Last Minute Edits and Acting "Heavy"

We are adapting Susan Pfeffer’s Life As We Knew It for our final project. It’s a full length novel, but we’ve chosen to stage only excerpts. The book is set mainly post moonpocalypse, so we’ve written all of the BEFORE scenes ourselves using the character profiles we had developed for our roles. We are doing a BEFORE and AFTER performance, meaning there are constant flashbacks. The AFTER scenes take place in chronological order, but the BEFORE scenes are working backwards i.e. they are moving further and further away from moon- day. It’s a very cool idea(at least I think so) because is their no fluid timeline. It’s a little vague and less about action and more about a change in behavior. The scenes are relatively short, so we have to show the change and rely less on dialogue. I think maybe I took this idea too far because some of our scenes were too vague. The dialogue needs to set the tone and give us insight into these characters’ relationships, but at the same time not be too forced or coming off as a monologue.  I was too worried about the latter to work on the former. I’ve changed the dialogue around and taken some liberties with the book excerpts to make the relationships we’re going for clear.

Our biggest problem was how to say that the moonpocalypse had happened without really saying that the moonpocalypse had happened. The subtext was critical to portraying a  shift in emotions rather than a shift in circumstances. Of course, the two are linked and intertwined tightly, but the changing family dynamics is what makes this piece really powerful- not the fact that the moon nearly fell out of the sky. To fix this, we manipulated Peter’s role to allow the audience to receive some context. I didn’t want to introduce the background too quickly because I just wanted to set the stage that this drastic thing has happened and this family has been altered completely, causing the audience’s focus to move to the emotional shift between Scenes 1 and 2. We get our context with Peter, who comes into play in Scene 3. We manipulated his scene to show that the health of the family was deteriorating(Mom’s ankle breaking) as was the rest of the world(flu epidemic, busy hospital, etc..) We also added context to his existence, so I mention him in Scene 2, and then closure to his departure (mention of his death in Scene 7.) We worked on dialogue and added some context to the situations.

The dialogue is mostly fixed, but we still have some work to do on the acting. We have to make the transitions between BEFORE and AFTER  clear. We have the blankets and the set changes to show a change, but we need to work on making the time shift clear, rather than a setting change. Adding coats and scarves to our AFTER costumes will make a change in situation more clear. We also have to work on coming off as physically changed, partly as result of emotional turmoil but mostly because they are barely eating. We have to work on perfecting the tones we use and when being loud is appropriate and when it isn’t. I have to work on developing my relationship with Peter and the boys. We’ve been kind of awkward, but I need to make sure it doesn’t look weird when I act like their mom or girlfriend. We are just all unfamiliar with the type of devastation we have to portray and we haven't done anything this heavy in class before. For such a serious piece, despite our few issues, I think we are doing pretty well. We ll are trying to make it obvious that we are weakened and that we’ve changed. We’ve done well with line memorization and working on character development. I think we really just have to work on following through with our characters and not feeling awkward or like it's too much if it’s actually called for.

I think the other group is also doing really well. I think many of the comments I have are a result of them not knowing their lines, so I think the scene will improve a lot when they do. I was a little confused when they started mentioning a baby, but they said they are going to use a fake baby bump, so my confusion was just a result of me not seeing the right picture. I was also a little confused when Charlie and Taylor played their part as a drama, but Wiebke and Bryn were clearly characters that are byproducts of comedy. They just need to work on making the beginning match the end. I liked Bryn and Wiebke’s dialogue a lot and I liked how innocent Charlie made herself seem when she was interacting with the cops. I like how they use the whole stage; it feels like a full length show- just in seven minutes. I liked the bit when Bryn and Wiebke were having a conversation at the same time Adler and Wiebke  were. There were two scenes going on at once and I liked the idea of them bouncing back and forth.

Both scenes are working out well, but we both have to work on finalizing scripts and making the changes we’ll talked about in class. I have to work on putting myself into this performance. It’s something very different than anything I’ve ever done before. It's challenging, but I I’m excited for it. I think we have a solid script, a good cast of characters, and motivated actors; I suspect that we’ll be able to do our story- Pfeffer’s story- justice.

Comedy Tonight (Hopefully...)

