Well, tonight I had the perfect goodbye to Moscow. Kennikki, Beth, Mo, Dave, and I went to my pond. We sat there and listened to music, looked at the stars, the water, and had a half an hour before the dorm closed. It was beautiful and amazing. We each then stood at the water's edge and said our last words to Moscow and did a curtain call. It was such an amazing moment, and one I think I'll hold dear forever. The look of my friends, the water, the moon, the stars, the clouds, the buildings, the trees. Such a vivid picture emblazened in my mind. Perfect.
This morning we went to the most beautiful cemetary I've ever been to. We saw Anton Chekhov's grave, Nemirovich-Dachenko's, and Stanislavsky's. It was definitely really cool and I'm glad we were able to go. Afterward, Beth, Ted, Mo, and I went to eat. We went to this place called Temple Bar, which I think is amazing because that is the name of the hole in the wall bar in Detroit by the Masonic Temple that we go to. It's cool that we went to it, but a lot nicer of a version, in Moscow. P.S. When you order a salad, it's like shredded beets, not the green lettuce we get home. FYI. I got a salad and chicken in marinara. Chicken = good. Salad = disgusting.
Matt, Beth, Mo, and I went to the Banya after. The Banya is like a spa. Apparently, it's the thing you do in Moscow. There's this sauna, which is sooooo hot and wonderful. In it, you take these birch sticks/leaves and whack yourself with them. It doesn't hurt, it's actually very relaxing. You soak them in water and they wrap around you and loosen up. It feels so good on your muscles in the sauna. Then you go outside of it and there's a cord you can pull for a bucket of water to dump on you to cool you off, or you can go into a tub of cold water. There's also a pool there to swim in and cool off in which was so cool. I felt like I was an Emporer or something because of how magnificent this place was. In the pool there were white columns surrounding it, a fountain which squirted into the pool, a skylight which was all stained glass, and black and reddish marble on the walls. I felt like I was royalty. Matt and I repeated this maybe four times. So worth it, and a nice reward for ourselves after a crazy month. I seriousl felt high afterward. The girls had a good time, too. They ended up getting body mud masks, though, which they enjoyed.
Afterward, I headed over to Red Square and got my last looks at Red Square, the Kremlin, St. Basil's Cathedral. I saw a park to the side of it and went in. There was this really cool horse fountain, and a little canal with statues in it of fairytales. I'm so glad I was able to go here one last time and while the sun was setting. I got some great pictures. I really wish you could be here to enjoy it with me.
In Russia, it's custom to give gifts. Well, as I had said earlier, I gave the Wayne State bracelets to our favorite Russians - Polina and Sasha. Today, they gave me this little tiny book with dolphins on the front and seashells and it's in Russian. On the front of it, it says Good Luck. It was just really cool that they thought to give it to me. Also, that they saw this and thought of me because dolphins are my favorite animals and I obviously love the beach. I'm going to miss them.
So, in a couple hours we leave for Paris. Moscow was great, but it's time to move on. Thank you for everything. Bonjour Paris.
Well, I need to finish packing. Have a good night. Love you all.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Speciba Moscow.
Speciba = Thank you in Russian. That's the only word I can really think of saying right now in response to us leaving late late this evening (3:30am). Moscow has given me so much, I wish I could give something back. But, maybe I have and I just haven't realized it. I'm sure I've affected or made an impact on someone's life here. It's a beautiful thing. I feel like I've become a different person...well, maybe not different, but definitely more mature, more grown up, more intelligent, more independent, more artistic, more creative, more me. And I love that. Something about this place sparks every sense in you and makes you completely aware of every emotion, every detail, every smell, touch, and sight. Everything. I'ver said this before, but experience has been more than I could have ever hoped for.
