STATEMENT OF INTENTION
オノ・ヨーコ
BORN: February 18th 1933 (age 80) in Tokyo, Japan
OCCUPATION(S): Artist, Peace Activist, Experimental Musician
INSTRUMENTS: Vocals, Piano
YEARS ACTIVE: 1961-Present
The message, idea and theme I wish to communicate to the audience:
"I see life as the playground of our minds." Yoko Ono (1)
My devised piece is very much a playground of our mind's perception of artist and musician Yoko Ono. I want to portray the theme of "the beauty is in the eye of the beholder", beauty in this case being the art, music and political protests produced by Yoko herself. Being a woman who faces prejudice every day and falsely carrying the blame of the Beatles' break up in 1970, Yoko knows how it feels to be judged in a negative light on a mass scale. It is for this reason I want to focus on the perception of Ono in three different parts: how the world views her, how she views herself and how I view her, explored through various methods and characters.
- Myself
- Interviewer/Reporter
- Yoko Ono
Drama Techniques:
Voice:
I initially planned to limit my use of dialogue in my devised drama, heavily influenced by theatre practitioner Artaud. However, I have decided to include a section in the middle of my piece which is completely verbatim of Yoko herself, an interview constructed by an unknown reporter, giving the audience an insight into the mind of Yoko and deriving features specific to the theatre of reform. Yoko's pitch remains high on the vocal scale, faintly reminiscent of a Japanese anime character. She speaks in a fragmented manner as her English is not as perfect as your usual native tongued citizen, thus having many pauses during her response to the interviewer's questions. Yet she speaks relatively fast, as though she can't keep up with the rate of her thoughts, almost appearing to be frustrated as if she cannot truly convey her inner mind as articulately as desired due to a slight language barrier. Her tone is very soft, emphasizing the femininity of her voice and a steady waver in the inflection. Her accent is not overtly strong but rather peculiar, she is a Japanese born who learnt English in the UK but has spent a great deal of time in the states.
In contrast to Yoko's elegance, the reporter will have harsher tones and maximum projection, representative of the reality of the world. The reporter will speak in a fast pace, almost as if she does not have time to truly listen to Yoko's responses, the reporter has already made her mind up on the kind of person Yoko is. It is ambiguous as to where the reporter has come from, or what nationality she is. The reporter is a pragmatic and a slightly pessimistic take on the voice of humanity.
Body/Movement:
The beginning of my piece features myself being me (narrator inspired), yet I am very conscious of how my body is during the "Cut Piece". As I invite the audience to come up and snip pieces of my clothing, I will remain rigid in posture and still like a statue with a blank facial expression staring into space. Once the Cut Piece is over, I will proceed to slowly clear away the scraps of fabric and the scissors in a ritualistic manner. Then I will undergo a transformation to become Yoko, linked by a non-diegetic recording which contains many negative comments about Yoko circulating the web. As I leave myself to become Yoko, I will build great tension in my body. Anger and vexation will be fueled by the atmospheric sound of the recording, and I will engage in a repetitive movement on the floor which involves my arms rotating in a circular motion whilst crouched in a fetal position. Derived heavily from the Theatre of Cruelty, this movement is symbolic of the cyclic nature of Ono's world - my hands are dragged painfully across the floor (producing an squeaky and unpleasant noise) which refers to the pain and the misunderstanding in Yoko's life. The moment my hands are lifted from the ground denotes to the freedom and happiness Yoko possesses, only for the misunderstandings and pain to quickly return as my hands inevitably slap the ground again. This movement will be repeated several times, energy directed towards the ground and the pathway of my rotational arm movement will be concrete.
Once I have concluded this movement on the ground, I will resume a neutral state to prepare for an interview as Yoko. I will attempt to groom myself and put on a blazer, hat and sunglasses and walk in to the "studio", aware of Yoko's delicate gestures, identical to her mannerisms (verbatim). A form of split stage will be used at this point as I will switch abruptly between Yoko and reporter, two characters that contrast starkly in posture and body awareness. The reporter is confident in almost an arrogant fashion, aware of her successes yet simultaneously unaware of others (imagined proximity from other "actors" would be great in distance, this is faintly suggested as I perform alone). In contrast, Yoko is humble and seems to acknowledge the reporter through her consistent eye contact and ensemble awareness. The reporter will enclose Yoko in the centre of the stage, asking her questions from different viewpoints in the space, creating a circular shape around the chair/Yoko. This shape is a motif throughout, alluding to the imprisonment Yoko feels from the judgements of the world.
The interview will conclude and a single spot light will shine upon the centre of the stage. I will walk around the rim of the light as Yoko, deliberate and purposeful in every step taken with a clear pathway set up. Then I will move into the centre of the spotlight to speak the words, "I dedicate this light tower to John Lennon. My love for you is forever," whilst having my arms spread open as a kinesthetic response to the words I have spoken, as if I am expecting to be consumed by love itself. I will throw my head back and stare directly into the source of light and will freeze.
