Concrete experience
“Doing or having an experience.”
In September of this year I was told that I would be the sign language performer (signer) for the blue fairy in this year’s Christmas show which is Pinocchio. As we are an inclusive theatre company it is important to us that everyone can enjoy our shows. So with the main show of the year individuals are assigned to different characters groups and different characters to sign. This year I passed my British Sign Language level one which has come to be an enormous advantage for me. Every week for approx 2 hours I meet with Charlotte (who is the signing “coach”) who goes through the script and creates the sign language needed for the lines. Each week we will meet and start from the beginning.
Other signers may be in the session alongside me which is great as we can practice our signing on each other. However, signing can be very difficult. Recently I have been in a rehearsal with the blue fairy and the Pinocchio signer. Being placed and learning cues as well as trying to get the signing timing correct with the script she is reading. I have found the song the most difficult part of this. It is challenging having to mouth the words but actually signing something that may be different to what you are saying. It has always been tricky learning the signs for words that you have to sign whilst she is speaking but the actual signs and words are different to those being spoken.
“You must go back now. Back to your father with your gold coins. But learn your lessons well young Pinocchio and heed this advice. You are lucky to have someone who loves you as well as your father.”
This will then become in sign language:
Go now father with gold coins. But hope you learn good. Listen and help. He’s lucky have someone love him same as father.
Although it seems shorter getting your hands into the signs whilst signing the words can take just as long as saying the whole piece of script. I was concerned for myself that I wouldn’t learn the signing in time for the next rehearsals.
In this Christmas show I am also in the character group “puppets” our physicality is very doll like and I was informed by Charlotte that she would like to see some of that physicality come through when getting into position for signing and even if possible when we are signing without it being too distracting to watch. So this was another layer to add on. Keep it puppet like but not so much that is distracting that the signing is not coming across for people to read.
This year I have an understudy for my part as the signer. I have taken it upon myself to help and guide her through this process and make sure she knows exactly what she is doing when she is supposed to be doing it. My teaching skills need to get better throughout this process as we go into more difficult pieces of text for signing I need to be within myself more patient and improve at delivering information.
Reflective observation
“Concerned with reviewing the event or experience in your mind and exploring what you did and how you and others felt about it.”
Taking on my signing I attended the children’s rehearsals with the blue fairy and the blue fairy rehearsals where she is just with directors. That was helpful to me to watch her to understand how she is going to portray the character and what characteristics she is going to have. I needed to work on my physicality as her signer as deaf people will associate me to her. Being in the children’s rehearsals helped me learn the lyrics alongside the children when they were being taught and then slowly merge in the signing to the song as we went over it more and more. From attending these rehearsals I gained much more knowledge then I had even hoped for concerning the feeling that the group were giving off to the audience.
As a performer you have to incorporate signing as movement. Even though it’s a language it’s a very physical exaggerated form of communication and from being in those different rehearsals it influenced me in all these areas. I was also concerned in terms of memory if I would be able to sign without my script in front of me whilst the actress spoke her lines. Throwing myself in at the deep end was the best method for me. I wasn’t totally 100% clear of everything but I was willing to challenge myself and see what happened. As it turned out from being in her rehearsal and actually having Pinocchio’s signer present it helped me a lot in terms of remembering the signs and bouncing off their reactions, all in all piecing together my performance.
Taking the time with my understudy I have started to teach her the signing for act 1, I do not want to drown her with information as I have had a fair amount of time to learn my signing I want her to do it in little bits so she feels comfortable the whole way through. I realize the responsibility I have to teach her what she needs to know. I need to add in times where I can be available to her and still keep on track with my own work. Doing so is difficult but worth it and I know she benefits from it 100% and that’s part of chicken sheds ethos, its about the process as much as the initial performance.
I have puppet rehearsals twice a week and this process has been physically demanding although I thoroughly enjoy it. I can take aspects of my work through these rehearsals and incorporate that with my signing, for example the way I walk on stage as a puppet I can use when I’m walking on in a different scene when I am signing.
Abstract conceptualisation
Concluding and learning from the experience, seeking more information and experience and forming new ideas for the future.
I am constantly seeking to find new and more information for my performance and signing within Pinocchio. I have watched the Disney film twice over now to make myself more familiar with it, although Chicken Sheds interpretation is completely different to that of Disney’s it was important for me to re visit this. From being a child and being so excited about the story I wanted to go back and find that excitement and love for the story to interlink that to me actually being in the story now. I have learned from attending all the rehearsals I was called to that it is important to familiarize yourself with as much as you can. I need to go above and beyond for myself in order to help others including my understudy. She is taking on information from me and I need to make myself available to that information. I am asking from more experienced staff members for extra time to make sure I have movement right according to what they have choreographed, and finding time with charlotte for 10 minutes and there to go over signs I may be unsure of that will help me piece together the whole sentence or lyric.
Active experimental/observation
“Concerned with trying out the new ideas as a result of the learning from earlier experience and reflection”
From trying out all these different ideas and learning from the new experiences I have gathered along the way that I have learned in terms of signing that practice makes perfect. Practice, practice and practice some more. Reflecting on my performance I now see how I can make it better using the KOLB cycle.
The more you go over it the more you get in your head and you become comfortable with it and then eventually become more relaxed, and learn to go with it and enjoy it. I believe I need to trust myself more and know that I am capable of achieving highly if I put my head down and knuckle down with the work put to me. I now split lunch breaks in two. I don’t need an hour to eat I need 30 minutes or so and the other half of that can go into learning moves and practicing my signing ready for the next rehearsal; I have observed in myself that I need to prepare more for a rehearsal, in terms of mentally realizing the activity ahead of me and stimulating others, whether that be a warm up or telling other members of the group what is going to be done. I do this now but I feel that I can better at it by going that extra mile. I found that from doing this I mentally prepare my brain to act almost like a sponge, I seem to absorb movement much quicker rather than walking straight into a rehearsal with no preparation, I have found that other members of the character group benefit from this.
This goes for my signing as well, finding 15 minutes before a rehearsal to go over what I have learned previously and making sure I am ready and confident but what I had been doing was just going straight into those rehearsals. I had to go back to basics in order to allow myself to go forward, and in doing so I am benefiting the company on a whole by saving them time and actually saving money. If I soak up the information I can go then to teach my understudy instead of calling in the signing coach who Chicken Shed pay for.
I will take this as a learning curve and continue to do so. However I have learned that this cycle and carry on and never stop because there is always room for improvement and as a performer even when you think something may be perfect you can never get complacent with the task ahead of you or your performance and the process to that performance will suffer.
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