I here enclose a link to my Wiki page where I created a copy of my Critical Reflection on Professional Practitioner Inquiry.
https://laurabapp.wikispaces.com/
Friday, 6 January 2012
Critical Reflection on Professional Practitioner Inquiry
DIGITAL PORTFOLIO
Not having been able to attend the first campus session, it took me some times to fully understand the module and to develop a question for my Inquiry. I then started developing a line of inquiry and a great help came through my BAPP community of practice via comments on my blogs and via my personal SIG, which I based it on "Working and/or training in different countries". Thanks to the SiG introduction on the Middlesex University Facebook page, we were able to share similar interests and give each other ideas and opinion on our inquiry. I focused my first questions on the differences in cultures when it comes to training and working in performing arts. (Appendix A) (Appendix Aa). Unfortunately the group has been deleted from Facebook and this generated a loss of important material for us, as the page showed the development of our thoughts and activities through the conversation. I was still able to re-collect most of the data lost, gathering what had been said through blog posts of others and through my journal recordings.
Trying to find another way for discussion, I found and suggested the website Linkedin (Appendix B) who also had a board for discussions. I created one (Appendix Bb) and posted it on my blog (Appendix C), but I didn't receive enough responses and interests from my course mates and, in the end, didn't result to be as useful as I could have been.
With the second campus session we started to look into Ethics, professional and personal, even though I was still working on the development of my inquiry. On the day I further developed my questions with a good help given me by Rosemary and Adesola, academic advisors holding the session, while the others where heading on with the studying of ethics. I accomplished to narrow down my questions further, focusing more on the advantages and disadvantages of working in different environments (Appendix D)).
After getting through the Reader 4 'Developing lines of professional Inquiry', I started answering to the set questions given, starting to analyze what I was capable of and where I was missing something in my training. I then posted my findings in "Identifying knowledge and skills" up in blog post. (Appendix E)).
After considering my interests and the line for inquiry I was working on, I decided on my final rationale for my Award Title. As Musical Theatre is my major but I wanted to keep my professional opportunities open to different areas, I decided on 'BA (Hons) Professional Practice in Performing Arts'. (Appendix F))
Catching up on Reader 5 'Professional Ethics' I started to get a first understanding of how Ethics relates to my area of work posting few tools I discovered through my research and also using my 'visual lens' for learning on what I perceived about Ethics. I then formed my own ideas on code of practice for a performer. (Appendix G))
With the third, and last, campus session we looked at the final part of the module, Reader 6 'Tools for Professional Inquiry'. After the useful slide show that Paula Nottingham and Rosemary showed us, I got a good understanding on what the final reader was about. We also did some exercise among us to understand the tools ofinterviewing and observing, some of the methods we were asked to try out for our inquiry. (Appendix H))
Further reflecting on Ethics I wrote a post on the outcomes obtained (Appendix I)). Also I gathered information of the code of practice of my day job, and compared it to how closely relates in a hypothetical performing job.
Through the development of my questions and with the help given me through my BAPP fellow students and my academic advisor, I achieved a final question for my Inquiry Project (Appendix L)) and I started, from then on, working on the next tasks given on this module.
With the piloting we were asked to try out, I gained a better knowledge on pros and cons this different tools have; observation (Appendix M)), interview, the different ways of doing it and its advantages and disadvantages (Appendix N)) (Appendix Nn)), a Focus Group (Appendix O)) and finally a pilot Survey (Appendix P). I gathered a good expertise on which tool would work best to find material for my inquiry and why.
Via the findings of literatures that relates to my topic, I was able to analyze and study what others have said on 'self-management skills for a successful career for a performer' (Appendix Q), R, S) and further investigate the matter. From these and others literature found I could notice what kind of advices are given from professionals working in different areas of the arts. I then finally booked mark findings and useful websites on Delicious, a website that gathers and organizes the links and pages you want to save. (Appendix T))
Together combined with the existing literatures and personal experiences I had during this module, I now have a good understanding of the tools I can use to help me gather more information, on ethics and code of practice of my professional area of work, and how to be able to further investigate on what it takes for an emerging performer to grow professionally and succeed.
Not having been able to attend the first campus session, it took me some times to fully understand the module and to develop a question for my Inquiry. I then started developing a line of inquiry and a great help came through my BAPP community of practice via comments on my blogs and via my personal SIG, which I based it on "Working and/or training in different countries". Thanks to the SiG introduction on the Middlesex University Facebook page, we were able to share similar interests and give each other ideas and opinion on our inquiry. I focused my first questions on the differences in cultures when it comes to training and working in performing arts. (Appendix A) (Appendix Aa). Unfortunately the group has been deleted from Facebook and this generated a loss of important material for us, as the page showed the development of our thoughts and activities through the conversation. I was still able to re-collect most of the data lost, gathering what had been said through blog posts of others and through my journal recordings.
