Lesson Notes - Session 3

This lesson we began to devise and rehearse our final political performance. We are using the play 'The Price' by Lena Kitsopoulou. We have tried to create our piece in a Brechtian style. The Price already incorporates this style in the way that the characters are just called husband, wife and checkout person. We have developed this into having several checkout girls. No character in our piece has a personal first name, we have baby, checkout girl, husband, wife and store manager. Except for the store manager everyone is played by multiple people. This could be showing capitalist values work by having one person with power and lots of people with less status under their control.

We have planned to give out receipts to the audience before they even enter the performance. These will be charging them for things like breathing, brushing through their hair, putting their hand in their pocket and other everyday normal human things. This will make the audience feel uncomfortable and work as a way of alienating them. This is something Brecht felt strongly about. He did not want his audience to sit down and relax and be told a story, he wanted them on edge contstantly asking questions. By having this receipt giving sequence it will begin that process before they even enter our theatrical space.

We have incorporated songs into the play. We have changed the lyrics of the songs 'Price tag' by jessie j, 'bills, bills, bills' by Destiny's child and 'money' by Abba. Using these songs will create something strange onstage which will cause the audience to question it and it will alienate them. When you go to watch a play you don't expect songs in the same way as you do when you go to see a musical. This means it migh suprise the audience. The way we are using the songs, in a supermarket scene, having groups pop up and begin singing in between the lines being spoken by the husband and wife, will create a unrealistic atmosphere within the play. This combined with the concept of the play being that you can just buy a baby in this supermarket might make the audience feel like they are being pulled into a alternative world very different to their own. However, we are going to have people reading out stage directions which will keep the audience reminded that they are still watching a play.