I read a couple of other reviews before composing my own -mostly because I wanted to read good things about myself- and a couple of people have said Comedy Tonight was three hours long. Three hours?! I know it was late when I got home, but I guess I just didn’t put two and two together. It felt shorter, probably because I was always busy. I always felt like I was doing something or getting ready to do something. The nature of this play was different from anything I’ve done before. Everyone always had something to do. It was all hands in all the time. It didn’t matter whose script it was or who was acting in it, you just helped because that was the only way it was getting done. It was a little chaotic, but I liked the feeling of having contributed to what was going on onstage, to the skit or song or dance that was making everyone in the audience laugh or clap or just smile. It was nice being stage crew and actor and director. It felt significant that not only was I all these things, but so were practically everyone else in the production.

I acted as a sort of MC for the show as well as playing some supporting roles in a couple of the skits. I’ve talked before on my blog about how awful my stage fright is, but I think I pulled it off. That was in part due to Charlotte’s pre-show hand massage, but more significantly to Amalia, who seemed unphasable- in all likelihood, she was probably just too focused on the searing pain in her throat to be nervous- which allowed me to calm down and realize I’ve done this bit a hundred times before and this was going to be no different.  I was still terrified, but adrenaline just made me look manic-y and excited which worked in my favor in the end. Any time I freaked out too much, I would just stare at the lights and forget there were people in front of me. It got easier as the show went on and people started to laugh. Hearing someone laugh was reassurance that I was doing something right.

The skits definitely went better the second night. Everything ran alot smoother and the hiccups in the bits were smaller. I am a little upset about swans just because it has been so frustrating during rehearsals, especially with Abby not there for so long, and I really wanted it to run smoothly. The first night, the lighting cues caused confusion and I forgot that the crew had to put the hot tub down and the second night, well, in the second night, there was Maddy. I was a little frustrated, but Charlie said she didn't even notice that anything went wrong, so maybe I’m getting frustrated over nothing. The beauty pageant and Morning Meeting went well both nights, which I think provided some solid bookends to the evening. I’m very happy with how well recieved Morning Meeting was and I’m going to take partial credit even though the reason it was so funny was how well each actor portrayed their character.

Comedy Tonight went well, and in times when it wasn’t, it was still funny. Though there was some overcompensating for mistakes made (the copious adlibbing was at times obvious), I think everyone had fun, whether they were in the audience or onstage. I’m sad to see it go after only two nights, but at least I won’t have to add any more bruises to me side from that goddamn door (and yes, it was me all those times.)

Props, Characters, and Costuming for Life As We Knew It

Title: Life As We Knew It

Author:Susan Pfeffer

Setting: Sunroom(both before and after)

Character List:

Miranda: Maddeline Lanni

Mom(Laura): Grace Greene

Matt: Michael Davis

Johnny: John Jiang 13 Years old

Peter/ Dad:Jack Shi

Prop List-

- Food chest

- Two benches

- Chocolate chips

- Can food/ bowl

- Coffee table

- Two blankets

- Throw blankets to cover everyone up

- Game

- Black box (furnace)

- Laundry and basket

- Book

- Backpack

Lighting (Sound N/A): 

BEFORE lighting will be standard stage lighting.

AFTER the lighting will be lower with maybe a bluish tint. 

Costuming-

- Miranda- Pants and t-shirt/ jacket AFTER: Winter jacket and warmer clothes

- Johnny- CA sports jacket and shorts, no tie. In AFTER he will be wearing longer pants and winters accessories. 

- Matt- Casual dress (rolled up sleeves, no tie, maybe shorts.) AFTER he will wear a jacket and longer pants (maybe sweatpants)

- Laura- Regular academic dress(pants and ‘“mom” blouse). She’ll wear a hat and gloves and be perpetually covered in a blanket in AFTER. 

