Monday 13th until Friday 17th June 2016. What we did in lesson this week?

On Monday we had Becca for Tutorial and with the 1st years level 3 working on our blogs. What went well was we tried to do as much of the work as we could in the lesson we had been given.

The reason being we did this activity was in order to get the blogs up to scratch and make them look good and make sure the spelling and grammar is all correct before updating them. Also making sure everything looks clear and snappy and we have enough information about what we did in the weeks gone and still too come.
How it helped me with my learning was made me remember what has been completed and incomplete and what should be improved even more to look more polished and perfect. It also made me understand and realise the difference between a blog which has a lot of in depth detail and one that should be worked on more. The techniques I would have developed if I still had the chance too would be maybe add more videos and film more in class so it is easier to discuss what we have done and so I have more evidence to show the person reading the blog as evidence and maybe get in the habit of not forgetting to label my work every time by doing it straight away before writing the blog.
How I will use it in the future is if having to update a diary or blog in the future it is vital to know how to do on and how it works especially in different circumstances, purposes or occasions.

On Tuesday morning we went through things needed to be completed for Blood Wedding work. What went well was we tried to complete the tasks given to us by the teacher in order for the work in the blog to look better than it originally had been and also remembering the tasks we did for the Marketing and production side of things.

The reason we did this activity was to make sure like I said before everything was complete and ready before the day were everything will be examined and assessed and proofread to make sure it matches the teachers criteria and feedback and so we all have shown that our capability and work is proved to be as good as the teachers and we as individuals expected it to be which is only happening if we put in the work and effort. The same went for the presentation about the programme and so on it was good to reflect and talk about the different aspects of what and making sure we knew and could picture all the things we did in order to tick the boxes for having a great show.
How it helped me with my learning was made me see what I have done and what I need to do or proofread in order to feel that I have 100% finished all the work and got it to the standard I want it to be and I think it should be as long as I put the time and focus into producing that piece of good work which will show in the amount I put in. Also the presentation for the Marketing and promotion side of things made me realise and learn so much and see how it feels to be involved in something special we created ourselves and made me learn how to do the job properly in case I come to doing such a job again.
The techniques I would have developed if I still had the chance to is reread my work to make sure I have less spelling mistakes and errors and making sure their are enough pauses and shorter sentences for the reader to breath in between. The techniques I would have developed more further with the posters and tickets is incorporate more ideas from each other so at least it showed we both agreed more and saw the differences and individuality in our work.How I will use it in the future is for my daily life or in the next two years when doing Drama at college or even when doing a job in the future making sure I bear in mind my English language. How I will use what I learnt form the marketing and promotion side of things is plan and sketch ideas on paper before putting it on a document and completing it finished and finalised to the point we feel it is ready to be presented and then printed which is something we can think about for future productions if we are given more time.

On Tuesday afternoon in Mandy's Dance lesson Darcey and me rehearsed our level 3 dance certificate routines in preparation for the day after, while on the other hand the others rehearsed their sport dance sequences they created themselves and we watched them. What went well was they were all in synch with the background noise.

The reason they did this activity was probably to show their understanding of over the top sports and know exactly what it was they researched and how the images would look like in a reality and real life situation. How it helped me with my learning I cannot say Darcey and me were not able to participate due too us having to prepare for the exam the next as told by Mandy. The techniques I would have developed for Darcey and my rehearsals is making sure I knew when to come into her dance and she in mine and making sure the dancing is in time with the music and we are making everything bigger and longer. Were as for the classes dance routines maybe as well make the images bigger and more over the top and speed some up and slow some down by showing some contrasting levels and speed of movements but only certain ones and making those clearer but as a whole it was really good and fun to watch. How we will use these things in the future is hard to say.
On Thursday and Friday we continued doing our blogs and were given the units on the board to know exactly which each unit is exactly.

Friday 10th June 2016. Level 2 performing arts unit 6 project: Our Day Out

Please describe below the character you are playing and what they do?

The character I am playing in the piece Our Day Out written by Willy Russell is Carol. The significance or important thing about Carol is she knows what her life is like but there is nothing much she can do about it, "Sir if you'd been my old feller I would have been aright".
She thinks if someone like Mr Briggs had given her a chance in life
she would have succeeded. The audience realises that Carol has tried
and is trying to make the best of her life, unlike some of the other
pupils with her. Willy Russell has used Carol in the play to influence
the audience. The irony is that Carol won't progress, the sad thing is
that Carol knows this.

 

Also what she does in the piece highlights or tells the audience what their life is really like in those times and how they felt with not having a good education and coming from a bad society and neighbourhood were they are not recognised as much but rather are the outsiders and isolated ones by thinking they have nothing at all to look forward to in the future and no future ahead of them.

But rather it is recognised as a celebration of the joys and agonies of growing up and being footloose, fourteen and free from school. But this is more than a romp - it points up the
depressing present and empty future for these comprehensive no-hopers
from the backstreets of Liverpool.

 

Rehearsals Dynamic: What's working, what's not

 

 

What worked during the rehearsals of Our Day Out was our comittment to the play and the energy and amount of times we went over it until it stuck in our minds on the day of the performance were we felt very confident and determined to do well although we were nervous and exhausted from all the hard work of rehearsing over which was part of the coarse challenges and ups and downs of studying Drama which is a subject you can enjoy but also remain patient with as well.

What did not work as well is at some lessons we would start to swith or feel less focused as we were tired and had to spend alot of time going over scenes to remember when to come in and say our lines and to practise speaking clearly and projecting our voices to be heard enough by the audience.

Who wrote the play? What else have they written?How has the research helped with your comprehensionof the role/play? 

 

 

The playwright or person who wrote the play ''Our Day Out'' was a man named Willy Russell. Other plays that he wrote himself that were also well known and familiar especially in his area or birth place Liverpool included: Blood Brothers, Educating Rita, Shirley Valentine, Stags and Hens and last but not least John,Paul, George,Ringo and Bert. which was based on the story of the Beatles in 1974 as a Musical.

