Welcome

Welcome to the blog for the Contemporary Theatremaking option on Bread and Puppet Theater for 2009.

This space is an opportunity for us to document the process of the project we are undertaking together. Documentation is a key concern for contemporary practitioners and scholars and part of your study during this course will involve reflecting upon the documentation of the company and developing documentation of your own work.


Each week group members will be allocated to the process of documentation - although you are all invited to post reports and comments. If you are unsure how to do any of these things, you can email me (matthew.cohen@rhul.ac.uk) and we'll try to talk you through it. You will receive feedback on your documentation work.

By the end of the course we hope that this blog will be a rich account of the ideas and images we have explored during the term which should prove very useful to you as you write your reflective essays.

Readings and viewings

This course has a course pack containing readings on Bread and Puppet that you are required to purchase from the departmental office. You will also be expected to view a number of videos.


Before the first class please view a generous selection (at least 30 minutes) of Bread and Puppet videos on youtube (http://www.youtube.com) as well as do the assigned readings in the course pack (only about 12 pages).

You are also encouraged to view Biting the Hand that Leads Us, an online video about theatre companies (primarily American) that use performance for political impact, including a three minute excerpt from the documentary Bread and Puppet Theatre: A Song for Nicaragua. See http://www.archive.org/details/ddtv_17_biting_the_hand_that_leads_us. The Bread and Puppet segment is at 47.42 -50.55.

GOOD LUCK!

You all worked hard throughout the term. So good luck on Monday.The main thing is to enjoy it and to have a good time in the process. And always remember that what you have learned (and still learning) is the main objective.
I'll be looking forward to it.

BREAK A LEG!

Nesreen

Last Making Session

We had our final making session today (Friday 07/12/07). We spent the day trying to finish off all the props/flags/signs/masks etc... for the performance on Monday. All in all I think we've pretty much got everything done now. It would have helped if there had been a few more people to help out, but we managed pretty well with under 10 people. Although at times the whole making process has been very demanding, our session today was really fun. It was very relaxed and productive and overall highly enjoyable. It has probably been the most 'bread and puppet' style session of the creative process and we have managed to make use of free materials and re-use whatever we could find. I believe we have truly lived up to the cheap art ethic, that bread and puppet embraces so fully. With our first dress rehearsal tomorrow and our last rehearsal before Monday, I think we're well prepared. I have added some photos from today's making session below.

CTM Showings' Running Order - December 10, 2007

Morning
10 am Studio Theatre – Tara Arts
10.30 am Sutherland House to Boilerhouse – Shunt
11. 00 Boilerhouse – Bread and Puppet

Afternoon – all in Boilerhouse
2pm Forced Entertainment
2.30 Improbable
3.00 Trestle

Second Rehearsal

Our Second rehearsal was even more successful than the first. Most of the music group were present so we were able to rehearse with music, and choreograph the movement accordingly. We manages to tackle the 'Whack a Terrorist' scene by experimenting with a human grid formation which was hugely successful. We perfected the fish mongering scene and started working on the brain washing scene. There were many limitations as we still don't have any puppets or masks. Also only half of the group was present which also created some difficulties. We took some pictures and videos to show the people who were absent what we did and also to keep record of what we have been doing.

Our first rehearsal was held in the Kingswood Hall, common/TV room. The room was surprisingly big and we were able to have the space all to ourselves without any interruptions. We started the rehearsal by discussing various issues, including the making aspect of the performance and the venue. After a short discussion we got down to work. There were only thirteen of us, so we found it difficult to rehearse some of the scenes that required the whole, or a large number of the cast. We started by rehearsing the opening scene after the parade. Emily, who has been cast as the narrator did a brilliant, bread and puppet style opening and we worked form there. We were working from a script based on the plan. but with some speech added for the narrator's part. Very quickly we began to change and develop our original plan. We added various details, new lines and lots of movement. It was like placing movement to the words on the paper. After working on the opening scene we tackled the 'brainwashing' scene. We rehearsed for around an hour. After the rehearsal we had divided the whole group - 24 members into various roles:

• Narrator: Emily
• Terrorist: Rob
• Soldier: Marcus
• Terror Brigade: Annie, Catrin, Freya
• Iraqi Women: Laura, Carmen, Kerry
• Band: Lou, Lia, Alice, Emily, Rosana. Emma
• Main body of cast: Jolie, Jessica, Marika, Diana, Nia, Charlie, Georgia, Sheryl, Charlotte

All in all it was a really successful session and was also very productive, its amazing how quickly ideas can be establishes practically and also how well the group is working together.

After discussing the theme as a group, the plan for the piece was written up and will be used as the basis for our work.


Parade
Entrance with flags and banners, accompanied by ‘parade’ music and vocal shouts, chants etc…Leads into Narrator’s opening speech as ‘circus’ semi circle performance space is established.

Fish/War Monger
Market scene, a fish monger is selling ‘cardboard’ fish to people. The ‘corporate/government’ puppets enter and ‘scare’ the people with large representation of Media/Threat of terrorism (Large TV with headlines across it?). The Fish are turned around and become guns.

Brain Washing
One member of the ‘people’ comes forward; he is wearing a puppet head which sets him apart from the rest. The corporate/government men proceed to brainwash him – Remove Brain, wash in bath etc… He becomes an armed soldier.

Whack a Terrorist
He is handed a large comical hammer and ‘game show’ scene begins. It is instigated or hosted by the Narrator. A Terrorist is brought in and the ‘soldier’ attempts to ‘whack’ him as he avoids the hammer – all done in very comical style. When unsuccessful, the crowd begins to chase him, this leads us into…

Witch Hunt
Terrorist is chased around, while ‘Bear Hunt’ song is incorporated into scene. As this is happening, the white banner is advancing and dividing the space slowly. The terrorist finally escapes behind the white ‘screen’.

Missile
A missile is handed to the people by the corporate/government; it is slowly transferred from person to person, possibly through an array of large puppet hands. The Missile is tossed or placed over the other side of the banner.

Mourning Iraqi women
Shift in mood from festivity to somberness. Strange violin music begins and ‘Iraqi women’ complete with puppet heads emerge into the destruction caused by the missile. They proceed to covey slow, sad mourning through silent movement.

Brainwashing Two
Their movement gradually builds up and the terrorist enters. He is surrounded by the women who appear to plead with him and suffer at his feet. He then moves forward, at the same time the ‘Western soldier also comes forward on the other side of the banner. Both stand as if ready to fight. Violin music possibly carries on, maybe gets louder and builds up.

End
The banner is brought over the two men and held in front of them. The banner contains a quote or the chosen title to reinforce meaning in the performance. For example: For the profit of few, at the cost of many.