Ruined

 THE SOUNDS OF THE RAIN FOREST


THE SEXY DANCING OF THE CONGOLESE WOMEN



THE OLD BARNS COULD BE AN EXCELLENT STRUCTURE TO RE-USE FOR THIS PRODUCTION

                  THATCH ROOF TOPPERS AND CAMOFLAGE CURTAINS CAN CREATE A NICE ILLUSION OF BEING IN THE RAIN FOREST.                            







 My set for ruined would be outside in an open field setting like an old farm with wheat growing, or corn. The sounds of bullets will be heard periodically, and yet the sounds of insects, birds, and monkeys in the distance will give the feel of being in the jungle. The shack like bar would be open on one side to see the action inside, but would not constrict the view of the front of the bar for when people come in and out, and when certain scenes need to be played in front of the bar. The structure will have a second story to see inside the bedrooms where the girls converse, and shadowy rooms where shadowed figures are having sex and getting dressed, etc. An old barn could potentially be converted into the bar with a few adjustments instead of constructing completely from scratch. Thatch roofs on the structure and netted curtains of leaves hung from trees to increase foliage will help to disguise the barn features and create the feel of a run down shack like house or bar. My play will be in the evening with dusk and moonlight, with the light from candles and oil lamps to create a mood of seclusion. The women will be dressed in slip type dresses of various colors made from silks and lace when entertaining the men or during to dance routines inside the bar, and wrapped cloth dresses draped around them when in scenes in their rooms. Mama will be dressed in a long dress made of tapestry that completely covers her legs, yet has lace overlays to make them more mature and seductive. Mama will wear mostly reds and purple with black lace edging to show how she feels dark and mysterious and later ruined. Mr. Harari will be dressed in an all white suit with white shoes, but will have a black shirt and red tie to indicate something not quite all pure. Christian will have a worn blue suit and brown shoes, which later turns into a brown new suit with black brown shoes and a beige tie and white shirt. Sophie will be dressed in yellow dresses to the knee for the entire play to show innocence, but not virtue. and the soldiers will be dressed in either green fatigue, or black fatigue depending on which side they fight for. The old record player will play music for Sophie to sing with, and the platform will be set back from the open floor where the pool table and tables are set around a small dance floor. The overall decor of the room will be a mixture of old and run down, with a few modern pieces from different cultures to show the many travelers that have visited the bar. The parrot cage sits covered in a corner of the bar. The seating for the audience will be in risers, like bleacher 2 sets separated in the middle for soldiers to run out into the jungle when exiting. The sound crew will have speakers set behind the bleachers to create a surround sound effect to draw the audience into the action they are watching, and more fully experience the feeling of being in a war zone. The sound of bullets flying by, and the sounds of trucks and men yelling will be heard during a few scenes. The lights inside the bar will be on the floor projecting inside and oil lamps that can be dimmed out as action occurs in other parts of the set, they can also project a more menacing appearance to the colonel Osembenga s' features when he is angry as he steps into the light. The scene in which Salima enters with blood on her dress and legs, the wire hanger will be in her hand as she enters, and she will drop it on the floor as she yells her lines, so we know what she has done to herself. The scene where mama Nadi gives Mr. Harari the diamond, and tells him it is for Sophies' new life, mama nadi will be wearing a soft colored yellowish, white dress with a beige sweater to signify a softening of her exterior and her interior being. The Colonel Osembega will wear a black jogging suit and beret and smoke a cigar in many scenes, and will throw down cigar to show disgust or anger. The lighting will change to brighter tones of yellow and pink from behind the bar when Mama Nadi and Christian reunite during the last scenes of the play to foreshadow a peace that is to come.