Trying to find another way for discussion, I found and suggested the website Linkedin (Appendix B) who also had a board for discussions. I created one (Appendix Bb) and posted it on my blog (Appendix C), but I didn't receive enough responses and interests from my course mates and, in the end, didn't result to be as useful as I could have been.
With the second campus session we started to look into Ethics, professional and personal, even though I was still working on the development of my inquiry. On the day I further developed my questions with a good help given me by Rosemary and Adesola, academic advisors holding the session, while the others where heading on with the studying of ethics. I accomplished to narrow down my questions further, focusing more on the advantages and disadvantages of working in different environments (Appendix D)).
After getting through the Reader 4 'Developing lines of professional Inquiry', I started answering to the set questions given, starting to analyze what I was capable of and where I was missing something in my training. I then posted my findings in "Identifying knowledge and skills" up in blog post. (Appendix E)).
After considering my interests and the line for inquiry I was working on, I decided on my final rationale for my Award Title. As Musical Theatre is my major but I wanted to keep my professional opportunities open to different areas, I decided on 'BA (Hons) Professional Practice in Performing Arts'. (Appendix F))
Catching up on Reader 5 'Professional Ethics' I started to get a first understanding of how Ethics relates to my area of work posting few tools I discovered through my research and also using my 'visual lens' for learning on what I perceived about Ethics. I then formed my own ideas on code of practice for a performer. (Appendix G))
With the third, and last, campus session we looked at the final part of the module, Reader 6 'Tools for Professional Inquiry'. After the useful slide show that Paula Nottingham and Rosemary showed us, I got a good understanding on what the final reader was about. We also did some exercise among us to understand the tools ofinterviewing and observing, some of the methods we were asked to try out for our inquiry. (Appendix H))
Further reflecting on Ethics I wrote a post on the outcomes obtained (Appendix I)). Also I gathered information of the code of practice of my day job, and compared it to how closely relates in a hypothetical performing job.
Through the development of my questions and with the help given me through my BAPP fellow students and my academic advisor, I achieved a final question for my Inquiry Project (Appendix L)) and I started, from then on, working on the next tasks given on this module.
With the piloting we were asked to try out, I gained a better knowledge on pros and cons this different tools have; observation (Appendix M)), interview, the different ways of doing it and its advantages and disadvantages (Appendix N)) (Appendix Nn)), a Focus Group (Appendix O)) and finally a pilot Survey (Appendix P). I gathered a good expertise on which tool would work best to find material for my inquiry and why.
Via the findings of literatures that relates to my topic, I was able to analyze and study what others have said on 'self-management skills for a successful career for a performer' (Appendix Q), R, S) and further investigate the matter. From these and others literature found I could notice what kind of advices are given from professionals working in different areas of the arts. I then finally booked mark findings and useful websites on Delicious, a website that gathers and organizes the links and pages you want to save. (Appendix T))
Together combined with the existing literatures and personal experiences I had during this module, I now have a good understanding of the tools I can use to help me gather more information, on ethics and code of practice of my professional area of work, and how to be able to further investigate on what it takes for an emerging performer to grow professionally and succeed.
References:
Appendix A: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/10/developing-lines-of-enquiry.htmlAppendix Aa: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/10/task-4b-develop-sig.htmlAppendix B: http://www.linkedin.com/Appendix Bb:http://www.linkedin.com/groups/Interested-in-sharing-ideas-thoughts-93013.S.82081311Appendix C: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/11/linkedin-eureka.htmlAppendix D: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/10/campus-session-2.htmlAppendix E: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/10/identifying-knowledge-and-skills.htmlAppendix F: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/11/task-4d-award-title-proposal.htmlAppendix G: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/11/first-glance-at-ethics.htmlAppendix H: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/11/campus-session-3-09-11-11.htmlAppendix I: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/11/campus-session-3-09-11-11.htmlAppendix L: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/12/inquiry-question-final.htmlAppendix M: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/12/wicked.htmlAppendix N: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/12/pilot-interview.htmlAppendix Nn: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/12/re-evaluation-of-my-pilot-interview.htmlAppendix O: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/12/pilot-focus-group.htmlAppendix P: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/12/pilot-survey.htmlAppendix Q: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/12/6c-literature-1.htmlAppendix R: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/12/literature-review-2_30.htmlAppendix S: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2012/01/literature-3.htmlAppendix T: http://laurasinigaglia.blogspot.com/2011/11/delicious.html
Tuesday, 3 January 2012
6d: Delicious
I wanted to share my Delicious's link with everyone and see if someone is interested on following me and share their links with me... especially people interested in the same subjects as me for our project.
