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TERM TWO

Term two week two-Tuesday 5th; I started off today learning about the basics of a sewing machine. Firstly, I needed to thread the machine, this was fairly easy as I had done this in the past. Then we began stitching with the machine. I was taught how to create a straight line stitch then, a zig zag stitch. After this we looked at stitching the seams with a hem line stitch. I had begun creating an apron as a part of the practice. I needed to ensure it was cut to the correct size, otherwise it would be too long or too short. To do this I was given a template that I pinned to the material and cut around. The edges of the apron all needed to be hemmed using a straight stitch apart form the arms, this needed to have a zig zag stitch first. In order to keep the hems down when I was sewing with the machine I used pins to hold it in place. Finally, I attached the pocket, this also needed to be hemmed before it was attached. Once again I used pins to keep this in place. In order to make sure the apron looked like I would hope, I was referencing from the sketch I had created. I found this helpful as well as the instruction sheet that was showing which stitches to use where. This was also helpful as it gave me something to give me a sense of direction. All that's left to do now is sew the pocket on and attach the ties. This includes the one around the neck and the ones that go around the back. I would imagine I will just be attaching these through a simple straight stitch, but ensuring that I do a backwards stitch to secure it onto the main part of the apron, this also prevents the stitch from coming back open. In the afternoon we completed a skills activity, we was given a sheet with a list of needed costumes, props and sound affects. We was a group of six and we needed to collect all of the props and create a props table, we then needed to gather the sound affects required. Finally, we needed to create costumes for the characters we were given. We decided to divide them up to get it all done, I was put on sound affects. This was fairly simple as we gathered them from youtube to be able to use. We came in third place out of the four groups that took part.

Term two week two- Wednesday 6th; Today we was working in the theatre. however, for the first session I finished creating my apron. I sewed on the pocket and the straps that went around both the back and the neck. Once this was finished i went back into the theatre where everyone was preparing for the upcoming Christmas show. We were in early stages of the show therefore, we were simply gathering set and props that are going to be used. i had to go out to the shed to gather the presents that was going to be needed. After this I had to complete the rigging a light workshop. First I was shown how to safely and correctly set up the ladder then I was shown how to de-rig a light for me to then re-rig it. I had to travel up the ladder then attach the light with a clamp and safety chain for if the clamp fails. Once I had finished I safely travelled back down the ladder. I then packed the ladder away with assistance and had to run through the use of the scaffolding. This was much easier for me as I felt it was more stable. After lunch the activity I completed was talking through set design ideas for my strangers on a train task. I needed to understand what style I was going to chose before starting with dimensions.

Term two week two- Thursday 7th; Today I begun with calculating the dimensions for my set for strangers on a train. this took me a while as I needed to calculate them to fit inside of the space I had but also the space I wanted between them. Then I needed to calculate the dimensions on a scaled down version. Once this was complete I could begin drawing out my set on the paper. After this session we were in the IT room to begin a sound affects workshop. This was fun however I found it difficult as i didn't know what effects I should add to my sound affects. Finally ion the afternoon I had another strangers on a train workshop. For this I had drawn out my stage dimensions then the set I was using inside of this. I then colour coded the set to show what would be on stage in which scene.

Term two week three- Tuesday 12th; Today I was working on ideas for my costume design for strangers on a train. I done this in my independent study time in the morning. then, I had a production meeting to discuss the props that were required from me for the level 2 Christmas show. In this meeting costume, sound and set was also discussed. It was mentioned there were certain props (the presents) that were needed for use in rehearsals so I needed to gather these that afternoon. After the meeting we were in the it room working on our blog. In the afternoon I began gathering props for the show. I had managed to gather quite a few of the ones I needed that day however there were others that needed to be bought or made or sourced from somewhere else.

Term two week three- Wednesday 13th; This morning we were painting flats in preparation for the Christmas show. We needed to paint over the red strips with magnolia paint so there was an even base. Once we had done as much as we could we needed to leave it to dry. During this time I had begun creating a table for the props I needed for the Christmas show. This was because there were so many and I needed to know what I had and what I didn't. This also allowed me to see how far through things I actually was. Once I had finished this I chose to begin creating some of the props. I had three coloured small boxes that I was going to turn into gifts from the kings. I added huge gold bows of ribbon to each present to make them look more over dramatic for the fact it is a Pantomime. Additionally I began making a dollhouse that was needed for a prop for the level two Christmas show.

