Show evaluation 26/6/15

Here is an evaluation of what went well in the show, what problems I encountered, and what improvements I would make. 

1) CONTEMPORARY GROUP

I think in this piece Tierney and I worked well together to stay in time with each other. The three person walkover went well but I think it could have been more smoother, however this was hard to do as it came so quickly in the dance. I think I performed it well be having a sort of menacing look about me and in the backwards roll I made sure to have a sort of painful look when I reached towards Tierney. 

2) ROCK N ROLL

I am happy with how the rock n roll piece went and I think we all fed off of each other's energy levels to increase our individual performance. The only problem we encountered was that I started to feel really faint during the double cartwheel and Shannon and I only just made three of them. I think we disgised this quite well.

3) ACTING 

After the last run through I was worried that I would forget the lines again, however the only problem I encountered was a small unnoticeable stutter on my beginning sentence. After that problem I made sure to keep good diction because that is how my character would speak. I think we all had high energy levels and performed it the best we had eve done. When we got to Comberton we realised that we left our props back at college, however I solved the problem by suggesting to use a mobilephone instead of a magazine, which worked just as well. 

I feel that I connected more with the audience and looked out to them. I could tell they were enjoying it because they were laughing at lots of bits, which really boosted mine, Imogen's, and Amber's confidence.

4) BALLET GROUP

I think the ballet group went really well. I made sure that I used enpaulment to enhance my performance. I also kept my feet pointed, knee caps pull up, and legs turned out. I also made sure to watch the girls through my peripheral vision to make sure that I was in time with everyone else.

5) STREET GROUP

I think this piece went really well and it was the best that I had ever performed it. I made sure to use lots of face and I tried to bend my knees more on the sections that needed that style (truffle butter). I think my best style was "work you better work" and "bang bang" as I think I suited this style more. I found it difficult to apply Kellys's correction that we should look at each other more because we were constantly moving about and dancing really fast, however I made sure to look at Maddie and Imogen as they walked round the back to join me for the end position. I encountered a small wardrobe problem where the bandana fell down my arm and ended up on my hand, however I was able to hold it and over come the problem. As an improvement to this dance, I think I should've been stronger on some of sharp moves, which I found hard to do because I'm more of a fluid dancer. This is what I will need to work on to improve my street in the future.

6) MY SOLO

I am so happy with how my solo went and I have gained a lot of confidence from it. At the start I was nervous that I would forget the choreography, however once I started, the choreography just flowed and I didn't even have to think about it. I think I portrayed a character who is in pain and is upset really well and I could feel my energy increase and moves get sharper as the song built.

7) MUSICAL THEATRE GROUP

Before today I had problems with giving a strong performance in this howeve ri think this was the best I had ever performed it. I still think I could have been  even more aggressive and have even more energy, howeve I think I have made a huge improvement from the rehearsals.

8) CONTEMPORARY DUET

I really enjoy doing this dance and I think Millie and I worked really well to feed off of each other's energy and expressions. We made sure to look at each other throughout the dance to make it looked more like a duet and not two solos. I am not happy with my beginning but because my mind went completely blank and I started on the wrong leg. I hope this wasn't noticeable as I was still coming in from the side so not everyone would have seen it. I think I picked it up well and was able to give a strong performance.

9) SINGING TRIO

I feel that this was the best I had ever performed this number and I made sure to listen to what Kelly said and I used much more hand gestures and facial expressions to tell the story. I could've definitely feel myself acting as the character and really enjoying the song. I didn't struggle at the end of my solo where Imogen and Maddie join in this time because I made sure to apply my corrections that I gave myself and I went into my head voice earlier so that I was definitely on the correct note. I think this piece has given me a lot more confidence to sing on my own and I will put myself up to do more things like this in the future.

10) MODERN GROUP

I actually enjoyed this piece in the show and I feel that I did well in showing a sort of arrogant and confident performance. I made sure to watch my spacing in the triangle and I feel that everyone worked well together in this piece.

11) COMMERCIAL JAZZ

I am quite surprised that I felt quite confident with this number and that I enjoyed it a lot. When it came to my solo section I felt a lot more confident than usual. To improve I think I should have had more exaggerated facial expressions and bent my knees more to suit the style of the rapping section.

12) TAP

I found it quite hard to stay in time with the music, the recordings and the girls around me at the same time, however once the music built it because much easier. I think I performed this quite well however I should have had a more exaggerated smile as I think mine was too subtle for the audience to see. I think I used my upper body and arms well to compliment my feet movements.

13) FINALE

This number went really well and I was able to show a change of mood once 'Billy' came on. I think my energy picked up more in the kick section and I tried really hard to sing a lot louder than how I usually do. I think the girls worked really well together in the fan circle and we were all aware of where everyone was so that we didn't hit each other. The it problem I encountered with this was that it was so dark that I couldn't see which chair was mine and I nearly sat down too early. I should have counted the chairs and sat down on mine but it wasn't very obvious so it doesn't really matter.