 

How the research helped me with my comprehension of the role was by watching the movie of the play and researching her character I have found out she can be firm and is also keeping herself isolated and spaced out from the others. Additionally, when she talks to Mr Briggs is firm with him telling him the truth about Less the lollipop man saying the kids have no hope and are all backward In liverpool as they are poor suggesting they are not getting a proper good education and he is being harsh on them but the only way it will change for them having a good future is if Mr Briggs helps them get abetter future and makes them feels safe and happy by changing his personality. In a way you could argue or stress that Carol and Mrs Kay are the symbols of hope where as Mr Briggs is first the symbol of sadness and anger, but then changes his mind by also becoming a beacon of hope for the future of the children. How the research has helped me/us with the background of the play is by reading the scenes and highlighting the lines and extra peices of information and detail has made us more aware and made it more clear what time it was set in shall I say period and what the place looked like in that moment in time and how you would presesnt it on stage to make it look like a proper school and bring us back to the the 19's century also thinking about the types of clothes style they would have to make it suite the character and style of the production and time or setting/ location.

 

How do you feel the performance went and what would you do differently in order to achieve the performance you strongly wished for?

 

How I felt the performance went on the day was pretty fantastic as the amount of energy and enthusiasm we put into the show was really impressive especially the individual characters and set up and blocking all those tiny peices of detailed summed it up into to one good show and made it look good on video, we also remebered all the lines and rather were concentrating on getting the character to look strong and the though process or inner monolouge to look believeable wether on stage or entering and exiting the staging. What I particularly thought went well was the staging and layout of the set on stage as we had simple staging layout and formats to focus more on the characters rather than the staging and made as a whole and individually look more the centre of attention to the audience and make us rely on our ourselves rather than getting distracted by other things on stage which is not particulary necessary and was not an issue also the level of focus and listening skills was also very good and the attention to detail. What we would have done differently is set up the staging maybe to look more like a cafe and beach if we had the props and set for that and feeding back to acting skills maybe project our voices a touch louder to be heard better by the audience on stage but mostly the speaking clearly was not much of an issue on stage.

Our Day Out scene from film

       

 

Wednesday 1st June 2016. Evaluation of  Blood Wedding level 2 Performing Arts

 Proposal

1. My initial aims or what I aimed to achieve in Blood Wedding for the Acting side of the production was making sure I pronounced my words properly and projected my voice to be heard by an public audience. furthermore, making sure I or we all stood in neutral not getting distracted by our hair and hands or standing with the feet crossed on stage or moving strangely from place to place rather than being relaxed staying tense especially with the posture enlightenment and last but not least making sure we have thoroughly read through the play to understand the character in the way the react and act to objects and other characters, how they behave what they like to eat and what would they wear. What I trying to say by that is that we should ourselves in their shoes in a specific moment and see how they would feel but what I learnt about my character is she generally is over excited, talks alot and very spirited meaning she is full of energy and determined. But on the otherhand when I am not performing what I aimed to do was have the confidence to just say to myself I will go on stage and relax and if something goes wrong just stay in role and continue and that is what I did exdcept for Thursday morning as I did well until I felt the confidence go a bit after we all messed up as a class and lost our confidence and character but then found it and got it back after rehearsing for our final show by the point were we physically were tired but were determined to not give up for the main characters and the whole class. The other two things I and I am sure everyone else had or felt at times was the nerves before the performance and during making less relaxed and always stress out but the best way to help me relax and take my mind of things and ease myself a bit was breathing to make me focus on what was happening at this point rather than later or before, also the other thing I was worried about was stage fright or forgettig lines or frezzing on stage but what helped was thinking about others and other things to make me stay calm and focused especially when at home I started learning the lines but felt tired or pyhisically I could not handle learning the lines I just thought of positive and happy thoughts and that helped me get into the positive mind frame.

Research

 

 

 2.  What play?
The play is Blood Wedding a tragedy by Spanish dramatist Frederico Garcia Lorca. It was written in 1932 and first performed in Madrid in March 1933 and later that year in Buenos Aires. Theatre critics often place it in the catergory with Yerma and The House of Bernarda Alba as the "Rural Trilogy". Lorca's plan for a "trilogy of the Spanish earth" remained unfinished at the time of his death. Its success showed a degree in which Spanish audiences around 1933 were happy to accept new sugestions and ideas in theatre and literature that were being developed during the turn of the century. The play included many interesting mixtures of things within the play itself such as songs, chants, poetry, music, dance and rhythm, as well as the action in the play and the set on stage being very symbolic and stylised. In the play the non- naturalistic and antinaturalistic techniques took the chance of advantaging Drama as a live event as to say making the actions in the play or even sets seem exactly like the types of things you would see in everyday life. The play mostly plays out the conflict between individual wishes and societal decrees and laws, but on the otherhand for the people who view the play more on the historical context Lorca's theme is based mostly around rigid laws of the lovers (Bride, Bridegroom and Leonardo's) community in Blood Wedding. It was also fasciation that heavily influenced the most famous tragedy play Blood Wedding. But one of the main reasons why the play was so inspirational was due to the fact of Lorca reading an article in Madrid about a sensational crime in the daily ABC in 1928 that he came about having the idea of writing a similar story of the play known as Blood Wedding which is now known as a well loved classic both in Spain and internationally also translated in English.
 
Who wrote it?
The playwright that wrote the play ''Blood Wedding'' was a man named Federico Garcia Lorca who was 38 years of age.
 
Background?
 
 

                                                

Federico García Lorca was born in Fuente Vaqueros a isolated village just a few miles from Granada in southern Spain. His main passion was learning, he first read about law at the University of Granada, but later persude a career becoming an expert pianoist and guitar player. In 1919 he settled in Madrid. Lorca met Salvador Dalí Lorca in 1923 and the two developed a passionate friendship that would influence Lorca for the rest of his life. 

Lorca had discovered that he also had an inspiration for folk and gypsy music. In these works he used old ballads and mythology to express his tragic vision of life. As a traditional thing, he often enjoyed  reading his poetry aloud.

In 1927 García Lorca gained fame with his romantic historical play (Marina Pineda), with scenery constructed by Salavador Dali. After living in New York and then making a short visit to Cuba, García Lorca returned to Spain by 1931. He first wrote and then produced a series of often experimental and controversial theatrical productions.

Lorca then occupied himself with the writing of what has been referred to as the “rural trilogy” three plays concerned with life, love, and tragedy in rural Spain.  Blood Wedding, the first part of the trilogy, was performed in 1933. Yerma, the second part, performed in 1934. Finally, the House of Bernarda, written just before García Lorca's death in 1936 and published in 1945.

