Weekend Update: September 28th
Hey, it’s me again. Surprise surprise this has been yet another busy week. This program definitely knows how to put the study in study abroad. This week alone I have seen 3 shows, had to memorize 2 monologues, read probably 3-4 plays (not really sure), and do little projects/assignments for all of my “electives” (aka voice, movement, etc…) SO I’M GOING CRAZY WITH WORK BASICALLY.
Monday-
As usual we kicked the week off with a bang with a whole day of physical activity. Our movement teacher Sue is this tiny little South African lady (whose accent is just like Ja’mie’s mom, so picture that one). This woman is definitely in better shape than I will ever be, and has the ability to make me sore for 3 days after her class because I am moving with different muscles that I don’t typically use (as this is not a ballet class). It’s hard to describe exactly what movement technique she uses, I think it’s her own creation to be honest. After this we have the lovely period dance class, where we jump and skip around and learn a bunch of peasant dances from the 1600s-1900s. Right after period dance is stage combat, aka sword fighting time. I think it makes sense to have the most dangerous class last in the day when we are all tired. Because being tired and playing with swords go so well together right?? <— jokes.
Tuesday-
Another full day of 2 acting classes and SPT (aka Hist Lit for all you Loyola theatre majors that are reading this). Tuesdays are very full too as we have 2 acting classes that are 2 hours and I feel so drained by the end of the day! But it’s good to build up my mental stamina! After this day of classes we went to see a new play called The Albion at The Bush Theatre (which oddly reminded me of the House Theatre in Chicago). The script was a little rough as it was the playwright’s first full-length play, but it wasn’t awful. It was set in an English pub called The Albion that is based on a real pub in working class East London. It was trying to deal with a lot of issues: immigration in England, problems that children in the system face with their social workers, and ultimately the very real argument and debate that is alive in England about what the difference between being “English” and “British.” It focused on a political party that feels that their rights and heritage of what it means to be “English” have been lost due to the fact that London is now a globalized city with many cultures represented in it. The show was not a total hot mess, but it needed some work in the script. BUT it really gave me insight as to some contemporary issues in England in 2014.
Wednesday-
As usual those young classes took up most of my day, but after I finished with class I went to go see Royal Swedish Ballet do Mats Ek’s Juliet and Romeo. I LOVED THIS PRODUCTION. This was one of the best dance shows I have seen in a long time. Mats Ek is able to take his movement style (which is very Mary Wigman/Kurt Joss expressionist) and use it to tell a narrative. I was blown away by the authenticity that was a product of the choreography and spectacular performances of the dancers. In addition, I went on opening night of the run here in London, so I was lucky enough to see most of the original cast that Ek set the ballet on. And to top it all of, Mats Ek himself, in the flesh, like the living breathing human came out on stage at the end of the show. It was shocking and exhilarating to see a living legend on that stage.
Thursday-
Ok so usually my Thursdays are really chill, but I had a lot of things to get done, so it turned into yet another very full day! I had my morning Shakespeare class, and we found out that morning that our teacher has been cast in a movie that will be filming out of the country starting tomorrow through the beginning of October. So as a result we are having the schedule all changed around to make sure that we get all of our time that we lost when he returns.
Then I got to go to the London Zoo! Anyone that knows me knows about my weird obsession with zoos as I have worked at one for 6 years, so I was super excited that we get passes to the zoo for our time here so that we can go observe animals for our acting work. For the script that we are working on in acting currently, I decided that my character is a meerkat, so I literally sat and watched the meerkats for an extended period of time. I obviously felt right at home in the London Zoo, and I will defiantly be hitting that place up again.
After a journey to the zoo I saw probably the strangest show that I have ever seen in my life. We saw a production of Ibsen’s An Enemy of the People at the Barbican Theatre. I did not know that the production was two and a half hours long with no intermission AND IT WAS IN GERMAN. It was fine because there were subtitles, but still it took a minute to catch on as they were speaking lightning fast German. This production had the potential to be one of the best productions that I have ever seen. My attention was on this show like no one’s business and I was sucked in. However once we got to Act IV, things. Got. Rocky. I should first say that the director re-wrote some of the script to put it in a more modern light, and I don’t know how we can really advertise that as Ibsen, but whatever. Dr. Stockmann gives a speech that essentially is calling for a rise of fascism and the audience started clapping?? And then all of a sudden the house lights come up and we have a “round table discussion” with the cast about what is wrong with society. WHATTT????? So obviously a bunch of people that have no clue what they are talking about speak out, and it was just so confusing. Like why do we need to put Ibsen on hold and have a disorganized forum about nothing. It really made me mad. Ibsen is such a good playwright that his text does all of that work for itself, SO WHY MUST WE BE ARROGANT AND DO A THING LIKE THIS??? I like the whole audience participation thing, but I think that this director took it too far. I have actually never walked out at the end of a show being so infuriated. Wow what a time.
Friday-
After that hot mess of a show from the night before, Friday was very low-key. I was so drained from the week that I was just really happy it was the weekend.
Saturday-
I got up super early to go to ballet this morning, which was an excellent choice. It was a great class, and I didn’t feel like I was horrible, so go me. After class, David and I went to the Sherlock Holmes Museum at 221B Baker Street. It was awesome to see the real address! They have turned this house into what a Victorian Home would have looked like at the time. The museum included Sherlock’s Bedroom, Mrs. Hudson’s Room, and Watson’s Room, as well as some terrifying wax figures from some of Sherlock’s most famous cases. Although it was very touristy, we did not care and we were happy to be nerding out.
Sunday-
We’ve done the Sunday ritual of going for a run and then going to grocery store already today. Today we decided that we would run by Will and Kate’s house. They live right by us and are surrounded by a bunch of embassies, so it’s a beautiful area. There are a ton of armed guards outside their house, and photography is forbidden… so I can’t snipe a pic for fear of being arrested. But anywho, this should be another busy week full of classes, master classes, 2 theatre visits, and a personal visit to go see the Royal Ballet perform MacMillan’s Manon on Saturday (I’m so excited I can’t stand it). As always thanks for reading! Over and out, y’all!
