Thursday 4th November

Today we had to move to different room in the design block in Temple Moor, because a different lesson was being done in our room, and we had a substitute as Mrs. Pawinski was doing something else, so today all we were getting done was a bit more research on the effect of digital technology on a modern family.

Tuesday 2nd November

As normal, in first lesson at Brigshaw in the music blocks computer room with Mr. Truscot. In this lesson we were entering data from the questionnaires we (were meant to have) handed out to collect data on our audience, and to find out what they would prefer for us to make the video like. In second lesson in the ICT room with Mr. Roamer, we continued the data entry and began to finalize it with data analysis. In 3rd with Mrs. Woffinden we went to the library to brush up some of the blogs to a better standard, then we moved to the drama room for fourth to start up on out story boards for the videos. Lastly in fifth we were back with Mr. Roamer finishing up what ever we could on everything we've done.

Friday 15th October

Today we went to West Yorkshire Playhouse for Off Stage Choices, a day about the other jobs in Theater that aren't about acting. The planned day was as follows:

So we met up with each other inside, and then Mrs. Woffinden registered us while we went up to make our name badges so the staff could identify us. We then moved off to the Quarry theater where we were greeted and told about the day with allot of energy about it, setting the mood for the rest of the day. We were then split off into our school groups and we were taken around for a backstage tour, seeing all the behind workings of the stage. The tour lead us around the back of the stage (obviously), through to the "construction" area where they make all the sets and props for their productions. We were then taken up to the costume department, and shown the costume designs for the "Aladdin" production. We had a quick skim over one rehearsal room, then we went outside and over the road to one of the other rehearsal rooms. There, the tour ended and we moved into a near-by room for the Make-Up workshop.

The Make-Up workshop flew by, and in essence was extremely simple. The effect we were making with the make-up was bruises, and when we were shown the demo, it didn't even take too long. It was mixing and rather thinly mixing purple, red, yellow, and green in a round, but random, way to create a bruise. The woman that was leading the workshop made a realistic, authentic looking black eye. And when it came to us making them, all of them also turned out that way. It was simple, yet good looking. After this we walked round to the next workshop on Script Writing. Here we had a look at the sort of process and thinking a script writer goes through when writing a script, then we were given a scene to wright a short script for. The scene was Aladdin going to a Magical complaints department, saying there was something wrong with his lamp, so we made a short scene on that, a few groups performed theirs (including a "Little Britain" reference). After that, we were given the begging of a scene, where one person is trying to persuade the other to get a glass of water, but the other is having none of it. When we "finished" them (Improvisation required) we performed each of them to show what we'd done, and to have a bit of an amusing finish to the workshop. So, with that finished, we left for a break to get a cup of tea (or coffee) before the next workshop.

After the break, we moved into the Quarry Theater for the Sound Workshop. In this workshop, we not only went up into the technical booth to see all the buttons and nobs and screens, but we had a quick listen to some tracks to help chose the sound that would be in the market place for the Aladdin play. We also got to sit at the Sound Directors desk, and act as certain parts of the job, such as the direct itself. In that we got to shout orders at those who were on the microphones and give them inspiration on what they should be shouting into the microphones, using them to create the atmosphere of a market place, where Aladdin is set.

We then moved down into the Priestley rehearsal room for the Marketing workshop. Here we got to see what goes into marketing, which is more than I though there would be. They brain storm, plan out, and pump out events and promotions, and all of the sort to publicise what ever production is on,  and after a very brief talk we spent the rest of the time brain storming ideas our selves, here is one of my groups for events:

The two in the cloud-type things are the chosen two ideas, those which we thought would be best for promoting the play of Aladdin, and after saying our ideas we left for lunch.

After we had eaten we went upstairs for Scene Painting. We started by thinking about what the guy who was taking the workshops job actually is, and in that we drew a blank. After he explained, he leaded us over to have a look at a scale model of the set of Aladdin, showing us the design of it. We then spent the rest of the workshop working on making fruit/vegetable or lamp pictures to go on the signs that will be in the Aladdin set come day of the production. I would have had my piece on there, but I made more of a grand design than a quick, simple thing that could be done in the time given...

Then, we moved into huuuuuge rehearsal room for the "Speed Date Session", whee we moved from one staff to the next asking the questions on what there job is, what WYP is like, etc. and find out much more about the place (I got footage of all the ones I went to). That quickly ended, and we moved back into the Quarry for a small set of performances on what we'd been working it, a final good bye, and a questionnaire on the day. All in all, a fun, hectic day of nothing but information. I thoroughly enjoyed it and learnt allot of the jobs that go on off of the stage, out of the audiences sight.