García Lorca's central themes are love, pride, passion and violent death, which also marked his own life. The Spanish Civil war began 1936 and the right-wing forces of General Francisco Franco saw García Lorca as an enemy. The author hid from the soldiers but he was eventually found. García Lorca was shot in Granada on August 19 in 1936 without trial on the charge of “liberal politics,” though it is certain he was also executed for being a homosexual.  The Spanish Civil War followed  by the especially brutal fascist regime of Franco that lasted into the 1970’s.

Lorca’s works had been banned in Spain until Franco’s death which was during the period of the  1970’s, and his passionate and lyrical treatments of love and tragedy in rural Spain have since made a tremendous increase of rivival. Today he is recognised as one of the most distinguished Spanish poets and playwrights of the century.

What are the themes of the play?

 

Some of the main themes in the play ''Blood Wedding'' are as follows:

• Generational Conflicts
• Gender Roles
• Physical and Emotional Isolation (within Society)
• Blame
• Humanity in nature/Nature itself
• Greed
• The exchange in Information
• Fate
• Death
• Family/ties/ (bonding and staying together or apart)
• Loss
• Love
• Dinial
• Faith (hope and religion)

The main symbols in the play Blood Wedding are as follows:

 

• Knifes and flowers as they talked alot about Dahlia and Orange Blossom which were both famous flowers in Spain at the time of the 1900's but thet traditional wedding flower was Orange Blossom used on the Bride's wedding ceremony as a symbol of purity and beatifulness.

How we also addressed this in discussion and rehearsals is reading over the play and highlighting key peices of information to remember and help us later by giving us hints and answers to later questions for the research and by researching it on the internet to benifit and help us for writing the evaluation as well as dicussing the key elements needed for the ingredients to make a good peice of evaluation writing.

 

3. In terms of ''style'' what did we decide on in terms of how to produce it?

 

First of all looking at a variety of styles by actresses performing the role of the Servant in trailers, photos and as described in the characters description she is generally very happy and light spirited and chatty and comes across as a friendly person unless of coarse she gets angry with Leanardo the one who most concerns her and she has to protect the Bride against getting anywhere close to each other. Futhermore, in terms of style we decided to produce it differently to the original script as in the normal play for the homes they use minimal stage settings and direction, limited scenery. Rooms are painted yellow, pink or white and are usually decorated with flowers and simple furnishings, where as the Cave in which the bride lives were often used as dwellings in mountainous parts of southern Spain, mostly by Gypsy families. The entrance to the bride’s cave is completely decorated. However, the outside of the cave is “as hard as a landscape” on ceramic decorated with white, gray, blue and silver colors and a completely made up of white house. The building is made up of arches and white stairs, walls, and floors that resemble those of a church in rural Spain. The Neighbours meet here to discuss the ill-fated wedding and its deadly aftermath which is all too much to set up on the type of stage we have in college and would not be enough from the amount we are given budget cost and spending wise to produce such a massive staging in such a short space of time we had and would take the whole class and alot of time to produce into a good result as a result of the rehearsals on top of that. So instead we had to first of all cut the play down to an hour roughly to sustain concentration thoughout dress rehearsals and the show, we had to style the theatre performances in a certain way for example reducing the budget income of how much we spent on costume, make up and props for each day to save enough for extra thing needed last minute as well as having less props so it would be easier to remember what to take on and off stage with us as well as being able to move and carry the set not needed for the next scene which was included as part of the show and remembering which person/people in the group do it at what exact stage. bearing all those things in mind. We also kept audience engaged by exaggerating the characters and making them as believable as possible and not focusing on the words but rather the character itself and the way we potray and present ourselves to the audience and make it seem like we brang them back to the Spanish era by the over the top and fun dancing to get the audience on our side and enjoying themselves to the melodramatic and over the top acting to express how the characters really felt inside and out and also bearing in mind the thought process we had while on stage and coming off and on at certain points as well as thinking about the reasons for example my character went on stage searching for the Bride while the mother and Bridegroom were talking alone on stage. these are things we should always think about and bear in mind at all times. Now here are links to some of the websites I researched:

 

 

http://www.gradesaver.com/blood-wedding/study-guide/character-list

 

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=servant+blood+wedding&biw=1280&bih=840&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj0urGl4pvNAhXlKMAKHT8UAikQ_AUIBygC#imgrc=Vro3bwqoS7MhzM%3A

 

https://vimeo.com/78027208

 

 

4. Rhearsals: What worked? What didn't? How did we get round this?

 

What worked during the rehearsals for Blood Wedding was we helped each other as a team if something went wrong and supported each other and improved the mistakes when given feedback from the teacher, learnt from them until we got them right and they stuck in our heads. What didn't work on the otherhand was the group peice for the wedding ceremony from the poetry to the lines as it was under rehearsed and it showed that we were not confident because of lack of focus and determination or concentration of having the capbility and time to get it done and right independently without the support and help from a teacher which showed as it would have different if we rehearsed several times. How we got round this was with the time we had still in technichal and dress rehearsals and after those we rehearsed a few times getting right the parts we messed up on previously to make it was smooth and crisp for the shows on both days.

 

5. Performances: What worked and what didn't? 

 

During all four shows what worked well was the confidence we showed when we performed as we had a good use of posture enlightenment as well as body language and facial expression showing we had a good understanding of the characteers we played and the way we were  positioned in each of the scenes showed we were able to be seen as most of the time we were aware of spacing and blocking and also by the proxemics it was clearly shown that we could see which characters had better friendships and relationships between them onstage. Futhermore, the amount of focus showed also helped us to listen out for one another and when to say our lines and come on stage. But on the 1st Thursday performance we lacked focus which made it hard to listen of when exactly to come on stage and say our lines as well as it bringing down our confidence level which was also due to tiredness and stress and which was the main reason we messed up the big group peice as well as lack of rehearsal which showed a bit as the energy at some stages in the show was lost especially the middle section on some days. Another thing most of us struggled with in this and other productions previously was projection and pronounciation which meant we rushed and said the words to fast not pronouncing them properly to be heard and understood by the audience which is why it is important to practise tounge twisters and vocal techniques in our spare time.

 

6. Evaluation

 

How you have attained certain goals you set yourself at the start of the year?

Every few months we would set ourselves goals to reach for each subject and as a person for acting and everyday in College in general which would help us to reach to that certain stage we are at now where we have reached things we did not feel that confident with at the start such as talking loud and performing infront of bigger audience as well as aiming for bigger more challenging roles for yourself as a person that would not necessarely go for but is good challenging yourself now as in the Acting industry it will get harder and more independent as now you get the extra support which will be harder to recieve and benifit from in the future.

