It's been a crazy start to 2018! Coming back to London after 2 weeks at home and back to the early morning alarms were definitely a shock to the system.
I was so pleased to submit my inquiry and professional artefact just after the new year and I have spent the last week preparing for my oral presentation which will take place on Thursday.
If I'm being honest, I am feeling really nervous at the moment but I am looking forward to seeing all of the presentations and being another step closer to achieving my BA (Hons) in Acting.
Tuesday 16 January 2018
Wednesday 8 November 2017
Task 7A: Part 3
Over the last few days I have been trying to piece together my first draft of my inquiry dissertation for submission in a few weeks time. I have found myself doubting my ability and stressing over little details as I know that it is such an important piece of work but I am trying to keep faith and stay positive!
I have found a lot more websites with articles for my literature and this will help back up the information I recorded in my interviews. Documenting what was said in the interviews is one of the hardest things as each of my interviewee's were so helpful and gave me so much information which is all very relevant!
I am going to really concentrate this weekend on finalising exactly what I want to say in my inquiry dissertation and also sorting my word counts and whether I am 'rambling', as the topic is very personal and obviously of great interest to me. I have also made contact with Hopal whilst Helen is away so I look forward to speaking to her soon too!
I have found a lot more websites with articles for my literature and this will help back up the information I recorded in my interviews. Documenting what was said in the interviews is one of the hardest things as each of my interviewee's were so helpful and gave me so much information which is all very relevant!
I am going to really concentrate this weekend on finalising exactly what I want to say in my inquiry dissertation and also sorting my word counts and whether I am 'rambling', as the topic is very personal and obviously of great interest to me. I have also made contact with Hopal whilst Helen is away so I look forward to speaking to her soon too!
Sunday 22 October 2017
Task 7A: Part 2
Over the last (very busy) few weeks I have been continuing with my inquiry and I feel like I am definitely making progress!
It has been extremely difficult to arrange interviews, either in person or over Skype, due to both my interviewee's and my own busy schedules! I am so happy that I have now finished my interviews for my inquiry. I think that the interviews went very well and were extremely helpful in my research. I made a lot of notes throughout each interview, which I held with a variety of creatives from actors to casting directors, and have spent time re-reading the notes from each interview and analyzing the data. All of the content that was discussed in the interviews is vital for my inquiry.
After holding the interviews, I noticed that my own opinion now has a definite viewpoint on my inquiry based on the experiences and jobs I have had since starting my initial inquiry process in Module 2.
Tomorrow morning, I am having a Skype tutorial with Helen. This will really help me to ensure that I am staying on track and it will be good to discuss my research that I have found, both through literature and interviews, with Helen.
It has been extremely difficult to arrange interviews, either in person or over Skype, due to both my interviewee's and my own busy schedules! I am so happy that I have now finished my interviews for my inquiry. I think that the interviews went very well and were extremely helpful in my research. I made a lot of notes throughout each interview, which I held with a variety of creatives from actors to casting directors, and have spent time re-reading the notes from each interview and analyzing the data. All of the content that was discussed in the interviews is vital for my inquiry.
After holding the interviews, I noticed that my own opinion now has a definite viewpoint on my inquiry based on the experiences and jobs I have had since starting my initial inquiry process in Module 2.
Tomorrow morning, I am having a Skype tutorial with Helen. This will really help me to ensure that I am staying on track and it will be good to discuss my research that I have found, both through literature and interviews, with Helen.
Saturday 7 October 2017
Task 7A: Update on Inquiry Process
Over the last week I have been reading my feedback from my work in Module 2 and seeing how I can improve my inquiry. I submitted my Module 3 Feedback Response form to Helen and I have also spent time studying the Module 3 handbook and Reader 7 again.
I feel like my inquiry is going well so far, but with Module 3 being an extremely self-motivated study block (more so than any of the other modules), it is hard to know whether you are really on track or not!
I have managed to source some more literature which is relevant to my inquiry but a lot of my literature has come from news articles from The Stage or The Guardian, for example. This is great because there are so many new and up to date articles posted daily, but it does mean it is also quite hard to keep track of all of the new articles on a daily basis!
I have started to really discuss my inquiry topic with friends and colleagues in my professional circle and will be conducting more formal interviews for my inquiry within the next few weeks. I am going to continue analysing the literature I have sourced and this will help me to gain a variety of viewpoints on my inquiry topic.
Over the next week I am going to structure and set out how I am going to complete my inquiry as I am feeling a little overwhelmed with it all at the moment. Hopefully I am on the right track and I look forward to developing my inquiry further!
I feel like my inquiry is going well so far, but with Module 3 being an extremely self-motivated study block (more so than any of the other modules), it is hard to know whether you are really on track or not!
