By Daniel Buckland level 3
North Kent college: Miskin
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Instillation project
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The instillation project
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The christmas show
The dance show
TIE and level 2 show
The dance show 2
Moving props
Today I moved some props to the props store which I carried in a box and in the box were the 2 heavy books I got out in the past to help weigh down the glue on my gravestone, a tray, golden Champaign glasses, some other golden props and some protest signs. Then I put them all back where I thought they would go like the tray with other trays already in the prop store. Then I grabbed black metalic paint that I painted onto the handle of the prop detonator that is going to be used in the dance show. Then I painted the base of my gravestone grey, and I painted the sides of the base too. Then I got a thin small paintbrush and some metalic black paint to paint into the engraving gaps. When doing this some of the gap I engraved were really small, so I struggled to fit the paintbrush in and some of the engravings were melted really deep and because of it being hard to paint the in the engravings the paintbrush slipped out and onto the flat surface of my gravestone so I covered it up by making a rough looking outline on all of the engravings. First, I painted the letters, then the numbers, then the skull, the top swirls and then the bottom two swirls. If I was to make a gravestone again, I would melt the polystyrene to be wider and less deep. Then I used a mixture of black paint and water to put a black wash over mt gravestone to make it look older which I let drip and painted it in multiple different directions also I added the wash to the base too. The black wash was really effective because it made the engravings more visible, it made the gravestone look more textured, and it made the gravestones look old.
Places I put props back
The detonator handle I painted
Painting my gravestone
After painting base and painting engravings
After black wash added
Helping construction
Today I was helping construction and first me and someone else moved a box with curtains in into the corridor so that they were out of the way to grab the stairs and then I moved another box with curtains in with someone else. Then I helped carry a set of stairs off of a trolley and onto the floor. Then while wearing steel capped boots to protect my feet I moved a trolley with poles into out of the auditorium and round to the outside of the workshop where some of the poles where kept. Then I moved the poles from the trolley to lean against the other poles in a rough size order without measuring it. Then I moved the trolley to near the workshop entrance where I moved things like packing plates and strops into it’s correct place in the workshop. Then I moved some items that were in front of the put away seating bank that needed to come out and then I grabbed a broom and I swept away some of the dirt and tape on the floor in front of the seating bank. After the seating bank was out, I moved a railing and then I attached it to the side of the seating bank by slotting it into a gap and then I repeated this with a couple of railings. Then I moved my gravestone from the workshop to design to add vines to it, so I looked through the pile of vines until I found one, I liked and the I pinned the leaves to my gravestone in a couple of places and then I hot glued the underneath of the leaves I pinned. Then I got green paint, and I covered the pins with it so that they weren’t visible from the audience or too shiny. Then I helped construction again by removing curtains from a dance studio which I did by pressing down a lever that opened up a gap to remove one of the clips off of the pole which had to be done to multiple clips to remove the curtains. After folding the curtain, I carried it to the auditorium where I helped someone clip the curtain to some rope by carrying the weight of the curtain and pulling down the rope so that the other person could attach the clip easier.
