The Celeb Diaries

Me again..
Just came across this article about the book: the celeb diaries .. It was written by the ex-editor of Heat Magazine, Mark Frith, and having read the book myself i think it provides a really useful insight into the minds of journalists, particularly those writing for celebrity magazines who thrive from the reality tv culture.
If i remember correctly, Big Brother was the original topic that sold Heat magazine, and Mark stepped down as Editor when he saw the downfall of Jade Goody at the hands of the media. He says of this:

"The democratisation of fame has led to some of us going too far. When you see celebrities as your playthings ... how much do you play with them?'  -- this, coming from a journalist who does manipulate celebrities is a scary idea..there is no line drawn anymore.

There is another extract from the autobiography HERE

Suzanne x

Voting Power

Thinking about the reasons why we  as an audience vote in reality TV contests...We discussed in class that we vote because it gives us a sense of control, even in a society that is a democracy. However, I realised that in countries that do not enjoy this sort of political freedom, voting for reality shows could literally be the first vote people ever cast, and the only time they experience voting for something that has an effect on other people's lives. This would definitely be a reason to vote- reality tv gives these people the control and power they crave and do not get in their own oppressed lives..

On this point, I wondered if it would be an idea to first create a situation for the audience in which they feel like they have no power (for example, if they came face-to-face with the "Phaedra" character and this person was very dominant/over powering), how would they react to then being given the opportunity to play and manipulate this person's life? If they felt they were gaining some control back over this person, i think that the audience would be much more likely to want to see the downfall by manipulating the forbidden love interest.
It could also be interesting to create a media hate figure out of the "Phaedra" character (perhaps through newspaper articles etc.) so that the audience have pre-conceived ideas before they manipulate/play god..and only find out afterwards that this information was distorted by the media, and therefore realise the consequences of their actions on an 'innocent' person who the media have latched onto and destroyed. 

Just a (long-winded) general thought...I would have put this forward next week in class but won't be there, so thought this was the next best way :)

Why do we watch reality TV?

Hey guys,

I found this great artical about why we watch reality TV, it focuses a lot on Big Brother but it is definately worth a read. Enjoy. Its a bit long but its all relevant.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2000/jul/17/broadcasting.mondaymediasection

zimbardo experiment:footage

Hey guys, I stumbled accross this great website which has clips from the zimbardo experiment. The behaviour is extremely interesting to observe and the participants comments also. Take a look. Haven't put a link on before so I hope it works. Rosie xx

Dear All,

Hope you are having a productive rest of the week. Just wanted to let you know about a few things.

Firstly here is a link to a workshop class based in Bristol that specializes in Meisner technique. I have done quite a bit of Meisner technique and some of you might find it beneficial.

http://www.studiofilm.co.uk/content.php?page_id=4246

Lastly you can get £5.00 tickets for the Globe Theatre, if you are under the age of 25. It is great to see shakespeare as it is and outside you may want to take a look.

http://www.shakespeares-globe.org/

See you next week.

Becca :-)

Shifting the blame

Here is a story from America about how a member of authority is trying to shift the blame onto an innocent party in an accident. I thought it would be relevant as one of our new stripped down units is about "the blame is shifted". Hope you find it useful :)

Jess

Media Manipulation

Hey guys, I've just come across this image and it struck a chord with me, especially as we have recently been discussing the impact the media can have on society and different kinds of manipulation.

Jess

Stripped back units of Hippolytus

Units for Hippolytus: These are the original 10 points of the story, taken from the play-

1. Aphrodite secretly curses Phaedra, to fall in love with her step son, Hippolytus, as revenge for his impiety towards her.

2. Phaedra confesses her love for her step son to her Nurse.

3. Nurse confides in Hippolytus, about her mistresses love for him

4. Hippolytus confronts Phaedra

5. Phaedra kills herself, leaving an incriminating note, laying the blame on Hippolytus.

6. Theseus returns home to find his wife dead, along with the note and believes it to be true.

7. Theseus banishes Hippolytus, and curses him with death by Poseidon

8. Theseus realises, with the help of Artemis, that he is wrong

9. Because of Poseidon’s curse, Hippolytus dies anyway.

These are the stripped back version on these units-

1. A person in manipulated into a forbidden love.

2. The person confesses their forbidden love.

3. The confession id betrayed/ leaks

4. The person is forced to face up to the consequences of the leaked information

5. The person kills them self.

6. The blame is shifted, through a suicide note, to the object of forbidden love

7. There is a public outcry/ response over person’s death and action is taken against the object of the forbidden love.

8. The truth comes out/ the manipulation is revealed.

9. Regardless, the object of forbidden love’s fate is sealed.

Other ideas from our discussion after making these units include-

- Audience manipulation/ or there subservience and enjoyment over the manipulation.

