Sunday 2 June 2019

Theseus and the Minotaur/The Odyssey- Week Four: 'Mount Olympus/The Isle of the Cyclops.'


It's the end of half term this week and while the post-holiday blues might be setting in, our Chameleons were certainly having a blast in yesterdays rehearsals...so perhaps the end of the holidays weren't so bad? Four weeks into our Ancient Greece themed term and both productions are in full-swing, with our Chameleons this week visiting Mt Olympus, watching Theseus set sail towards his destined battle, hiding inside a wooden horse and visiting the isle of the cyclops. You know, just a typical Saturday.


We tasked our Chameleons with the goal of creating a moving, noise-making monster to warm up before we got to work on the play. The emphasis on this activity was getting the group to communicate with each other and support one another's ideas. Teamwork is a large part of the art with Anthos Arts and so like to encourage the Chameleons to develop cohesive attitudes towards working in groups. The group was split into two, with one group creating a potato dragon and the other creating a monstrous feline.


For this week's rehearsal we split our cast into two groups. One group focused on developing the character of Theseus, working on the initial scenes where our hero decides to fight for his people and make a stand against the Minotaur. We meet some of the colourful characters from Athens who support him, such as King Ageus and Captain Actor. Every story is only as good as it's beginning, middle and end, so we wanted to make sure Theseus got off to a strong start.


The rest of our cast focused on Mt Olympus and the gods who live there. Athena's story runs parallel to that of Theseus and Ariadne as the third major plot thread of the show. This week we looked at her rivalry with Poseidon, her friendship with Hermes and her interactions with Zeus, as she attempts desperately to provide Theseus with some help on his journey.


In the world of the Odyssey (and the afternoon group) our Chameleons looked at how different characters could be portrayed on stage. The emphasis here was on thinking about how a character might move and appear in front of an audience to let them know what type of character they were. Some very amusing interactions came from this one.


This week we looked at the Trojan Horse and staged the famous moments where Odysseus and friends use it to win the war. Following that we looked at creating a massive storm, courtesy of Poseidon, and had a good deal of fun playing around with our 'ocean.' Physical sequences like this are some of our favourites as they are a great deal of fun to make.


Following the storm, Odysseus and crew end up on an island where they meet the cyclops. In the absence of a full and present cast we plotted out this scene, injecting action and humour into the Chameleons adaptation. Of particular hilarity were the giant sheep, aptly and humorously portrayed by our Chorus. The group have taken really well to their characters for The Odyssey and it's really great to watch a scene come together with the personalities they portray.


And so, rehearsals continue. Next week is the halfway point of the term! There will be cake and fancy dress to celebrate...and more heroes, gods and monsters for sure.








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