                                                                Marketing and Publicity

 What you did and how you did it?

What we did is firstly researched images related to Blood and Wedding in two different styles to show an contrast in presentational features and styles of fonts, to make it stand out when shown around our college, secondly we had to present the initial and final ideas to the class, in order for them to vote which one they felt would suite better for a performance. Additionally, we did a Programme in a simple layout form, from giving the address to making sure the audience have guidelines on how to get to there destination, to a scene by scene synopsis, cast list (Thursday) and thanks and messages of greetings for all those who got involved in some way. We used dark red colours and black to focus mainly on incorporating Blood to represent danger and pain, darkness representing darkness and isolation. But also focused generally on sticking to the initial themes in the play throughout all the marketing areas. Another example was white bubble blood like writing to blend in with the background strongly but to match the size of the programme to be readable in the point of view of the audience watching the show. Finally, for the entrance we decided on the materials we wanted to use, then we were developing the materials by sticking Spanish images on the wall to create a Spanish feel to the evening shows as well as putting up a cast list so they knew the roles we played throughout the production, we put a blue cloth and fairy lights with tickets on the table to promote our tickets but could not print them out due to the amount of time spent on rehearsals. additionally, the resources we used included the internet for images, theatre cupboard to get additional things needed for the play and recycled material from home in order to find things that  the college don't already have.


What went well?
What went well was Jacob and me worked well as a team co-ordinating together to make it stand out really well, and make it bright and simple but not too complicated for an audience to take in without any confusion the design we made before they enter the theatre and so we makes sure we are not giving too much away on the likes of the culture and hinting the countries traditional play. What we also learnt was you don't need too much to make the audience interested in watching the play for the entrance rather it was more important than focusing on what it looks like with less than more but still make it links and relates to the play. We also felt like we really got involved and felt like we had a big job and focus on getting the whole presentation of the design overall looking fantastic and making sure individually everything was standing out which was a massive responsibility on our shoulders, as well as learning and remembering what we needed to do in case we end up doing that role or something to that in the future but what I found interesting was we were able to do things independently and decide on what to put in the room and where to place everything and how to design it.


What did not go well?
What did not go well was the promotion side of tickets which we made but as a matter of fact could not print out due to the timing of things being rushed and us being stressed out about the shows and having to focus on getting ready and preparing ourselves for the first show coming up. What was another issue was the entrance and box office which Jacob and me and others in the class had to take charge of as the person who was originally set to do it was not able to due to the result of him not turning up we had to in 2 days complete to make it look finished enough for and audience and we just managed to complete as I put the effort and time and work into making it a stunning piece of art work and theatre box office to make the audience feel excited to see the show and get a taste of what to expect before even seeing the show.


The research you did?
The research we underwent with was searching for good images and getting ideas of things we could buy to make the entrance look good  from actual websites but making sure things were not to pricy and  so things looked professional, make the teachers and everyone think we put in a lot of effort into making it to our best so it would also result in a good night from the entrance to show. As well as watching the trailer of the play to get a better feel of the culture and how it looked in those periods and how we can relate and find pictures that relate to Spain the country as well as the period the play was written in focusing or going back to the time period or setting and context of the script when looking to get ideas. But I decided to get the images from the web and design them to look nice and stand out on the wall, but also making sure they matched with the other decorations. As well as focusing on the colours to bring the vibrance and also symbols talking about colours in the play which are mostly red, black and white.

 



Theatre entrance inside



Out side theatre entrance

 

Tuesday 31st May 2016. What we did this week in lesson?

On Tuesday Morning we had Rob for Drama were we got a sheet on the evaluation for Blood Wedding which has to be completed by Friday and we discussed as a class what to write for each section, as well as discussing on the Blood Wedding videos for the show and the photos taken. What went well was we all had the chance to say something and had a really interesting class discussion as a whole.

 

The reason we did this activity was to bring our mind back to the zone of the show reflecting on the positives and not so good sides of each nights show as well as making sure we have a good enough memory of the playwright and his biography and lifestyle or culture.

How it helped me with my learning was made me have a clearer understanding of what exactly to write to find it easier to know what we have to research exactly and so we have some sort of a guideline from the teacher as to what to write in the evaluation.

 

The teachniques I would have developed if I still had the chance would have been to ask more questions to be absolutely sure on what to write for each question and label them better so I know what goes where. How I will use it in the future is when going to Drama school that is if I do I need to bear in mind that their will be alot more people meaning I will have to work more independently when taking notes and learning certain scripts which is a task we have to get used to working on alone as well as recieving some sort of guidelines and support from the teacher but not always.

 

In the afternoon we had Mandy were we worked in two split groups and the task was with 24 different moves and a instrumental song we had to create a dance routine and as it was a part of the assignment another exam we had to perform it to the other half of the class by our teacher videoing the dance routine we produced and created ourselves as a group or team. What went well was we all co-operated well and worked well as a team as well as agreeing on the idea we came up with straight but it was tricky to choose the song but we got their in the end and as we rehearsed the routine over and over in the end we produced a pretty good dance in my opinion.

 

The reason we did this activity was to just have fun and show the teacher we are capable of producing something good when we are focused and determined enough and I felt it really worked well this time round as we bonded and gelled well together as a group. How did it help me with my learning was made me show the class I have a pssion for Dance and I am a creative person, also I showed when I am focused and confident I have the capability of creating something special and truely amazing I just have to put my mind to the task given to us.

The techniques I would have developed or we could have developed as a team if we had mor time was getting the timing and speed even in our dance and  make sure we extend and expand the moves more to make them look bigger but otherwise it looked good and became a success. How I will use it in the future I am not to sure about.

 

 

 

Monday until Friday 16th until 20th May 2016. What we did this we in Lesson?

On Monday we had Drama with Becca instead of Rob as we had too work more independently while he was with the level 3 students working on there production with them in the theatre we rehearsed some of the scenes in pairs for a short which is what went well but on the other hand what did not work out was working for long as people got distracted for most of the lesson.

The reason we did this activity was to mostly to focus on getting the scenes right in Blood Wedding and knowing the play confidently enough when rehearsing the play so it all runs smoothly when doing the piece in both split casts for the shows.

How it helped me with my learning was made me more aware of what I was saying during those specific lines and being able to slowly but clearly pronounce the words to be understood by the people backstage waiting for my queue or the audience watching the production live.

