Un-employment and what's next???

So I’m now off the ship, back in the good ole’ United Kingdom, back in the same position as I was 7 months ago…Un-employed. As performers we all know this feeling all too well unfortunately. It’s a feeling that put you on edge. “What’s next?” It’s also kind of exciting, as we never really know what is next? I’d be interested in knowing what does everyone do whilst their in this transitional period? What do they do to either fill their time, or how do you use your time productively? Me, I use it as a time to reflect and see what did I get out of the last contract, what will benefit me next? It’s also a time for me to brush up on technique be it, singing or dancing. Or simply just time out for me to breathe as a person…

Task 3a - My Current Networks

When looking at my current networks it made me realise, "I actually know a lot of people!" All these people also know a lot of people and so on. It's actually a very big and yet small world of performers and artists. It made me feel connected. As one. It showed me that I have lots of different options for places I can look to for help and advise. But also so many options in which I can take my career as the job can create different and new interests. As artists we are inspired by many things not just within our own genre be it dance, acting, singing, or photography, music editing, teaching, media, & fine arts. All are creative and exciting in their own right. All avenues that can be discovered and explored.

Journal Writing Experience

After doing this exercise, I think I really enjoyed doing the list, as I enjoy doing lists on a daily basis. So I liked using this one the most. As it’s quick to do, you get the general idea without going into too much detail. However, I did like using description too. As I always like the chance to write a full account of what happened in my own view, but I don’t like that it can be time consuming. Lastly, I really enjoyed doing and seeing the graphs and charts. I am a very visual person, especially when it comes to my learning. I like to see information in any forms of pictures, maps, diagrams, charts etc. It seems to get into my mind quicker, so I will definitely be using this again. I was surprised by the way I handled another view, because usually I would have interpreted that into something like a description, instead I decided to do it in bullet point form but in the form of Ashley’s thoughts. Again quick and snappy!

Task 2b - Continued

Reid & Moon Framework

Description

The day began with us receiving a phone call. Ilka our ‘Princess’ in our ‘Bollywood’ show was out ill with Gastroenteritis. Ashley another one of our dancers had 11 hours to learn her track before the curtain opened! Initially panic set in, after she allowed her a set time to worry and panic. Ashley went into full rehearsal mode. She pulled out all our shows that we had recorded with Ilka performing and she started to make notes. We then had another phone call, our tech rehearsal was cancelled so we could rehearse Ashley and put her in the ‘Princess’ track. We all had to be patient and attentive. We knew if we didn’t stick together this could go horribly wrong for Ashley, which then reflects badly on us as a team. So we worked hard, but we were forced to have a lunch break as the theatre was needed for ‘Bingo’, which is more important than the shows apparently.

After that Ashley had to have a solo rehearsal with the Dance Captain, so go through everything she needed to learn. Then the D.C brought in all the boys that were required to work with Ashley who lifted the ‘Princess’. Finishing with an aerial rehearsal with me and the ‘Prince’, the hardest rehearsal of them all. Some of aerial work had to be cut and re-worked, as we simply didn’t have the time for Ashley to learn it safely. A costume talk and rehearsal was needed with the Wardrobe Master, straight after she was done with the D.C.

We were all called in earlier for show time to go over the group dance breaks once more. Then we were given time to go and get ready for the show. Which gave her first time to stop and breathe and realise how hard it had been for her. The tears came, along with the nerves. Our Cruise Director wasn’t helping the situation as he had no patience for us, as we were running a minute or two late, and he didn’t have any compassion for what we had been through as a team throughout the day. But thanks to hard work, and good teamwork we got through it pretty painlessly. It was on the whole a successful day. The show went on without many hiccups. We all went out after the show and celebrated with champagne and several drinks.

Initial Reflection

I was worried, nervous & concerned for Ashley as it was a lot of stress for her. It wasn’t that I thought she wasn’t capable, but I know how she handles things. I knew there would be tears later. But the tears would come through frustration, as I know she is a perfectionist when it comes to her work, she doesn’t like to things to be done unless she feels 100% happy with it. So I was thinking, I need to prepare how I was going to keep her calm, when she starts to panic. I was nervous to do our aerial work together as aerial work is a team effort and it takes time to learn how your partner works and what to do to help them better, and we had 30 minutes together to get it right. I hated watching Ashley go through all this stress, but I knew it would benefit her in the end. To have the lead role in our show, which is something she’s been ready for years now. Just not in these circumstances.

List

Phone call

Panic

Worry & Concern

Watching videos

Making notes

Emergency rehearsal

Lunch

Solo rehearsal with dance captain

Lifts rehearsal with boys

Aerial rehearsal with me

Costume talk and rehearsal

Tears

Stress

Group dance breaks rehearsal

Manager rushing us

Nerves

Late start

Elation

Pride

Tired

Drunk

Evaluation

In hindsight I would have had a definite under-study for all of the lead roles, then we could have prevented all this stress and worry. The dance breaks within the groups went well as Ashley had previously learnt them in our original rehearsals, so she just need to go over them.