I will conclude my piece by returning to myself as a narrator figure and will ritualistically retrieve the scissors I had moved to one side of the stage. I will then direct my energy into cutting my own unique piece from my dress, then almost in a threatening/teasing way, push the scissors out to the audience in a Brechtian style to challenge the social and political structure of our world.
Space:
I experiment with levels in my piece - beginning upright and confidently addressing the audience. This confidence is knocked down when the music comes on, it's as if the negative comments are physically bringing me down. I fall to the ground and there is a great contrast in levels to show the effects of mass scale verbal abuse. I don't utilize much of the physical space of the stage but rather stick close to the centre, only venturing out when I am playing the reporter. I gradually enclose the space between the chair (where Yoko sits) and myself as the reporter, yet the space is never broken and a veil of personal space is draped around the chair during the interview. Yoko is lost in her own world and personal space where penetration is nearly impossible, a wall which went up at the death of John Lennon.
Technology:
Music:
I have merged a suspenseful/horrific piece of music with a voice over of myself spitting out comments such as, "She is the dragon lady", "She has no talent", "She's crazy" to create a single mix which evokes a sense of melancholy and anxiety. As the music plays, I will react to the voice overs as though they are voices in my head. Using Brechtian techniques, I will use repetitive jest
Light:
- Natural wash to begin during "Cut Piece" (all over) - audience also partially lit. This is to make the audience feel included, "breaking the fourth wall", they are not just spectators watching a play but they are included in the action.
- As the last person is cutting my dress, recording comes on. As I walk to the side of the stage to put my scissors away, lighting fades to red. The red creates anxiety. I have transformed from myself to Yoko, and she appears to be vulnerable and helpless in the red light. Black out when I begin to stand up
- For interview scene, Central light on with floods (very faint floods), Yoko central to the light. Blackout as interviewer concludes
- Spotlight in the centre of the stage, representative of the "Imagine Peace Tower". Fade to black after dialoge
- Return to natural wash to conclude the piece, then black out
Costume:
I will wear a plain, black dress to begin the performance which will then be cut to shreds by the audience. This symbolic act of deterioration reveals a universal truth about human beings as no one will question the absurdity of my intentions: that we as humans experience injustice every single day yet we let them wash by us in fear of straying from the norm. The audience will awkwardly and uncomfortably watch my dress become ragged, undergoing a mental conflict as to whether they should question the performance or remain quiet and accept the reality of the situation. This act of confronting the audience correlates hand in hand with the theatre of reform: theatre that has the purpose of using drama to change the social/political structure of our world.
For the interview scene I will put on a blazer, hat and glasses to resemble Yoko Ono's signature style, and the modernistic look of our world today. This costume will come off at the conclusion of the interview scene.
BORN: February 18th 1933 (age 80) in Tokyo, Japan
OCCUPATION(S): Artist, Peace Activist, Experimental Musician
INSTRUMENTS: Vocals, Piano
YEARS ACTIVE: 1961-Present
The message, idea and theme I wish to communicate to the audience:
"I see life as the playground of our minds." Yoko Ono (1)
My devised piece is very much a playground of our mind's perception of artist and musician Yoko Ono. I want to portray the theme of "the beauty is in the eye of the beholder", beauty in this case being the art, music and political protests produced by Yoko herself. Being a woman who faces prejudice every day and falsely carrying the blame of the Beatles' break up in 1970, Yoko knows how it feels to be judged in a negative light on a mass scale. It is for this reason I want to focus on the perception of Ono in three different parts: how the world views her, how she views herself and how I view her, explored through various methods and characters.
- Myself
- Interviewer/Reporter
- Yoko Ono
Drama Techniques:
Voice:
I initially planned to limit my use of dialogue in my devised drama, heavily influenced by theatre practitioner Artaud. However, I have decided to include a section in the middle of my piece which is completely verbatim of Yoko herself, an interview constructed by an unknown reporter, giving the audience an insight into the mind of Yoko and deriving features specific to the theatre of reform. Yoko's pitch remains high on the vocal scale, faintly reminiscent of a Japanese anime character. She speaks in a fragmented manner as her English is not as perfect as your usual native tongued citizen, thus having many pauses during her response to the interviewer's questions. Yet she speaks relatively fast, as though she can't keep up with the rate of her thoughts, almost appearing to be frustrated as if she cannot truly convey her inner mind as articulately as desired due to a slight language barrier. Her tone is very soft, emphasizing the femininity of her voice and a steady waver in the inflection. Her accent is not overtly strong but rather peculiar, she is a Japanese born who learnt English in the UK but has spent a great deal of time in the states.
In contrast to Yoko's elegance, the reporter will have harsher tones and maximum projection, representative of the reality of the world. The reporter will speak in a fast pace, almost as if she does not have time to truly listen to Yoko's responses, the reporter has already made her mind up on the kind of person Yoko is. It is ambiguous as to where the reporter has come from, or what nationality she is. The reporter is a pragmatic and a slightly pessimistic take on the voice of humanity.