I 'm already following Stephanie's stak ... very useful networking tool, now more than ever!
My link:
http://www.delicious.com/stacks/view/N3XnpB
Monday, 2 January 2012
6c Literature 3:
Why is Acting in Song So Different?
The last piece of literature I found is an Academic Journal written by Dr. Matt Bean, Professor of Musical Theatre and Voice, and Co-Director of the BFA Program in Musical Theatre at Western Illinois University.
I found great interest in this article as it relates to my major, musical theatre, and talks about the differences of the 'rules of music-theatre' and the 'rules of-theatre' (Bean, 2007).
Straight acting versus singing-acting; this is what the writer focuses his article on, comparing just speaking to what it takes to act when music is added to the speech.
He states how 'singing is bigger than speaking' and, therefore, acting. Singing comes when simply speaking is not enough to express what you want to say, he cites Ibid when he writes that 'music is justified once speech is no longer sufficient, “because there is an abnormal, heightened need to communicate." '
Music gives speech a greater dynamic (Linklater) and it's what singers need when what they have to say is more urgent and they need to express a higher level of emotions, otherwise, he explains, if the singer doesn't need to express what he "wants" more than an actor does, he may as well just talk instead of sing.
He then carries on giving explanations on how, for him, the music gives to the singer notes and variations to the text than normal speech don't have, dynamics, notes such as p, mp, f, mf, crescendo, intonations, melody, time extensions, tempo, melody, rhythm, none of the which are given in an monologue or script.
A 'blessing and a curse' at the same time as he values the freedom of interpretation for the actor but highly values the great help the singer gets with the designed parameters of the music written by a composer.
A very interesting point of the article is made about the Challenge to expressing text on a foreign language; he advises 3 level for communication when singing in a foreign language (this is mostly related to Opera that almost always is sung in Italian even for English speakers). The lowest level, where the singer doesn't know the meaning of the words he/she is singing and vaguely act them out, a second middle level where the singer has a general understanding and knowledge of the words and translate them back and forth in his/her mind, or the highest level where the language is well know by the singer that can actually think in the foreign language and therefore act the words sung at its best.
He then talks about the Need for concentration, as the words in singing are stretched out and the thought process goes faster than the words sung. This require a great level of concentration not to loose the meaning of what's said while singing.
Also Text repetition is a key in singing; he already pointed out that when someone sings is because it's 'the most important thing in our lives right then', and what happens when something is so important? We obsess about it and therefore the thought keeps coming back to our minds. That's the reason why text repetition is a fundamental part of a song, to show how important what we are singing about is.
Bean believes that Spontaneity is another hard task for singers has it's never real in a song, as it probably has been rehearsed many times, nonetheless the song has to remain natural and the singer should sound and look spontaneous throughout the song.
Last but not least, he speaks about Synergy, derived from the Greek syn-ergos, meaning to work together (Balk). He writes how 'Opera and music theater are the most collaborative of all art forms in the way they seek to combine music, drama, design, and movement to create something new. As singers learn to integrate acting and singing, they likewise have the unique chance to create synergy, that wonderful artistic state where the singing and the acting begin to feed off each other and unite to take the performance to a new and higher level.'
Reading this journal, I strongly appreciated Bean's knowledge in musical theatre, especially in the works of Stephen Sondheim, American composer an lyricist for stage and film (Wikipedia, 2011). The examples he used within the text to explain the reason for repetition in a song, where extracts from Mozart and Sondheim's work, and having studied and performed in one of Sondheim's musicals Into the Woods, gave me a very clear understanding of the text and its meaning.
In conclusion I believe the point that then author wanted to make, is how singing and acting together is a very difficult but very effective way to perform and how acting on his own give a way more freedom interpretation to the actor.
I found a good part of what is stated in this article, a synthesis of what I learned in college when taking Musical Theatre classes. The whole construction of a song and its text is a great help that the composer gives to the singer/actor, but unless you don't really learn them and understand why they are in a particular point in the song, the work becomes useless. Bean himself states how much improvements students get when starting to sing "acting" the emotions that the given notes generates and fully understanding the choices that the composer makes.
References:
Bean, M., Nov 2007. Why is Acting in Song So Different?, Journal of Singing [e-journal] 64(2) pp. 167-173. Available through: Ebscohost database. [accessed 23 Dec 2011].
Wikipedia, 2011, Stephen Sondheim [online]. Available at: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Sondheim> [accessed 02 Jan 2012].
I found great interest in this article as it relates to my major, musical theatre, and talks about the differences of the 'rules of music-theatre' and the 'rules of-theatre' (Bean, 2007).
Straight acting versus singing-acting; this is what the writer focuses his article on, comparing just speaking to what it takes to act when music is added to the speech.