- Audience agreeing with something morally wrong

- Subtle game show, new in existence.

- Watching the persons fall when she is manipulated, then her rise after death

cannon routine

there we go! if anyone has any issues with watching the videos let me know & i shall see what i can do format-wise

Suze x

different directions

hey all- having a few technical difficulties, i've had to change the format because it was upside down and i didn't know how to rotate it...if this video doesnt work on your computer let me know and i shall try to find some other way of uploading (although uploading is taking quite some time, sorry!)

Suze x

Dance In Unison Facing Front

Suze x

THIS is quite funny the radio times forum to "why we watch big brother" real responses quite interesting to see peoples responses.

Tiff

Brilliant Documentary

Hi again.

CCTV was a major theme in all of our thesis ideas and it reminded me of this... I watched this documentary "ERASING DAVID" a few months ago. It is about a man who is trying to dissappear for a month. He has hired professionals to see if they can track him down.
It talks about (and shows) the use of CCTV and highlighted to me just how much we are being watched in our day to day lives. It reminded me of George Orwell's Big Brother in his novel "1984". Is this fiction or becoming a modern reality?

Helen

Hi
I found this website that talks about a new reality tv show in America which has celebrities doing normal jobs, therefore confusing the public. It has a clip of Paris Hilton working at a petrol station. I thought it was an interesting mix of what we have been discussing in class. Take a look click HERE.

Helen

Petition

Also this is a petition to try and stop the snooping plan, seeing as the Conservatives have disabled the e-petitions section on number10.org!

Jess

Shock Treatment (1981)

Following on from Suzanne's thoughts about The Truman Show, the 1981 film 'Shock Treatment', a quasi-sequal to the Rocky Horror Show also tackles the subject of reality TV, interestingly serving as a warning against it before the boom in that genre of television even began.

It shows how one member of the public is corrupted by the fame of appearing on a reality TV show thanks to false praise and documents the increase in her egoism as she starts to believe in her own hype. It also shows how the entire audience, viewing public and familiy and freidns of another contestant (the first's husband) is branded insane showing how 'reality' of reality TV is often false or misleading, but readily accepted by those who view. In further submersion into the genre, the audience, effectively an entire village stays in the TV studio at all times, sleeping in their audience seats.

It is a very interesting film though not very well known, and certainly very strange coming from the mind of Richard O'Brian, but it deals with some great material regarding reality TV and may be worth looking at I feel. I have it on DVD if anyone would like to borrow it.

Rich

Big Brother Government

This article has made feel sick to my stomach.
Being watched continuously and letting the Government have the power to track every email and phonecall that we ever make terrifies me. I can see some benefits of the scheme by making it easier to track down and catch criminals and paedophiles etc, but I feel your own privacy should be respected.
What steps will happen next? Will we become restricted on what we can and can't do, say or read?
Is this Big Brother style Government going too far?

Jess

The Truman Show

Morning,

In regards to reality tv research, the film 'The Truman Show' is about a man who lives his life watched by millions of people as star of his own reality tv show, but he does not know it. This shows how dangerous it could be to toy with peoples lives for the amusement viewers and an audience.
I have this on DVD if anyone hasn't seen it and would like to borrow it!

Suzanne

Hello from Emma

Hi all,

I just wanted to say hello and say that I have been following all of the recent posts with interest. I have now posted your weekly tasks on Minerva and email, and I am looking forward to getting back to you this week.

For your interest, Pina Bausch's company is performing their production of 'Iphiginia Auf Tauris' at Saddlers Wells next week. Click here for more information.

Good luck with the tasks and see you on Wednesday!
Emma x

Frantic Assembly Ignition Project

Date of performance is 29th october. the performance is being held in Toynbee studios resident theatre. I don't know how to book tickets independently but I can reserve them, but I need to know by monday ifyou want me to reserve a ticket but you have to be sure you can make it.

Regards,

Suneil

More disgusting behaviour from the human race...

I just wanted to bring this article to the attention of everyone. It gives just a short overview into the horrific treatment that civilian detainees in Iraq by Iraqi soldiers and police, as well as including similarly brutal examples from British and US military, who engage in abuse, rape, torture and murder or 'lethal force'. This is just another example of how badly the human race are capable of treating each other. It was a while ago now that videos and pictures of similar abuse at the hands of the US military in the Abu Ghraib prison first came to media attention (2004). It was striking to see that not only were people sent to 'civilize' the middle east as some claim can not only engage in such abhorrent behaviour but that someone could stand and watch it while documenting it onto digital video without doing anything about it.