The techniques I would have developed more is the confidence of projecting my voice more and speaking clearly as well as practising or getting in the habit of learning my queues or the extra things I have to develop, extend or improve at home or in College. How I will use it in the future is the same way or principle by learning that certain technique or strategy at home or in that certain place I am at that point in time.

In the afternoon we had Becca were we decided to rehearse Wednesday's cast for a while in the lesson but also struggled to focus which did not go to well but at the same did towards the start of the session.

The reason we did this activity was so for the performances on Wednesday we had a clear idea of were we would place our character for each scene and remember what we did at that point just to remind ourselves in our mind and bring us back to the last time we rehearsed with our group for that cast. But also bearing in mind at what point we come on stage and when we would say those specific lines. How it helped me with my learning was made me remember who I would be with in those scenes throughout the play and also keep in my head the queues for each scene so I came in at the right time and right lines to make it easier for the other actors/resses around me as well .

The technique I would have developed if I had the opportunity to would have been more or less to rehearse the queues more often in my spare time a bit earlier on in the stages so I felt a bit more securer or familiar than I am at this moment in time 2 days before the production but will still make sure in the time I have that we or I rehearse the queues every moment possible so it all looks strong when we come in and so we avoid leaving empty stage on the performance which I am sure we won't as I am sure we will do really good.

How I will use what I learnt in the future is constantly go over the same thing until I feel confident enough with that certain part in the play I am doing or shall I say certain section.

On Tuesday we had Becca instead of Rob were we rehearsed the full cast piece of the Bride's wedding ceremony but struggled so did not manage to complete it all as people were not always focused in the lesson. What went well was we managed to rehearse a bit more without the assistance of the teacher encouraging us, but contrastingly we still could not maintain the concentration through the entire lesson. Furthermore, for the rest of the lesson people one by one were taken out of the class with either Sara or D'Zyire to try on dresses or costumes for the play ''Blood Wedding'' next week or now shall I say in 3 weeks.

The reason we did this activity was to make the whole cast scene which was the most challenging part as we all had to be on stage at that point but the most important one really outstanding and professional so it makes the audience excited and thrilled with suspense and excitement at the end of the seats as though it looked like an actual company production brought to an London theatre to be put on live to audience and make them want to stay to the end and see it all to the point were they leave with smiles on there faces and cannot stop talking about what they saw. How it helped me with my learning was made me see the position I was in for that special scene and made listen and remember at what point exactly had to say each of my poetry lines in the play scene of the special occasion for the Bride.

The technique I would have developed if I still had the chance to would be focusing more on also having the patients to listen and wait for my next line to be said or shared with the audience which in some points of the play I am struggling with but I can still improve by hearing the lines of the person before. How I will use what I learnt in the future is by making sure I constantly go over even the parts I know already to develop it even more further even if it looks already polished and good but I can try for example making my listening skills as well as the lines and queues or projection even more fantastic.

In the afternoon we had Mandy for Dance were we rehearsed the dance for the Bride and Groom's wedding constantly throughout the whole lesson. What went well was we all participated during the lesson doing the dance until it looked smooth and clique.

The reason we did this activity was to make keep in mind the moves until they are glued in our head from the steps up until the body and arm/leg movements.


The reason we did this activity was to make sure the dance routine was stuck to our minds like glue which will help us memories the steps and added moves quicker in order for the performance and dance help us  to form back into the acting side of the lines without making it loo to messy. How it helped me with my learning was made me more aware and remember who was standing in the position during and after the dance section in order for us to be able to see were to position and place ourselves for the rest of the wedding scene.


The techniques I would have developed if I still had the chance to would have been maybe try and participate and get involved in the dance with more confidence telling the people in the class to help me learn the routine as well so I can join in rather than just acting at the side at times to make it look like generally I am enjoying myself more. How I will use it in the future is everyone is participating in something and I want to or I can but just do not have the guts to ask I should just have the confidence to tell them I would want to participate in that part if possible and if they allow me too.

On Thursday we Drama with Rob and Becca in her tutorial lesson were we rehearsed Blood Wedding until the end of the lesson with Becca sorting other things out as well such as the costumes. What went well was we started to participate in the lesson but were tired some of us were not in the mood for rehearsing the whole lesson but we all tried to rehearse a few pieces of different scenes.


The reason we did this activity was to get used to remembering our queues and bearing in mind that we should speak clearly and project our voices in order for us to be heard by an public audience on stage. How did it help me with my learning was the more we started getting used to using those different techniques the better we would be for the performances that were coming up and that would mean we have practiced it well enough to remember to do these things on the actual shows.


Which techniques I would have developed if I still had the chance to is remember to speak up every time and bear in mind the way I present my character when coming onto the stage as well as the point when I am on already on bearing in mind stage presence and blocking of other characters for the play also for example. How I will use what I learnt in the future is when on stage just reminding myself of those things in my head but not out loud so I do not forget those things we learnt at any point.




On Friday we had Drama and tutorial Becca's lesson in the theatre with Rob as well clearing out staging from level 3 yr. 1 and discussing something with the teachers while we set our staging up and into place for our performances next week, at the same time we rehearsed Wednesday's cast until the end of the lesson. What went well was we well prepared and already on a head start with the overall staging and look of the play and we started forming what seemed like a good production technically and the acting as well even though it still needed more rehearsing and tweaks to make it very good. What did not go well was we had not rehearsed which showed through lack of focus and enthusiasm but as a whole we still did well in the end.


The reason we did this activity was to help us every time feel more confident and believe in ourselves up until the point in which we performed our first shows during the performances of Blood Wedding. How it helped me with my learning was made me see the scale and size of the stage we performed on and were we were to place ourselves when going from a small room to a massive theatre which are different in comparison. Which techniques I would have developed if I still had the chance to would have been use a range of levels and use the space more confidentially as my character would seem too and behave.
How I will use it in the future is depending on the circumstances of the character I could try and play around with or imagine how I would get around the space confidentially and use a range of levels and proxemics for example to make the figure stand out and seem interesting to be watched by a live audience as well as the characters around me.

Pictures of the Final Ideas we had for Blood Wedding entrance

Monday until Friday 9th until 13th May 2016. What we did this week in lesson?

On Monday we had Rob in the morning were we rehearsed Blood Wedding once the whole way through. What did not go well was during the two hours of rehearsal we did not do much as people were talking alot. What we did well was partcipated well as a class when rehearsing with Rob during the lesson we had with him.
 
