9am – 1pm
Drama Centre Black Box (DCBB)
In view of the limited time they had with the space, the collaborators wasted little time with the briefing before dispersing, hence a more sequential rehearsal without much discussion / explanations in between:
- They had until 10am to warm-up, develop either their duets or solos, before regrouping to review each other’s solos.
o Syimah and Xiao Jun’s duet needed to be refined to satisfy the musicality further.
- Daryl was present
o He was unsure or what to do / How to plan as it was his first time being involved in a project in this format.
o He was still unsure how the filming process will be, which was something he wanted to communicate with Hafiz about.
o He planned the lighting (based on what he knows), and to set booms in the diagonals to aid the dancers and filming process.
- Hafiz was present
o He shared suggestions and his plans for the shot, angles and cues + props to use.
o Haizad went through the filming angles & planned overlays
o Set the camera position for the wide angle shot
§ Unable to see the corners of the square, had the option to either shift the square or the camera
§ Decided to adjust the square into a trapezium, making it look like a square through the camera (similar to the 3D street art illusion)
o Deciding on the angles, trying out with the dancers in space
- The dancers went through / refined their duets.
- Sharul shared the elements of his solo / creative process:
o Tepak sireh
§ Welcoming death / death is coming despite anxiety
§ What are we leaving / what is left
§ Becomes a pillow at the end
o Batik
§ Belonged to late grandmother
§ Symbolised he process / what she went through
§ Will stand up behind it before lying down with it at the end of the solo
o Photo/s
§ Memories of late grandmother / Late grandmother’s memories
§ Slowly letting go; of me, of them
§ Not documented, forgotten
o “Sampaikan salam.” Arrival
o Lights signify / indicate the burial space
o To invite death, unravel the memories
o To look at life in a larger picture / scheme
(Was he sharing his creative process as his solo pertains to documenting / desire to document, and sharing it with me as a commentary + assurance of its documentation?)
- The dancers then brought in their props into the space.
- Went through the prologue / timelapse, taping of boundaries.
- Went through music cues with Adi.
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The dancers then came together to try out the solos, and for Hafiz and Daryl to visualise the recording process:
- Haizad
o Walks straight towards camera
o Wearing shades
o Some close-ups and cutaways
- Syimah
o Shared her plans for the lighting (should she have discussed beforehand?)
o Comprised of 5 shots
o If possible, wanted to drench herself during the solo
- Xiao Jun
o Start out of frame
o Can see the behind-the-scenes as she walks to her starting position
- Sharul
o Usage of props, cutaway shots to highlight
o Went through what he envisioned for the lighting cues
o Movements include a mix of traditional and contemporary
o Had more planned lights and plotting in the space
- Thoughts and observations:
o The dancers had to memorise their seating positions before the cut to ensure continuity
o Documentation is a challenge when solos were not performed / complete
§ Many shots involved
§ Focused more on the lighting and blocking
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They then continued refining some parts of the overall show:
- Duets
o To remove their shoes before entering the space
o Haizad and Sharul’s had more focus on connection and tension
- Song 6
o Acts of isolation
o Ensure to show suffering in the plank
o Planned the placement of each station, and to bring personal make-up
- Umbrella segment
o Smaller space due to the trapezium
o Tried each choreography set with the music
o Adjusted some positions to the space and props
- Song 8 / Curtain Call
o Shifted into post-credits, where they will remove tape and props
o Clarified the sequence
- Syimah and Xiao Jun’s duet
o Went through blocking & shots with Hafiz
- Went through camera angles for Haizad and Sharul’s duet.
- Tried 2 of the Umbrella segment songs with props, full out to try the space with props
o Wanted to feature the artist (Aizat) getting caught with drugs
o Adjusting blocking for camera angles
(There was a moment of confusion on who “boys” were referring to)
o (The importance of balance between being familiar with steps / movement & over-rehearsing
- The remaining time was used to iron out the last few things / clarifications.
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Thoughts and observations from rehearsal:
- Communication among each collaborator was very crucial to ensure everyone was on the same page and clear with what was happening.
o Helped each other clarify the sequence of recording + positioning
o Tapped into previous experiences in other roles to share / bounce off ideas
- Would it have been more streamlined if the shots were set prior, and going through only the blocking once in the space?
- There were many discussions happening concurrently in the space (hence the difference in documentation format)
- At this late stage of the process, to what extent can the changes be recalled / retained?
- Would the process be smoother / more streamlined with a Production Manager to plan out a schedule according to item and recording?
- Stage crew were listening / singing / humming along
o They might have a relationship with some of the songs used
- Dancers shared they were more nervous for the filming than for a live show
o Though all agreed that a post-show dialogue is “still worse”
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There was not much left to debrief, except prepare for the recording.