Lecoq: Expressive Masks (Week 2)

 The masks on the pas mal table welcome us back into the space.

Monday:

In movement with Francois, we work on fixed point with the masks. First, we paired off and used each other's hands as fixed point of references, figuring out the articulation of the body needed to go in a certain direction. The wrists, elbows, shoulders, plexus, hips, legs. By ourselves, we worked on the articulations needed to pick up a cup of coffee and drink it. We see, we go take, we take the cup of coffee, we lift it, we go closer to the cup (fixed point), we blow on it, we return (fixed point), we bring the cup to us (we are fixed point), we hear something, we turn our heads, we react with our plexus, we turn to look at the table, we set the coffee down, we turn back to the source of the reaction. The same things for other scenarios: picking up a pen and completing a checklist. Browsing through a newspaper and seeing an interesting article, then folding it to do the sudoku. Then we returned to the barman, isolating the articulations once again. Even shaking the mixer and the juggling needs extra isolation. Lastly, we got into trios and shared a pas-mal mask, and took some actual props to work on our object fixed points. The time shouldn't be too slow or too fast, but there should be enough time for the audience to see our movements and understand the journey. We type a couple of keys and look up at the screen, giving enough time for the audience to understand what we see. Are we frustrated? We look back down at the keyboard and type another couple of keys. Sasha lifts the phone to his face, there is a time for his reaction to sink in, before he slams the receiver back down.

In improv with Anne, we discovered expressive masks. In groups, we watched as our teammates placed a mask on their faces and moved it. They changed at various angles, and they had different stories with different postures. We attempted to find the counter-mask for all of them. We managed to explore four masks with Anne - discovering how these masks would come alive if we 'poussez le regarde'. There is our body, and the body of the mask, and we do not want to be too in control, because then the audience would see our bodies. We have to let the mask lead. Is the mask heavy, or lopsided, does it turn? Back to material work. We discover how the masks feel fear, or joy. We can see when the actors are too technical, and there is no spontaneous feel for the emotions. How can we be spontaneously fearful, and still let the mask lead our movements? Agat is good at playing fear, and has the body for it, but when the hands arrive, speech arrives too. How can we use an internal motor and movement to show fear?

In LEM, we worked with structures elementaires and scenography. First, we warmed up with some movement exercises, and practiced moving the baton, and then moving the baton while being open to the space; reacting and following and counter-reacting other people's movements in the space. Then, we moved the batons in trios, keeping a form between them. During the scenography portion, Pascal hung elastics in a square on the ceiling, and then got 8 rings (2 per side) to pull the elastics down. We first played with the dynamics of this, and then added a person to play with the space. Next, we used rectangles and angles to try to perform a passion (we chose anger), after which we placed them in the space and played with the elastics. All improvised through feel with where everyone is, and how everyone is moving. Extremely interesting work.

Tuesday:

With Anne, we investigated stage combat. A few things to keep in mind - Regarde, momentum, appelle (call), machinery (technique), weight, interior calm. We explored 3 different ways of hitting:
- Clap from both sides: victim holds out hand, aggressor hits the hand instead of the face
- Clap from victim: aggressor swings, victim claps, then holds face
- Clap from aggressor: aggressor holds victims face with hand, aggressor slaps hand
As for reaction, we also explored 3:
- After slap, return and put hand on face at the same time
- After slap, put hand on face, then return
- After slap, return, then put hand on face

With Yasuyo, we took another look at larval masks in two scenes. The first scene had two masks enter with some tools to paint a wall. Some things to note are the casting of two masks, arranging of the tools for the best play, holding the form of the mask as much as possible, thinking about who is higher status (the chef), propositions and reactions to propositions. While we can barely see through the mask, we have to feel our partners and the audience, and sense the timings. The countermask sometimes arrives during an event, and we have to find the angle of the mask that best gives that. The second scene (I did not completely understand) was 3 people at someone else's house. This quickly turned into a burglary with 3 people entering through the window (even though we were on the first floor). We shouldn't forget that we're professionals, and the one thing that worked was a small hitch when Justina was holding up the window while flying outside (or balanced on a ladder), Xiao figured it out by placing an item to hold the window since she was way too hunched to help with holding it up. When the event happens that the owner of the house is about the appear, the masks can play with a frenzy that acknowledges their form. It does us no good to run around like headless chickens. How do we hide ourselves in the masks?

Wednesday:

With Anne, we revisited fight choreography. This time, with punches and the hook, the uppercut, and even the punch to the gut. We always have to be sensitive to where the audience sees us, how we can hide the way we make the sound. By the end of the class, there were a lot of red chests from beating themselves a little too enthusiastically.