That similar stories of abuse are still hitting headlines is very disturbing. Perhaps most disturbing is that nothing is being done to investigate and deal with such incidents by the relevant authorities and the insistence that there are no records of civilian casualties while logs indicate over 66,000 non-combatant deaths! The documents detailing these occurrences only came to public light through internet leaks, it makes me question what other things are going on out there that we may not hear about for several years to come, if at all.

I feel this resonates with what we've been looking into regarding abuse from those in power; in these incidents it comes from both the police and military ('protectors of the people') who engage in such horrific acts and those in authority who just sit and fail to stop such incidents occurring when they may have the power to do something about it.

Zimbardo Prison Experiment

Hey Guys......

Just thought you might like to look at the Zimbardo Prison Experiment, there is a video about it aswell. My group talked about it in our presentation

Enjoy,

Ruth

death statistics Iraq

Hi guys, heres a link to a good page which has good graphs and information on the death toll of soldiers and civilians in Iraq. It may be a lot lower in 2010 however its still going on- innocent people are still having their lives taken away!

polly xxx

Agamemnon Reinvention

Discovered this current reinvention of Agamemnon at the Cambridge Arts Theatre- worth a read!

click here !

Suzanne

Youth

I know this story is quite old and doesn't have much reference to the plays we are looking at but it is insane. Nine year old boys were caught and suspended from primary school for dealing cannabis!! I don't know about everyone else but when I was nine I deffinitely wasn't getting stoned in the playground. It makes you wonder just how many children are still children nowadays.

charlotte

Control

It is ridiculous how much control is placed over ordinary people these days. If it isn't politically correct or absolutely stupidly safe then you can't say or do it. This story obviously wasn't hard hitting news but it made me laugh at how stupid our society has become, that people with a tiny bit of power feel the need to exercise it over others clearly doing nothing wrong. A woman had taken her kids to feed the ducks when she was told to stop as she was giving them the wrong type of bread. I wasn't aware that ducks were counting their calories!

charlotte

I have been researching the Stanford prison experiment because of one of the pitches yesterday. For those of you who don't know it, look at THIS article, it's really interesting. :)

Ok everybody else is alot cleverer than me and has worked out how to put links on! If I was clever I woulf have put a link of the Chilean miners release. Absoloutly amazing the work and complete determination of the engineers who for 17 days solid drilled without even knowing if anybody was still alive down there. But on the otherside having discussed this with someone, they made a very good point, he said: "We as a human race are strange, they spent so much money, millions of pounds and days of work on saving these men, which of course they should. But no one is spending millions of pounds on the thousands of people who die down mines each year in China." This discussion opened my eyes and just made me realise that it's true we spend millions of pounds on saving people when disaster and tragedy occurs, but what about the long term tragedys? Like the people starving in Africa, and The Soldiers dying through lack of equipment, hostages which have been held for over decades and many other issues. Have we just forgotten that they are tragedies because they have gone on for so long?

On a less deep note, can some on show me how to do this link thing? x

LONDON?!

GIRLS AND BOYS! I have had a rather cracking idea!

(This is on hoping we have Friday with self directed work)

After talk to some people about this I think it would be really beneficial to take a trip to London! And what a better time to go than next Friday when we can also go and see Suneil's show (if he wants us to come watch!! if we can get tickets etc even if we cant i think its worth popping up)

SO I'm thinking we go for the day leave here at 8 ish get in to the South bank by ten, have a look round the National, WE CAN BOOK TOURS! Also the BFI (British Film Institute ) is right next to the theater and has its festival on at the moment always worth a look in, it has amazing avaunt guard work as well as independent films.

Tube it over the the Royal court and blow some student loan on some plays!

go have some food some where, china town, convent garden etc, see the show then all go home!

It might be a costly day but i think a cracking one!

The train will cost (with a student rail card) : £30 ish if we book it soon!!! (a lot I know but this does included travel card for the tube and I think if there's more than 10 of you, we can get a group ticket)

So let me know what you all think, if we want to go ahead i can also call the national and see how we go about booking a tour etc.

We can put all this in to our project books as an ensemble activate or just as a trip to the theatres, for our reference to industry!

Ok so yer let me know either via the blogg or email (tiffany.jackson@bathspa.org)

Tiff

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/7708169.stm

"Stoned Victim begs for mercy"

Hi guys, for the group work we've been focussing on the theme of duty, especially womens duty and how their loves are in the hands of others - this page Is tragic. I was really moved by how helplss this woman was and the lack of mercy within religion.

PostSecret

I'm afraid this isn't a link to a news story but this website is one of my favourites.

When we were doing our newspaper gallery and getting an insight to what people are thinking, I was reminded of this:

PostSecret

Some of these bring a tear to my eye every time.