The seating bank
One of the railings that I moved and attached
Adding vines to my gravestone
Front of gravestone with vines
Back of gravestone with vines
Curtains
Folded curtain after moved
Clip used on rope
Curtain attached to rope
Adding tape for the dance show
Today I was in the auditorium making it safe for the dancers by adding white gaffer tape and glow tape so while someone else put down the white gaffer tape I put down the glow tape and first I cut small pieces of glow tape across white gaffer tape behind the curtains to create a walkway for the dancers to walk between so they don’t bash into any lights or wire. Then I put glow tape across the stairs behind the stage and in front of the stage. Then I helped construction move long metal frame of metal which I think are called tulls from outside near the auditorium to outside round the back of the workshop. After going back and forth a couple of times we leaned them against a fence and then we put a chain around them with a padlock. Then I moved a railing from the same place to round the back of the workshop but with the other railing. Then I went into the workshop where I helped look for a long piece of wood to go around the edge of the raised stage deck, but we couldn’t find any, so I helped pull out a large piece of wood with some others and then we needed to cut it. One person was pushing the wood through the machine with safety goggles and ear protectors while another person held onto the side of the wood as it was going through the machine and I was holding onto the wood at the end while gently moving it through the machine and then I grabbed the newly chopped wood piece and put it onto the floor and then I moved the wood forward again to cut the next piece of wood. Then I moved 3 long pieces of red curtains from in the corridor to in the auditorium one by one after I folded them up. Then while the wood was being attached to the side of the raised stage deck, I was adding a curtain to the piece of wood that was already up which I did with fishing wire. After I grabbed the fishing wire, I stood something so that I could see the knot I was tying and so that I didn’t need to stretch my arms up. While I was tying a knot with fishing wire to give the curtain some swag someone else was holding up the weight of the curtain so that I could tie the knot easier. I tied the knot by wrapping the fishing wire around the wood and then I pulled the wire tight, so the curtain went up higher and then I tied multiple knots on top of each other until it was tight enough for the curtain to not fall back onto the floor and then I used scissors to cut the fishing wire from the roll of it. I struggled with this because I kept on not pulling the wire tight enough so the curtain was too low, or I would accidentally let go of the wire while tying the knot. I did manage to tie a knot with the fishing wire to create two swags and then to be quicker I swapped what I was doing with the person that was holding the weight of the curtain.
Stairs behind the stage with gaffer and glow tape on
Tape behind curtain
Helping construction
Metal frames locked to fence
Getting and cutting wood
Machine that was used
Piece of wood cut from
Wood that was cut
Putting up red curtains
Pile of curtains after moved
Fishing wire around curtain close up
Some of the curtain swags we put up
Helping construction
Today I was helping construction and first me and someone else moved a box with curtains in into the corridor so that they were out of the way to grab the stairs and then I moved another box with curtains in with someone else. Then I helped carry a set of stairs off of a trolley and onto the floor. Then while wearing steel capped boots to protect my feet I moved a trolley with poles into out of the auditorium and round to the outside of the workshop where some of the poles where kept. Then I moved the poles from the trolley to lean against the other poles in a rough size order without measuring it. Then I moved the trolley to near the workshop entrance where I moved things like packing plates and strops into it’s correct place in the workshop. Then I moved some items that were in front of the put away seating bank that needed to come out and then I grabbed a broom and I swept away some of the dirt and tape on the floor in front of the seating bank. After the seating bank was out, I moved a railing and then I attached it to the side of the seating bank by slotting it into a gap and then I repeated this with a couple of railings. Then I moved my gravestone from the workshop to design to add vines to it, so I looked through the pile of vines until I found one, I liked and the I pinned the leaves to my gravestone in a couple of places and then I hot glued the underneath of the leaves I pinned. Then I got green paint, and I covered the pins with it so that they weren’t visible from the audience or too shiny. Then I helped construction again by removing curtains from a dance studio which I did by pressing down a lever that opened up a gap to remove one of the clips off of the pole which had to be done to multiple clips to remove the curtains. After folding the curtain, I carried it to the auditorium where I helped someone clip the curtain to some rope by carrying the weight of the curtain and pulling down the rope so that the other person could attach the clip easier.
The seating bank
One of the railings that I moved and attached
Adding vines to my gravestone
Front of gravestone with vines
Back of gravestone with vines
Curtains
Folded curtain after moved
Clip used on rope
Curtain attached to rope
Keeping the floor clean
Today I grabbed a large broom, and I swept up in the auditorium because some of the dancers were going to be bare footed on the floor. So, I swept the floor and left underneath the stage decks to someone that had a smaller broom. Then I grabbed a dustpan and brush and I put the pile of dirt I made on the floor into the bin and then I put the dirt piles that other people had made with the smaller brooms into the bin. Then I went looking around the floor picking up any bits of tape that wasn’t meant to be there. Then I got white gaffer tape and glow tape and I put white gaffer tape over the wires then I put small bits of glow tape on top and then I looked around to see if I could spot any dangers that I could mark out and I did spot and mark some. I put some white gaffer tape around a stage deck in storage in the dock near the stairs, glow tape up some of the stage deck in the dock, glow tape across the sides of the stair railings glow tape under the stage deck so no one bumps their head and also other people put foam tubes of the poles that I added glow tape onto.
