16.12.19 - Peter and the Wolf - Ms Trono

WARM UP
Today was our first rehearsal from 6-9pm.  This was quite challenging as I'm not used to rehearsing this late but I had quite a fun time.  For our warm up, we were introduced to a workout to a song:
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When the song said "bring Sally up" we had to stand and when it said "bring Sally down" we had to squat.  Mr Lemon made sure we were in the proper form.  This was so difficult for me as I'm not very physically fit.  Ms Trono told me that a part of being an actor is having that physical ability and strength so I will be doing more exercise in order to increase my fitness and stamina.

REHEARSAL
We found out today that Georgia has been in quite a serious accident which means she is unable to do the show so Silvana had to step up to her role.  As Silvana had to take on Georgia's role in a previous rehearsal where Georgia didn't show up, she was already very familiar with the choreography which was helpful.  Silvana really embraced the duck role and accepted the stress, hard work and dedication that came with it.  For this rehearsal, we spent a bit of time helping Silvana with her new role and did our first full run through with costume.  This run through wasn't as smooth as the one yesterday which we were quite upset about as we wanted to prove how hard we worked on Sunday.  After the first run through, our morale was pretty low because we were annoyed with ourselves but we didn't let it stop us.

12.12.19 - Peter and the Wolf - Ms Trono

REHEARSAL
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In this rehearsal, the wolf character came back from time off so we spent most of the lesson helping him with his blocking, choreography and making his movements larger and more exciting.  As our play is directed at young children, we need the characters to have over-the-top and large movements to keep them excited and interested.  We helped Hugo with this and made his body language more extreme.  It looked much better by the end of it.  We also decided to play with the music a bit and have Hugo move in time with it.  Most of his music is slow and eerie but there is one part in this section where his music becomes quite a fast beat.  We made Hugo walk in time to the music to make it more interesting for the audience.  The cast was quite distracted and out of it today, however, Hugo carried on throughout.

11.12.19 - Peter and the Wolf - Ms Trono

SHORT CLIP OF REHEARSAL
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REHEARSAL DISCUSSION
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This rehearsal was a very tricky one.  The cast's morale was down as we were expecting the two main characters to be there (as those parts are the ones we need to work on the most).  There was a conflict between the theatre company but things were resolved that night.  We decided to spend our time on the parts where we have interactions with the characters who were available for rehearsal (which ended up being 5 of us).  The part we worked on the most was my interaction with Amelie after the duck dies.

12.11.19 - Peter and the Wolf - Ms Trono

REHEARSAL
In this rehearsal, we re-blocked the procession so that it makes more sense with the music and the storyline.
Before, our procession was boring and lifeless but we changed it because that wouldn't be appropriate for our target audience as they want it to be interactive and exciting.
We now have Peter, the wolf and the huntsmen interacting with the audience and walking around whilst the cat and grandfather perform their segment.
Then the cat and grandad come off stage and meet Peter, the wolf and the huntsmen and interact with the children whilst the bird performs.
Then we all go off stage and come back on for the curtain call.
This has been improved greatly and now the cast is more confident in the piece.

Actors interacting with the audience

21.10.19 Peter and the Wolf - Ms Trono

REHEARSAL
In this rehearsal we managed to finish the blocking for our piece from before the procession.  I think that it will be a lot easier to progress with our movements and choreography now we know where we need to be and at what point in the music.  I believe I need to work on my choreography for in the tree when I'm next to the bird.  I think I need to have a more cat like movement and possibly have some interactions with the bird.  Our energy was a lot better than the last rehearsals however, I think that some people weren't in the best mood.

Example of a procession

14.10.19 Peter and the Wolf - Ms Trono

In this rehearsal, we figured out that having a thrust stage would be too difficult to perform in.  I believe if there wasn't a tree we had to "climb", a thrust stage would be possible.  We are now going to perform on the stage of the auditorium rather than the floor with the chairs pushed back.  We carried on choreographing this piece but it was quite difficult to think about the rearrangement of the stage and where the pond, tree and fence will be.  I changed my movements to make it more exaggerated which I think a younger audience will enjoy.  I also payed more attention to my music and now have choreography which works better with it.