He states how 'singing is bigger than speaking' and, therefore, acting. Singing comes when simply speaking is not enough to express what you want to say, he cites Ibid when he writes that 'music is justified once speech is no longer sufficient, “because there is an abnormal, heightened need to communicate." '
Music gives speech a greater dynamic (Linklater) and it's what singers need when what they have to say is more urgent and they need to express a higher level of emotions, otherwise, he explains, if the singer doesn't need to express what he "wants" more than an actor does, he may as well just talk instead of sing.
He then carries on giving explanations on how, for him, the music gives to the singer notes and variations to the text than normal speech don't have, dynamics, notes such as p, mp, f, mf, crescendo, intonations, melody, time extensions, tempo, melody, rhythm, none of the which are given in an monologue or script.
A 'blessing and a curse' at the same time as he values the freedom of interpretation for the actor but highly values the great help the singer gets with the designed parameters of the music written by a composer.
A very interesting point of the article is made about the Challenge to expressing text on a foreign language; he advises 3 level for communication when singing in a foreign language (this is mostly related to Opera that almost always is sung in Italian even for English speakers). The lowest level, where the singer doesn't know the meaning of the words he/she is singing and vaguely act them out, a second middle level where the singer has a general understanding and knowledge of the words and translate them back and forth in his/her mind, or the highest level where the language is well know by the singer that can actually think in the foreign language and therefore act the words sung at its best.
He then talks about the Need for concentration, as the words in singing are stretched out and the thought process goes faster than the words sung. This require a great level of concentration not to loose the meaning of what's said while singing.
Also Text repetition is a key in singing; he already pointed out that when someone sings is because it's 'the most important thing in our lives right then', and what happens when something is so important? We obsess about it and therefore the thought keeps coming back to our minds. That's the reason why text repetition is a fundamental part of a song, to show how important what we are singing about is.
Bean believes that Spontaneity is another hard task for singers has it's never real in a song, as it probably has been rehearsed many times, nonetheless the song has to remain natural and the singer should sound and look spontaneous throughout the song.
Last but not least, he speaks about Synergy, derived from the Greek syn-ergos, meaning to work together (Balk). He writes how 'Opera and music theater are the most collaborative of all art forms in the way they seek to combine music, drama, design, and movement to create something new. As singers learn to integrate acting and singing, they likewise have the unique chance to create synergy, that wonderful artistic state where the singing and the acting begin to feed off each other and unite to take the performance to a new and higher level.'
In conclusion I believe the point that then author wanted to make, is how singing and acting together is a very difficult but very effective way to perform and how acting on his own give a way more freedom interpretation to the actor.
I found a good part of what is stated in this article, a synthesis of what I learned in college when taking Musical Theatre classes. The whole construction of a song and its text is a great help that the composer gives to the singer/actor, but unless you don't really learn them and understand why they are in a particular point in the song, the work becomes useless. Bean himself states how much improvements students get when starting to sing "acting" the emotions that the given notes generates and fully understanding the choices that the composer makes.
References:
Bean, M., Nov 2007. Why is Acting in Song So Different?, Journal of Singing [e-journal] 64(2) pp. 167-173. Available through: Ebscohost database. [accessed 23 Dec 2011].
Wikipedia, 2011, Stephen Sondheim [online]. Available at: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Sondheim> [accessed 02 Jan 2012].
Friday, 30 December 2011
6c Literature Review 2:
What every dancer needs to know to keep up with today's trend and win tomorrow's jobs.
This is an article I found while navigating through the University's databases. It's and extract of the journal Back Stage and has been written by Lisa Jo Sagolla.
I valued its contents as interesting material of what has been written on self-management skills performers should acquire, in this particular case, for the dancing business. Although it's a peace that has been written a while ago, I believe it isn't far from what the business still requires to be prepared on nowadays.
Sagolla focuses the piece on what is needed nowadays, by a performer, in an audition situation. It's not a matter of 'not being right for the role' anymore but maybe it's a time where we should ask ourselves if we are up with the latest trends and trainings in dance. She explores different dance styles, from Broadway to contemporary, commercial video and ballet communities to discover what are the latest requirements.
Firstly she explains how Broadway dance is not a typecast style anymore, but includes a wide range of movement approaches. It's not only ballet, jazz and tap previously seen in shows such as Chorus Line, but we are starting seeing athletic and challenging moves in Moving Out, romantic ballet for The Phantom of the Opera, or Fosse's style jazz routines for Chicago, just to mention few.
Choreographer Wayne Cilento, who has choreographed numbers such as Aida and Wicked, believes it's now up to the choreographer who wants to be original and interesting every time with new material, especially if it's a choreographer who works mainly for Broadway on many different shows.