I have managed to source some more literature which is relevant to my inquiry but a lot of my literature has come from news articles from The Stage or The Guardian, for example. This is great because there are so many new and up to date articles posted daily, but it does mean it is also quite hard to keep track of all of the new articles on a daily basis!
I have started to really discuss my inquiry topic with friends and colleagues in my professional circle and will be conducting more formal interviews for my inquiry within the next few weeks. I am going to continue analysing the literature I have sourced and this will help me to gain a variety of viewpoints on my inquiry topic.
Over the next week I am going to structure and set out how I am going to complete my inquiry as I am feeling a little overwhelmed with it all at the moment. Hopefully I am on the right track and I look forward to developing my inquiry further!
Friday 22 September 2017
Module 3 - the beginning...
I'm back! I hope you all had an amazing Summer.
After completing Module 2 in May, I was soon off to work on 4:48 Psychosis, a play by Sarah Kane dealing with mental health, which had it's run at the off West End venue, Barons Court Theatre. I can easily say that working on this production was a truly amazing experience. It gave me so much more confidence and I will treasure the memories for a very long time. I feel so lucky to have worked with a fantastic director and cast, and the two 5 star reviews that we received were just the icing on the cake.
The week after the play finished, I went straight into rehearsals for a Chekhov play, The Proposal, in which I played Natalya. This was a much shorter run but I learnt so much from the experience and have now added a Chekhov credit onto my CV which was one of my goals when I graduated college!
As well as starting a new day job and all of the acting, over Summer, I continued to think about my BAPP journey and the professional inquiry I will soon be starting. I began to make a list of the people that I really wanted to gain some information and experiences from, and found a few more websites and articles which were relevant to my inquiry topic. I cannot wait to get started on my inquiry and I will use all of the feedback that I received from my tutor in Module 2 to make sure that I produce the best work that I possibly can.
So now it's back to blogging after a crazy summer. It doesn't quite feel real that I am beginning the final module of my degree. Module 3, let's go...
After completing Module 2 in May, I was soon off to work on 4:48 Psychosis, a play by Sarah Kane dealing with mental health, which had it's run at the off West End venue, Barons Court Theatre. I can easily say that working on this production was a truly amazing experience. It gave me so much more confidence and I will treasure the memories for a very long time. I feel so lucky to have worked with a fantastic director and cast, and the two 5 star reviews that we received were just the icing on the cake.
Production shots from 4:48 Psychosis
Production shot from The Proposal
As well as starting a new day job and all of the acting, over Summer, I continued to think about my BAPP journey and the professional inquiry I will soon be starting. I began to make a list of the people that I really wanted to gain some information and experiences from, and found a few more websites and articles which were relevant to my inquiry topic. I cannot wait to get started on my inquiry and I will use all of the feedback that I received from my tutor in Module 2 to make sure that I produce the best work that I possibly can.
So now it's back to blogging after a crazy summer. It doesn't quite feel real that I am beginning the final module of my degree. Module 3, let's go...
Sunday 9 April 2017
Task 6C: Award Specialism Title
Award Specialism Title Proposal: BA (Hons) Professional Practice in Arts (Acting)
I have decided to conduct my research on the above title as I have a great desire to succeed now as an actress. My ultimate goal would be to perform in straight plays, especially Shakespearean dramas. My main passion has always been for acting and throughout my studies on the 3 Year Professional Diploma in Performing Arts at The Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts, the straight acting classes and Acting Masterclass, which I was chosen to be part of, fuelled my love for straight theatre. In the final year of my studies at Italia Conti, I chose to study the acting option in the first term and this resulted in touring with a TIE production of Macbeth. Following this experience I knew that I wanted to pursue straight acting for stage and also film and television.
In my inquiry, I would like to focus on the positioning of the performer between musical theatre and straight theatre/acting. I want to find out how performers who have been trained in musical theatre are perceived in the world of straight acting and if there is room for performers to work in both acting and musical theatre. I would also like to investigate different forms of theatre including pantomime and Fringe work, and how actors can keep themselves afloat in resting periods between acting work. I want to find out what kind of effect the industry has on an actors self esteem and confidence and also the importance of actors in our society today and how they would be affected if funding for the arts was completely cut.
Tasl 6B: Reviewing Inquiry Tools
Whilst choosing the method(s) which I believe are most relevant to my inquiry, I have critically reviewed the merits and limits of the tools discussed in Reader 6 in order to make a decision on which tool(s) to take forward to benefit my inquiry. I have analysed the merits and limits of 4 tools below.