Enjoy :)

Theme of unrequited love

I've just been researching into some of the results of unrequited love and if there are any major stories in the news at the moment; as the serious consequences and results of the unrequited love in 'Hippolytus'strikes a chord with me. To me personally love is meant to be something beautiful that brings happiness, however, we all know that isn't always the case. The fact that Phaedra thinks it would be better to kill herself rather than express her love (although dangerous) I think is heartbreaking, love should lead to new life not make you end your own.

I've stumbled across these, although some of the articles are fairly old, I thought it was interesting to see how rejection, unrequited love and love in general affects the human psyche.

1.

2.

3. This story reminds me a little bit of how Aphrodite controls the situation of love- toying with people's emotions for a specific outcome.

4.

5.

A local Reinvention

I couldn't find loads of information about this production, but from what I have read I assume it is a modern reinvention of the Medea story.
It is called "Jason and Medea" and is at the Bristol Old Vic in November. It is performed by the Bristol Old Vic Young Company. So it will be interesting what they create from it.
As it is basically on our doorstep I think it might be a good idea to go and see what it's all about.
Click here for the link.

Helen

URGH!

THIS REALLY GETS ME SO ANGRY!! I really cant stand it when people in power ABUSE THEIR POSITION OF TRUST AND RESPONSIBILITY TO GET KICKS / GLORIFICATION! It really makes me angry and people who did this sort of thing need to go away for a long long time!!
URGH! Read it and you will see what I mean.

I think this could relates to Hipp' as Aphrodite abuses her potion to get her own back and make a point, which just isn't fair!

Tiff

Socrates

Reading the guardian online today, there is a news item about Socrates- an ancient Greek philosopher. I thought I would share, as it includes some detail about life at that time, particularly for outspoken citizens (such as philosophers and playwrights). Good for if you want to delve into some basic Greek research!

HERE you go :)

Suzanne

...a little off topic...but not .....

Hey, so this might be a little off topic! But this VIDEO is amazing. I have a strong belief about live music and movement, for the ensemble and the audience experiencing it. This video i think is beautiful! (cause of the song) but mainly the movement that accompanies it. I think working with live music is something we should explore as, I defiantly feel it has HUGE connection with tapping in to the human condition, and basic emotional impulses!

hope you enjoy

Tiff x

sorry me again!

I was looking at reinventions today and came across Charles Mee's Iphigenia...he decided to look at the cost of war and the loss of innocence, i thought this was an interesting concept as there has been a lot of talk of war and the concequences...it was in 2007 but its worth having a read heres the link ....http://www.totallykate.com/iphignia/iphignia.html

Celebrity Culture

On Wednesday we discussed obsession with celebrity culture, and how this links to the idea of catharsis (we watch people's lives who are worse/better than ours, identify with their plight a bit, but enough distance to psychologically remove ourselves from the situation.)
Cue, the Chilean Miners. It seems that even in the face of complete devastation and crisis, we as a culture find it important to make famous the ordinary people who have gone through hardship. This week, after emerging from the mine, 33 ordinary people were catapulted into fame- something they didn't ask for. In some cases, the media exposed their private misdemeanours (such as the miner who's affair was publicised after both his wife and mistress arrived.)  So, this article poses the question that we asked on wednesday- has our obsession with celebrity gone too far? Should we be making ordinary people face the gruelling, cruel world of the media?

Ordinary people are fascinating, and much more 'real' than red carpet walking celebrities. Perhaps that is why we 'need' to know about people who have come through tragedy: their lives are infinitely more identifiable to us than Angelina Jolie's (for example). They are real- what happened to them could happen to any of us, and we have much more respect for their stories. We can identify with them from a distance, but because they are 'real' people it makes it that much more human- we feel like we have been through their story with them. This article discusses the effects the media may have on the Chilean Miners ascent to fame:  

Chilean Miner Celebrity Status

Suzanne x

hotel medea

Hi guys if anyones interested i found a clip of hotel medea...looks pretty cool and i found it inspiring

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0soIo4-OJLM

Human Behaviour

Hi guys,
In class a lot of people were asking the question why do we as humans act the way we do? i came across this website and it discusses human behaviour in a way of science...it is interesting to think about whether human behaviour is caused because of the way we are programmed or the situations we go through in life cause us to act this way...but everyone acts differently, but why? this question really grabs me and i find the subject really interesting...have a read and a think and let me know what you think

http://library.thinkquest.org/26618/

In other news.....

THIS is an article and person stories related to it. I found one personal story that just shocked me. I really can get over the statistics that the article gives on slavery in modern day England.

Sex trafficking: Locked up and forced to have sex with 20 men a night

"Thippawal, 36, from Bangkok, paid an agency to bring her to Britain for restaurant work in 2008 so she could send money home for her daughter's schooling. But when she arrived in the UK she was locked up and made to work as a prostitute.