So it's hard to tell what style you can get thrown at at an audition anymore, Cilento advises that being a solid dancer with secure classical technique is always a good start; even for more modern dance styles such as Hip Hop the technique is fundamental as acrobatics are incorporated within the discipline; so he firmly believes in being an all round dancer with a strong technicality, the key to be prepared to whatever style you are asked for in an audition.
The article further investigate how it's, instead, the scenario for a more commercial dance, especially the one used in music videos and in tours for backup dancers of famous pop singers or group.
The choreographer Dreya Weber shares her experience of how ariel work is always more and more in demand and it's sometimes necessary for a dancer to be able to do.
She explains how, for instance, in a tour for the pop singer Pink they couldn't really hire only ariel performers as they were also required to dance; therefore she stressed how she encountered complications as the dancers weren't used to the hard work of ariel and how she had to accomodate the routine and the dancers in order to make the choreography still exciting but not too complicated.
In another case, choreographing for one of Madonna's tour, the person hired to do ariel was a former Olympic gymnast and it came to be so much easier to teach her the routine as she had a wide range of acrobatic movement.
At more and more auditions you may get asked to do ariel work so she suggests that it's in the interest of the dancer to getting trained into that, it will only increase the chances of getting casted.
For the dancers less into commercial and more into art, the article carries on talking about Contemporary dance. It's Vallejo Gantner, artistic director of Performance Space 122 (the contemporary studio most in vogue in Downtown Manhattan) that explains how who is interested in the lates contemporary style, should get used to the lates trends of experimental work.
This meaning that the focus of the dance is shifting from the performer's experience to the audience's one, giving more importance to the experience rather than the meaning of the piece.
Following the article, Kirk Peterson, artistic director of ABT Studio Company and established former ballet dancer, believes that to be a modern classical dancer you have to be able to acquire all kind of trainings. He states that "now the trend from many different ballet companies is to invite choreographers from many other disciplines to come and set works on their dancers"(2006), so the more versatile the dancer is the better.
He carries on suggesting what he thinks are the most useful dance styles a classical dancer should be trained in nowadays. Folk dance as a style that has unfortunately got lost in time in dance schools, "it taught dancers about rhythm and how to dance when not in point shoes" (2006); also tap, moder and jazz classes are good to take; tap dance teaches you how to be a living percussionist, developing a great understanding of rhythm and musicality within the dancer (Peterson,2006). He strongly advices for a good old-school jazz training, more loosen compared to the rigid ballet, but still in need of a good control. He personally advises against hip-hop as for a ballet dancer is not really a good technique style that can help, he prefers world dance forms such as the Spanish dance, closely related to ballet, classical India dance which emphasizes on isolation and Hula dance as another way to feel gravity and feeling weight, that also uses the arms to tell a story, closely related to the mime of classical ballet.
As a top up to for dancers who really want to keep up with the diverse demands on ballet today, Petterson feels they should try to incorporate some study of music and dance theory.
As an overall, these piece gives a good idea of how the new era for dance started to get shape in all different styles. The author here wants to get across a broad material of information for dancers on what nowadays is demanded by famous dance companies and at auditions situation.
As I said, even if this is an article dated to the end of 2006, it stills is a valuable piece of literature that explores how versatile and multitasking this business requires you to be in order to succeed as a professional dancer.
On a last note, "The more the better" is how I sum up this article and what it's all about.
Reference:
Sagolla, L., Oct 2006, Dance Evolution: What every dancer needs to know to keep in step with today's trend and win tomorrow's job, Back Stage [e-journal] 47 (41) p26. Available through: Proquest database, International Index of Performing Arts Full Text. [accessed 27 Dec 2011]
Pilot Survey
Here is the pilot survey I created on Self-Management Skills as a Performer. Basically what you did and still do since graduating and entering the professional world of performing.
Please take 5 minutes of your time to take it if you are a dancer, singer or actor/actress. It would be of so much value for my studies.
Thanks in advance!! :)
Tuesday, 27 December 2011
Pilot Focus Group
I here explain how I experienced this tool for analyzing data and information under the form of Focus Group.
At first I have to admit I wasn't sure what exactly it was meant for 'Focus Group', until I fully read the Reader 6 Tools for Professional Inquiry and understood its capabilities.
There may situations where participants prefer to tell their story within a supportive group context, and this atmosphere can open up issues that that individual participants may not think about on their on. (Descombe, 2007, p. 179.)
This is what really triggered me to try out this tool, which was in the end a very beneficial form to gather a great number of data within a one session experience.
We talked freely about certain main topics I had previously set:
As a way of analyzing the data, I decided to write down notes during the focus group to then analyze them in a second moment, summing up everything that came up that had an impact and importance for my inquiry.
At first I have to admit I wasn't sure what exactly it was meant for 'Focus Group', until I fully read the Reader 6 Tools for Professional Inquiry and understood its capabilities.