Eric came down hard on us today in improv. The setting was a bureau, and two co-workers enter. When is it? What's the situation? What's the relationship? It's better if we nail down a few things before improvising the rest. I enter and show the mask. What are you doing?? I'm opening the mask to the space. That's technique! The mask needs to see the space, that's for sure, but what's his motor? What does he feel seeing the space? If he has a reaction, give the reaction to the public. Seeing the space with the mask is not the same as giving the public the mask's reaction. I sit down and begin typing. Eric takes away the monitor. I pick up a piece of envelope and a pair of scissors, so I cut the envelope. Why are you cutting in the office, also cutting an envelope?? We need to play with real props, we need to have real intentions. Go back and re-enter, it's better if you bring something with you. I come in and head for my desk, then arranging the envelopes in my hand, counting them. I slump my shoulders and share my reaction, it's going to be a long day. Xiao enters, I look at her, and she runs back out of the scene. She re-enters, I see her and go right back to my desk. React!! What is your relationship? I look up and attempt to be stern, I am the boss. I go over and give her some envelopes to work on, and return. You speak too much. I'm speaking too much. Not enough internal drive of the mask. The movements are too technical and too empty! I look over at Xiao as she enters, she's beautiful - what is the timing of the mask! You can change your speed of looking. Play! She's beautiful, I glance slowly over, tense my shoulders, and look back at the audience. I hold up the envelopes - hold it closer! - I clench the envelopes and look over at her. I step through the space tentatively - interesting that you wade through the empty space - and land next to Xiao. She senses me and looks up at the audience, then me, I tense my shoulders again, she looked at me! I share it with the audience. Well don't look at us for 15 years! I look back at her and pass her the envelopes, we have a lot to do. She begins highlighting my papers. Oh no! My work is horrible! I start cringing, to the delight of the audience. I start bowing, even more delight. Vous avez sentir?

Everything in mask is done with an intention. We have an intention towards the space as we arrive, perhaps a little emotion. If we work with the props, they need to make sense, and we need to express how we feel about it. Share with audience! Someone else arrives and we react to them. What is our relationship? They react to us and then we react to that reaction. The game arrives. The mask feels, has emotions, is driven by passion. We have to feel something about everything. That gives us a drive to play. Motor de jeu.

Pierre, Majd, Morteza. There's too much fucking testosterone in my autocour group.

Thursday:

In movement with Eric, we rediscovered shovelling, raking, chopping wood, and a bonus: cutting grass with a sickle. With the movement of the shovelling, we let go of the object and focused on the circular movements. We plant ourselves, add a foot, bring it up from the ground, take a momentum and swing it to one side. What word arrives? Adding dialogue in with the movement creates the most believable scenes with the actors throwing their energy out, then justifying it with words. Bridget had a moment where she inserted a finger and paused Joon's movements on a counter time, and said, 'I said no shouting!' Massive laughter. This is exactly the timing of how we block swings. Same thing for raking, except we're bringing in stuff, so perhaps money? We practiced breath with the sickle work:
- Breathe in while cutting, then breathe out while releasing grass
- Breathe out while cutting, then breathe in while releasing grass
- Breathe in, then cut, then release grass, then breathe out
- Sharp accent on breathing in while cutting, same while releasing grass
- And when the words arrive, we can place them before the action, during, or after
Then we got into a grand circle, synchronised our timings for chopping wood, and then summoned the ghosts of lecoq past with the chant:
'La vie, la mort, et moi'

Paola's scene with the expressive masks was intricate today. A clerk is working in the post office. A client arrives. They see each other and it's love at first sight. The client leaves. The clerk follows the client out. They re-enter into the city - it is a new scene with the abstraction of the table. I sat out this one. Plenty of notes:
- Enter with a game (show why you left and are entering) Did you arrive in the morning? Just came back from the loo? The photocopy machine?
- Articulate the movements. Look at the backpack you're unclipping. Take it off, look at the hanger, turn fully and face the hanger, place bag on hanger, look at the desk, go to desk
- Find a way to show the mask to the audience. Find the line of horizontality of the mask. See the space with the mask. (Not necessarily look at the public)
- Action, reaction. Je m'assois. Je réagis. I stamp some letters, I react. I do some work, I feel good about it. I finish some letters, I'm tired, the day is almost over. I clean my desk, I feel proud.
- Time the entry of the second mask. Also, see the space with the mask.
- The time for seeing each other is longer. Also, ouvrir. I'm not entirely sure if the opening is useful for most meeting of masks, or just specifically for this theme, which is love.
- Ivet says she was feeling in love, and that's why her body was showing being in love. That makes sense.
- There are also countless expressions that the mask can play at each angle, we're barely scratching the surface on understanding the expressions that can be played within a situation.


Friday:

Acrobatics continue its work on us. Today we managed to do forward flips with aid, and also a forward flip to land on a bench, and back.

Second week of mask autocour was quite catastrophic, and not one team with a pas mal. Well, for my team, we got a 'Bien! On commence a voir le temps des masques...' Don't compliment us too much. I'm drowning in my ego here. Our situation was prison break, which was great because of the lack of speech needed, and heightened enough stakes for our characters to play. This week's takeaway surprisingly came from a discussion within our autocour group: The time of the mask is never natural, it's either slower or faster. When the mask reacts, and shares it with the audience, the time is generally slower. Or even an action that the mask wants to specify, or zoom in, and share with the audience, the time is slower. When the mask does take some action, the time can be quicker. Or even an enchainment of action and reactions, the time is physical and felt, and less psychological. And that's how we play, slower, faster, zoom out, zoom in.

That's my working theory of the time of the masks.