- Peter- Button up, dress pants, and tie (business casual). He’ll wears a big black jacket over his outfit during AFTER.(hobo chic) 

Playing Up BEFORE and AFTER

        To be honest, we haven't gotten as far as I would have liked. Part of the problem is that I am the only who has read the book. I really like the story and have grown attached to the characters which is why I was so adamant in my insistence that it was the text we should adapt. But I do concede that maybe the process would have been faster if we had done The Giver. This does not mean I regret my decision because, although we have been slow going, I am really excited about our script. We decided to stick to my pitched idea of showing parts of the story BEFORE and AFTER the moon in their universe falls out of its orbit and nature no longer plays by the rules. The story is pushed by this unbelievable event, but it really focuses on how a family's dynamic is completely altered. In doing this BEFORE and AFTER take, we can really highlight the differences in the relationships in this family after the world starts to end. My goal, which I believe is clear when looking at what we've chosen to do for our script, is to show a clear juxtaposition in the behavior of our characters. I've explained our individual characters the best I can and I think that having my my group mates write their BEFORE scenes helped them to understand their characters. We haven't been able to do a lot of discussing specific scenes or lines or behavior in class, but I do think everyone has a grip on who they are and how they change from that.
        I think going forward, we just have to keep pushing through, hopefully at a quicker pace. We really have to work on applying our scenes to only a small fraction of the stage, but in a way that allows the story to be told effectively despite the cramped quarters. We have to focus on staging and playing up our emotions so the transitions between BEFORE and AFTER are clear. I'm really looking forward to getting onstage and working things out because I think this has the potential to be a more serious, more depressing piece, which is something we haven't done this year. 

Stage Designs for Life As We Knew It Adaptation

Character Choices and Portrayal Justifications

We are adapting Life As We Knew It for our final project and I am very excited. I’ve read the book a couple of times already, so I feel like I’ve gotten to know our characters. I am playing Miranda in our adaptation. I was torn between playing her and the Mom, but Random.org picked for me.

Miranda is the ‘lead’ of the book, meaning that it is her point of view that the story is told from. The book is written as a diary that follows her through the events that result from the moon falling out of its orbit. This book is very heavy, but the beginning is mostly lighthearted. It is looking back on those first few entries that I feel the most burdened by the story. Seeing the good times now after reading through the bad, they appear to be tinged in grey and almost harder to get through, harder to recall than the events post-moon. This mournful feeling that these happy scenes can bring when contrasted with the harsh realities of this family’s new world is what inspired me to adapt the book in the way we have with a post-moon scene being followed by a before moment.

We tried to establish our characters through small snippets, but almost more important that showing who they are, is using the next scene to show that they’re not anything like that anymore. Miranda was a girl who cared a lot about her grades. She was a type-A student who wanted to follow in her brother’s footsteps and get into college. She’s smart, but she was also a teenage girl with boy problems and a strange best friend. She’s normal, but we see this shift in her when she has to step up and contribute because her family’s life depends on it to a person that isn’t a whole person. I need to show a clear contrast to what her priorities were before* and after- to what occupied her thoughts. There needs to be a shift in her entire demeanor from frustrated but happy to struggling and suicidal. One moment when we see this shift to a world this family doesn't recognize and to people who don’t recognize themselves is when Miranda is confronted by an eerily silent mother in scene 1. I think it’s crucial to showing this shift that I am surprised when my mother gets quiet, but that by the end I am just resigned to this reality and show no clear emotions. Miranda also becomes pragmatic after, so much so that she yells at her brother to just shut up and don’t feel guilty for eating two meals when they have only one- so much so that she recognizes that it would be easier if she killed herself.

Miranda is just a normal teenage girl. I don’t think she needs to be played as anything despite that stereotype for the before scenes. I don’t think she needs to have a serious disposition or already have been showing herself to be a leader and a strong woman because she just wasn’t. That’s part of the reason why the story is so powerful; she was normal and then she wasn’t. This contrast and change in her is what I want to highlight most, so I’ll act normally for the before scenes and noticeably withdrawn for after. A transition from a teenage girl’s emotion to having none will show how drastically the moon issue affected their lives. It is this demonstration of change that I think will make our script powerful.

*(I realized I had been referring to before and after without explaining them. They are just shorthand for the point in the story. After refers to the world after the moon crisis and before to life pre-moon.)

Life As We Knew It Adaptation Script

Title: Life As We Knew It

Author:Susan Pfeffer

Setting: Sunroom(both before and after)

Character List:

• Miranda: Grace Greene
• Mom(Laura): Maddeline Lanni
• Matt: Michael Davis
• Johnny: John Jiang 13 Years old
• Peter/ Dad:Jack Shi

Scene 1:

(Opens in sunroom. Mattresses on floor. Shelving or chest to one side. Furnace or something resembling one opposite. Laundrey tub in corner.)

