The kitchen, a realist text is written by Arnold Wesker, a naturalistic writer Essays

The kitchen, a realist text is written by Arnold Wesker, a naturalistic writer Essays The kitchen, a realist text is written by Arnold Wesker, a naturalistic writer Essay The kitchen, a realist text is written by Arnold Wesker, a naturalistic writer Essay Essay Topic: Literature The kitchen, a realist text is written by Arnold Wesker, a naturalistic writer. These terms have been used for many years now in conjunction with theatre. Their meanings have changed and very easily overlap with each other, just as the above quotes suggest; because of this the task of performing in the form of realism as opposed to naturalism is impossible. This suggests that in performance there is a real possibility of creating the desired effect without having to justify whether it is naturalistic or indeed realistic. Performing a section of the kitchen requires at least a basic understanding of these terms. Arnold Wesker gives a lengthy explanation of what he wants to see on stage, he goes to great detail to explain his restaurant and the people in it: The quality of food here is not so important as the speed with which it is served (Wesker 1960). Wesker continues to give character notes on each of his main 15 characters that are also accompanied by specific actions for many of them. Now directors, especially in the ever more contemporary theatre world we live in, will be tempted to ignore or change these notes to create their own aesthetic on stage. For me this would be criminal. When experimenting with the actions each character is given, by means of mime, possible cooking methods are extremely difficult to generate especially differentiating between actions. Extra research is needed to look at exactly how each dish is made in a real kitchen. Once we as performers have our own certain routines set out it is clear we need the correct amount of space to operate correctly. At this point we were fitted into positions within a given set. Already there is a performance in itself without even speaking a word of Weskers text, there were 6 people on stage miming actions with 3 others (the waitresses) coming in and out and occasionally tangling with these procedures. What are being produced are individual movements that form a type of group dance, the collaboration of the individuals fit together perfectly. Now does this portray a real life kitchen or is this just a version Weskers imaginary kitchen? Take a still position in a restaurants kitchen anywhere in Great Britain or of Europe, take away the sound of voice or music, take away even the food, what you are left with is of course a wonderful sequence of movements. In each kitchen there is a negotiating of space where usually several cooks and chefs work in restricted areas. Wesker in his directions creates the bones of a kitchen, from then on it is just building on that. John Dexter directed this for the Royal Court Theatre 1961 like a superb juggler, he keeps a huge cast weaving, reacting, colliding, in a faultless choreography. (Bernard Levin 1961). This is what we wanted to aspire to. The character notes become important in the next stage of our process. We down sized the cast and set because we did not have enough performers. Down staging the set as well was simply to attempt to keep with the atmosphere of a space challenged kitchen. We each had a main character to reference to. Ones who had particular accents were perfor med with an accent nearest to it. I played Peter boisterous, aggressive, too merry, and yet good-natured, I tried to perform exactly these qualities. Now this was obviously to become part of the routine of the cooking that was already fixed in my mind. This where a problem lies, a performer must show a character whilst still performing in this dance like sequence. Thankfully Peters character holds what I took as a get out clause by this I mean Peters forced laugh, pronounced Hya hya hya. (Wesker, A. 1961) This outrageous character trait allowed me to cover up any slip of technique in either showing the character or miming the cooking. It was so idiosyncratic that it would become normal to the kitchen and the spectators also. Peter sings a song also that is said to have a maniacal tone which is part of the whole kitchen atmosphere. Maniacal is something that is a clear desire for Wesker in this play. The popular representation of chefs and cooks even now is that they are all slightly insane and putting them in a kitchen excites this factor. Wesker even makes testimony to this within the text of the kitchen when Dimitri comments: Listen, you put a man in the plate room all day what else there is for him to do he wants to fight. As a performer this theme is certainly achievable just by use of voice. Varying a regular pace and volume level is just two ways in which to change the way lines are said to sound more crazy. However this we found was no where near enough to produce an atmosphere that was right for this performance. We looked at everything the pace of the movements, the sounds that are created through mime. We even added to mime real cooking utensils; this gave another variable that could be affected. The final performance consisted of these utensils that acted as an instrument that could be manipulated to yield a more rampant effect. The bashing of a saucepan with a wooden spoon holds a certain quality that can be used to build a beat. We had already decided to use a tape recording of an oven fumigator to set a permanent noise that would indeed be heard in a real kitchen. Dexter used similar techniques in his