Task D Inquiry

This task focuses inwards as to how the ideas of reflection relate to my professional practice. By identifying themes, I will be able to reflect on what I am currently utilising and what lines of inquiry will be explored later in the modules. These will be effected by my existing skill set, training and my current professional practice. Reflection is a necessary tool and I cannot judge others effectively if I am unable to understand and identify my own practice.

My relationship with reflection is based in my everyday practice and is built on a professional framework. We cannot move forward if we are not willing to look backwards. My general professional practice is structured to ensure all my commitments are met. I have a comprehensive filing system and will  re-visit my notes with a view to reflection.

I mentor and attend adjudications and research the background of fellow adjudicators as part of my networking. As my intention is to be an external examiner of Speech and Drams I attended drama school to take the examinations I will be grading. I wanted to remind myself how it feels to take examinations.

When I re-visited my blogs, I identified the keys themes as woman's role in society and the performing arts, constructive reflection and professionalism. I thrive on enthusiasm  and there is so much to learn in this creative and inspiring industry that can bring such joy. As a student and a adjudicator I have to allocate time for research. I always enjoy the moment when a theory makes sense. Not because I am told that it does but because I now know that it does.

I keep my professional practice current by reading, writing, researching, acting, attending performances, mentoring adjudications, participating in workshops and working with practitioners.

I have never really understood people who do not like performance and will encourage them to see things that are out of their comfort zone as any reaction is a meaningful reaction. We cannot simply be passive. In performance we can be whoever we want, see world's that don't exist and experience feelings we have never had before. Performance can be brutal and shocking but in turn life-affirming.

Prejudice and small mindedness makes me angry and sad. We watched with Adesola, a former member of The Westborough Church, talking about her life. She had excepted her family's opinion and did not questions them. Her life was full of prejudice, rage and hate. When she started to go on-line a group who were not members of the church asked her why she thought the way she did and had she thought that there might be alternatives? They did not judge her but asked questions and listened. She questioned and listen back. She subsequently left her family unit and married one of the people she had met on-line. She speaks eloquently about her past life and does not apportion blame. The overall message was that kindness will prevail. I admire her because she has found a way to work around her anger and sadness.

In this industry I admire strong women who haven't compromised. Helen Mirren is an actor was is able to be naked when necessary without it seeming gratuitous. She definitely has "ownership" of her body. When I was sixteen I saw Glenda Jackson at The Royal Shakespeare Company. She wore no make up and her costumes were modest but her aura as The Queen of the Nile exuded from every pore. Salma Hayek is a multi-talented actress/producer/director was told she would probably only play maids because of her ethnicity. Josie Rourke is Artistic Director of the Donmar Warehouse and has a strong vision of what she wants to achieve artistically. Tilda Swinton is an actor I admire for her versatility and she is not afraid to play characters who are unsympathic. Dorothy Height was dubbed the "Godmother" of the Civil Rights Movement. She was on stage when Martin Luther gave his iconic "I have a dream" speech.

One of the strong women that I admire who I have a relationship with is my mother. She was involved in theatre but was happy to have children and ran the family business with my father. I know she shares my love of performance as she instigated our theatre trips as a child and has supported my career choice. She has always been my harshest critic and greatest fan.

One of my friends is a very talented actress who has two children who are autistic and as a consequence has only really worked in amateur theatre. She, too, now has been diagnosed with autism. When she is in a show the standard is always raised as she is inspirational to those around her. We are both equally passionate about speech and drama and she performed in one of my exams.

Another example is a former drama tutor. She wasn't always the friendliest but she was always approachable. She was an actor and tutor and able to lead by example. She nurtured our enthusiasm and professionalism.

I do not understand people who think they have nothing to learn. I understand that sometimes in this profession people need to have a confident persona but this should not translate into ego and arrogance. I do not understand people who judge one another by one set of standards they do not follow themselves. I know my sister feels this way. She is a highly educated professional working at a university who graciously allows others to tell her things she already knows. She does not shout the loudest but her voice is always heard.

Ethics are an important consideration in all professions but particularly performing arts. When we are working we may become emotionally or physically close to another performer. Going away on tour can be difficult for a younger performance and the experience may be intense. The nature of performance can lead to very close proximity with another human being and ethical guide lines and moral codes must be adhered to. The intensity of a piece of work does not entitle someone to invade our personal space with inappropriate behaviour.

It is imperative not to feel compromised. Behaviour on stage of a character who is unpleasant, confrontational or abusive in a sexual or physical manner needs to be choreographed as would any movement with the actors being totally in control. Personal comments with regard to gender, race, religion, beliefs and values if inappropriate should not be tolerated and any issues need to be reported to the relevant authorities.

We accept different behaviour on stage because we are working and in character or experimenting. This may be behaviour we ourselves would not tolerate in our daily lives outside of performance. These is a ethical divide between the two and this is where we need to exercise our professionalism to support ethical choices and values.

Making the appropriate response requires knowledge. Thinking ethically literally means thinking beyond yourself. When researching I sourced Nicholas Ridout's book "Theatre and Ethics" and Alasdair MacIntyre's "A Short History of Ethics".

Olivia Pratt on Prezi has a presentation "Ethics V Accuracy" that discuss ethics in theatre. There is a diagram for the visual learners and she states questions -
"Should historical certainty have priority over personal/professional ethics? Historical accuracy is important as is artistic integrity but sometimes achieving perfection costs too much, and accomplishes too late. I want to make my show historically accurate but I am not going to embrace racism to do it."

From this inquiry, I have realised  some of the important questions that have been raised for me. The first is the role of women in our industry and how attitudes have or have not changed. Is there still blatant ageism and discrimination? I wonder if any younger students have noticed this or is it mostly the older actors. In this week's Daily Mail Glenda Jackson bemoans the lack of good roles for older actors saying she longs for a script that "wasn't just about age."

Eleanor blogged about the Bechedel Test  bechedeltest.com and her abstract on campus was a book called "Ageing Femininities: Troubling Representation. These are significant lines of inquiry that I am going to explore in future modules and I would appreciate other student's thoughts on the subject.

I am going to continue looking into theories and practices.The key thinkers have emerged and I would like to compare the theories of their predecessors to current theorists. What have we learnt?

When I reflect on my practice I am aware that I love everything about what I do. From the written work, to the first time I see the empty stage, the rehearsal and the end product. When I adjudicate I mark to a strict criteria and hope the performance will exceed my expectations. I respect the fact that the actors have chosen to  expose themselves to constructive criticism with the intention of being open to improvement and reflection. This is why it is so important for me to be aware of this in my own professional practice.


References

Dolan, J & Tincknell, E, "Ageing Femininities:Troubling Representions" Cambridge Scholar Press, 2012
MacIntyre, A, "A Short History of Ethics",
Ridout, N, "Theatre and Ethics" Palgrave,  Paperback e-book, 2009
Olivia Pratt, Prezi, "Ethics V Accuracy", E. Source