Miranda is curled up in ball with her face not visible to the audience. Sits up pulls book to her lap to read it. Gets visibly frustrated and pushes it onto the floor. Sighs gets up and goes to chest. Rifles through and pulls out bag of chocolate chips. Looks around, tears it open, and begins eating.

Mom: Miranda! (pause. Miranda wipes her mouthly slowly, unrepentedly)

Mom: What do you think you’re doing?! What in the hell is wrong with you?! You know we need to save food- what about your brothers? What about me?

Miranda: What about them? We have fooD and you’re starving us! We’re dying because you’re a goddamn hoarder!

Mom: This is the only way we survive! You are so selfish! What the hell happened to you? We need to save-

Miranda: What’s the point?!(makes hand gesture.Chocolate chips go flying. Both just stand still. All emotion drains from Mom’s face. Miranda pics ups a few and then justs stares waiting.)

Mom: Eat them.

Miranda: What?

Mom: Eat them. You wanted them. Eat them. Pick them up and eat them. They’re yours. I don’t want to see a single chocloate on the floor.

(Miranda bends down and begin eating them as she goes. Some time passes. Miranda stops. She looks sick.)

Mom: Eat them.

Miranda: Mom, I don’t think I can.

Mom: Eat them.

(Miranda finishes them. She looks sick. Mom reaches for bag.)

Mom: Give me the bag. (Miranda hands it over.) This was your food for today and tommorow. You can join us for supper on Thursday.

Miranda: Mom! It was just some chocolate chips!

Mom: I was saving them for Matt’s birthday. (silence) You’ve eaten enough for four people, so your going to skip your next four meals. Maybe then you’ll understand how important food it.

Miranda: I’m sorry. Can you make him something else for his birthday?

Mom: There is nothing else. This food has to last us a long time and we can’t just eat when we’re hungry. We only have a chance if we’re very careful.

Miranda: I’m sorry, I’ll never do it again.

Mom:(nods) You’re a good girl Miranda. Now go, I don’t want to deal with you  anymore.

Scene 2:

(Opens in sunroom with two chairs and a coffeee table with some books stacked on it.)

(Mom sits on couch in sunroom, reading. Miranda walks in sheepishly. Tries to exit into room.)

Mom: How was the math test?

Miranda: It was alright.

Mom: It doesn’t sound like it was all right.

Miranda: I could have done better.

Mom: Uhum.

Miranda: I got an 82.

Mom: Did you study?

Miranda: Enough.

Mom: Well maybe it wasn’t enough. Miranda you’re smart you shouldn’t be so carelss.

Miranda: I know; I’m sorry.

Mom: If you just apply yourself-

Miranda: I do, Mom.

Mom: (sighs) You're a good girl Miranda. Why don't you sit and do homework with me?

Miranda: I've got to go work on that moon paper.

Mom: Ok.

(She exits)

Scene 3:

(AFTER  setup)

(Mom is lying on mattress. Kids surround her. Peter knocks. He enters)

Peter: How are you guys?

Matt: Good. How's the hospital?

Peter: It's alright.

Mom: Do you guys mind if I speak to Peter for a second?

Matt: Sure, mom. (Kids exit)

Mom: How are you doing Peter?

Peter: How are you doing? How's the ankle?

Mom: I still can't pressure on it.

Peter: You shouldn't even be trying. You need to stay off your feet. Are the kids making you work? Do you-

Mom: No they've been great. Don't worry about us. (Silence) How are things down there?

Peter: they're not great, Laura.

Mom: What's happened?

Peter: (silence) Did you find the OFF? There are cases of malaria down at the hospital. You can't ever be too careful. There's been a couple cases of salmonella, so make sure you cook everything, but be wary of leaving the furnace on too long; the fire department's no longer in commission.

Mom: We'll be careful. Peter, what's wrong?

Peter: The flu is making a comeback and no ones strong enough to stop it. It seems to be killing everyone. (He chokes)

Mom: Peter-

Peter: Ashley and Ellen- they're dead.