Term two week three- Thursday 14th; Today we were working on our strangers on a train costume design. I chose to select Miriam as I wanted to create a dress that was based in the 1950s. I really enjoyed doing this task as I'm a fairly creative person. We then took a break in-between doing this to edit some more sound effects in the computer room using audacity. I didn't mind doing this task however it hasn't been my favourite thing that I have done so far. I also felt that I wasn't very good with the editing of the sound affects. So I would like to further my skills eventually. In the afternoon I was able to finish my costume design for strangers on a train. Once my physical design was complete I gathered my chosen material both that actual material and the colours I wanted to use. I then attached samples of these to my design to show what I wanted to use.

Term Two week four- Tuesday 19th; In the morning today we was painting set white as a base so I could later be painted yellow. We done this for most of the morning as we were preparing for the christmas show. However once I had finished doing this, I began the final touches on my dolls house. I chose to use bright colours to intise the children more and keep in touch with the 'rules' of pantomime. For me this was a pretty easy day but also a day for me to tie up some loose ends and finish bits and bobs I had already started.

Term Two week four- Wednesday 20th; In the morning today I was wrapping up a lot of empty card bored boxes that I had already gathered together. This was because we needed to create a bunch of fake Christmas presents to use as props. Once this was finished I was able to begin the construction of the presents sacks. To do this I needed to pad out the bottom of the sacks with pillows and duvet as they were large after this was done I was able to add presents to the top, to create the illusion that the entire sack was filled with them. Additionally we had to leave college early this day as me and two others were given the opportunity to go to the marlow theatre for some work experience . This was utterly amazing and an amazing experience to be able to have been a part of and I learnt lots of skills from this.

Term Two week four- Thursday 21st; Today we had a different style lesson in which it was about Harved referencing. Whilst it isn't the most exiting topic to learn about it was an important one. I found this lesson extremely helpful, this was because it was something that I was both struggling with but also something I wasn't sure I was doing correctly. After this lesson I am now far more confident in referencing my work correctly to the standard of which is expected.

Term Two week five- Tuesday 26th; Today I had to create some marshmallow head pieces for the dancers to wear on the Level three Christmas show. I done this with the help of sue . First we had to cut a pieces of netting which we then used a sewing machine and put a running stitch through each of them. It was then my job to pull that stitch through unit the netting was all bunched up we then had to sew this in place by hand. It then had to hot glue five small cotton balls together we had to do this 15 times.

Term Two five- Wednesday 27th; Today I done a lot of painting, This included adding pink to the marshmallow hats I had created the day before, but also helping to paint the poles that the candy canes would go on. This was interesting as I haven't done a lot of painting before. I also really enjoyed putting a little bit of creativity into the painting of the pink onto the marshmallow hats.

Term two week five- Thursday 28th; Today I had to gather final props I would need for the show, this included me making , sourcing and gathering the final ones I would need. Once I had finished doing this I was able to begin setting up my props table backstage for the show. This required me taping the table into sections with masking tape, so that each prop had its own section. When arranging these props I had to take into account what was needed in each scene and in which order. This would make it easier to be able to ensure the actors have the props they need when they need it.

Level 2 Christmas show;

For the level 2 show the role I was allocated was props. I felt that overall I did a good job fulfilling this role. The role required me to be organised and resourceful. I felt that I represented both of these things throughout. Whilst there was a lot of props to gather and make, I made sure hat my time management was effective. This allowed me to have all of the props made, found and ready by the time it came to creating my props table. When creating my table I had to take into account what would be needed in each scene and the order this would then create. I found this fairly easy as I enjoy organising things and making sure they all have their own places. One of the things I found very difficult was the construction of the props I didn't already have. For example; I didn't have anything that would work or resemble a dollhouse. Therefore, I had to create one with a cardboard box. First I painted the entire box white before constructing the flaps in a way that resembled a roof using additional cardboard and hot glue. I then was able to add details with a sharpie once everything was dry and fixed in place. Another thing I struggled with was keeping up with what each individual actor needed at what time. This was because whilst things were in the right places I didn't know who needed what. This stressed me out a bit as I didn't want to be responsible for the actors not having what they needed on stage, however everything worked out in the end. Overall I am extremely happy and proud of my overall performance on my first show, and I am looking forward to the next one.