Poisoning our bodies for beauty

http://www.articlesbase.com/skin-care-articles/how-these-chemicals-affect-your-skin-1394579.html

Parabens are chemicals used in many products we all use daily. Parabens are used as a preservative because of their antibacterial properties. Parabens enter the body through the skin and travel through the blood stream where they then lodge themselves into the fatty tissues. A majority of the users of these products are women; hence the breast tissue becomes a main concern for women. parabens mimic the hormone estrogen and can be easily absorbed by the breast tissue. In fact parabens in their unconverted form have been found in breast tumors.  Once inside the body, parabens can mix with other chemicals and produce harmful side effects, such as contact dermatitis, and photosensitivity. Parabens are hidden in products using different names, so here are some of the other names to look for: ethylparaben, methylparaben, isobutyl paraben, aseptoform butyl, and benzoic acid.

 Phthalates are used in plastics to make them pliable. The plastic wrap used to package our foods, baby teething rings, and toys, and almost every nail polish on the market contain phthalates. Studies performed on teenage girls showed phthalates in both the blood and urine samples. Known to be a carcinogen and cancer causing chemical, as well as causing mutations in the reproductive systems and sperm of males, these chemicals have proven to cause feminine traits in males before puberty.

  Phthalates are used in air freshener as well, they do not need to list it on the packaging for now, but studies done using 14 common household air fresheners of different forms, 12 tested positive for phalates. The packaging on some air fresheners says all natural, and unscented, but don’t be fooled these chemicals are in them and they are toxic. Whether absorbed in through the skin, or breathed into the lungs, phthalates can damage tissue and potentially cause cancer. Phthalates are hormone disrupting chemicals when ingested into the body, and babies and small children are most susceptible to them because they are constantly on the ground, and they constantly have their hands in their mouths. Be aware of your products and their potential to harm you and your family.

 http://www.chemicalbodyburden.org/cs_phthalate.htm

Photo allergic reactioIFRA (International Fragrance Assocication). 2010. IFRA Fragrance Ingredient List based on 2008 Use Survey. Accessed online 12/3/2010: http://www.ifraorg.org/Home/News/Latest-News/page.aspx/66?xf_itemId=43&xf_selectionDatapartId=25n caused by sunscreens and fragrances

 http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=113592

                             Pictures  of contact eczema

 http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=109905

http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=106647http://images.medicinenet.com/images/image_collection/skin/photoallergic-reaction.jpg

Dearly Departed

               No one knew what to expect when walking into a play called dearly departed. The people coming from their cars were all dressed in different attire. Some people dress up to go to the theatre, while others wear casual attire. There was a good mix of ages and ethnicity in the crowd the night i attended the show. The music that was playing prior to the show starting was southern country, and church going music. The lights went out and the theatre got quiet and only one cell phone went off during the production.
              The play started with the reading of a letter from a relative, whom we can imagine from the words is a bible thumping christian. The crowd immediately starts laughing at every comment and starts talking among themselves about the relative they know who does the same thing to them. The first shock was when he dropped dead at the table, and it caused laughter to break the air instead of gasps in horror.
              The cast were a strange mixture of characters all of whom had their own problems and flaws. The cheating husband, the worthless son, the doting wife, and the cold widow of the dearly departed. We get to see into the lives of the kin folk and their family friends as we watch in amazement of their folly. The crowd laughs all the way threw the middle to intermission and then the light go on.
              I went to the bathroom during the intermission and heard many people commenting on the play. The majority of the crowd was enjoying themselves, as well as telling one another what they thought was going to happen next. I found myself asking the guys sitting next to me their opinion of the play and watching the audience till the lights dimmed again.
             The brothers go at it in one scene and get to make up in another. The cheating husband realizes his evil ways and begs forgiveness, but not before we get to see her fall to pieces a hundred times to our amusement. The widow gets to tell her story of a long lonely life with her husband the jerk. The minister is a crazy woman in a red suit with a big mouth, and the satire used to show how fake she was, was extremely amusing. The best actor in the entire play to me, and to most of the audience as well from all the comments i heard was Delightful the daughter. Delightful was i think a teenager with not a lot of brains. She had only three words in the entire script and yet remained in character the entire time as the out of it, oblivious, distract able, and hungry kid who is just there.
                The funniest scene was when the entire cast starts laughing at the funeral when nothing is going right. The audience started laughing with them, and it was hard to tell if it was part of the script, or if they just lost it. The audience were having a great time and so did i. I would recommend this to any one needing a good laugh at life and death as it may be.
              Leaving the theatre i listened to the people as they recalled all the best parts of the play to their friends, and discussed who was the best character. It left an impression on us and we couldn't wait to tell someone else. I believe this could be a good take on life is short, so don't waste time fighting it, just enjoy living it. I would not want to be the one who looks back in 40 years to see unhappiness was there instead of love. We regret only what we never had, instead of being thankful for what we do.