Mom: I'm so sorry.

Peter: They got the flu. (Mom moves to talk but doesn't say anything) I have to go back to the hospital. It's been very busy.

Mom: Can't you go home?

Peter: No, I don't think I can.

(Peter exits)

Scene 4:

(BEFORE setup)

Game board is on coffee table and Family and Peter sit around it.

Johnny: I'm winning- as usual.

Mom: Johnny- no bragging.

Miranda: Don't worry about it; he'll be crying soon when I beat him.

(They bicker over game. Mom recognized that Peter is standing off to the side awkwardly. She nudges Matt.)

Matt: So you’re a doctor?

Peter: Yep, I work at the hospital down the street.

Johnny: So, you save people’s lives? Do you ever see any of those crazy illnesses where people grow extra limbs?

Mom: Johnny!

Peter: No. (chuckles) It’s pretty standard, but I love it.

Johnny: Cool.

Peter: Yeah, cool. (checks watch) Looks like I have to get home to the twins.( Kisses Mom on cheek)

Mom: Say hi to the girls for me.

Peter: I will.

Scene 5:

(AFTER setup)

Family are all present in sunroom. Johnny is grabbing a can of food from the chest. He pours in into a pot and brings in to the stove. The rest of the family are dispersed around the room. Matt’s on his bed. Miranda and Mom are doing laundry. Johnny stills and looks around the room.

Johnny: How come none of you eat lunch?(silence)

Matt: Not hungry. When I’m hungry, I eat.

Miranda: Same here. (both smile)

Mom: We all eat when we need to. Don’t let what we do stop you, Johnny.

Johnny: No, if you’re all eating one meal a day, then that’s what I should do, too.

All but Johnny: No! (Johnny looks scared and angry and upset)

Johnny: Why?

Mom: Johnny we need to know that one of us is going to stay strong, in case we need them.

Johnny: But that’s not fair. You should eat! I don’t need it.

Mom: You’ve got to eat Johnny. You’re going to be our strong one.

Johnny: I don’t know if I can be the strong one! What if you die? What if you all die? (silence)

Miranda: Then you live. You move and you you’ll be strong enough to live. No one knows whats going to happen. No one knows! Just eay your damn lunch and don’t feel guility.

Scene 6:

Johnny: Matt, this is so cool, did you hear it? Red sox are undefeated!

Matt: Interesting haha, Porcello’s been playing bad the last few outings, glad he finally had a good one today though. What was the score?

Johnny: 5-1 so far. They’re going to take it!

Matt: What inning are we in right now?

Johnny: Bottom 6. We’re up.

Matt: Who’s up?

Johnny: David Ortiz. We got a good chance to go up another run.

Matt: I don’t know about that, his batting average is barely over 3, he’s been in a slump lately.

Johnny: Come on Matt, have faith in your boy

Matt: (giggles and messes Johnny’s hair) I always have faith.

Johnny: Dad promised to take us both to Boston next summer and he said that we could go to Fenway and see the Sox play.

Matt: He took me to Fenway when I was 5 or 6 but I don’t really remember it that well. I just remember going and being under the lights. So beautiful.

Johnny: One day, you will get to watch as I play on the field. I'll be the best shortstop ever! Derek Jeter will eat my dust. I’ll still be the best- a Red Sox legend.

(Mom and Miranda come in. )

Miranda: A red Sox legend? I don’t know.

Mom: Well, I believe in my boy. He’s strong. He’ll make it.

Scene 7:

(AFTER setup)

Matt checks on Johnny and Mom and then goes to grab food. Johnny and Mom asleep on beds. Miranda walks in.

Miranda: I’m going into town. I want to go to the post office.

Matt: What are you hoping to find at the post office anyway?

Miranda: I know its crazy, but how much longer can I last anyway? A week? Two? It’s better this way.

Matt: (silence) But if you can, you’ll come back.

Miranda: If I can. But its all right if I don’t.

Matt: What about Mom?

Miranda: I think this ways better. I mean, what’s the likelhood that I’ll actually be able to outlive her? This way she’ll hope.

Matt: Do you really think you have the strength? To make it there and back?(silence) How are you going to get there? Johnny needs the skis, you can’t take those.