The reason we did this activity was so we were more familiar and confident with the scenes we did next and right now and knew when the next qeues were, to participate and come in at the right time and not to late so it looks empty and dead stage or really messy or un organised/under-rehearsed.
How it helped me with my learning was made me get used to or helped me remember each section or stage in the performance from the top of my head much better and made me understand or know the reason why I did that certain thing.

The techniques I developed was to make sure I remember my qeues before hand or come on earlier and ready in character to bring energy, enthusiasm and engagement with the audience but most importantly making sure the stage is lively and full of vibe and energy not stillness and complete silence. How I will use what I learnt in the future is by incoporating the same techniques or styles of learning in my work in the future or studies to help me develop myself further and too a completely new level and environment in the world of Acting with new adventures ahead of me and things to learn.
 
In the afternoon we had Becca were we discussed/ saw and tried some costumes if asked to by Sara and D,Zyire and at the same time continued rehearsing the Wednesday cast for the second half of the lesson we had to practise it so it gets to a better stage of performance level and standard. What went well was we tried to stay focus on the play but what did not go so well was rehearsing enough as we were a bit tired and had less energy and patients which meant people were talking.

The reason we did this activity was to see if we had the ability to work independentely as a class and as individuals in the class without the member of staff telling us to do something or a better explanation would be giving us too much information as this task for the assigment brief was all about the capability of working as a team together and putting all areas of technical things together on the performance which we did intirely by ourselves.
 
How did it help me with my learning was made me challenge myself even though at some points it was hard and we could not manage working together because some people did not have the determination too but instead wanted to use the time in most of the session getting distracted and talking with others in the class. But overall we still managed to get some work out of the lesson with teacher in the room. Which techniques I will develop is to manage my concentration skills more so I am able to understand tasks much better and what is being said rather than talking too much and losing focus by talking to my friends or getting distracted and not participating at some stages during the lesson occasionally here and their.
 How I will use what I learnt in the future is listeaning to the tasks given to us so I am able to know what to do straight away so they don't end up repeating things several times or in case they do not at all at some stages it is better to recieve what is told when told once.
 
On Tuesday we had Drama again with Rob were we rehearsed the whole play with both casts for Wednesday and Thursday's show so we had the chance to rehearse with everyone so nobody was sitting around doing nothing for the majority of the lesson. What went well was we all got active by moving around and warmed our vocals up by doing rehearsals with our teacher helping us with the way in which we said the lines so we did not rush them to understand what it was we were saying and what it was about and get in the habit of speaking slow and clear so the audience is able to understand us.

The reason we did this activity was to help us control our voices and get in the habit of it before the shows in 1 week and 4 days and to make us know exactly were to position our character for each scene and know what to do in the particular scene especially when havingto take or use a prop on stage and when having to give clear qeues for sound and lighting and for the other people on stage or the technicians.
How did it help me with my learning was again made me more aware and helped me practise the thought process and inner monolouge when going on stage or before or when the other characters our on stage epescially for the ensemble scene and the peice with the poetry and dancing which is the most important scene to get right as everyone will be a part of that scene. The techniques I am hoping to develop during the finishing stages of rehearsal is the ability to remember running orders of lines and qeues as well as thinking about everone else needing to be on stage at each part but mostly the big scenes with everyone and getting the right props on the for the right scenes which is what I and the whole class need to bare in mind from know until the performance days.
How I will use what I learnt in the future is when getting to the stage we are at know in future productions or films it is so vital I bare the same things in mind as the process and things we will be doing will practically be the same throughout the stages at which we will be doing Drama school and beyond.

In the afternoon we had Mandy for Dance were we rehearsed the Blood Wedding dance and Rob watched and gave us feedback on what to do and what he saw but purely what we need to do better and who to work with in the play production at that point when doing the dance. What went well was the amount of work we put into the Dance and energy but to improve maybe the timing, pace and energy at the start when they do the dance and I am looking after the food at the table for the ceremony or celebration of the Wedding occasion should be more exciting and faster as it is a special moment for the Bride and Bridegroom but overall we all did really well and worked immensely hard on that day.
 
The reason we did this activity was to get used and in the habit of remebering the steps and putting all the energy into the dance to make it look good the only way we can produce a brilliant dance is by timing, speed and energy but also enjoying every moment of it and making it seem fun and as though we are celebrating together and working together as a good managed and well behaved, hard working and dedicated team to what we are doing and what will be displayed on stage at college pretty much soon.

How it helped me with my learning was made me understand what it was we were exactly doing for the dance so I knew when to join which is Mandy says when the bride takes my arm and I join in the dance with the Girls and we eat more food and laugh and talk which is what you would do at a wedding and it sort of created a nice image like one you would see in a lively old painting with different people from a different hierachy and background for the individual characters which is interesting and fascinating to know about.
 
Which techniques I am hoping to develop is making sure I do not block people in that scene, but in general in all the other scenes also at the same time making sure I am not taking all of the space, and making sure the focus is mostly concentrating on the dance in the wedding to bring the attention and spotlight on what it is all about and what happens in that moment but bringing humour and laughter to that scene by making it look like I am having too much too drink and eat and looking like I am a bit tipsy but later recover from what happened.How I will use what I learnt in the future is constantly thinking or keeping those things in mind which I learnt such as projection, confidence, blocking and making sure we do vocal techniques and warm ups so we are able to speak much more clearer on stage.

On Thursday we had Rob for Drama were we rehearsed Blood Wedding for Thursday's cast only and in the spare time we had did the ending and rehearsed a bit of the Dance choreography. What went well was we decided as a class to meet and do independent learning but the problem was we again did not get the chance to do much as people only 2 or 3 decided to turn up late so we had to skip some parts of the play.
 
The reason we did this activity was make sure we are able to perform confidently on the day and that only happens when you put in the work and effort which is what we are trying to do more up to the performance as we want it to look good so we don't want to end up rehearsing everything last minute in the short space of time before the show and rush everything. Especially as we are hoping to make this our best performance yet to end up with good marks and be proud and look back at what we achieved as a whole class.