"When I got to Heathrow, the man that met me took my passport. He took me to a house in west London and said I had to work as a prostitute. I showed them the contract which said I had to work in a restaurant, but they just laughed. They said if I tried to leave I would die. They made me work 24 hours a day saying I had to pay off my debt to them for bringing me over – which they said was £65,000. I had to have sex with 20 men a night and some of them would hit me.

"I tried to escape three times and when they caught me they stabbed my ankles with a knife. I was never paid. After a month I managed to get out and called the police from a hotel who saw my cuts and bruises but didn't take photos or interview me. So in court, there was not enough evidence. Now my family have been threatened."

Thippawal was sheltered in a safe house by the Poppy Project."

What got me about this story is that she was doing it as a duty as a mother (coming over here to earn money for her child's education) . Somebody exploited her duty and role as a woman , for there own means. This idea of duty is something I'm really finding i have a passion for. Stories like this just make me feel outraged!!!

Tiff

Just days after the Chilean miners are rescued, I read today of a mine blast in China that has killed 20 people and left 17 missing. It's shocking that this sort of thing keeps happening but I wonder if this latest incident would have been given so much coverage had it not been for the Chile mine accident. How many more of these kinds of tragic events happen every day that we're not told about over in the UK just because it doesn't affect us? I may be being cynical but it's issue that I've been wondering about for a while now...if it doesn't affect the UK, do the British press care as much?

Anyway, here's the link

Something that struck me whilst reading the Independent.

I have read so many stories as we all have regarding death, suffering, murder etc etc but this story about a porn star testing positive for HIV made me feel really sad - the fact that a. the Industry Is rising and b. That he id facing a limited lifetime. Have a read - for me this Is one element of

tragedy.http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/porn-titans-stop-production-after-star-tests-positive-for-hiv-2106116.html

News Article found today.

Typical, now the police are raping people. It’s sick! There is so much rape and murder in the news today, and the people we should be able to rely on is the police, and now even they are raping people.
Seriously what has happened to our world???
Click here

more news

i dont know if anyone watched this, i think it was on a few days ago. this story is about the DR of Congo and how boys 9, 10 and 11 years old are snatched and trained to kill and rape people and if they do not they will be killed themselves.

click HERE

news

THIS really got to me. it is about a farmer supposedly murdering someone by squashing them between two 4x4's.

News Article found today.

Oh my god. I couldn't believe my eyes when i was reading this article.
A father killed his own baby, who was only 6 weeks old just because he has had a few arguments in his life, and spilt up with his girlfriend.
Just think, that baby won’t be able to take its first steps, say it first words, have first day at school, have a partner, go to university, or get a place of its own. All these things which I have and will take for granted, this baby will never have.
Just have a read for yourself....

Click Here

I read the paper this morning and all it was focused on was budget cuts, pay cuts, uni cuts, money money money! in the smaller sections there were storys about human lives, (well... Human deaths). what makes money more important than a human life? Has Murder and rape become comon place in our scoiety? These were the stories that affected me. What do you think? Perhapse im wrong maybe a human life dosn't matter.

Steve

Reading The Times newspaper today left me feeling a mixture of emotion. I would read article after article about death, murder and suicide and just think to myself how can our world be so disturbing?? One of the articles I found was about a drunken woman who stamped on an innocent train commuter's head with her stillettos after he had asked her to be quiet!!Where does all of this anger and violence come from?? Why can't people communicate successfully in our society?? Why is abuse the only way forward for most people? It sickened me to read of such a horrendous act and considering the circumstances, enabled me to see how unjust it was, he had not provoked her or attacked her, this was a blatent act of disregard for human wellbeing, law and order and a clear 'moment of madness'. It seems as though this is a re-occuring theme in our society today, there is no escaping the lunacy of human kind. We are the only species to destroy our own in such horrific ways. The second story was about a 'Crossbow Cannibal' a psychology student accused of murdering three prostitutes...the striking thing about this is the word student!A well educated and intelectual human being, conducting his own investigations into 19th century killings. There must be a contageous chemical imbalance of the brain which is causing educated and respectable human beings to commit such disgraceful crimes and acts. I cannot for one moment understand these actions. The world is a hostile place and negativity is dominating our papers and our lives. The last article is one which finally restored my faith in the justice system as a rapist is 'indefinately jailed' thank god!!Finally we are being protected from these vile people and justice is being served. It's about time!

News Just In

This story actually maid me well up. The sheer determination and sense of duty this man had was incredibly moving. How is comrades talk about him is with such respect and honour is incredible. this for me echos themes from Alcestis , duty to her husband and for her role and how this is honoured by her world.

Read it HERE

Tiff

Definately did the link wrong...I'll try again!