There may situations where participants prefer to tell their story within a supportive group context, and this atmosphere can open up issues that that individual participants may not think about on their on. (Descombe, 2007, p. 179.)
It's probably so far the best way for me to obtain new knowledge for my inquiry development. I found the opportunity of exchanging ideas and opinions within a focus group very useful.
I organized a focus group with 3 professionals friends of mine, that are in 3 very different stages of their career.
We talked freely about certain main topics I had previously set:
- Where at artistically (un-employed/employed)
- Professional experiences
- Ways of maintenance as a performer (when resting and during jobs)
- Differences in cultures
- Differences in trainings
As a way of analyzing the data, I decided to write down notes during the focus group to then analyze them in a second moment, summing up everything that came up that had an impact and importance for my inquiry.
I have firstly met my friends in a central bar in London where I knew there was a cozy and intimate place to ask question and talk freely, then provided refreshments and started my focus group.
I didn't need to have the session monitored by a gatekeeper as this wasn't handle within an organization, therefore I was the only one with the role of moderator. I firstly explained the reason way I was conducting this kind of group interview and then asked verbally if I could have used their names and quotes for my project.
It was of great value for me that the 3 professionals where at very different points of their career/training, and that for me was a great occasion to compare activities and ways of thinking depending on their personal situations.
The participants were Saori Oda, a very well established Japanese dancer, trained at The Urdang Academy, at that time just in the process of ending her second contract in the West End show 'Wicked'.
The second interviewee was Ughetta Pratesi, an Italian actress/dancer trained at Laines Theatre Arts College and at the Guilford School of Acting, with some work experience in London but currently in a resting period as a performer but working as a ballet teacher in a dance school for kids.
Last but not least was another dancer (friend of Ughetta who preferred not to be named) who was living in London for a period of 2 months mainly to get as much training as possible in dance; still in training so in a perfect condition for me to listen to as she is fresh into the field of performing, very passionate about it but still in the making process of forming as a professional. What was interested of her was the fact that as an Italian dancer, she decided to come to London to gain more training skills as a dancer.
Even if probably a little weird for the readers, I classified the professionals with a 'stage number' considering their position as professionals, to get my analysis and my reflection easier when putting it down into words. I gave Saori a Stage N*3, Ughetta a Stage N*2 and the third dancer a Stage N*1.
Mostly the Focus Group went on with me giving topics for discussion and them talking freely about it.
Regarding ways to keep up physically and vocally was very interesting to see how differently the 3 stages worked.
Stage N*1
She told how little she took dance classes in the past year even though she is a professional dancer. Being in a full time West End show doesn't give you spare time to take classes and also the level of physical stress of dancing 8 shows a week is enough for a dancer body and a great workout.
About singing lessons she explained us that she may have sometimes taken vocal coaching rather than pure singing lessons as her vocal ability was well trained and always on shape because of the show, so only needed coaching on how to use her voice at its best and to help hearing herself while singing during the show. Hitting the same notes and steps for a long period of time can cause the performers to get used to moves and notes and sometimes it's hard to listen and think on stage but instead your body and voice work on their own. That's when she would think about recurring to extra classes outside the show.
On the other end, when previously performing in a show only as a singer, she instead found it hard not to dance and she would personally join the dance troop to warm up as a self-management skill she acquired as a dancer, not to loose shape while in a 6 months contract not as a dancer.
It was of a great value to analyze how different she would behave compared to the other two participants as she didn’t need to take many dance or singing lesson as the show was already keeping her in shape. Also she wasn’t worried about resting after this contract as she was strongly positive she was going to get good auditions by her agent because of her already established CV.
When starting the topic of Training Differences, very strongly was pointed out by Stage N* 1&2 how good it is, here in London, to be able to join classes whenever you want following the teachers you prefer to be taught by; this isn't an option in Italy as to be able to train in dance you would have to join a full course at a dance school or join random workshops around the country. It's hard to find valuable teachers anywhere and you have to be lucky enough to end up in a dance school where the teachers are fully trained and experienced. They compared how easy it is here to research on a teacher and follow their classes around different schools, something very unlikely to happen in Italy.
Stage N* 2 explained that back home she couldn't find a balance between good teaching and good assistance and personal help, she also pointed out that she was talking mainly from her experience in Florence, where she comes from, which is probably not one of the biggest cities, like Rome or Milan, where there are better schools.
In Italy, dance (especially ballet) is well established but unless you come form a major city you would probably join the local club and usually the level of teaching is debatable, it may be good when in younger age but when it comes to professional dancing you would have to move to bigger cities where you have more opportunities to find good teaching levels.
