Wednesday, February 6, 2008

Polonius--cast a character


Ian Holm as Polonius in the Mel Gibson version

Think of yourself as the director of a scene from Act 1 in Hamlet.. As the director of the play/movie, you need to have a clear, developed, complete concept of your vision of the play. A director’s vision of a play should all work together: the music should echo the set, and the costumes. You may find it useful to base your concept of the play around a singular theme that you want to reinforce through set, costumes, sound, and delivery.

You need to post your answers in the comments stream by Monday, February 11th at 4:00p.m. to the following questions. Each question will take at least one well formed paragraph or more and need to be backed up with evidence from the scene. (50 points)
  • How would your set for the stage look and be arranged? Why? Consider colors, lighting, scale, texture, and layout.
  • What would the character's costume look like? Why? Consider colors, fit, style, time period, and texture.
  • What sorts of sound effects or music would you use in the production? Why? Consider time period, volume, and genre.
  • How would the character deliver his lines? Why? What does this show us about your character?

Answering the “why” part of each of the above questions is the most difficult part of this assignment, but it is also the portion that allows the most leeway. Fell free to hyperlink to any material online that is appropriate.

Remember: your goal is to develop or create a character's personality by providing information about the character and how he or she should act, look, and sound.

POST HERE IF YOU ARE WRITING ABOUT POLONIUS (ANY CLASS)

2 comments:

Unknown said...

• How would you’re set for the stage look and be arranged? Why? Consider colors, lighting, scale, texture, and layout.
The stage would be a paradox where it is bright enough for a person to see but be also dark because of the time the play takes place, which the medieval times that are known to be dark because of the violence. The stage would be inside a castle with medieval layouts such as large columns surrounding the passage ways, giant robs cover the windows, huge dinning tables where the kings and other officers sit while eating and baroque architecture on the walls and also with some classical architecture.
• What would the character's costume look like? Why? Consider colors, fit, style, time period, and texture.
The character’s costumes would be the cloths that the aristocrats and nobles used to wear during the medieval times because Polonius is the father of Ophelia and usually in Shakespeare’s plays lovers are in the same class of society and since Hamlet is a prince and he loves Ophelia and she loves him it means that they are in the same class which is the upper class of their society thus if Ophelia is in the upper class her father Polonius is also in the upper class and in history the upper class is made up of aristocrats, and nobles and Polonius is one of them, it means his costume will look like of aristocrats and nobles.
• What sorts of sound effects or music would you use in the production? Why? Consider time period, volume, and genre.
The sort of sound effect or music that I would use would be music from the medieval times because that the time the play takes time and in the music would be classical music and it would feel real like its being played live old classical instruments and not the advanced ones of today and using this sort of music makes it it feel like one was there when the play was taking place.
• How would the character deliver his lines? Why? What does this show us about your character
The character would deliver his lines in a questioning tone and yet in his lines he will have more than one meaning, for example he might ask question about hamlet and Ophelia relationship and one might think that Polonius is just protective of Ophelia because he wants to know about her relationship with Hamlet, yet at the same time he is just trying to stop their relationship because he does not like hamlet and he thinks his daughter is worth more.

R. Gallagher said...

It is the day after the assignment was due...I'm making a note for myself.