 

Show log week 9

Monday 22/6/15

This morning we had some studio time to practise our drama pieces again before we showed them to the class. Amber wasn't there so Anna had to read in for her. I found it quite difficult to imagine that amber was sitting next to me because Anna was reading infront of me. This was good practise for Imogen and I incase amber couldn't be there for the show. I feel that we performed it just as well as we did last week and we maintained a high energy level. 

After acting Kelly took us to clean the commercial jazz group number. It was difficult to do because Amber and Shannon wasn't there and it meant that we would have to spend time cleaning again. However I will use this to my benefit by getting two cleaning sessions so that I am confident as to what it is (especially the rap section). Kelly pointed out that some of us were walking toe heel instead of heel toe. I am not sure if this was me, however I will apply this correction anyway. 

Tuesday 23/6/15

In the morning we recorded the tap piece for the show. It was just me Tierney and Mary, so it meant that we had to be really careful to not go on anyone else counts in the canon section. We also had to not make any clapping noises which was hard to get used to. It only took a few recordings to do it. In one of the recordings Tierney and I were off beat at our beginning section. So that this doesn't happen in the show I will either try to tap louder on the correct beat or go with whatever Tierney is doing so that we still look in time with each other. 

After lunch we did a casual full run through. This has helped me to practise doing the whole show stamina wise. I am ok on some bits however after contemporary trio u only have a short time to get my breath back before singing trio. After comparing the contemporary group piece to the other group pieces it is clearer that it still needs a lot of cleaning so that the whole group is in time with each other. I tried to look at other people and make sure that I was doing movements at the same time as them. Millie and amber had an injury at one point so Tierney and I had to do the contemporary trio without Millie and make it seem like a duet (incase this would happen on the show day). This was a good lesson for us and gave us some practise at quickly adapting spacing and picking things up quickly. 

Wednesday 24/6/15

This morning we did a full dress run. I had some quick changes and this dress run helped me to decide what costumes I should set off stage and what costumes I should put on underneath. I took from this run that I need to remember to breath deeply between my numbers to prepare myself for the next one. I am still happy with my solo and think I show a lot more confidence when I perform it now. The only thing that worries me is the knee drop because I can't do it without a knee pad and I don't want to risk injury. As a solution Mary gave me her flesh coloured knee pad so that it was less obvious rhan a black one. After we did the finale piece, Claire came in and ran through the choreography with the song. She decided to take out the end harmony because she could see that we were struggling to remember what it was and were therefore lowering the volume of our voices. After the first run through of this dance Claire told us to raise the volume. I applied this correction and will constantly make sure that I sing loudly. After the run through we were given notes. Kelly and Mary said that we needed more energy and more smiles in rock n roll, which I will apply by smiling at Shannon and making my moves sharper and more energised. I also suggested to the girls that we should make "whooping" noises throughout the dance to show the high energy levels. Kelly noticed that none of us were connecting with each other in the street piece, therefore I will try to look at the people around me more and feed off of their energy to make it seem more of a group piece and not lots of solos. Mary suggested that in the singing trio we take out the last harmony because we can't always do it and it tends to ruin the so rn when we don't do it correctly. I will need to go home and practise the new corrections so that I don't accidentally do the harmonies that have been taken out. Kelly and Mary told me that I need to perform that song more and tell the story better. I feel like I will be able to do this on the night however I will go home and think of some hand gestures and facial expressions that I can do. In acting, Kelly told my group that we need to connect with the audience more. This is quite difficult to do as we are having a conversation between our selfs, however I completely understand what she means. I think I will look to the front on some of my scared reactions to what the girls just said and I'll make it like I'm telling the audience the monologue (instead of Imogen and amber). Kelly also said that everyone needs to perform more in the contemporary group piece, so I will practise it next time with a more menacing and darkened feel to it. 

In the afternoon we finished and cleaned contemporary. There was one bit at the end that is really hard to get into because it comes really quickly after the barrel roll. To solve the problem I suggested to Tierney that I hold on to her upper body so that I can move it the same time as mine. I also struggled with my move at the end where I roll down to the floor and back up, therefore I decided to not go down as far so that I will be able to get back up at the same time as everyone else. 

