Aaron Swiniuch November 27, 2011 Marianne Adams Improv Series Assignment Wicked In theater, actors need to be able

to reach a level of comfort where they can stretch their talents beyond their own comfort zone. They need to be able to think on their feet and create situations/movements in the blink of an eye. Within the show Wicked, actors are asked to travel into a world of mystery and wonder where they must create new personalities and strange characters. By choosing to have the cast improvise what they might do or how they may act, the director is allowing them to explore their limits. For my assignment, I choose five exercises that span from personal relationships to large group dynamics. Wicked, is the forgotten and untold story of the two witches of Oz before the well-known visit of Dorothy Gale. The musical is details the story of two friends and their triumphs and tribulations through the wonderful land of Oz. Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, starts off as a meek young woman only attending school to look after her sister, but in turn is transformed into the evil character many young children fear. Glinda the Good Witch, begins the story as a young girl who always gets what she wants, but by the end realizes that she must give up what she loves the most to make others happy. Both characters encounter many troubles throughout the story like flying monkeys, evil wizards, and a love that only one of them can have. In the end, Elphaba realizes that she has caused too much trouble for

the land of Oz and her friends, so she decides that she must go into hiding. This brings the show to an open, having the whole show happen as a retelling of what once had happened. Exercises 1. In Everyones Life a. One actor is asked to walk onto stage by himself or herself; from here the director will ask them a question from the audience. Questions asked must allow the actor or actress to recall a memory or certain response, in that they can feel an emotion. i. Sample Questions 1. In everyones life theres a moment when they know that they are considered an outsider. What was this moment for you? 2. In everyones life theres a moment when they know that someone has wronged them. What was this moment for you? 3. In everyones life theres a moment when they know they must do things on their own. What was this moment for you? b. I chose this exercise to allow the actors, who play main roles, to tap into their internal memories and emotions. This will allow them to make their performance more real to the audience.

2. Walking In Someones Shoes a. In this activity the whole group will stand and begin to walk around in a circle. As the cast walks around the room, the director will then shout out a group of people for the cast to portray as they walk. If the cast is not familiar with the different groups of people, before the activity the director should describe them. i. Sample Groups: 1. Shiz Students (college/teenagers) 2. Ozian Citizens (regal/rich/whimsical) 3. Witch hunters (malicious/frightening/mob) b. I chose this activity so that the cast could get a feel of how they thought their character should move about the stage, but also so they could see how others moved. This also allows actors to interact with each other as their characters. 3. Circle of Insults a. In this activity, one actor is chosen to stand in the middle of a circle formed by the rest of the cast. As the actor stands in the circle, the rest of the cast begins to yell things at them and criticize them. As the actor begins to feel worse about themself, they must crouch down until they feel they cant move anymore. On the outside of the circle, one other actor is there reciting inspirational lines from the show, set to build the character back up from the low point. As the first selected actor begins to hear the other, they are able to stand up and break out from the group.

i. Selected Person outside Circle (examples) 1. Everyone deserves the chance to fly 2. Nobodys pointing. Nobodys staring. For the first time, Im somewherewhere I belong. 3. Ive had so many friends. But only one mattered. b. This will allow the actress who is chosen to play Elphaba, build her strength up and know how to face all of the hate and discrimination that the character goes through. It also allows the actress to know what it feels like, to be the person who was discriminated against. 4. Modified Pantomime a. In this activity, all actors selected will be given a role based on the characters that the director wants to focus on. The director will begin to give the actors different scenes to create pictures that will show parts of the characters lives that are not shown throughout the musical. i. Sample scenes 1. Nessaroses birth 2. Elphabas mother after she cheated 3. The Wizards arrival b. This exercise will allow the cast to get a look at what may have happened in a characters past, that may have led to how they are in the present day. It allows the cast to see why things happen in characters lives.

5. Setting the Scene a. In this activity, the director picks a certain situation that happened during the show. The actors then reenact what they think happened during the scene that affects the way people think about a character later in the show. i. Sample Scenes 1. Attic scene between Glinda and Elphaba, after the Wizard proclaims that she is evil 2. Glinda and the celebration in Oz 3. Class where Doctor Dillamond flips white board to reveal discriminatory message b. This exercise allows the cast to see how a certain situation could play out and how the scene affected the different characters. Being able to understand how a scene happens and what things are going through certain peoples head at that moment, allows a cast member to really internalize emotions and feelings that need to be amplified.