Thursday 21st October

Today in Templemoor we had Mr. Gardner and we were going to make a website using Dreamweaver and Fireworks. First we were going to make "rolling" buttons, for which we needed to create one image of a button in what shape, couler and font we wanted, typing what we wanted to in inside it, then we created a duplicate image, but changed some of the graphicl aspects of it, such as the couler or font, or maby adding a glow. Then we put it into Dreamweaver and gave it the "Rolling Button" property, allowing it to change from one image to the other when a mouse is moved over it. After that we made a rolling image with it, so for mine I took an image off of a "vortex" off of the internet, put it into Fireworks, and created a duplicate, couler inverted version of it. Then we put it into Dreameaver, made it a "Rolling Image" and then it would chnage from its normal self to an oposite couler when a mouse is moved over it. For the second to last thing we created a banner for the page, for which I wrote "Creative Arts and Media" in a nice looking font style, and pulled various images of video reels or creative sculptures off of the internet and made their sides fade to make them fall into each other (or the background). We finished off with hyperlinking the botton to a second page, just to show we could, and because I had abit of time to spare I poped my banner on that one aswell, and added a little something of an image for a laugh.

Tuesday 19th October

Today in Brigsahw we began to think about and make some questionaires with Mr. Truscot in the music room for first lesson, this was so then we could hand them out and tailor make our video around the answers our audiance gave us. In the second lesson we were in the IT room with Mr. Romer, in wich we continued to make our time line of the different creative process done by the Art Gallery and Testement, and began to make one for the Theater to make sure we understand what they go through to create an albumor a production. After that it was form, and then brake.

After brake it was third lesson in the PE Classroom with Mrs. Woffinden, where we had a look at the brain storms we created at Offstage Choices and re-wrote them into our books to copy up onto here as evidence for Friday, and to generaly have a portable copy of what we created. In fourth we moved to the Drama room, still being with Mrs. Woffinden, and began to create brain storms about specific off-stage jobs in the theater, for which I created one on Marketing. We had to wright down about what we though someone would have to do in that job, so I wrote things like brain storming ideas, starting advertising campeigns, and planning events that advertise the performance. Then we had alook at where on the "heirarchy" that job is, and began to timeline the ideas that we had on the brainstorm in the orer that we thnk they would have to do them in. After the lesson, it was lunch.

After lunch we went to lesson five, which was back in the ICT room with Mr. Romer, where we began finishing up and polishing the process' to make them less bland, and more informative to make sure we get the best we can out of them.

Tuesday October 12th

4^th lesson

Today we were in the Drama room starting to set up the room ready for Jessica Farmer, a WYP education officer, to interview her on her job and the playhouse and for her to ask us what we want out of the Offstage Choices day, in which we will be learning about the jobs behind (or infront of, but not on) the stage, and to tell us what we were going to be doing.  We had a brief amount of time to look over our questions to make sure we knew what to ask her before she came in. She asked us general questions, like "Whats your name?" and "What theatrical stuff have you done recently?", to get to know us more and what sort of performing arts things we’ve done before. She then told us about what was going to happen throughout the day and what the theme of the day was going to be around, which was Aladdin and so I thought it could be cool.

After she’d explained about what we were going to do we began our interview, and some of the things we found out were:

Q. “How do you class a successful production?”

A. “We mainly class a successful production by critic review on the performance or by the audience’s reaction to it and ticket sales.”

Q. “What do you class as a failed production?”

A. “Productions never rely ‘fail’, and it’s very difficult to have that happen considering while some people may hate a performance, others will like it. And vice-versa.”

Q. “What are the benefits, for both West Yorkshire Playhouse and us, in days like Offstage Choices?”

A. “For West Yorkshire Playhouse the benefits of the day are that it encourages people into theatre more, and shows them the workings behind the production. For young people like your selves it lets you experience more and lets you know the workings, and gives and shows you the range of opportunities within a theatre.”

I found out a lot about the other creative aspects of theatre in this interview and can’t wait for the in depths delve into the offstage choices of theatre! After the interview we thanked her for coming and left for lunch.

Thursday 7th October

Today we began exploring musical digital media technology, through the use of Audacity. We mashed together a part of an audio book about Beowulf, with a narrators voice, music, and sound effects, which I think turned out rather well, and was extremely simple to use (After the help of the video walk-through, ofcorse!). After which we wrote up about what we did, to make sure we understood what we just did, and began to play about with Photoshop, making a normal picture of a random guy into something befitting what comes within this month- Halloween!