Body/Movement:
The beginning of my piece features myself being me (narrator inspired), yet I am very conscious of how my body is during the "Cut Piece". As I invite the audience to come up and snip pieces of my clothing, I will remain rigid in posture and still like a statue with a blank facial expression staring into space. Once the Cut Piece is over, I will proceed to slowly clear away the scraps of fabric and the scissors in a ritualistic manner. Then I will undergo a transformation to become Yoko, linked by a non-diegetic recording which contains many negative comments about Yoko circulating the web. As I leave myself to become Yoko, I will build great tension in my body. Anger and vexation will be fueled by the atmospheric sound of the recording, and I will engage in a repetitive movement on the floor which involves my arms rotating in a circular motion whilst crouched in a fetal position. Derived heavily from the Theatre of Cruelty, this movement is symbolic of the cyclic nature of Ono's world - my hands are dragged painfully across the floor (producing an squeaky and unpleasant noise) which refers to the pain and the misunderstanding in Yoko's life. The moment my hands are lifted from the ground denotes to the freedom and happiness Yoko possesses, only for the misunderstandings and pain to quickly return as my hands inevitably slap the ground again. This movement will be repeated several times, energy directed towards the ground and the pathway of my rotational arm movement will be concrete.
Once I have concluded this movement on the ground, I will resume a neutral state to prepare for an interview as Yoko. I will attempt to groom myself and put on a blazer, hat and sunglasses and walk in to the "studio", aware of Yoko's delicate gestures, identical to her mannerisms (verbatim). A form of split stage will be used at this point as I will switch abruptly between Yoko and reporter, two characters that contrast starkly in posture and body awareness. The reporter is confident in almost an arrogant fashion, aware of her successes yet simultaneously unaware of others (imagined proximity from other "actors" would be great in distance, this is faintly suggested as I perform alone). In contrast, Yoko is humble and seems to acknowledge the reporter through her consistent eye contact and ensemble awareness. The reporter will enclose Yoko in the centre of the stage, asking her questions from different viewpoints in the space, creating a circular shape around the chair/Yoko. This shape is a motif throughout, alluding to the imprisonment Yoko feels from the judgements of the world.
The interview will conclude and a single spot light will shine upon the centre of the stage. I will walk around the rim of the light as Yoko, deliberate and purposeful in every step taken with a clear pathway set up. Then I will move into the centre of the spotlight to speak the words, "I dedicate this light tower to John Lennon. My love for you is forever," whilst having my arms spread open as a kinesthetic response to the words I have spoken, as if I am expecting to be consumed by love itself. I will throw my head back and stare directly into the source of light and will freeze.
I will conclude my piece by returning to myself as a narrator figure and will ritualistically retrieve the scissors I had moved to one side of the stage. I will then direct my energy into cutting my own unique piece from my dress, then almost in a threatening/teasing way, push the scissors out to the audience in a Brechtian style to challenge the social and political structure of our world.
Space:
I experiment with levels in my piece - beginning upright and confidently addressing the audience. This confidence is knocked down when the music comes on, it's as if the negative comments are physically bringing me down. I fall to the ground and there is a great contrast in levels to show the effects of mass scale verbal abuse. I don't utilize much of the physical space of the stage but rather stick close to the centre, only venturing out when I am playing the reporter. I gradually enclose the space between the chair (where Yoko sits) and myself as the reporter, yet the space is never broken and a veil of personal space is draped around the chair during the interview. Yoko is lost in her own world and personal space where penetration is nearly impossible, a wall which went up at the death of John Lennon.
Technology:
Music:
I have merged a suspenseful/horrific piece of music with a voice over of myself spitting out comments such as, "She is the dragon lady", "She has no talent", "She's crazy" to create a single mix which evokes a sense of melancholy and anxiety. As the music plays, I will react to the voice overs as though they are voices in my head. Using Brechtian techniques, I will use repetitive jest
Light:
- Natural wash to begin during "Cut Piece" (all over) - audience also partially lit. This is to make the audience feel included, "breaking the fourth wall", they are not just spectators watching a play but they are included in the action.
- As the last person is cutting my dress, recording comes on. As I walk to the side of the stage to put my scissors away, lighting fades to red. The red creates anxiety. I have transformed from myself to Yoko, and she appears to be vulnerable and helpless in the red light. Black out when I begin to stand up
- For interview scene, Central light on with floods (very faint floods), Yoko central to the light. Blackout as interviewer concludes
- Spotlight in the centre of the stage, representative of the "Imagine Peace Tower". Fade to black after dialoge
- Return to natural wash to conclude the piece, then black out
Costume:
I will wear a plain, black dress to begin the performance which will then be cut to shreds by the audience. This symbolic act of deterioration reveals a universal truth about human beings as no one will question the absurdity of my intentions: that we as humans experience injustice every single day yet we let them wash by us in fear of straying from the norm. The audience will awkwardly and uncomfortably watch my dress become ragged, undergoing a mental conflict as to whether they should question the performance or remain quiet and accept the reality of the situation. This act of confronting the audience correlates hand in hand with the theatre of reform: theatre that has the purpose of using drama to change the social/political structure of our world.
For the interview scene I will put on a blazer, hat and glasses to resemble Yoko Ono's signature style, and the modernistic look of our world today. This costume will come off at the conclusion of the interview scene.