TERM THREE

Term three week one- Tuesday 7th January; Today we began to plan our ideas for unit 5 and 6. We had to com up with ideas about what each of us can do. To start this process we noted down what our individual skills or talents were, this was hard for me as I couldn't think of what to write. Eventually I cam to a conclusion and wrote down that I am a confident speaker and good at acting. This is what led me to up taking the role that I did. Ring master, I would co present each of the acts with Owen to be able to give them an introduction whilst tying in with the circus theme. Later that day we had a production meeting with Chloe, this allowed us to finalise ideas and be able to communicate who was doing what with each other, I found this really helpful.

Term three week one- Wednesday 8th January; Today we covered different stage layouts and how each one benefits each other and the audience. I found this really helpful as I hadn't fully covered this in the past. Once this was done we were able to go about doing what we needed to do for our individual performances. As mine and Owens performance relies around everyone else being confirmed and ready, we chose to select our costumes. I went for a more traditional costume that suited a ring master as I felt it suited well. In the afternoon we begun constructing our group introduction dance. we all worked really hard on this and the choreography was amazing.

Term Three week one- Thursday 9th January; Today we was researching into circus for the whole day. I chose to research the history of the circus and key elements that run throughout and tie the circus theme to what you're performing. I also researched the film the greatest showman to be able to understand what a more modern take on the circus is. If I was to do this again, next time I would present my notes differently to be able to recognise the most important points.

Term three week two- Tuesday 14th January; Today we began with practicing and polishing our introduction dance. once we had worked on this for a while. I set the running order for the show, I organised who would fit in where and managed to arrange it in a way that it was crowed with dance the first half and not the second. this allowed the performance coverage to be fairly even. I then began to plan what we would use as our dialogue as the ring masters.

Term three week two- Wednesday 15th January; Today i finalised the script for our show. this was difficult as not everyone had decided what music they were using or what style they were doing. This made my job a little bit harder as i was writing their introductions without knowing what they were performing. Eventually everyone made final decisions and I was able to gather the information i needed to finalise the script. Once this was finished i was able to print it off and give copies to everyone so they could begin learning their cues. I also drafted up a cues sheet for sound. This was tough as agin people haven't made decisions about when they want their music to start and finish. However i can add this to the list as we progress. I was able to write up the cues for our intro dance and part of the cues for our outro dance.

Term three week two- Thursday 16th January; Today i was able to complete more research around my character and the history of the circus. This is beneficial as i am able to use this to fuel my understanding of the role i am undertaking. After this I practiced for the upcoming makeup competition within the college. I practiced blocking gout Amy's eyebrows with spirit gum. I had not used this method before so found it challenging at the start but was understanding of the method by the end. I found it helpful to practice this method as it worked better than my original methods.

Term three week three- Tuesday 21st January; Today we focused a lot of our time around rehearsals; this included both the intro and outro dance and also our individual performer rehearsals. For me and Owen this was reading through our script for our sections in the show. Once we had read through the script a few times we all gathered in the dance studio to work with close on both our intro and outdo dance. Everyone was able to run thought the dance to refresh their memory. However I was unable to participate as I was dealing with a knee injury. However I was able to observe and pick up on improvements I need to make when I'm back.

Term three week three- Wednesday 22nd January; Today was the day of the makeup competition so everyone was in for 9 prepping for a 9:30 start. When the competition commenced I knew I needed to both work fast but also efficiently so my final work didn't look rushed. I started with blocking out the eyebrows with spirit gum and baking powder. Once this was done I was able to move on with covering the eyebrows with white face-paint. After this I was able to being constructing the areas I would be 'cutting'. This was created with my own version of ciniwax (flour and Vaseline). I was able to easily mould the mixture onto the face to be able to mimic the skin. Once this was complete I was able to then cover the rest of the face with white paint. I then paused the makeup to create the hair look. I scraped back the hair in the middle and sides and painted it white. This was so it would appear to be the forehead just extended. The rest of the hair I then coloured a fiery red/orange to mimic pennywise hair. Once the hair was completed I finished of the makeup by painting the end of the nose red as well as the lips then adding blood to the middle of the 'cut'. Overall I was really happy with the outcome of my work. As I feel it was effective in communicating my ideas.