Miranda: I’ll walk.

Matt: Are you planning on saying goodbye?I don’t think you should wake them.

Miranda: Ok. (Miranda exits. Matt goes back to food chest. Suddenly drops everything. Matt slides down to the floor. Blackout.)

Scene 8:

(BEFORE setup)

Family gathered in sunroom. Matt is carrying a bag. He walks to the door and then turn to face his family.)

Johnny: Good luck! You need to tell me all about those college girls-

Mom: Johnny!

Matt: Sorry Johnny; I won’t have any of those stories. (Nods his head obnoxiously and then messes up Johnny’s hair)

Mom: Good thing. I don't want to have to have to send Miranda to supervise you.

Miranda: I’ll be there in a few years though.

Matt: At Cornell?I’m not so sure…( Miranda punches his arm) I’m just kidding. I’m sure I’ll be seeing you in a few years.

Miranda: You’ll call, right?

Matt: Of course. You’ll see me again before you can even miss me.

Miranda: I better.

Mom: I love you.

Johnny: Bye Matt.

Miranda: Love you. See you soon.

Matt: You will;  I promise. (head slowly drops and walks out)

'Life As We Knew It' Seen in a Way Not Yet Determined

After glancing at some of classmates proposals, I feel a little underprepared. I have an idea and I think it is a good one, but it needs to be hashed out more. A lot of decisions revolve around how many people can participate. The text I have chosen to adapt is Life As We Knew It by Susan Pfeffer, which was wildly popular in my seventh grade friend group. It’s a novel of around 330 pages that is written as a diary from the point of view of a girl named Miranda, whose family- as well as the rest of the world- has to deal with the moon falling out of its orbit and the world consequently going to shit. It’s not a traditional sci-fi novel, by which I mean there are no supernatural elements or crazy advanced technology. It’s set in present day, and though I’m not sure if the science is all there, the events that happen seem entirely plausible if the moon was to stop doing what it’s doing. Miranda has an older and a younger brother; they all live with their mom. Life is normal until it just isn’t. They have to fight for food in grocery stores. They have to stockpile and eventually give up their car. They have to give up meals and ration water and oil. The TV is gone; the radio disconnected. They are hungry and isolated by the world that has descended into anarchy. It’s a book about a girl whose story could have been an entirely different one and maybe closer to that of the girls that normally graced the pages of our novels in middle school, but it’s instead a survival story of a family that struggles constantly with how much to sacrifice and when to draw a line where life becomes something worth not living.

This book has been sitting on my bookshelf for a very long time and has gone untouched until last night. I reread the last third of it, but I still have to review the beginning. I had opened to a couple of pages before this really powerful scene that takes place between Miranda and her mother. Her mother had been in charge of the pantry and in rationing the food strictly to keep their supply lasting as long as possible. Miranda was fed up and angry and hungry and she finds a bag of chocolate chips in the pantry. She was the one who had thrown them in the cart when everyone went crazy at the supermarket directly post-moon. She feels she has the right to them, so she eats them. She knocks them back without swallowing because she just wants them and needs for them to be hers. Her mother finds her and screams at her before Miranda accidentally spills them on the floor. Her mother goes silent and then makes her pick up every single one and eat it. She eats the entire bag even though she feels like puking and her mother just watches her. When she finishes, her mother tells her they were for her brother’s birthday and then says she is to go without food for the next two days. This is such an unreal scene where Miranda is faced with a woman who is so clearly her mom, but is faced with her talking about life which has circumstances that are unbelievable. This scene shows a shift between them and a settling of them into this new reality where pettiness is not just inappropriate, but simply unacceptable.

There are more scenes that just happen between Miranda and her Mom that I would like to stage. The breakdown and then reconstruction of the relationship between them makes for a compelling storyline within the novel. I think I would like to stage a series of scenes between them and start with the chocolate chip scene. I recognize that this leaves some ambiguity, but I think, if played right (and that is a big IF), it will relay the desperation and otherworldliness to their situation that can be further explained by going back in time and giving flashbacks of  before. To create this separation between before and after, I’d show a clear difference in their living room. The family spends most of the time post-moon in their sunroom because it's more efficient for heating purposes, so I would like the whole piece to take place in that one room. Before’s sunroom would be neatly organized and have chairs and coffee table with magazines, while after would have a matresses on the floor and a laundry tub in the corner. The stove would be functional rather than decorative. Lighting would also be an important factor. Things post-moon are described as grey and I think that the change not only reflects the time switch but the general mood of the moments.