Click HERE

How far people will go

I read this article in the Guardian on online and the first thing that struck was the fear and pain that this young boy's mother must be experiencing. She doesn't know for sure that her son was abducted to join the Taliban but even so there is nothing she can do.
At the same time it's also striking the extent the Taliban organisation will go to prove their love for their religeon. They are willing to die for their God. To me, this is a similar (although slightly extreme and twisted version) of the main theme in Alcestis. She loves her husband Admetus so much she is willing to die for him.

Click HERE to see the article :)

Ceri

'I can't believe the news today'

Following on from Charlotte's story that highlighted those in authority abusing their power, this story that has recently come to light tells of a police officer raping a girl while in custody. The girl, a heroin addict, was told by the man that no one would believe her story over his due to her history of drug abuse and his position as a police officer. This is a sad and disgusting story, but what makes it worse is that it has taken so many years for the truth to come to light for, I expect, the precise reasons the police officer gave to the abused woman. This is reflected in Hippolytus not only in the abuse that the Goddess Aphrodite inflicted upon Hippolytus' family, but also in Phaedra's death note - she a woman who held a parental position to Hippolytus as stepmother, a position of power and influence, to Hippolytus' father if no one else. In her death note accusing Hippolytus of rape, she abuses her position and her version of events are trusted without second thought leading to Hippolytus' eventual death. Those in power have a responsibility to care for those they wield power over who are often vulnerable; the police have a duty to serve and protect the public but several articles suggest police officers abuse their position to meet their own selfish desires as my example shows. This is a worrying revelation just a few days after the Met chief calls for it to be made harder to take legal action against officers in civil actions - if police officers cannot be trusted not to abuse their power, giving them more rein to act above the law without as much fear of legal repercussions is a dangerous direction to take.

Rich

News

Click HERE to see the article.

I was reading this and was appalled that someone in such an official and responsible position as a police officer could have such blatant disregard for victim care. The paragragh explaining how he fabrigated letters to female crime victims about their cases took me by surprise as it never crossed my mind that someone in that position would do that. For me it also realates back to the story of Hippolytus; whose family was torn apart because the Goddess Aphrodite got jealous and wanted to make her presence felt.
As a nation we put our trust in authority figures such as the police, not expecting to be duped and treated badly; just as the Greeks did in their Gods and Goddesses.

Charlotte

News

THIS is a story i read today that has shocked me, and i think has resonance with the plays and ideas that we have been discussing.

I think that the abuse of power by authorities is something that is hidden from public knowledge, until something as drastic as this happens. Considering that authorities are supposed to maintain a "firm but fair" approach to the holding of detainees-where is the line?  Is it okay for deportation officers to restrain people "firmly" to the point where they cannot breathe, and end up dying as a result of their treatment?

This, i think, links in with the theme of abuse of power, and how far people who have power will go with it (Such as Iphigenia being given the right to sacrifice upon the altar of Artemis). In Iphigenia in Tauris, Iphigenia is asked to sacrifice any foreigner that arrives on her soil; therefore using her power and being driven by the will of the gods to kill anyone who is "not supposed to be there" (on a superficial level, the ancient Greek version of these immigration officers, perhaps?!) If, in that time, the gods gave people the right to sacrifice anyone who was 'foreign' to the land, is this the same as an executive officer giving the go-ahead to use "reasonable force" to hold a detainee- and, in this case, excessive force to the point of man slaughter?
It certainly would seem that way.

Just thought i would share this, as it shocked me that this has been able to happen in a "civilised" society.

Suzanne

some more of the gallery pictures

Some of the gallery pictures

Hello all,

I hope you have had a productive day. You may wish to look up Ex Graduate company Hammerpuzzle Theatre Company. They specialize in reinvention and work in a similar way to you. They are also doing a workshop day with you in November, and performing their newest work The Spare Room.

This is the current promo video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiXiSoJBYz4

look up www.hammerpuzzle.co.uk

Also you should definetely see if you can catch this

http://www.barbican.org.uk/theatre/event-detail.asp?ID=11059

Complicite are masters in ensemble

http://www.complicite.org/flash/

See you all Tuesday... Happy researching.

Becca :-)

The Wooster Group

Hi all,
You should know about this exciting New York based company who have a glittering history of reinvention since the 1970s. The Wooster Group - one of its founding members is Willem Defoe. The website is excellent, and has daily video updates.