Term three week three- Thursday 23rd January; we had our first official production meeting today we elected a DSM (Dan) and an ASM (Abbie). This means we now have clear people we can go to about decisions but also people who can overlook the overall structure of the show. In this meeting we were able to finalise the overall stage set out. We have chosen to add an additional curtain to the middle of the stage to hide the set but also the instruments the all be used later in the show. I think this was an effective decision as it allows us to cover the set without having to lug it on and off of stage. Once our production meeting concluded we were able to return to both rehearsals, costume design and research. As I had already finished both my costume design and research I chose to work on learning my lines. I tried to match the level of enthusiasm I would use in the real show in my rehearsals this is so I am able to rehearse as realistically as I possibly can. Overall today was a meaningful and productive day.

Term three week four- Tuesday 28th January; Today I completed a lot of basic work, this included finishing additional research for my unit 5 and 6. I also read through my lines a few times to refresh my memory, and make sure that I could remember what I had to say. In the afternoon we went through the new dance that was added onto our introduction dance. We walked through the new choreography step by step so that we all had a chance to learn it. Once this was done we ran through it from start to finish with the new choreography.

Term three week four- Wednesday 29th January; Today we had a brief run through with the order of the show, I think this was helpful for everyone as it allowed us to be able to have an idea of what our final piece would look like. I was also able to use todays time to be able to form a sheet consisting of timings of each individual performance so we had an idea of how the long the show would last overall. Additionally in the morning session I helped to dismantle the projection screen that was used for multiplex.

Term three week four- Thursday 30th; Today I created a key date sheet that organised our time between now and our show, this means we can optimise the time we have to our advantage. I also completed research for my unit 8 show Jekyll and Hyde. This was beneficial as it allowed me to be able to gain a better understanding on the show. In order for me to move further along with my unit 8 I need to make sure I am keeping up to date with my research around the show. This will allow me to be prepared for the production meetings and anything that is asked of me in the meantime.

Term three week five- Tuesday 4th; We finalised and polished our introduction dance with Chloe today. Now this is done and complete we are able to move on and begin to focus on our final dance. This is key as these are two main elements to the performance as a whole. When this was complete we then moved on to choreographing the end piece. Between Mollie, Abbie and Chloe this was a fast process and it came together fairly quickly. Next week I imagine we will finish this and begin the polishing stage.

Term three week five- Wednesday 5th; We began the morning by practicing lines in the theatre. Me and Owen had our first real opportunity to run it like we would in the she itself. This was interesting and the feedback we received involved us needing to more extra and project our voices more. Once we received feedback we ran it through a few times to allow us to run with our new improvements. In the afternoon we had a read through of the Jekyll and Hyde script. I found this incredibly helpful as it allowed me to gain a better understanding of the script. It also made it a lot less confusing from what it already was.

Term three week five- Thursday 6th; Today we had our first Jekyll and Hyde production meeting with Anne. I was tasked with the job of taking minutes as well as Sinead. The meeting was a great opportunity for everyone to gain some clarity of what was expected of them within their roles. It also allowed some production decisions to begin to be made. I think that this helped the whole team as everyone had something they could begin to work on.Throughout the afternoon I worked on my unit 8 project proposal and research task.

Term three week 6- Tuesday 11th; Today we worked through a lot of the choreography for the start and end dance, I found this useful as I was still struggling with the moves. So this really helped to clarify what I was needing to do. We then worked on rehearsals for the most part of the rest of the day.

Term three week 6- Wednesday 12th; We had our first run through of our performance today, there was a lot of notes to work on and some advice that was given, this was however without using correct entrances and exits. A lot of the feedback included being louder and projecting more efficiently so that the audience can hear e. I also needed to work on the pronunciation of y words to the audience could understand what i was saying.

Term three week 6- Thursday 13th; Throughout the most part of today all i done was written work and catching up on y unit five and six.

TERM FOUR

Term four week one- Tuesday 25th; There was a lot of dance practice today, we practiced the intro and outro dance as well as our individual performances. I struggled practicing today as my script has changed around as Owen s no longer co presenting with me. As a result there has been a rework of the script, I was therefore not 100% familiar with my lines. Once we had some time to rehearse we decided to have a run through of the show as a whole. This was the first real time we had done this including entrances and exits. Whilst there was a few complications overall the run through was fairly successful for our first time. My feedback included needing more characterisation, volume and clarity, so i have been working on this since.