I had been experiencing some mom vibes because of Mother's’ Day when coming up with this pitch, so I chose some scenes with the idea of highlighting the changes in their relationship in mind. But I do also like the idea of having her brothers present. Cutting them out of the script completely would alter too much of the family dynamic. You could perhaps cut it down to one brother, but as much as I appreciate the mother-daughter relationship in the book, there are some strong moments that miranda has with her brothers. There is this one scene toward the end when her older brother and her have this conversation about her going to town. Going to town effectively means killing yourself. It’s awful and heartbreaking, but instead of protesting, her brother asks her not to take the skis because their younger brother was going to need them. There's also this touching moment where things look up for a second when everyone comes together for Christmas to give what they can. The one room set up would still apply if the brothers would included, as would the lighting. This story is filled with powerful moments that create this clear picture of a changing family dynamic that I think can be juxtaposed with each other and used to create emotionally upheaving stand alone scenes.
I think generally I just want to highlight these drastic changes- juxtapositions- that occurred within their family dynamic post-moon. Depending on which route is chosen, the scene could require four people(The two brothers (Johnny and Matt), Miranda, and the mom) or just two (Miranda and her mom.) Everything would take place in one room and though the story is told as a diary, I wouldn’t want any side narration because I think it would take away from the moment happening on set if the audience was thinking about or hearing or just being exposed to Miranda’s reflective point of view. I fell in love with this book many years ago and would love to adapt it slightly and be able to perform it. I think it could be challenging due to his serious nature, but as long as I worked with actors who understand the gravity of the material, I think it would work out very well.

Reluctantly Optimistic

I would give my work on my exams a tentative OK. I knew what I was going into and I felt like I knew what I was talking about, but when I sat down for Paper One, I lost my head for a little bit. I picked my question (Number 1) quickly, but after finishing my outline and writing for about fifteen minutes, I wish I had picked a different question. I think I was too confident in my ability to come up with a design for a scene I hadn't thought about staging. It was a question about a pivotal moment for a specific theme. I chose tradition and focused on showing this shift, especially in Koro who had come to represent tradition, from traditional to faithful. I talked about the scene right before Kahu's mounting of the whale, where the villagers gather on the beach to try and push the ancient bull whale back into the ocean. I showed this shift by focusing on Kahu's invitation of the women to help in the effort. I still think it's a good idea, but it required a lot of moving parts to portray it as I wanted and I think I left out some relevant ones toward the end. I had begun to rush when the proctor started giving us a countdown. My literary analysis and introduction were solid but the justification for some of my later staging ideas was lacking. I think I got something down on paper, but I kind of went black for the last twenty minutes and was working of muscle memory from the things we had done in class. I don’t feel very confident, but I think I did fine. Or at least that’s what I’ve convinced myself of.

I feel much better about the second one. I think literary analysis is more my strong suit and this paper was strongly centered on it. I picked question two which dealt with the use of single words to portray a particular thought to the readers. I was worried about finding enough examples in ‘Arabic Coffee,’ but I just started saying the poem out loud in my head (I’m pretty sure that makes sense) and picked out words that I felt helped portray a feeling or idea beyond its purpose in its sentence. I thought we had been memorizing them to present them, which upset me at the time, but is something I was very grateful for when taking the test. There are certain words you emphasize without thinking about it and all I had to do was ask why and I had Nye’s half of the answer. I had analyzed Dickinson’s “I dwell in Possibility-” over and over again in class and on my own time, so I’m pretty confident in my work regarding her. I really love that poem and answering the question became more fun than it was challenging.

Overall, it wasn’t the worst thing that has ever happened to me. I got a little test anxiety towards the end of the first one, but I managed to finish the second five minutes early. Truthfully, for all I complained and will probably continue to complain, it wasn’t that bad. I was prepared for them and even though I’m going to stress about my grade until I see them in July, I’m confident that I was mostly coherent and sensible, if not intelligent, in my writing.