How it helped me with my learning was made learn interesting and new things and made me challenge myself to things I would have not been able to do fist of all without the confidence and the ability to challenge myself and would have made me end up being in the same place as at the start of the term but Drama is about having the confidence to try new things and explore the area of study and learning new things for example ways to build yourself as a person learning to become and actor/tress in the future or for jobs you decide to take on in the future that require those skills that is why acting is vital as it helps you no matter what type of path or direction you end up deciding or hoping to take.
 
Which techniques I will develop is making sure up until the shows I rehearse building the characters style and the way I perform it and getting on stage quick enough for the scenes, really taking my time saying the lines and not rushing them to show I understand what I am saying. Additionally, interpreting my performance in different ways throughout and show I ama confident not show by hiding things if I make a mistake and just carrying not getting out of role even if I end up being nervous on the day.How I will use what I learnt in the future is when ever getting nervous before going on stage the best thing is to breath and relax your mind and when on stage bearing in mind to just improvise and go along with it or hide the mistake you made rather than coming out of role which is what I said above already.
 
In the afternoon we had Becca's lesson but instead of having technical theatre watched level 3 yr 1 Dance and Musical Theatre perform. I think I really enjoyed it as the dancing was fun and really the way the choreographed and incoporated everything. During the rest of the lesson finished any work needed to be completed during lesson time and in the last remaining 5 minutes the class voted for the poster we are going to hang around the college for our plays performance. We also both presented one each Jacob and Me which we created together. For improvements discussed what else needed to be done and edited and what else we had to do from the work that has not been done yet or needs to be finished off.

On Friday we had Becca were we finished Our blogs what went well was we managed to start it well. But what did not go to well was the concentration and amount of work as I was talking during the lesson and found it hard to focus today did not complete much blog until I did the rest at home but next time will try and be more focused to get more completed in lesson time so their is less to do at home.

The reason we did this activity was just making sure we are keeping up to date with the latest work we have done and futhermore so we know what we did before we forget taking note of this week so we can read back over the diary entries completed and those we need to finish or do still and so everything is ordered correctly and is easier for the teachers to find and read.
How it helped me with my learning was made me remember the things we previously did as if writing a story or diary entry about myself on a blog and made me be more aware by updating things each week reminded me of things I forgot or notes we took that we might need to look back on in the future during next years acting or at the end of this year and to make the examiner show we have shown real understandind and clarity of what we have learnt about during the past months in our lessons.
 
Which techniques I am hoping to develop is to maybe write a review on the process of making the Posters, Programmes and/or tickets as it took several weeks to get to the stage were we will print them off with Becca at one point next week and finish everything so it looks good and ready before the performance so we can hang it up around the College and too look at a standard were thwy are appealing and presentable to an audience coming tose our production. The only thing I think we still need to add to the finishing touches of the poster is some sugar paper or cardboard colour paper to stick behind the poster to make it look nice and more decorative and neater when hang on the wall so the paper is not to thin also to rip or break and tear.

How I will use what I learnt in the future is keep a blog to update on what I did each week on a theatre production or to see what I have already done or figure what needs to be worked on or improved for example acting skills or techniques or even vocal exercises I can do and repeat again or may want to use or can come in useful or handy again sometime.



End scene neighbours and Mother weeping supposed to be rehearsals




 Represents tickets we made for Blood Wedding

Represents scene with Bride and servant in rehearsals

Represents the poster we made and created



A film of Blood Wedding directed by Carlos Saura

A dance film of Blood Wedding directed by Carlos Saura

         

Monday until Tuesday 25th-29th April 2016. What we did this week in lessons?

On Monday morning in Beccas lesson of theatre production we had a lesson on Sexual Health, and Laws with a visitor and member of staff from college coming in to talk to us. We then did a survey or quiz on college ratings to win a £50 voucher. What went well was we had a loads of questions people wanted to ask to be on the safe side of understanding the right saftey boundaries of this topic. What did not go so well was focus as people kept talking and getting distraced by things.

The reason we did this activity was to now how to stay safe at our age when having sex and prevent us from being at risk of getting pregnant and how to tackle the situation when your boyfriend who is in love with you forces you in contrast to a boy who loves you and gives you time to tell when you are ready and does not presuarise you but accepts your honest opinion on when you feel is the right time. The reason we also did a quiz or questionare was to have the chance of winning a prize but also to now what is good about the college and what needs to be improved.

How it helped us with our learning was refreshed our minds on the topic and made us more aware of the right and wrong circumstances to be in during that time and how to handle the situation and explain to someone the truth about how you feel about it rather than hiding it and telling the opposite of what you feel. The quiz or questionare did not help me with my learning.

Which techniques I will develop I am not so sure about not even in the quiz/questionare. How I will use what I learned in the future is by making sure I folllow the procedures to stay safe from the things we learned in lesson from preventing of being in danger and problems. But I cannot develop any techniques from doing a questionare or quiz only know the types of questions you answer or the styles of questions.

In the afternoon we had Drama with Becca not Rob to keep an eye on us but we had to do the work independently as a class we were rehearsing the whole lesson. What went well was we rehearsed a bit. What was a bit harder was concentration as some people were talking which delayed the lesson a bit with rehearsals.

The reason we did this activity was to make sure we had less to do in the next upcoming rehearsal with Rob and make sure we have enough time to start doing act 3 on Thursday and the rest of act 2 completed so we can go over the lines ourselves as much as possible.
How it helped us with our learning was made understand the relationships better with the character we were rehearsing and made us know the qeues of when to come on stage on time especially doing scenes on our own with someone and we need to know exactly when to come on without leaving an empty stage and making the play look as professional as it would be in theatre as well but also baring in mind we need to get the props and set on stage beforehand or during going on stage which is a challenge but are all the things we need to remember if we want to produce an amazing show and staging for an audience to see live.

The techniques I will develop is timing of the Dance sessions we do for Blood Wedding with Mandy and making sure I am on stage at the right time for my scenes when saying my lines so I do not miss my qeues and so it looks polished and professionally done rather than messy and all over the place which I will work on in the next 3 weeks in class when we come to rehearse those scenes again.
How I will use it in the future is if deciding to do theatre productions and having to come in and out at certain points I could do those things as well to make it look better like coming on stage earlier and doing an inner monolouge or certain actions to get prepared for my lines and lead me into to them during on stage rather than standing and doing nothing which is boring and will make the audience think that is boring or what are they doing on stage.

On Tuesday morning we rehearsed the rest of act 2 with Rob for Blood Wedding. What went well was we completed the whole of the act and were much more focused but still talked at some points while being off stage.

