Othello

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ADDRESSING THE QUESTION

CONFLICT BETWEEN HERO AND VILLAIN

  • Impact on audience
  • Voice & movement
  • Proxemics
  • Focus warmups/ acting techniques
  • Themes
  • Performance space

CONFLICT HEIGHTENED BY PROPS AND SOUND

  • Themes & symbolism
  • Materials
  • Set
  • Contextualization
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ADDRESSING THE QUESTION

SHIFTING DYNAMICS TO AN AUDIENCE 

  • Exit changes 
  • Voice - pitch, tone, range, volume
  • Proxemics
  • Design elements
  • Themes
  • Rehearsal techniques - emotion memory (Stanislavski)

LIGHTING AND SOUND

  • Acting
  • Atmosphere
  • Theme
  • Style
  • Language
  • Period & genre
  • Contextualization
  • Status
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DEFINITION OF HEROS/ VILLIANS

OTHELLO - 'Valiant Othello' 'My title shall manifest me rightly' 'Moor'

  • The tragic hero in a Renaissance tragedy
  • Virtues carried to excess
  • Loves - "too well"
  • Trusts - "too much"
  • A sense of moral virtue - punishes sins
  • Sensitive nature - vivid fantasies

IAGO - 'Honest Iago' 

  • Villian without conscience 
  • Tempting & controlling
  • Intelligent & cunning
  • Diabolically evil whilst appearing to be honest
  • Reduces human nature to its least attractive traits 
  • Locates weakness within others
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TRAGIC CONVENTIONS

  • Self-centered nature and gullibility - allows himself to be manipulated by Iago instead of his heart
  • The term 'honest' is repeated fifty-two times in the description of the villain, leaving the audience fearful of what danger such a misconception could cause
  • The dramatic irony of the play derives largely from the audience's knowledge of the villain's duplicity and Othello's lack of it
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CONTEXTULIZATION & CONVENTIONS

  • Social impact - racism
  • Cultural - 'Moor'
  • Historical 
  • Contrast renaissance with the modern day 
    • Catholics controlled art & science over EU, it weakened as Renaissance broke through
    • Used greek theatre - Aristotle
    • Catharsis - emotions developed on stage
    • Do not show the act of violence - only the consequence 
  • Fate - jealousy is enhanced  
  • Dramatic irony
  • Foreshadowing
  • Pathetic fallacy
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THEMES & ISSUES

  • Racism - the contemporary audience 
  • Gender
  • Manipulation
  • Love

MAIN THEME is JEALOUSY

  • Jealousy - the audience at that time - fear & ignorance is a factor
  • Leads to Desdemona's death
  • Takes the form of sexual suspicion (Othello & Desdemona)
  • Takes the form of professional competition (Iago & Cassio)
  • 'GREEN EYED MONSTER'  - jealousy 
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THEATRE SPACE

RENAISSANCE THEATRE

  • Trapdoors
  • The 1600s
  • Inner/ upper stage
  • 2,500 capacity
  • 3 galleries of seats
  • Groundlings
  • Intimate atmosphere
  • In the round 
  • The connection between audience & actor - view of Iago's on stage deception

MODERN DAY

  • Minimalistic - emotional connection
  • Influence from Peter Brook
  • No distraction with props
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USE OF LANGUAGE

IAGO

  • switches between verse & prose - shows that there are two sides to him

OTHELLO

  • opening speeches in Act I Scenes 2 and 3 it is clear that Othello’s characteristic idiom is dignified, measured blank verse.
  • This is appropriate, given his status in the play. His use of blank verse also helps establish his heroism
  • 'Well tun'd' with Desdemona - uses rhyme & meter
  • Changes when he starts seeing things through Iago's eyes - begins speaking in prose
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MOTIVATION & JOURNEY

IAGO

  • Tries to deprive Othello of happiness
  • Seeks worst in people
  • Jealous of Othello

OTHELLO

  • First 3 scenes - trying to be a good husband with a good job
  • Hear rumours about his wife and Cassio - fed from Iago
  • Kills Desdemona 
  • Kills himself - guilt 
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PROCESS & REHEARSALS

The Magic 'If'

  • 'What would I do if I found myself in the character's circumstances?' 
  • STANISLAVSKI 
  • 7 stages

COSTUME

  • Rehearse with the period costume on as they will not be distracted
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ARTISTIC CHOICES

LIGHTING

  • MODERN                                               
    • GOBOS - SQUARE
    • GELS - GREEN
    • BIRDIES
    • FRESNEL
    • FLOOD
  • RENAISSANCE 
    • CANDELS 
    • FIRE
    • DAYLIGHT

COSTUME

DESIGN

PROXEMICS

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