At this point I found myself strongly agreeing with the 2 Italians participants as that is also my experience back home, but at that point I realize I was probably being bias and slightly letting out of the conversation Stage N*3. It was my first ethical issue I encountered within the Focus Group; I straight away stepped out of the conversation trying as much as possible not to lead the participants towards my believes or let them out of the discussion.
Stage N*1's testimony was excellent as she gave comparison between Italian and UK’s ways of teaching dance. She believed here in London was extremely useful for her to be able to join dance classes at different organizations and schools having the opportunity to decide what level to join and to try out different teacher’s and dance styles. In Italy, she explained, she doesn’t find this type of possibilities as dance colleges are strictly closed to a certain number of teachers and that you would have to join the entire course with the fees that occur. Here, she was able to participate to several different dance classes, finding the ones that worked best for her needs, building a consistency of dance classes at a daily bases without having to be stuck to only one organisation. For here this was an unbelievable possibility for a dancer and she is probably consider moving here full time.
The second interviewee was Ughetta Pratesi, an Italian actress/dancer trained at Laines Theatre Arts College and at the Guilford School of Acting, with some work experience in London but currently in a resting period as a performer but working as a ballet teacher in a dance school for kids.
Last but not least was another dancer (friend of Ughetta who preferred not to be named) who was living in London for a period of 2 months mainly to get as much training as possible in dance; still in training so in a perfect condition for me to listen to as she is fresh into the field of performing, very passionate about it but still in the making process of forming as a professional. What was interested of her was the fact that as an Italian dancer, she decided to come to London to gain more training skills as a dancer.
Even if probably a little weird for the readers, I classified the professionals with a 'stage number' considering their position as professionals, to get my analysis and my reflection easier when putting it down into words. I gave Saori a Stage N*3, Ughetta a Stage N*2 and the third dancer a Stage N*1.
Mostly the Focus Group went on with me giving topics for discussion and them talking freely about it.
Regarding ways to keep up physically and vocally was very interesting to see how differently the 3 stages worked.
Stage N*1
She told how little she took dance classes in the past year even though she is a professional dancer. Being in a full time West End show doesn't give you spare time to take classes and also the level of physical stress of dancing 8 shows a week is enough for a dancer body and a great workout.
About singing lessons she explained us that she may have sometimes taken vocal coaching rather than pure singing lessons as her vocal ability was well trained and always on shape because of the show, so only needed coaching on how to use her voice at its best and to help hearing herself while singing during the show. Hitting the same notes and steps for a long period of time can cause the performers to get used to moves and notes and sometimes it's hard to listen and think on stage but instead your body and voice work on their own. That's when she would think about recurring to extra classes outside the show.
On the other end, when previously performing in a show only as a singer, she instead found it hard not to dance and she would personally join the dance troop to warm up as a self-management skill she acquired as a dancer, not to loose shape while in a 6 months contract not as a dancer.
It was of a great value to analyze how different she would behave compared to the other two participants as she didn’t need to take many dance or singing lesson as the show was already keeping her in shape. Also she wasn’t worried about resting after this contract as she was strongly positive she was going to get good auditions by her agent because of her already established CV.
It made me think that it’s a that level that we (performers) have to work up to; but is the job really that easy afterwards? Once you are in the loop, is it really that easy to keep working or you could easily go from top to bottom and having to start over again?
Another good part of our conversation was about injuries; during her 16 months performing she encountered several injuries related to how the stage was inclined and the stress that that causes to her back when dancing. So another valuable issue of being an established performer could be having to focus more on how to prevent yourself from injuring in different work environments. What do you have to do in order to protect yourself while already working?
Stage N*2 stated how hard it is to take dance classes while off work, but still working as a temp to pay the bills. She manages to take at least one class per week of Ballet or Jazz, joining dance classes at Pineapple Studios, Dance Works or Dance Attic, all dance schools that permit you to pay for singular classes and a whatever level you feel more suitable.When starting the topic of Training Differences, very strongly was pointed out by Stage N* 1&2 how good it is, here in London, to be able to join classes whenever you want following the teachers you prefer to be taught by; this isn't an option in Italy as to be able to train in dance you would have to join a full course at a dance school or join random workshops around the country. It's hard to find valuable teachers anywhere and you have to be lucky enough to end up in a dance school where the teachers are fully trained and experienced. They compared how easy it is here to research on a teacher and follow their classes around different schools, something very unlikely to happen in Italy.
Stage N* 2 explained that back home she couldn't find a balance between good teaching and good assistance and personal help, she also pointed out that she was talking mainly from her experience in Florence, where she comes from, which is probably not one of the biggest cities, like Rome or Milan, where there are better schools.
In Italy, dance (especially ballet) is well established but unless you come form a major city you would probably join the local club and usually the level of teaching is debatable, it may be good when in younger age but when it comes to professional dancing you would have to move to bigger cities where you have more opportunities to find good teaching levels.