A thrust stage

Our auditorium

Children's Theatre - Mrs Williams

Unicorn Theatre

UNICORN THEATRE
Specialises in children's theatre
Shows for ages 4-7:

Anansi the spider - 55 mins
This is an immersive and highly engaging experience. Instead of conventional seating, children and adults will sit together on the floor in the world of Anansi. We will have some seating for people who need it and will be able to accommodate you on the day.
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The Wolf, the Duck and the Mouse - 50 mins

One day Mouse is gobbled up by a wolf. ‘Oh woe’ says Mouse, who fears this must be the end. But then we discover Duck, who was, until Mouse arrived, taking a nap.  As it turns out, it’s pretty nice living inside the belly of the beast with a new friend. There’s delicious food, dancing and – better still – no more fear of being eaten!  Meanwhile, outside in the forest, things aren’t quite as rosy for Wolf who is being stalked by a hunter. Realising their fates are intertwined, Duck and Mouse hatch a winning plan…  Join us this Christmas for the stage adaptation of Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen’s brilliantly subversive picture book which finds joy and friendship in the darkest and most unusual of places.

Wild - 50 mins

Wild’s home is the forest. Bears teach her how to eat, birds help her to speak, and foxes show her how to play. She is irrepressibly wild.  Then one day, some new animals arrive. They look oddly like her – and they want to take Wild away. But what if she was happy where she was?  Adapted from the glorious picture book by artist Emily Hughes, Wild is brought to life by inventive young company How It Ended (The Little Gardener, UK tour). This energetic story, told with atmospheric sound, movement and puppetry, celebrates the free spirit in all of us.

Little Angel Theatre

LITTLE ANGEL THEATRE
Specialises in puppets
Shows for ages 4-7:

The Further Adventures of the Owl and the Pussy-Cat - 45 mins

When their beautiful golden ring is stolen, the Owl and the Pussy-cat must travel far from the safety of the Bong-tree glade as their search for the thief leads them across the sea, to the Chankly Bore and beyond.

Find out what these two beloved characters did next and join them on a journey through a nonsensical land full of adventure.

Julia Donaldson and Charlotte Voake’s sequel to Edward Lear’s classic poem is brought to life on stage for the first time with stunning puppetry, enchanting rhyme and original music.

The Pixie and the Pudding - 50 mins

It’s Christmas Eve on the farm, and the chickens, pigs and cows are fast asleep. Inside the farmhouse, the fire is roaring and a delicious, steaming pudding is left out on the windowsill…

When Charlie and her dad move to the farm from the city, everything seems to go wrong. Dolly the cow’s in a grump, there’s not an egg to be found, and even the cockerel has stopped crowing! If only they’d paid attention to the mysterious note left on their windowsill about a curious pixie and the pudding she likes to eat on Christmas Eve…

This brand new musical brings a tale from Scandinavian folklore to life with puppetry, original music and a sprinkling of pixie magic.

Me... - 40 mins

The world is a very big place, especially for a tiny baby penguin who is just finding her feet. The shimmering stars and glistening snow spin around our little hero, while the mountains tower high and the wind rushes to and fro. And although baby penguin may be small, her family know she’s the biggest thing of all.

This early years favourite is a lovely and touching story about a parent and their love for their child by much loved children’s author Emma Dodd.

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Polka Theatre

POLKA THEATRE
First theatre created specifically for children
Shows for ages 4-7:

The Paper Dolls -

When a little girl makes a string of paper dolls, she takes them by the hand on a fantastical adventure. Whirling through the home and garden they fly through the air, until they are confronted with some very sharp scissors…

Adapted from the acclaimed picture book created by former Children’s Laureate Julia Donaldson and award-winning illustrator by Rebecca Cobb, The Paper Dolls comes to life with stunning puppetry and original music in Polka Theatre’s much-loved production.

Peter and the Wolf - Ms Trono

WOODWIND QUINTET

• Flute
• Obo - double reed
• Clarinet - single reed
• Horn 
• Bassoon - double reed

SWOT

S-strengths

W-weaknesses

O-opportunities

T-threats

S

• Talented actors
• Artists to create costumes and set
• Similar amount of boys to girls
• Small group
• Close friends

W

• movements
• budget
• little time with musicians
• needing to make set and costume
• not many dancers
• time constraint

O

• primary school to help inspire
• international tour
• auditorium as performance space
• Luxembourg quintet professionals 
• big audience

T

• people coming because of Christmas holidays
• Christmas shows going on
• people living in different countries
• overtaken by bigger companies

CHARACTERS

• narrator
• hunters
• wolf
• Peter
• grandfather
• cat
• duck
• bird