Enjoy,
Emma

Have I done It?? I hope so :)

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39432969/ns/world_news/

Just thought this highlighted the desperasation and the length that people would go to just to make money, could be linked to the length people would go to for the ones they love a theme in todays lesson. For example the men on these ships wanting to support their families at any cost even if that means working in slave conditions.

hey, i found this, it makes what were were chatting about look a little easier to understand about orestes and agamemnon etc: its from:http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/mythology/section11.rhtml

In the newest generation, Agamemnon, Menelaus’s brother, sacrifices his daughter Iphigenia to placate Artemis and procure favorable sailing winds during the Trojan War. Agamemnon’s wife, Clytemnestra, takes a lover—Aegisthus, son of Thyestes—while Agamemnon is away in Troy. Outraged at the sacrifice of her daughter Iphigenia, she plots revenge against her husband, while Aegisthus vows revenge for his father. When Agamemnon returns from Troy with Cassandra, the prophetess everyone always ignores, Cassandra foretells her and Agamemnon’s deaths but is unheeded. The two enter the palace, and Clytemnestra and Aegisthus kill them.

Two of Agamemnon’s children still live to perpetuate the bloodshed: his daughter, Electra, whom Aegisthus and Clytemnestra treat cruelly, and son, Orestes, whom a family friend has taken to protect him from Aegisthus. Orestes sets out for vengeance when he comes of age—even though he knows this means the terrible crime of matricide—and the Oracle at Delphi confirms him in this path. Returning to Mycenae, he runs into Electra, who is overjoyed and eager for him to avenge their father. Pretending to be a messenger bearing news of Orestes’ death, Orestes is welcomed into the palace, where he kills his mother and her lover. He instantly sees the terrible avenging Furies pursuing him, and he begins years of frenzied wanderings. Finally, with Apollo’s aid, he appeals to Athena, who pities him and turns the Furies into the Eumenides, “protectors of the suppliant.” The curse of the House of Atreus finally ends.

In another version of the story, Artemis grows horrified just before Iphigenia’s sacrifice and rescues her. Artemis brings Iphigenia to the land of the Taurians and makes her a priestess of her own temple. Regrettably, this job involves sacrificing humans, so Iphigenia goes about her duties very reluctantly. In this version, Athena has not completely absolved Orestes of guilt. The Oracle at Delphi tells Orestes that for his last cleansing act he must go to the land of the Taurians and procure the image of Artemis from its temple. Orestes and his friend Pylades set out on the quest, but the Taurians capture them almost immediately and intend to sacrifice them.

Orestes is taken to Iphigenia, the priestess, but the siblings fail to recognize each other because they have been separated for so long. Preparing Orestes and Pylades for death, Iphigenia asks where they are from. On hearing they are from Mycenae, she asks them about her family. She offers to set Pylades free if he takes a message to her brother, Orestes, telling him that she is alive and that he must rescue her. Orestes jumps up and reveals his identity. The three begin their escape with the image of Artemis. King Thoas of the Taurians pursues, but lets them escape when Athena says they are fated to do so.

hope this helps it broke it down for me
tiff xx

Iphigenia

Today when we were discussing Iphigenia, Bella spoke about the link to modern day women under the Taliban regime; they do know of another life but there is nothing they can do to leave the life they are in, and just have to make do with it..
on that note, there is a really good film called 'Persepolis' which is about a woman during the Iranian revolution. It's animated in black and white, and i think highlights how women have lost their rights during such wars/revolutions etc, and modern day mistreatment by men- how in some countries women are expected to become subservient to their male counterparts. (not that i'm becoming a femenist here!!)

thought i'd share with the group :) i have it on dvd if anyone wants to borrow it-
see you tomorrow! x

Today

Extraordinary - Human Sacrifice TODAY

Read THIS

Emma

Past Productions - Links

Hi all,
So it is very useful to start researching around the plays and see what you can find out about past productions, and reinventions. I have set the ball rolling here with 7 links to reviews, articles, images etc. Have a read and then add your own discoveries.
Emma 

Click HERE for reviews of Katie Mitchell's 2004 National Theatre production of Iphiginia in Aulis (another name for Tauris), set in 1940s. Click HERE for an interesting critique by 'Culture Vulture' of same production

And HERE for a Bloody staging of an opera in Berlin

And HERE for an Evening Standard review of a modern day production of Hipplolytus


And HERE for a very thorough review/synopsis of a recent Fringe production of Hipploytus at The White Bear in London, including a short youtube clip.

And HERE for production images of Alcestis by Iris Theatre, at the Actors Church in London in 2008.

And HERE for an interesting essay on a reinvention process of Alcestis by a feminist student theatre group in the US.

Some useful sources for today's session!

'The Death of Hippolytus' 1860

Click HERE for a useful link to a Who's Who guide to the Greek Gods:

I hope you have a a fruitful session with Becca today - and I shall look forward to catching up with you tomorrow...

Emma x

http://www.greek-gods.info/greek-gods/ --> more greek gods explained , very useful!
Tiff

Rounders

Hi everyone.