When it came to show-time, nerves we’re high, as several people’s tracks had changed positions, levels, or some had even learnt new choreography as well as Ashley, as they had to fill her old position. The aerial work did not go we had hoped, she was dangling by one foot, trying hopelessly to get back up, and they was nothing I could do to help, it had to come all from her, 20ft up in the air in front of a live audience!

Afterwards we were all so happy and really proud of what Ashley and we had achieved. She was applauded by the whole cast.

Graphs, Charts and Diagrams

This is a pie chart showing the percentage of fun, freedom & stress on that particular day.

 This is a bar chart showing the percentage of fun, freedom, & stress on an average day with little or no problems.

What If?

Ashley could have completely buckled it, and bailed on us onstage. Leaving us without a ‘Princess’. She could have injured herself whilst performing her aerial work after such little rehearsal time. I would loved her to get everything right, so she could walked away completely happy with her performance to help her with her confidence.

Another View

                  I’m going to look at it through the eyes of: Ashley.

“How the hell am I going to do this is such a small amount of time??”

“There’s so much to do?!”

“Where’s my notepad?”

“Oh god, the aerial!!”

“Yes, this is my chance to show people what I’ve got to give, but I don’t want to mess it up.”

“I’m really worried about all the aerial work the most!”

“They’re gonna have to cut me out of this part, I just can’t do it!”

“I feel like I’m not learning the material quick enough, I feel bad for keeping everyone waiting around for me to get it, even though I’m doing my best!”

“The costume changes are so quick!”

“Is she for real, complaining about something so small, when I have to learn a whole new track?”

“Oh my god, Oh my god!”

“I’m not ready!”

“I’m so nervous!”

“I messed that up, keep going Ashley. You’re nearly done!”

“Yesssssssss, I did it!!!!!!”

“I need a drink!!”

Task 2b - Journal Writing Experience

‘A Day In The Life of A Principal Singer’ 

It’s show day. I always wake up and eat a good full breakfast, so I am energised and ready for the day ahead. Well actually I do that everyday! I get crabby otherwise… Anyway, next thing I do is go to our dreaded tech rehearsal. Nothing ever goes smoothly, there’s always a sound, lighting or automation problem, if not during the tech rehearsal, then definitely during our show!

So as always, the performer has to be ever ready and prepared to know how to handle the stage when things don’t go to plan. The audience must never know anything went wrong! I suppose that’s the fun for us as performers, because when things go smoothly, we class that as a good day at the office, we acknowledge that, but we’ll leave it there. However, something goes wrong and we remember that for a hell of a lot longer. Strange I know, but true. We look at those times and oddly remember them as “good times”. As these are the times when the team had to pull together and make sure “the show must go on”!

When the feeling of camaraderie and togetherness is hot on stage, it feeds the cast. You can almost feel the energy brushing against your skin. This feeling is exhilarating. Imagine if you will, a group of 14 people and asking them to do one thing, you have 14 different views and ideas of getting to that end result. It’s a hard task. Now imagine, that instead of having to choose which way would work the best that you could use them all.  Each different idea and view is a strength so actually if we use them all, we can bring stronger ideas to the stage.  Have you ever worked in any other job where 13 other people are in the same position as you, giving it they’re all and all after the same goal?

After our tech rehearsal, we have a few hours to kill before the shows begin. Each individual has his or her own routine before a show, mine is quite basic really. Relax. There’s nothing worse for me, to be running round like a headless chicken before a show. This does not always happen. I am such a laid back person, that sometimes my time keeping isn’t perfect…it’s something I am working on though! Lunch will be had, and then I’ll steam my voice, to help warm up the vocal chords, this is a new addition to the routine. As this contract has been my first as a Principal Singer, before this I was a singer/dancer, and then a dancer. So this contract and position has been a learning curve for me regarding using my voice this much. So I asked my fellow singers in my cast what they did to help their voice and their performance. I thought it couldn’t hurt to try and see if it worked for me, and it did. I also try to drink a lot more water on show days, to keep hydrated and keep the vocal chords lubricated. My girlfriend lives with me in the cabin and completely takes over the cabin with her routine. Her’s is a lot more time consuming than mine. I will then start to gently warm up my voice before the call time. Whilst warming up I’ll usually put on my make-up that is need for that particular show. Now it’s time to do my pre-set. It’s my time to zone in and focus on what I’m about to do. Whilst I’m setting my costumes and props, I will usually run through lines and harmonies in my own little world. We will try to pep ourselves up and wish each other a ‘good show’. I like that. We all just want the best, despite the fact that we’ve performed that particular show countless times. It’s the nature of the business. Be the best you can be.

“Ladies and Gentleman, sit back, relax, because it’sssssssss shhhooooowwwwtimmmmeeeeee!!!

Task 1D - My BAPP Video

I'd appreciate any of your thoughts and comments...enjoy!!

Reflection Crisis!!

I have no idea what to write...Im struggling immensely to put pen to paper, lacking inspiration during this task. I don't know what I can write about and keep it about my professional practice....???

Task 1b: Professional communication technologies.