direction of the play. So now we have a background buzz that is a constant burden to performers and audience alike, we have an instrumental effect with the use of empty utensils and we have also got a movement sequence that involves the whole cast working as one. An explanation of a realist text would seemingly be nothing like the previous sentence but as the process of rehearsing The Kitchen it is clear that this is a quite intelligible way to go about it. Despite all the rehearsal techniques indicating a contemporary dance to unorthodox instruments, a bit like a performance of Stomp, the aesthetic on stage was clearly natural to us. We felt the general look was of a kitchen in full flow. We had the power to change the intensity and lunacy of the action and could therefore play with it to fit in line with the text. The only free space in his kitchen is at the very front of the stage this is where they come if they want to talk. Anyone speaking to them from the back of the kitchen has to shout Bamber Gascoigne talks here about another production of The Kitchen but is very relevant to our own production. There is a clear one-conversation-at-a-time problem that has to be addressed when introducing the text to the movement. The oven sounds drow ned out mumbling or whisper as in a real kitchen, so we did this and it looked normal. This is not a usual concept in theatre and yet was very effective in this production. The only clear speech an audience should here is the written text and that is achievable by using the space front stage as a conversation area just as Gascoigne points out but also to incorporate more of the shouted conversation. The kitchen area of a restaurant is full of shouting and cursing, orders are lost and this causes stress. As a group this is the most exciting point we investigated in performance. Wesker says The whole tempo of work is speeded up suddenly this is what we chose to look at. We began with the mild argument between Peter and his illegitimate girlfriend Monique at the end of part one and continued through the rush of orders. Of course Monique and Peter began front stage so they could be heard and seen clearly, this is an important part of the weak storyline that The Kitchen has. Most of what we see in terms of a story is where Monique and Peter are flirting or arguing. The rest of the plot seems to consist of work related talk. Whilst the exchange goes on we were keen to make sure the rest of the kitchen continued work as normal. The cooks continued their sequence and the isolated conversation was highlighted purely because it was away from the general flow of energy. As they rejoin the rest of the kitchen the energy increases very quickly, the change is instigated by our three waitresses. They are on their toes and shouting out orders which of course the cooks have to respond to vocally and physically. There were high intensity moments, for instance: Violet: Ive never worked like this before, never never. Peter: Too old, too old my sweetheart. Go home old woman for the young this work go home. At this point we used our performance time to show a rehearsal technique, and carried on performing but as improvisation reacting to waitress orders. The more orders the faster and more frantic it got. The Kitchen is a text that is as much a compositional piece as an accurate representation of a fully operational kitchen and we tried to show this. The characters and their personal description given by Wesker is important but not nearly as much as his comments and detailing of atmosphere and general running of the Trivoli restaurant. Obviously what our group created was working progress and to improve it would be to add more detail and choreography to everything including set and character exchanges. Our task was to create a realist performance, A play should be written in which people arrive, go away, have dinner, talk about the weather, play cards. Life must be exactly as it is and people as they are. (Chekhov, A. ). The problems we occurred are summed up with Weskers comment: the artist is dealing with what is absurd in reality in a naturalistic form (Wesker, A. 1965)

James Madison, 4th President of the United States

James Madison, 4th President of the United States James Madison (March 16, 1751–June 28, 1836) served as Americas 4th president, navigating the country through the War of 1812. Madison was known as the Father of the Constitution, for his role in its creation, and a man who served during a key time in the development of America.   Fast Facts: James Madison Known For: Americas 4th president and the Father of the ConstitutionBorn: March 16, 1751 in King George County, VirginiaParents:  James Madison, Sr. and Eleanor Rose Conway (Nelly), m. September 15, 1749Died: June 28, 1836 in Montpelier, VirginiaEducation: Robertsons School, College of New Jersey (which would later become Prrinceton University)Spouse: Dolley Payne Todd (m. September 15, 1794)Children: One stepson, John Payne Todd Early Life James Madison was born on March 16, 1751, the eldest child of James Madison, Sr., a plantation owner, and Eleanor Rose Conway (known as Nelly), the daughter of a wealthy planter. He was born at his mothers stepfathers plantation on the Rappahannock River in King George County, Virginia, but the family soon moved to James Madison Sr.s plantation in Virginia. Montpelier, as the plantation would be named in 1780, would be Madison Jr.s home for most of his life. Madison had six brothers and sisters: Francis (b. 1753), Ambrose (b. 1755), Nelly (b. 1760), William (b. 1762), Sarah (b. 1764), Elizabeth (b. 1768); the plantation