The reason we did this activity was as I said above to complete the act but also to get through it further so we had less to do and meant we could then rehearse what we learnt again as we already knew what we had to do for that certain scene unless our teacher wanted to change or develop something in the scene even further to make it look a bit better.
 
How it helped me with my learning was made me think about and understand what the plays is describing and what it saying by the information that is given to us in order forus to understand it better and for us to play the role confidentally by having enough information to know how to do it and get an idea of how the play will look when put from page on to stage.
The techniques I will develop in any play I do or want to find out about more when I get the script is read through the play to understnd it, then research the themes, characters, symbols and context or background of it and the person who wrote it to know when it was written and the country or origion the play comes from to get a better understanding of the character.
How I will use it in the future is just exactly what I said in the above read first and then research for an clearer and more detailed explanation and also ask the people working with us on this certain project.

In the afternoon we had Mandy for Dance were we rehearsed a spanish dance for Blood Wedding during and after the wedding ceremony scene. What went well was they learnt it quickly. What did not go so well was I did not feel well so did not participate much in the lesson that day but will this coming Tuesday again.

The reason we did this activity was to prepare was ourselves before with this dance so we know it and our at less risk of injuring ourselves. But also now the count of each step and get used to the rhythem and tempo of the song when dancing to it.
How it helped me with my learning was by watching the others in the class I got an idea of how to do each move as I could see them infront of me clearly and at what point to go onto the next move especially when having to listean to the music and doing ht edance at the same time which can be quiet a challenge.

the techniques I will develop for Mandy's Dance lesson is constantly rehearsing the Dance routine when I have to oppertunity and time too so it looks professional and really good by the time we reach to perform the Dance during the performance evenings as well as remembering the other sides to it such as stage directions and so on. But also until I know it from the top of my head and I feel I know confidentaly well.

How I will use what I learnt in the future if deciding to do something in Musical Theatre or Drama in the future with some dancing in the play I would just go over it with people I am rehearsing it with and listean to the music and rehearse the dance routine in my spare time when I have the oppertunity too that is the best thing to do.

On Thursday morning we had Rob frp Drama were we rehearsed the whole of act 3, scene 1 and 2 and the ending included. What went well was the enrgy and amount  of work done was alot more than usual and it seemed to be alot more fun even though it was hard to wait for the people who were not rehearsing that much but for me it was ok as I was an understudy for that lesson only for one of the trees and I don't think there was anything bad on that day.

The reason we did this activity was to complete all the scenes for Blood Wedding and for the people playing roles in that act to understand what they are doing in that part but also for everyone of stage on that part and so we are aware of what is happening at each point in the play and who is doing what at what point and who needs to be on stage at that certain point in time. It is vital we think about those things and make sure they are sorted on the days of the performance with the props ect. needed on tage at that point ad so on

How it helped me with my learning was made me and everyone else think how important it is to be alert at all times and make sure everything is prepared in the right order so everything runs the way it should and so it all goes smoothly on the days of the performance but also during rhearsals such as the energy brought to the scenes and so the stage is not empty and silent as Rob always tells us.
Which techniques I will develop is to be aware at all times what is going on around me and if support with anything is needed such as roles or sorting out extra things here and there for rehearsals and shows it is better to ask what to help with either the Director doing the organising of the play or technichal crew and backstage crew for example with getting the set on for your peice if it is at the same exact moment to make the job easier for certain people or coming in character on stage earlier so you can straight away start the scene without leaving a silnce in the stage.

How I will use what I learnt in the future is take notes of these tips in a book or record it somewhere to bear it in mind when using or needing those tools in acting school or in that industry to make everything a bit easier for myself so I do not forget these vital peices of information.

In the afternoon we had Becca were we discussed which person everyone will be working with for the assigned roles they were given as backstage roles for the final play and got a copy of Blood Wedding research work handed out to us from our teacher Rob for Drama as part of our homework and exam unit. What went well was we all were fine with who we were working with on the set roles we chose to do and found it easier with the guidelines given to us as part of our research work to make it easier for us to understand what to do for that given task.

The reason we did these activities was to understand better and more clearly the information and details on Blood Wedding in case they asked us for our exam some questions on the play which we have to answer and would make it easier if we understood the knowledge in more detail. The backstage roles are also vital as without knowing about them and having those roles or been given ones firstly we would not have a clue about what to do and we would not be able to put on the production without the most important things needed such as costume and sound and set/props for example.

How it helped me with my learning was learning about these roles gave us a better understanding for the point we reached now of what we have to do and the tasks we are expected to complete or criteria we have to meet to put on a brilliant show and stging/performance with our roles as well as the acting which we will undergo for 2 days in 4 performances.

The techniques I will develop is learning by doing the programmes about the process and how to do it as I do it along the way in case I end up doing it in the future so I can gain more experience in the job as I progress with it so it will turn out good for the production and also the other peoples roles as well and other elements of the show.
How I will use it in the future I am not sure.

On Friday we had Becca for technical theatre were we completed the work for the roles we were assigned in pairs and Jacob was working with me and by the teacher we were told to ask everyone what they will do in the future? and what they will do next year? which will all be written on the programme which I completed a bit and also finished 2 posters in 2 days while Jacob did the task given to us by the teacher. Futhermore, the other pairs did backstage roles such as Costume, Hair and Make Up, Props,Set Design and Projection and more. What went well was we all concentrated on the tsks we had to do and in a short space or amount of time got alot done like the previous day. What did not go well I am not sure about.

The reason we did this activity was to get the tasks even further up to date so they are hopefully completed before the third week and look really amazing so the performance technically and actig wise will look good and individually and as a class we will be proud of the work we did which will pay off in the end and the achievements we have made and produced over this coming year of acting Level 2.

How it helped me with my learning was showed me how a programme looks and is made and the finishing result when done and for the poster also and how to use the tools to create those amazing programmes and how much of your time and effort it would actually take to create this peice of work.

Which techniques I will develop is learning about how to present good peices of work for a poster or programme and how not too and thinking about the people seeing this programme for the show how the layout format should look and the font and size of the writing and the pictures boldness and scale of the picture which is basically baring in mind how to present the presentational features on the programme so it is easy for everyone to see and read.

How I will use the things I learnt in the future is if ever come across having to do that certain job again it is good to have a clear idea of how to do certain things as then you have the benefit of more oppertunities and doors that will open to you and it is so interesting learning and discovering new things you never knew about up until know.