Just wanted to say I had great fun playing rounders today. We had such a laugh and it was really lovely to spend some time just messing round as a group.
We need to do this more often :D.

See you tomorrow
Helen

....So i think i can safly say THE GIRL WON! BAD LUCK BOYS....better luck next time eh?! thanks guys really enjoyed myself today! xx

Group Task!!

I'm very very excited for our group activity today everyone!!! The BOYS ARE GOING DOWN!!!!!!! ....hopefully!!

:)

Hey gang!!
Thank you so much for making me feel so welcome! I'm so excited about this!
Can't wait for rounders too!!
Peace x

FREE TING

Me again...

If some of you havent heard of this.... follow this link :-)

god i love free stuff!!!!!!!!

peace out xxxx

http://www.anightlessordinary.org.uk/

GREEK GODS AND GODDESS'S

http://www.desy.de/gna/interpedia/greek_myth/gods.html

Hello all this link is to a website that explains the Greek Gods and Goddess's in quite plain easy to rememeber terms just click on the links :-) also if you put GREEK GOD family tree into google images loads come up too go with this! hope this is helpful

much love

ECR xxxxxxxx

Well, what a great first week! Already lots of work to do but excited to get started finally after such a long summer...really looking forward to working with you all for the next few months - what an incredible ensemble feeling we have already, after just TWO SESSIONS!!

Thursday's session was really enjoyable and insightful, for me it was one of the most thought-provoking sessions I've been involved in in my time here - it amazed me at how involved I felt when hearing other people's stories.

Looking forward to the rounders match on Monday...oh and, welcome to Polly! :)

Have a great weekend everyone!

Hi Everyone!

Can't wait for the next 3 months, it's very exciting to be working with you all :-)

Els x

BOYS AND GIRLS! I watched a film last night (as per our task list) and it was so good I thought I should share it with you! (ruth will back me up im sure as she has seen it before)

"HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE" BY HAYAO MIYAZAKI Its a japanese anime film with beautful visuals! the dialogue is a bit simple and the plot is ODD but its amazing! If you dont watch this genre i would watch this!

Peace

Tiff

http://www.suityourselfmagazine.co.uk/stage-review-bonnie-and-clyde/

i dunno if this is going to work but in the title i've posted a review of my friends company but if you add me on facebook i can send you the link there performing bonnie and clyde (will be an excellent show and cheap if any one wants to join me i will be going to watch it tickets are seven pounds train is about three pounds with railcard) Tuesday the 5th untill saturday the 23rd of oct @ tobacco factory

hello

Hello thank you to everyone for being very welcoming, looking forward to spending this year with some fresh faces :) Getting to know you getting to know you

hiya!

hello again, as an author now instead of a follower :)
so excited for our project together, exciting times ahead!
have a lovely weekend
Suzanne x

Hey!

...I think I'm starting to get the hang of this technology malarchy! xxx

hello it's Ruth!!! Great class today :) x x

hello???

BONJOURNO KIDS!

I am very much excited for the next three months

BRING ON!!!

much love

Emma the Eggplant

aka

ECR xxxxxxxxx

Hey everyone. Excited and very scared about the next 3 months. lots of lovexxx

Hi guys, Not gonna lie to you...I am pretty scared at the minute, both excited and nervous about the next 3 months...hopefully I'll get to grips with things and can start to enjoy the experience with you all...love to all, Rosie ;-) x

Hello i'm here and ready for the next 3 months.

Steve

that was Gerry by the way :)

hey

hey there i am here and am looking forward

Hey So i think i've got the nack of this now!

So what a class!, keeping things simple is the best way forward!

So on the group task anyone had any ideas other than minny golf!?

we did think rounders? but if the weathers bad we need a back up plan!? we can do it on Monday?

what would people like to do?

Tiffany

Aloha

hello there

hoping this is the right way to do it! Sarah McDonald here.

much love xx

Hey Hey Hey

Im on the blog, looking forward to the next 3 months
Ross

Hello

I am now an author :D. Looking forward to working on the project and really enjoyed the workshop this morning.

Helen

Hey Hey

Ahhh.. How exciting is this new project??!!! So glad to be starting this reinvention project which such wonderful people..

Welcome

Hey everyone,

What a wonderful way to start the year. Can't wait for more of it!!!!!!!!!!

Suneil

Hello everyone :)
I thought today was a great second lesson and I am very excited to continue working with you all!
x

after today can't wait to get started :)

Hello, I manged to log on :)

Here we go!

Dear 3rds,

Welcome to our blog. I am looking forward to seeing a growing authorship for this resource. To kickstart the use of this blog, please add an entry sometime in week 1 to reflect your responses, experiences and thoughts to the start of the project.

Happy blogging!

Emma