also held more than 100 enslaved persons. The earliest education of James Madison, Jr. was at home, probably by his mother and grandmother, and at a school located on his fathers plantation. In 1758, he began attending the Robertson School, run by Scottish tutor Donald Robertson, where he studied English, Latin, Greek, French, and Italian, as well as history, arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and geography. Between 1767 and 1769, Madison studied under the rector Thomas Martin, who was hired by the Madison family for that purpose. Education Madison attended the College of New Jersey (which would become Princeton University in 1896) from 1769–1771. He was an excellent student and studied a range of subjects, including oratory, logic, Latin, geography, and philosophy. Perhaps more importantly, he made close friendships at New Jersey, included the American poet Philip Freneau, writer Hugh Henry Brackenridge, lawyer and politician Gunning Bedford Jr., and William Bradford, who would become the second attorney general under George Washington. But Madison grew ill in college, and stayed in Princeton after he graduated until April 1772, when he returned home. He was sickly most of his life, and modern scholars believe he likely suffered from epilepsy. Early Career Madison didnt have a vocation when he left school, but he soon became interested in politics, an interest perhaps stirred but at least fed by his continuing correspondence with William Bradford. The political situation in the country must have been exhilarating: his zeal for freedom from Britain was very strong. His first political appointment was as a delegate to the Virginia Convention (1776), and then he served in the Virginia House of Delegates three times (1776–1777, 1784–1786, 1799–1800). While in the Virginia house, he worked with George Mason to write Virginias constitution; he also met and established a lifelong friendship with Thomas Jefferson. Madison served on the Council of State in Virginia (1778–1779) and then became a member of the Continental Congress (1780–1783). Father of the Constitution Madison first called for a Constitutional Convention in 1786, and when it was convened in 1787 he wrote most of the U.S. Constitution, which outlined a strong federal government. Once the Convention ended, he, John Jay, and Alexander Hamilton together wrote the Federalist Papers, a collection of essays that were intended to sway public opinion to ratifying the new Constitution. Madison served as a U.S. Representative from 1789–1797. On September 15, 1794, Madison married  Dolley Payne Todd,  a widow and socialite who set the pattern for the behavior of White House first ladies for centuries to come. She was a well-liked hostess throughout Jeffersons and Madisons time in office, holding convivial parties with both sides of the Congress in attendance. She and Madison had no children, although John Payne Todd (1792–1852), Dolleys son from her first marriage, was raised by the couple; her son William had died in the 1793 yellow fever epidemic that killed her husband. In response to the Alien and Sedition Acts, in 1798 Madison drafted the Virginia Resolutions, a work that was hailed by anti-federalists. He was secretary of state under President Thomas Jefferson from 1801–1809. Embargo Act and the Presidency By 1807, Madison and Jefferson became alarmed at increasing reports on upheavals in Europe suggesting that Britain would soon go to war with Napoleons France. The two powers declared war and demanded that other nations needed to commit to a side. Since neither the Congress nor the administration were ready for all-out war, Jefferson called for an immediate embargo on all American shipping. That, said Madison, would protect American vessels from almost certain seizure, and deprive European nations of a needed trade that might force them to allow the U.S. to remain neutral. Passed on December 22, 1807, the Embargo Act would soon prove unpopular, an unpopularity that eventually led to U.S. involvement in the War of 1812. In the 1808 election, Jefferson supported Madisons nomination to run, and George Clinton was chosen to be his vice president. He ran against Charles Pinckney, who had opposed Jefferson in 1804. Pinckneys campaign centered around Madisons role with the Embargo Act; nevertheless, Madison won 122 of the 175 electoral votes. Negotiating Neutrality Early in 1808, Congress replaced the Embargo Act with the Non-Intercourse Act, which allowed the U.S. to trade with all nations except France and Great Britain because of the attacks on American shipping by those two nations. Madison offered to trade with either nation if it would stop harassing American ships. However, neither agreed. In 1810, Macons Bill No. 2 was passed, repealing the Non-Intercourse Act and replacing that with a promise that whichever nation would stop harassing American ships would be favored and the U.S. would stop trading with the other nation. France agreed to this and the British continued to stop American ships and impress sailors. By 1811, Madison easily won the renomination for the Democratic-Republicans, despite being opposed by DeWitt Clinton. The campaigns main issue was the War of 1812, and Clinton attempted to appeal to both those for and against the war. Madison won with 128 out of 146 votes. War of 1812: Mr. Madisons War When Madison started his second administration, the British were still forcibly attacking American ships, seizing their cargo, and impressing their sailors. Madison asked Congress to declare war: but support for it was far from unanimous. The war, sometimes called the