Rehearsal Techniques to Explore Relationships between Women
Consider THREE appropriate rehearsal techniques you might use in order to explore the relationships between the women in this extract
To explore the relationships between the women in this scene, the status of each character at different points could be considered. Looking at the extract from page 9 to 19, I would ask the performers to pick a section and read through the lines, deciding the order of each characters’ status. To do this, they could use levels to assert their character’s dominance in the scene. For example, the women of the lowest rank could kneel on the floor and the highest could stand on a chair. This would benefit the performers as the exploration of status would indicate the differences in the character’s personalities and how the position of status changes throughout the scene.
Still imaging is another technique that would explore the women’s relationships. After looking at page 19, when Lampito agrees to Lysistrata’s plan to renounce sex, the actors could create two separate still images highlighting the differences between the attitudes of Myrrhine and Calonice in comparison to Lampito and Lysistrata. The separation of the characters into two groups would assist the actor in rehearsals as it shows the report between the latter two characters and the distance between the others’ ideas.
Gestus, an acting technique developed by Bertolt Brecht, could be used to present a social attitude embodied by each of the characters and the relationships between them. The performers would need to read the extract and understand what each of the characters represents. For example, Lysistrata personifies the Greek fear of a transgressive woman whereas Calonice depicts the typical Greek idea of a housewife and child bearer, in addition to a sexual object for men to admire. The use of caricature, another Brechtian idea, would further enhance these social attitudes thereby benefiting the actors as the relationships would develop as the contrasts appear more
To explore the relationships between the women in this scene, the status of each character at different points could be considered. Looking at the extract from page 9 to 19, I would ask the performers to pick a section and read through the lines, deciding the order of each characters’ status. To do this, they could use levels to assert their character’s dominance in the scene. For example, the women of the lowest rank could kneel on the floor and the highest could stand on a chair. This would benefit the performers as the exploration of status would indicate the differences in the character’s personalities and how the position of status changes throughout the scene.
Still imaging is another technique that would explore the women’s relationships. After looking at page 19, when Lampito agrees to Lysistrata’s plan to renounce sex, the actors could create two separate still images highlighting the differences between the attitudes of Myrrhine and Calonice in comparison to Lampito and Lysistrata. The separation of the characters into two groups would assist the actor in rehearsals as it shows the report between the latter two characters and the distance between the others’ ideas.
Gestus, an acting technique developed by Bertolt Brecht, could be used to present a social attitude embodied by each of the characters and the relationships between them. The performers would need to read the extract and understand what each of the characters represents. For example, Lysistrata personifies the Greek fear of a transgressive woman whereas Calonice depicts the typical Greek idea of a housewife and child bearer, in addition to a sexual object for men to admire. The use of caricature, another Brechtian idea, would further enhance these social attitudes thereby benefiting the actors as the relationships would develop as the contrasts appear more