QUESTION 2 - DEVISED

SECTION 2 

Our practitioner Kneehigh are heavily influenced by myths and legends of which they base their work off, which usually results in them requiring strong emphasis on visual imagery which is a common method within their company. Other methods they commonly use include live music and puppetry. Their styles include surrealism, grotesque techniques abstract themes, epic theatre and darkness (especially within humour and undertones). They tend to be non-naturalistic as they use puppetry and masks. They do not limit themselves when devising a piece as this can prevent potentially great ideas from being used, I will be taking this idea and using it when doing my devised piece as I personally think it's a great piece of advice. Kneehigh's method of creating a show is vastly different to how the majority of other companies create theirs. They begin with an instinct (stories which emerge) and then they explore their natural environments along with music which are both used to inspire the creators and use them as a 'story telling tool'. They then map out the structure of the piece. 

Kneehigh use a range of styles and methods in their work and I have decided to incorporate some of these styles and methods within my rehearsal process and then hopefully in my final piece. One method that Kneehigh use which I have decided to experiment with in my piece is live music, Kneehigh do this by using instruments and also actor vocalists. In rehearsals I have been playing around with beats and rhythms by using the set and props instead of actual musical instruments. I’ve also experimented with lyrics to fit my piece. Another Kneehigh method is surrealism which is looking at things from different perspectives and stylised which is somewhere between surrealism and naturalism, in rehearsal I have been exploring both surrealism and stylised techniques, I think that the final piece will include a mix of the two styles depending on different parts of the piece. Kneehigh also feature dark humour and dark undertones in their work which I have been automatically doing in rehearsals as the piece has a naturally dark feel to it as the characters seem mentally unstable and unhappy in the place that they’re being kept which is called the ‘Glasshouse’ which has a dark and claustrophobic sounding feel to it. Physical theatre is another key aspect inspired by Kneehigh that I have decided to use but have done so in a slightly unique way using a rope. The rope in the scene represents how the characters are metaphorically and literally trapped in the glasshouse. The way the rope is used is that each character gets ‘tied up’ by the other two, representing the experiment as a whole. Kneehigh also use the unexpected in their work to keep the audience’s mind on its feet and I’ve taken this aspect on board in rehearsals by making the whole piece extremely absurd, especially in terms of character and dialogue.