Second War for Independence (because it resulted in the end of U.S. economic dependence on Britain), pitted a barely prepared U.S. against the well-trained force that was Great Britain. On June 18, 1812, Madison signed a declaration of war against Great Britain, after Congress, for the first time in American history, voted to declare war against another nation. Americas first battle was a disaster called the Surrender of Detroit: The British, led by Major General Isaac Brock, and Native American allies, led by the Shawnee leader Tecumseh, attacked the port city of Detroit on August 15–16, 1812. U.S. Brigadier General William Hull surrendered the town and fort, despite having a larger army. America fared better on the seas, and eventually retook Detroit. The British marched on Washington in 1814, and on August 23 they attacked and burned the White House. Dolley Madison famously stayed in the White House until she ensured that many national treasures were saved. The New England Federalists met at the Hartford Convention in late 1814 to discuss pulling out of the war, and there was even talk of secession at the convention. But, on December 24, 1814, the U.S. and Great Britain agreed to the Treaty of Ghent, which ended the fighting but resolved none of the pre-war issues. Retirement After his presidential term in office ended, Madison retired to his plantation in Virginia. However, he still stayed involved in political discourse. He represented his county at the Virginia Constitutional Convention (1829). He also spoke against nullification, the idea that states could rule federal laws unconstitutional. His Virginia Resolutions were often cited as a precedent for this but he believed in the strength of the union above all. He took a leadership role in the formation of the University of Virginia, especially after Thomas Jeffersons death in 1826. Madison was also a slave owner- Montpelier had 118 slaves at one point- who helped found the notorious American Colonization Society to help resettle freed blacks in what would become Liberia, Africa. Death Although Madison remained vigorous and active during his early retirement, beginning after his 80th birthday in 1829, he began to suffer from longer and longer spells of fever and rheumatism. Eventually he was confined to Montpelier, although he continued working when he could through the winter of 1835–1836. On June 27, 1836, he spent several hours writing a thank you note to George Tucker, who had dedicated his biography of Thomas Jefferson to him. He died the next day. Legacy James Madison was in power at an important time. Even though America did not end the War of 1812 as the ultimate victor, it did end with a stronger and independent economy. As the author of the Constitution, Madisons decisions made during his time as president were based on his interpretation of the document, and he was well-respected for that. In the end, Madison attempted to follow the Constitution and tried not to overstep the boundaries set before him as he interpreted them. Sources Broadwater, Jeff. James Madison: A Son of Virginia and a Founder of the Nation. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2012.Cheney, Lynne. James Madison: A Life Reconsidered. New York: Penguin Books, 2014.Feldman, Noah. The Three Lives of James Madison: Genius, Partisan, President. New York: Random House, 2017.Gutzman, Kevin R. C. James Madison and the Making of America. New York, St. Martins Press, 2012.Ketcham, Ralph. James Madison: A Biography. University of Virginia, 1990.

How can we describe this art peace Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

How can we describe this art peace - Essay Example Notwithstanding challenges to be able to put it in art form for instance this powerful representation. This piece clearly shows the expertise of an artist and the way that it is painted. During industrial revolution, between 18th century and 19th century, growth in art had gone a notch higher by 19th century. Technology has made it easier to the creativity part of Modern art. Various artists, sculptors, writers and various performers as a group and others that have also pursued it individually through ideas have used different approach to come up with the latest in the field of art making. In as much as art began back in 1850 when art styles had been defined and redefined, artists who through audacity tirelessly worked to realize each new style through tried to come up with a visual language which was original and did represent the time. This piece of art portrays the stylistic diversity of art that has been embraced by this particular artist. The picture clearly shows a female human head which partly gives a view of the interior that’s under the skin, with an arts mind in play. This piece is creative on the size of the eye vividly portrays the wider view by which individual can portray their imagination into a reality. The size of the eye reflects the scope through which a good aim is maintained. This also stresses the feeling the artist had in mind well portrayed in art piece. The tilt of the head, gestures a thinking look by the piece. Various artists have carried abstraction to greater heights through radical and cheap ways of composition with addition of the color, this clearly exposes fundamental principles that are that gauge the appearances. Such were portrayed by painters such as Piet Mondrian (1872-1944) Abstract ideas and visual representation of an art has proved beyond doubt that art has revolved over time. The imagination put in art piece clearly shows the intention of the artist for best results to be realized.