Thursday 25/6/15

This morning we did another run through and I tried to apply all of my corrections from yesterday; I smiled more in rock n roll, I looked at the audience more in acting, and I used hand gestures and facial expressions to tell the story more in singing trio. Kelly and Mary said that I had applied these corrections well and they could see an improvement from yesterday. I am also getting used to doing the quick changes now and I'm feeling less stressed about it. At the end of the run through Mary and Kelly decided it make the contemporary trio and deut between me and Millie because Tierney was having trouble with the choreography. This was a big problem for Millie and I because it meant that we had to re-choreograph and re-space some of it. We used the next studio time to do this. Everything seemed to work out fine up until the second verse because originally, we did canon movements on the three repeated words in the lyrics. Since there was only two of us we decided to take this canon out and I suggested replacing it with a three part movement (legs kick up into handstand straddle then slide through arms). Millie and I worked really well togethe to re-choreograph something in such a short space of time and I think, throughout this process, we listened to each other's ideas and incorporated them to make something of a joint effort. I now need to go home and practise this so that I don't forget it for the show. 

Friday 26/6/15

In the morning is students had to pick a finale 'bow' song and choreograph something to it. We were able to work as a team to come up with something simple, fun and something we all could agree on. I suggested using the song "bills" because we all liked it and it was upbeat and modern. 

Then we headed down to Comberton, set up our costumes and did a practise run through without costumes in the stage. This was really useful as we were able to see what costumes we should set off stage, and what the spacing was like. I encountered a problem spacing-wise in the contemporary duet and rock n roll semi group. In both pieces we ran out of room (Shannon and I couldn't do the cartwheels all the way in rock n roll). I solved the problem in contemporary by just doing the last few moves on the spot, but now I know that in the real show I will need to travel the chennes less. I messed up my lines in acting due to nerves, so I made sure that I re-read them and rehearsed them lots backstage. Overall, the last run through went really well and I am feeling confident for the show, but just worried about a few quick changes. 

Show log week 8

Monday 15/6/15

Today in ballet we ran the ballet group piece a couple of times. Each time there was something wrong Kelly would stop the music, correct us, and start again. This was really helpful to me as it allowed me to take in new information one bit at a time, so I could remember it easier. She said I need to get my leg higher in retire it he lame duck turns so I took that into consideration and applied it the next time we dance it. 

In today's drama lesson, Imogen Amber and I had to do our assessment. I was really pleased with how it went and feel like it has helped prepare me for the show because we did as best as we could. We were able to make the audience laugh and I feel like we fed off of each other's energy. 

In musical theatre we marked the group dance and then performed it full out. I tried to include more facial expressions however I still don't feel like I am giving enough. I will continue to practise my performance for this dance because I have improved slightly from last week. Then we did the fan dance and I tried to sing a lot louder today as I was feeling more confident about being able to sing the words. I also added more energy and tried to smile more. 

In modern we ran the group piece a few times and cleaned it. During the fan kick on the floor I ran out of room, so I asked Kerry if we could solve the problem by staggering our line slightly. This gave us more room to perform to our full potential. 

Then we went over the tap group dance a couple of times. I feel really happy with tap and I'm not worried about it. I think that I need to be heavier on my feet more to make sure that every single sound comes out, because sometimes it didn't. 

Tuesday 16/6/15

This morning we did a full run through of the show. I am really pleased with how my solo went and I got positive feedback from the teachers. I feel that The contemporary trip needs to get cleaned because I could feel myself watching Millie in the mirror to check that we were doing everything on the same time. 

In today's studio time we cleaned street without Emile. As Maddie was injured, she sat down and watched it and shouted out every time she saw something was wrong. This was really helpful because, as she knew the dance really well, we were able to get the smallest of things cleaned (like bent knees on pat pat) so that we were in perfect unison. I established that I knew the dance much better than I thought I did and now I just need to work on being really strong with my moves and havin high energy in my performance. 

Wednesday 17/6/15

This morning we ran the fan dance. I am getting used to doing it in heels now and I am also getting used to using the fans. I did still struggle with how to hold my fan on the "I need you part", therefore I decided to look at how everyone was holding it and copy that. I am also becoming aware that I need to really concentrate in the fan circle to go up and down at the correct points and keep my fan attached to Millie's, because I looked in the mirror and I was a little bit slow. 

In street we learnt the beginning and end sections to complete the dance. I found it  difficult to do the movements that had punches ("miss the whole game twice") because I couldn't get the correct feel for it. I experimented with a few things and found that bending my knees more helped. 

Thursday 18/6/15

This morning we did another casual run through of all of our pieces. I can feel myself performing more especially in my solo because I enjoy dancing it so I think my expression comes naturally. I think the contemporary trio is slowly improving and I am feeling more confident with the rock n roll number because everyone said that they really like it. 

In today's contemporary Emile taught us the big dance break. This has reassured me as we are close to finishing, which means it won't be a rush next week to get it finished quickly. I was a bit slow on the turn leap section however with practise I think I'll be able to do it. Tierney Shannon and I also did a holding hand walkover. Even though I was the base and didn't do much I am really proud that  we were able to do this move. We just need to work on making it slick and a continual movement.