds and bodies that are motivated by the simple pleasures of life.

It is interesting to look at how most of these four humours can portray characters of both the good and evil persuasions, and that there is a full range of characters that can be built by combining certain elements of the four areas.

When creating my character, I found these four ares worked as a great basis for the simple developments I had in mind. For the Duke, I decided that he lead with a combination of the head and the heart, this is because I feel he is conflicted between his moral compass and his desire to appear a powerful leader to the people of Vienchester. I felt that, when disguised, his head became more prominent as he had to worry less about his bold persona. This is quite possibly the reason he decides to carry out his plan to go into hiding in the first place.