Anna and the tropics, behind the curtain

   The play Anna and the tropics was a wonderful entanglement of love and truth, and denial and loss as well.  . The cast were young, yet very dedicated to their individual character and the perfection of that part. The audience for each evening would change and vary, and the play would reflect that in turn. When the crowd was very into the play and would make noises, or comments, or laugh, the actors would feed off of this and perform better or more aware of themselves in their part.   When the crowd was silent threw what was expected to get a response the cast would be less responsive in their roles and tend to throw lines more easily, as if they were distracted by not preforming the way they thought they should. The stage was the same each night, and the costumes were the same as well, but the actors played their roles slightly different each night, whether they were tired from the party the night before, or the long day in class, or the night job they work at all week.

    The first night of the play was interesting for sure, and the cast were really psyched to get out there in front of the crowd. The audience was varying in age and the laughter was apparent to all of us behind the curtain that the audience was paying attention to the action they were witnessing. I noticed the actors were going really fast threw their lines, since i had seen the rehearsal beforehand, and i attributed this to nerves. The audience didn't seem to notice anything and were hanging on every word waiting to find out what happened next.

The show ended with a critic to pick the brains of the actors, and give instruction and criticism, as well as compliment the actors on a great production piece in the making. The cast members were slightly down about some of the comments, and yet were still in high spirits about the play itself. Someone planned the cast party on opening night, which on Broadway would be extremely bad luck, but they all had a good time and made it back the next night with only one sick, hung-over cast member to show for it.

    The next few nights had a few different mishaps that happened, like a book getting slid back onto the stage from under the curtain, because the lector died and his book wasn't left where it should be. The lector giving merella a notebook instead of the book, and she was really mad about this behind the scenes, and she even huffed at him, it was amusing. The mother lost her seat one night because they forgot to give it to her, but i didn't notice from behind the curtain, she kept going like a trooper and finished her scene without complaining.

    There were a few wardrobe malfunctions through the production, and since Kim asked me to take over her spot as head of wardrobe, it was up to me to fix them. We had shoes that didn't fit right and material had to be glued into them. Che-che lost the heel of his shoe from throwing it on the ground, hence glue again. Dresses had to be repaired three different times, and the lectors’ pants had to be hemmed four inches up. The clothes all had to be starched and ironed each evening, and we ran out of starch for the last two nights, so lots of ironing yeah! The hairdresser took off the first weekend run of the play, and this left everyone frantic trying to get their hair and make-up done the way they had prepared in rehearsals. The cast really pulled together trying to help one another and it all worked out in the end.

    The audience came up close and personal , and actually started walking into the dressing area behind the curtain on one night, which was strange in itself, let alone uncomfortable for the actresses trying to change quickly, and it was brought to my attention in class today that members of the audience were touching props on stage as well during intermission, which i would have never expected them to do. The actors handled themselves as professionals and kept going with cell phones ringing, babies crying, and 15 people walking in a half hour into the production, and i am sure this is where the term, the show must go on, came from.

Something in the script that i never noticed before jumped out at me, a few lines seemed to be conflicting and i had not noticed it prior to that night. I also found myself asking merella why she runs off stage in a scene because i never paid attention to what was being said in the scene, and she clarified that she was the third wheel in the room and discussion was weird to her character. I really enjoyed being able to be helpful to the cast behind the curtain, as well as being able to solve problems for them. I made a few new friends and will always remember lighting up that cigar outside the back door with the cast after the last show ended and cleanup was finished. We celebrated a job well done with an ice pack, a cigar, and new friendships, all because of a small college production in Daytona Beach Florida, and i think we are all better for the experience.