Term four week one- Wednesday 26th; Today we had two full dress rehearsals for our show. This was difficult as i was still slightly uncertain with my lines, however that being said i feel i done pretty well. I think that my costume helped to me to embody my characterisation far easier to achieve. The feedback i received fro this was far more positive than the day before. My target after this was to try and slow down my speech as it was thought to be too rushed.

Term four week one- Thursday 27th; Today i finished my justification pieces of written work from unit five and six. This brought me up to date with my written work.

Term four week two- Tuesday 3rd ; We had our final dress run and rehearsals today as our show will be tomorrow. This allowed me to work on the final notes i was given. This included walking on and off of stage more efficiently and getting on into y light faster. I found this helpful and it gave me something to work on that afternoon. We then worked on final aspects if the show, prepping the stage and costumes were included in this.

Term four week two- Wednesday 4th; Today was the day of the show, we only had a small amount of time before we had a run through, then the show. In this time i was fairly stressed about making sure everything was sorted and everyone knew wha they were doing. We also made a last minute change to our set and add crates to it. However, the final show was an overall success and I am really happy with the outcome. I think that everyone else was too.

Term four week two- Thursday 5th; Today was a busy day i was doing and completing a lot of research around puppet shadows, then that afternoon we had a ini production meeting but without the director, i found this beneficial as i could express the questions i had after completing research.

Term four week three- Tuesday 10th; Today I began cutting out the tigers for the Jekyll and Hyde show. This was difficult and not my favourite thing to do as it made my hands ache and i felt like i wasn't actually very good at it. However with the help of Amy, Seb and Liz we managed to get a decent outcome. We then once the basic shape was complete, began to add the details such as the stripes and eye. The day was overall fairly productive for my unit 8.

Term four week three- Wednesday 11th; I spent most of the day with the help of liz adding the details onto the tigers this is extremely time consuming however an important job that needed doing. Additionally me and Sinead sat in on of the rehearsals for Jekyll and Hyde so Sinead could continue to block out the script. This is extremely beneficial for me as i able to begin getting a feel for what the role of a DSM includes and requires of me. Additionally in the morning we were given an opportunity to be able to look at prop making, i was able to have a chance at using both air dry clay and modrock.

Term four week three- Thursday 12th Today was a fairly chilled day which was nice for a change, we were able to complete a task in the morning session that allowed us to gain a bit more insight into the roles we are undertaking for our unit 8. We then went on to continue with practical work and this included the tigers. Then in the afternoon we watched Sarah's show. This was very good. The show was a collection of different devised and scripted pieces from the actors. I enjoyed the audience involvement that the actors had created and thought overall it was a very interesting piece.

Term four week four- Tuesday 17th; Throughout today I completed a lot f t tasks that were what I all finishing off tasks. This involved me finishing off some written work in particular my research task for unit 8. I also managed with the help of liz to finish cutting he striped out for the tigers, so this was a big job sorted and done today. next days challenge s to try and get some more of the puppets cut out/ designed.

Term four week four- Wednesday 18th/Thursday 19th; These todays I as unable to some into college due to some family issues, therefore, worked from home on some written work, I completed some research.

Term four week five- Tuesday 24th; Today was a different type of day, due to the whole Covid 19 Outbreak we have all been working from home rather than in college (like most of the country). So today I Completed one of my man research tasks based around feminism in the Victorian society with Harvard referencing. Once this was finished I submitted it via Turn-it-in on Moodle.

Term four week five- Wednesday 25th; Once again today we worked from home, Today I completed another piece of research and submitted it before then having an online check up chat with Mel via Moodle so that she could check if anyone needed any help with the tasks she was setting. Once this was finished, I began my other task for the day, this was watching a play called noises off, then completing the quiz that had been set for us afterwards. I found this fairly simple however when it came to answering the questions I didn't go into enough detail for a few of them. I found todays work harder than yesterdays however it was still all done and submitted on time.

Term four week five- Thursday 26th; Today I have been mainly working on these blog posts an getting things up to scratch as apart from this I m done with work for the week as I have completed all of my tasks.