20 July
We have been working through improvisation to create scenes—some inspired by autocours I had at Lecoq, some from J. Mandell’s book on creating theatre with teens and some from Boal.
Short descriptions of what we’ve had so far (this is not what will compose the final show—these are scenes created for the sake of creating in our workshops that will lead to a vocabulary that will carry over into our creation)
With objects:
A man and a woman get married. A jealous man approaches and kisses the newly weds then turns around the shoots the man.
Battle of elements and materials:
General Izith (oil) confronts General Terre (earth). A battle ensues. General Izith calls in Caoutchouc (rubber) to fight Feu (fire). Caoutchouc calls in Sachet en Plastique (Plastic Bag) for back up. Feu melts and kills Caoutchouc and Sachet en Plastique. Feu goes after General Izith who bubbles and pops with anger. Amen (water) enters and kills Feu and surprise attacks General Izith who squashes Amen and is the only one left standing…
Melodramatic Scenes that freeze at the climatic moment:
A woman sits in the street begging. A young man enters a leans against a nearby wall watching her. A young woman enters exhausted after a day of work at the Post Office and realizes that the old woman begging in the middle of the street is her Grandmother. Shocked she goes to take her home. The young man approaches and offers to help up the Grandmother. As he does this he steals the change the old woman had collected…
A young, very pregnant woman is laughing at a TV program when labor pains ensue. Her husband comes home having drunk too much. He enters and clumsily helps her into the car. En route to the hospital the car skids and crashes…
July 24
Today we went to visit the mother of a director who often works at the TRB—we arrived at her house and she said embarrassed “I don’t remember any folktales.” 4 hours after we arrived she told us 3 in a row. Her Grandchildren and daughter started out by listening with us and then one by one left the living room to go and watch TV in the other room. We also went to see her sister in law’s house who told us 1 folktale. She said: “folktales started to disappear during the war 54-62. We didn’t have time anymore and then we had electricity and then the TV and then…”
I am pushing this project towards a language de gestes style because I don’t want to have to deal with scenic designers and props and a set…simple simple simple and the girls keep asking what about costumes? What about the set?
July 29
Mosquito war. Every night c’est la guerre. They come sneaking into my apartment through the open windows. I do not understand why in a country with so many mosquitoes and humid regions why why why people do not build windows with screens!? And mosquito nets around beds. I wake up every night scratching and groaning and stumble into the kitchen and pour vinegar over the bites and then stumble back to bed. They have these mosquito apparatus with little blue chemical squares that heat up and kill mosquitoes. But it’s not enough. Not in my neighborhood. I have started to burn the little blue squares like incense and wave them around the room like some Catholic service. If I cover myself with the sheet they attack my head. If I leave a toe uncovered they attack. They are merciless these Bejaia mosquitoes. Today I am going to buy the strong horribly bad for the environment and health spray.
We have been working through improvisation to create scenes—some inspired by autocours I had at Lecoq, some from J. Mandell’s book on creating theatre with teens and some from Boal.
Short descriptions of what we’ve had so far (this is not what will compose the final show—these are scenes created for the sake of creating in our workshops that will lead to a vocabulary that will carry over into our creation)
With objects:
A man and a woman get married. A jealous man approaches and kisses the newly weds then turns around the shoots the man.
Battle of elements and materials:
General Izith (oil) confronts General Terre (earth). A battle ensues. General Izith calls in Caoutchouc (rubber) to fight Feu (fire). Caoutchouc calls in Sachet en Plastique (Plastic Bag) for back up. Feu melts and kills Caoutchouc and Sachet en Plastique. Feu goes after General Izith who bubbles and pops with anger. Amen (water) enters and kills Feu and surprise attacks General Izith who squashes Amen and is the only one left standing…
Melodramatic Scenes that freeze at the climatic moment:
A woman sits in the street begging. A young man enters a leans against a nearby wall watching her. A young woman enters exhausted after a day of work at the Post Office and realizes that the old woman begging in the middle of the street is her Grandmother. Shocked she goes to take her home. The young man approaches and offers to help up the Grandmother. As he does this he steals the change the old woman had collected…
A young, very pregnant woman is laughing at a TV program when labor pains ensue. Her husband comes home having drunk too much. He enters and clumsily helps her into the car. En route to the hospital the car skids and crashes…
July 24
Today we went to visit the mother of a director who often works at the TRB—we arrived at her house and she said embarrassed “I don’t remember any folktales.” 4 hours after we arrived she told us 3 in a row. Her Grandchildren and daughter started out by listening with us and then one by one left the living room to go and watch TV in the other room. We also went to see her sister in law’s house who told us 1 folktale. She said: “folktales started to disappear during the war 54-62. We didn’t have time anymore and then we had electricity and then the TV and then…”
I am pushing this project towards a language de gestes style because I don’t want to have to deal with scenic designers and props and a set…simple simple simple and the girls keep asking what about costumes? What about the set?
July 29
Mosquito war. Every night c’est la guerre. They come sneaking into my apartment through the open windows. I do not understand why in a country with so many mosquitoes and humid regions why why why people do not build windows with screens!? And mosquito nets around beds. I wake up every night scratching and groaning and stumble into the kitchen and pour vinegar over the bites and then stumble back to bed. They have these mosquito apparatus with little blue chemical squares that heat up and kill mosquitoes. But it’s not enough. Not in my neighborhood. I have started to burn the little blue squares like incense and wave them around the room like some Catholic service. If I cover myself with the sheet they attack my head. If I leave a toe uncovered they attack. They are merciless these Bejaia mosquitoes. Today I am going to buy the strong horribly bad for the environment and health spray.
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