                                    

Heather Armbruster    

story telling an art of connecting

Many people have told stories to their children through the ages to convey a message of ideas, of heritage, of whats right or wrong, or to just simply amuse. We are all story tellers in our daily lives when we communicate to our co-workers and our families of our daily going-ons. We tell of our ride on the subway to work and how we narrowly missed being caught by the slamming door, to nearly falling into the path of a speeding car, and we tend to embellish our day with a few colorful pictures or words to entice the listener to pay close attention. We need to be heard and listened to as a society today, and with all the media around it is hard to keep the attention of our audience without a few good plot twists. The professional story tellers will tell you it is maintaining eye contact through out the entire story that gets the audience of one, or one thousand hanging on every word. Debbie Dunn a professional story teller has said looking the audience in the eye makes them believe they are helping the story along, and they get more involved in the story if they feel apart of the story. Donald Davis a professional story teller as well states there are five languages of story telling ;attitude, sound, gesture, listener, and words. With attitude we create subtle emotion, with sound we give words all kinds of meanings, with gesture our actions speak louder than the words alone could, the words we choose convey a clear message, and most important the listener who guides the story and leads the story teller through the story by their responses. Story telling has become a popular art form in comedians preformance there is either a long base line story that gets dragged along as the audience responds, or a number of quick story lines run together in a short span of time usually along the same topic. Whichever form of story telling is being listened to, all of the stories are entertaining to the audience and preformed with the listener as the driving force of the story, and we will continue to tell stories for the future generations to hear and remember because it is in our nature as human beings.




  http://www.callofstory.org/en/tales/languages.asp
http://professionalstoryteller.ning.com/
http://moredunntales.com/

Carnival in Bolivia

                                                                                                   http://gosouthamerica.about.com/od/carnavalinsouthamerica/a/bolcarnival.htm

Carnival in Bolivia is threatened by extinction because as time moves forward, the people also are evolving into modern times and not following their heritage and ancient rituals any longer. The city of Oruro in Bolivia is the unlikely spot for Bolivia’s folkloric traditions. On top of a high alto plain some 12,159 ft. in the sky surrounded by mountains this city still recreates a ritual theatrical ceremony dating back some 600 years. The plot of the play is the Rivalry between Wari, the lord of the earthquakes, and Inti Wara, the dawn daughter of the sun. Wari tries to destroy Wara and when he cannot, he turns the people of earth against her and makes them suffer. Wara comes to Earth to save mankind and destroys all the Devils created by Wari and teaches the people to walk the correct righteous path. The ending of the play Wara turns into a virgin and becomes saint of all miners, and the evil Wari becomes silent uncle underground.

The carnival takes place for eight days and is associated with the drinking of lots of beer and eating fermented cereal, yuck .The  Diablada, or devil dance as it is known is the centuries- old ritual. The people spend months getting their masks and costumes prepared for this event. There are two different enactments involved during carnival in Bolivia, the reenactment of conquest by Spanish conquistadores, and the triumph of Michael the archangel as he defeats the seven deadly sins. The carnival always gives homage to the patron saint of miners the Virgen del Socavon by singing a Quecha hymn, which is the language she taught them.

In the last few years an organization created to help preserve dying traditions and preserve theatrical history has been established. The UNESCO has been gathering information, and seeking out masters of the trades in every country they can, and they have been filming the productions and funding groups across the globe to keep the spirit of these century old productions alive and well for future generations to enjoy. Hopefully we all will be able to see and appreciate the history from around the world, if not by going to a mountain top in Bolivia, maybe by watching a production on television on PBS.  

work cited

1. 
   
   www.boliviacontact.com/en/sugerencia/carnaval/carnaval.php                                                                          http://gosouthamerica.about.com/od/carnavalinsouthamerica/a/bolcarnival.htm

Felner, Mira and Claudia Orenstein. The World of Theatre. Boston: pearson education,2006.