White gaffer and glow tape
Some of the things I taped with gaffer and glow tape
A chorus Line research
Then I did some research about the musical A Chorus Line because one of the songs in the musical is being used in the dance show A Chorus Line was first performed at the Shurbert Theatre on Broadway on the 25th of July in 1975 also it was directed by Michael Bennett and choreographed by Bob Avian. I found out that the play was about people who wanted to be dancers and how their life events and decisions shaped their lives into becoming dancers. I also read that the play shows 17 dancer's personalities and dance auditions. This musical was also turned into an American film in 1985. Then I did some research on a musical called Chicago which is about 2 women who committed murder and waiting for trial for a life behind bars or set free from the corrupt justice system. This play is based off of a true story and a trial in 1924 for Beulah Annan and Belva Gaertner was the inspiration. At the time women killing their lovers was a trending interest from newspapers and thought that the people needed more than an article to read. Also, for Chicago Bob Fosse trademarked dance moves including turned in knees, sideways shuffling and jazz hands. I also did some more research on the Addams family by watching the animated film because one of the songs in the dance is from the Addams family and I had never seen it before only heard a few things like it being a creepy family and having a popular Netflix series about the family member Wednesday. Using the classic creepy things like Frankenstein’s monster, pale skin colour black hair and turning them into a misunderstood main character is a creative twist on classic things that most people know about. Overall, I liked the film.
A Chorus Line musical Research
A Chorus Line film research
Image found online of 1985 film cover
Image found online of the musical
Chicago research
Chicago musical research
Image found online of Chicago musical
Watching The Addams family
Image found online of film cover
Weekly evaluation 2
This week I moved props from design into the props store, painted a prop explosive detonator handle, painted my gravestone grey, painted black onto engravings, added a black wash to my gravestone, moved box of curtains, moved trolley with poles in and put back the poles, moved things in front of seating bank, swept in front of seating bank, moved and attached railings to the sides of the seating bank, attached vines to my gravestone, moved curtains, attached curtains to a rope, added glow tape and white gaffer tape to the auditorium, moved railings and metal frames to a fence and lock it, grabbed and help cut wood, put up red curtains with fishing wire, I swept up in auditorium, picked up tape from floor which was rubbish and then I added some more glow tape and white gaffer tape. I solved the problem of the auditorium not being safe for the dancers and I made injuries less likely to happen by adding white gaffer tape and glow tape to anything which a dancer could bang into in the dark. I added white gaffer or glow tape or both to wires, foam tubes on poles, poles, stage deck being stored in dock, underneath the stage deck so you don't bang your head and I also checked to see if all of the steps had glow tape across them on white gaffer tape. The auditorium being safe is very important and the floor needs to be swept too because some of the dancers dance in their bare feet. I have improved on my knowledge of how to attach the railings after the seating bank has come out in the auditorium. The railings are moved from where they are stored and then they slot into 2 holes on the edge. I thought that the railings were screwed in, or they came out with the seating bank, but I never really thought about how the railings were attached to the seating bank before. Now that I know this I can help attach or de attach the railing for the seating bank to come out or go in. I can improve on my knot tying skills with fishing wire because I struggled to tie a knot with it to create a swag for the red curtain which was annoying. Another person was also holding the weight of the curtains up, so I didn’t need to hold it while tying the knot. I managed to tie 2 successful knots with the fishing wire to 2 swags, but I was too slow, so I swapped with someone else, and I held up the curtain instead. Tying knots fishing wire is going to be used at some point in my future again for curtains or props like the sea creatures that were tied onto a black stick with fishing wire used in Pinocchio. This week I have researched about musicals that have one of their songs in the dance show which include A Chorus Line and Chicago. I had never heard of A Chorus Line before but before I did the research, I knew that Chicago was a big musical in Broadway and the word Chicago was red with lights in. I also did some more research into the addams family by watching the animated Addams Family film to learn more about the characters and story.