At this point I found myself strongly agreeing with the 2 Italians participants as that is also my experience back home, but at that point I realize I was probably being bias and slightly letting out of the conversation Stage N*3. It was my first ethical issue I encountered within the Focus Group; I straight away stepped out of the conversation trying as much as possible not to lead the participants towards my believes or let them out of the discussion.
Further talking about Differences in Cultures the thing that Stage N*2 said that mostly interested me during the focus group, was how the Musical Theatre culture is still not embraced in Italy and how reality shows such as “Amici” (the Italian version of the Tv show Fame) inculcate the wrong idea of how a professional college in Musical Theatre should be and how auditions process work.
She explained how frustrated she was when she would go back home while still in training in London, and would follow the show; she explained that most of the participants would get angry and rude to the panel when an audition was held. That, she kept going, "is not how a professional audition would work, that was just a reality show to gain more audience figures; you just don’t argue about a decision that the panel takes"(Pratesi, 2011). That show was very popular in the country; therefore many performers that try out a career in MT in Italy had a really bad example to follow.
Stage N*3 told us she found Uk's productions and professionals much more easy to approach and to work with, a funnier and happier environment compared to the Japanese one. In the past she performed in the Japanese musical version of 'The Phantom of The Opera' and explained how everybody took rehearsals and the show very seriously but taking out of the experience what's actually fun and enjoyable for performers when at work. She compared the show she recently starred in as much more fun to do, where everyone, from the ensemble dancers to the principals roles, had a good relationship among them and where all at the same level of human relations.
Probably that has to do with the fact that Musical is part of the British culture and therefore it's felt more by the audience and their makers.
Stage N*2 expressed "... how we don't understand MT in Italy because of the strong tradition we have of opera and straight theatre. Therefore the explanation why we don't really have a mixed training but we focus on one particular discipline. You either are a good singer or a good dancer..." (Pratesi, 2011). To promote Musical Theatre productions that are slightly taking stage in Italy, they still have to hire famous TV personalities or reality show's talents to attract audiences, reconnecting to what she said about the poor quality of talents come out of reality shows.
These are the most valuable information I gathered for my Inquiry plan; the Focus Group lasted around a couple of hours but without feeling the tiredness or the situation being too formal; with cafes in front of us and sat at a nice bar, the whole experience felt really confortable for the participants and for myself to moderate.
I although did find it hard to write down everything said, so next time I would probably consider trying a recording device, but I do believe this tool for inquiry is very useful for the type of research I'm heading towards. It can collect a great number of valuable data with the possibilities of heading towards a something maybe not previously considered by me, the researcher. It can develop itself on a greater level of knowledge.
She explained how frustrated she was when she would go back home while still in training in London, and would follow the show; she explained that most of the participants would get angry and rude to the panel when an audition was held. That, she kept going, "is not how a professional audition would work, that was just a reality show to gain more audience figures; you just don’t argue about a decision that the panel takes"(Pratesi, 2011). That show was very popular in the country; therefore many performers that try out a career in MT in Italy had a really bad example to follow.
Stage N*3 told us she found Uk's productions and professionals much more easy to approach and to work with, a funnier and happier environment compared to the Japanese one. In the past she performed in the Japanese musical version of 'The Phantom of The Opera' and explained how everybody took rehearsals and the show very seriously but taking out of the experience what's actually fun and enjoyable for performers when at work. She compared the show she recently starred in as much more fun to do, where everyone, from the ensemble dancers to the principals roles, had a good relationship among them and where all at the same level of human relations.
Probably that has to do with the fact that Musical is part of the British culture and therefore it's felt more by the audience and their makers.
Stage N*2 expressed "... how we don't understand MT in Italy because of the strong tradition we have of opera and straight theatre. Therefore the explanation why we don't really have a mixed training but we focus on one particular discipline. You either are a good singer or a good dancer..." (Pratesi, 2011). To promote Musical Theatre productions that are slightly taking stage in Italy, they still have to hire famous TV personalities or reality show's talents to attract audiences, reconnecting to what she said about the poor quality of talents come out of reality shows.
These are the most valuable information I gathered for my Inquiry plan; the Focus Group lasted around a couple of hours but without feeling the tiredness or the situation being too formal; with cafes in front of us and sat at a nice bar, the whole experience felt really confortable for the participants and for myself to moderate.
I although did find it hard to write down everything said, so next time I would probably consider trying a recording device, but I do believe this tool for inquiry is very useful for the type of research I'm heading towards. It can collect a great number of valuable data with the possibilities of heading towards a something maybe not previously considered by me, the researcher. It can develop itself on a greater level of knowledge.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)