Interviews
Merits:
- I am in charge of the questions
- Answers can be recorded for later reference
- Can get both verbal and non verbal communication (from watching the interviewee's body language)
- Able to choose exactly who you want to interview
- Allows the interviewee to expand on the questions therefore gaining more detailed answers
- Information is completely true and accurate
- Allows me to explain the questions in further detail if need be and allows the interviewee to expand on the question into a more developed conversation
Limits:
- Time consuming
- Might be difficult to arrange a time that suits both myself and the person I am interviewing
- Interviewer might cause a question to be taken the wrong way based on their tone of voice/the way they ask the question
Surveys
Merits:
- Data is collected from a wide range of individuals
- Doesn't take much time to create a survey and can be easily shared online
- Interviewee can remain anonymous so responses might be more honest and truthful
Limits:
- Sometimes a quantatitive approach only provides you with yes and no answers and these may not provide much information or help
- People might not leave enough time to complete the survey especially if it is on Web 2.0 and they are completing it on the go
- Participants might get bored and not complete the survey if they do not find it interesting
- Questions might not be 100% understood by the participants
Focus Groups
Merits:
- People can discuss in an open environment which may encourage them to be more honest
- As discussion continues more ideas and points might be brought up as individuals bounce off others' ideas
Limits:
- May not stick to the original points if the conversation wanders
- Some people may not say anything at all if there are individuals who are controlling the conversation
- Might be difficult to gather everyone at the same time
- Participants might feel that they cannot say everything that they would like to infront of other individuals
Documents
Merits:
- Will expand your current knowledge
- Research is easily found on Web 2.0 and can be great to back up your point
- Can help act as a starting point for inquiry
Limits:
- The document might be out of date information
- Could be biased and not truthful
- Can be difficult to find documents that relate to your inquiry and might mean that you don't stay on track
I think that interviews and documents will be the most beneficial in helping me with my inquiry. Interviews will help me to gain the exact information I need and ensures that it is true and accurate. I can record the interview to use for later reference and this will help me stay on track in my inquiry. Documents will also be essential for my inquiry as I want to gain knowledge and a better understanding. Documents will also give me evidence of what practitioners and professionals have said to use to back up my inquiry and this will act as a starting point.
I will be using the tools and methods in my inquiry planning and this will give me a broader understanding. I hope that my inquiry will provide performing arts students and professionals with a better understanding of the positioning of the performer between musical theatre and straight theatre/acting. After I have presented my inquiry I hope to add knowledge to this field.
Interviews
Merits:
- I am in charge of the questions
- Answers can be recorded for later reference
- Can get both verbal and non verbal communication (from watching the interviewee's body language)
- Able to choose exactly who you want to interview
- Allows the interviewee to expand on the questions therefore gaining more detailed answers
- Information is completely true and accurate
- Allows me to explain the questions in further detail if need be and allows the interviewee to expand on the question into a more developed conversation
Limits:
- Time consuming
- Might be difficult to arrange a time that suits both myself and the person I am interviewing
- Interviewer might cause a question to be taken the wrong way based on their tone of voice/the way they ask the question
Surveys
Merits:
- Data is collected from a wide range of individuals
- Doesn't take much time to create a survey and can be easily shared online
- Interviewee can remain anonymous so responses might be more honest and truthful
Limits:
- Sometimes a quantatitive approach only provides you with yes and no answers and these may not provide much information or help
- People might not leave enough time to complete the survey especially if it is on Web 2.0 and they are completing it on the go
- Participants might get bored and not complete the survey if they do not find it interesting
- Questions might not be 100% understood by the participants
Focus Groups
Merits:
- People can discuss in an open environment which may encourage them to be more honest
- As discussion continues more ideas and points might be brought up as individuals bounce off others' ideas
Limits:
- May not stick to the original points if the conversation wanders
- Some people may not say anything at all if there are individuals who are controlling the conversation
- Might be difficult to gather everyone at the same time
- Participants might feel that they cannot say everything that they would like to infront of other individuals
Documents
Merits:
- Will expand your current knowledge
- Research is easily found on Web 2.0 and can be great to back up your point
- Can help act as a starting point for inquiry
Limits:
- The document might be out of date information
- Could be biased and not truthful
- Can be difficult to find documents that relate to your inquiry and might mean that you don't stay on track
I think that interviews and documents will be the most beneficial in helping me with my inquiry. Interviews will help me to gain the exact information I need and ensures that it is true and accurate. I can record the interview to use for later reference and this will help me stay on track in my inquiry. Documents will also be essential for my inquiry as I want to gain knowledge and a better understanding. Documents will also give me evidence of what practitioners and professionals have said to use to back up my inquiry and this will act as a starting point.
I will be using the tools and methods in my inquiry planning and this will give me a broader understanding. I hope that my inquiry will provide performing arts students and professionals with a better understanding of the positioning of the performer between musical theatre and straight theatre/acting. After I have presented my inquiry I hope to add knowledge to this field.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)