I have been putting this off and off because after reading the 1^st reader on Professional communication technologies, my honest reaction to it was…’blank’, nothing. What was I supposed to do with it? What can I find to write about? I then thought how life was before web 2.0 and how it has now changed the way we communicate, socialise and do business. I found these quotes that sum up web 2.0 as well as showing us the many ways web 2.0 is being used and harnessed:

“To sum up the Web 2.0 phenomena in a sentence: lower communication costs have led to opportunities for more inclusive, collaborative, democratic online participation. People started to communicate more, and not only that they started communicating in qualitatively different ways than before. As these millions found new media for expression and collaboration, they opened possibilities for a more inclusive, open, democratic society”

“Web 2.0 is transforming our society. Online tools that support collaborative communities are redefining how firms do business, how retailers engage customers, how politicians energize voters, how journalists inform readers, how teachers educate students, how friends maintain relationships, and how individuals shape their own identity.”

So as you can see web 2.0 is a powerful tool for today’s society. We use it in every aspect of our lives, mainly to communicate and share in a more efficient and expressive way between each other. When I looked up the different ways it is used, I was completely shocked at first, that it’s used by Politicians and teachers etc. But then I sat back and realised, why wouldn’t they? It’s a brilliant way to get in touch with hundreds, thousands or even millions of people and spread your word. Even if the user does not fully take in what you are trying to get across, subliminally they have may taken onboard your company’s name or vision.

This then got me thinking, “how can web 2.0 help in other ways?” which then led me to ask my sister. She works for ‘Claire House’, a charity for children and young people with life limiting, life-threatening conditions from across Merseyside, Cheshire, North Wales and the Isle of Man. She works within the fundraising department and relies heavily on web 2.0 to spread the word of events and get the name of ‘Claire House’ out to the people of UK and the rest of the world. So I wrote to her asking how it benefitted her and the hospice? This was her response, (I have edited it):

“The area of social media is growing significantly. It has done, over several years and at the moment does not look like it is going to stop”.

“Social Media is a huge area of fundraising strategy and needs to be harnessed for any charity to get the full potential out of it. Social Media needs to be used effectively to enable events and projects to be promoted successfully.”

“Social Media is a cheap and effective way of communication. This is an advantage yet it relies on people following or being friends with you to enable you to get the message across. This is much more difficult with a smaller, local charity with less of a profile.”

“There is an argument you are only reaching one area of supporters; a younger generation but to this I disagree as it is not only social networking, but Justgiving sites, text donations and a multitude of other communication methods that keep being invented year on year.”

“Social Media is mainly about spreading the word for charities. Claire House currently has over 3,000 Facebook Friends as well as over 2,500 on a Supporters Group and over 5,000 twitter followers – with one simple click of a button you can advertise to over 10,000 people with no costs! And there’s no catch!”

So as we can clearly see, web 2.0 is imperative to ‘Claire House’ for its survival. Without web 2.0 it would be a long and costly process. Which leads me to my next example to help put it into perspective “What if web 2.0 were not around?” What would we have to do in order to get our message across to as many people as we could?

 “The dramatically lower costs of communicating information over the web can be illustrated with a simple thought experiment: how would you share a video with all of your friends in 1980 and today? In 1980, sharing a video message with your friends would involve the following steps: filming on a tape, transferring the tape to VHS, copying each individual VHS tape, packaging and addressing each tape, and mailing the tape to everyone you know. The time costs of such a venture were basically prohibitively high.”

With this thought, it really does show how much easier it is for us to communicate with one another compared to 20 years ago. Instead of waiting for weeks in the post we can send documents, videos, messages, instantaneously across the globe. Reaching the people that we know and love, or expressing our thoughts and knowledge, perhaps to the people that may benefit our careers, or maybe our education.  Web 2.0 was the next step in our technological world, but where will we be in next 20years?

References

Justin Reich, 2008, Harvard Graduate School of Education

Sarah Birss, 2012, Fundraiser Co-Coordinator, Claire House

Tim O'Reilly on What is Web 2.0?

Task 1D- JP Birss Photostream

JP Birss' photostream on Flickr.

I am slowly getting more and more photo's for my task, the more recent photos were taken on Valentines Day during our show 'Bollywood'. I'm hoping to get more up soon of our other shows...So yeah, I hope you enjoy having a look.

JP Birss' photostream

JP Birss' photostream on Flickr.

Thanks to Ahmet's comments, I've managed to learn the trick of sharing my photos from Flickr in a better, more user friendly way. Now people can view my pictures and if they're interested in seeing more, they can!

Trying out my new Flickr account...?

So, here is the start of my new Flickr account:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/76370035@N06/

I've posted some photos of my new team, the ship and the team rehearsing.

If you have any thoughts or comments, I'd love to hear from you?

Enjoy! :)

A realisation...

I've been looking through everyone's blogs and my eyes have been widening with fear, but I'm also glad to see that a lot of you are feeling the same way as me. As performers, generally we don't see ourselves as big academic people. I use this term loosely as I know this isn't the case for everyone. But going back to university at my age is a little daunting, and I look at what everyone is coming up with and I'm a little shaken to say the least. Thinking "how am I going to come up with and compare against everyone else". Then I realised,  that this course is not about everyone and their abilities, but how I can use their knowledge and skills to better my own.