Today is my final day in Moscow as I've said. Last night we had our last group meeting/pot luck. We ate gorsche (sp?), drank some chamaigne, made some toasts to each other, and hung out all night. Polina and Sasha (our favorite Russians from the MXAT) came downstairs and hung out with us. I gave them each a Wayne State Green Bracelet (I've been giving those out to my Russians, Nicole. Thank you.) and they absolutely loved it. It's so nice how a simple gift can really make someone feel. In Russia, it's their culture to give small gifts or tokens or whatever. Nice. I got Mariana a necklace from the market we were at yesterday that she absolutely loves. it was to thank her for being such an amazing second mother to us all this month.
Yesterday we went to Stanislavsky's old apartment which is now a museum. Beautiful apartment which was built in thr 1700's with painting on the ceiling and everything. Aunt Jenny - you and my dad will really appreciate the architecture and old historic buildings I've been taking pictures of. Oh, and the paintings that I've taken pictures of too. Amazing. Anyway, so we were there and it was really fascinating to see where he first put on performances, where he wrote "To the Actor." Really cool.
We went to this market afterward where you bargain them for prices and everything. I was really good at it because I was serious and wouldn't budge and would begin to walk away and they'd bring it down more...I got one guy to go from 2000 rubles to 800 rubles for something. ha ha. So cool. That was fun and I got some really cool stuff.
After that we went and saw this horrible play. It was so bad. Most of us left at intermission and everyone else trickled out during the second act. Out of 24 people in our group, by the end of the show there was only 4. ha ha. It was that bad. They had no connection to what they were saying, no understanding, no energy, they were just saying lines, no feeling, inner motivation, no radiation with each other. It was very superficial. Oh well.
Anyway, sorry this is kind of short, but we have to head out. We're going to a cemetary to see Stanislavsky's grave. Then Beth, Kennikki, Mo, and I are going to head over to Red Square and try to get into the Kremlin and Lenin's tomb possibly. Then we want to head over to our favorite pond. Love it.
Have a good day! Maybe I'll update again today, maybe IO'll update in Paris. Love you all!
Today is my final day in Moscow as I've said. Last night we had our last group meeting/pot luck. We ate gorsche (sp?), drank some chamaigne, made some toasts to each other, and hung out all night. Polina and Sasha (our favorite Russians from the MXAT) came downstairs and hung out with us. I gave them each a Wayne State Green Bracelet (I've been giving those out to my Russians, Nicole. Thank you.) and they absolutely loved it. It's so nice how a simple gift can really make someone feel. In Russia, it's their culture to give small gifts or tokens or whatever. Nice. I got Mariana a necklace from the market we were at yesterday that she absolutely loves. it was to thank her for being such an amazing second mother to us all this month.
Yesterday we went to Stanislavsky's old apartment which is now a museum. Beautiful apartment which was built in thr 1700's with painting on the ceiling and everything. Aunt Jenny - you and my dad will really appreciate the architecture and old historic buildings I've been taking pictures of. Oh, and the paintings that I've taken pictures of too. Amazing. Anyway, so we were there and it was really fascinating to see where he first put on performances, where he wrote "To the Actor." Really cool.
We went to this market afterward where you bargain them for prices and everything. I was really good at it because I was serious and wouldn't budge and would begin to walk away and they'd bring it down more...I got one guy to go from 2000 rubles to 800 rubles for something. ha ha. So cool. That was fun and I got some really cool stuff.
After that we went and saw this horrible play. It was so bad. Most of us left at intermission and everyone else trickled out during the second act. Out of 24 people in our group, by the end of the show there was only 4. ha ha. It was that bad. They had no connection to what they were saying, no understanding, no energy, they were just saying lines, no feeling, inner motivation, no radiation with each other. It was very superficial. Oh well.
Anyway, sorry this is kind of short, but we have to head out. We're going to a cemetary to see Stanislavsky's grave. Then Beth, Kennikki, Mo, and I are going to head over to Red Square and try to get into the Kremlin and Lenin's tomb possibly. Then we want to head over to our favorite pond. Love it.
Have a good day! Maybe I'll update again today, maybe IO'll update in Paris. Love you all!
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Last Day Part 2
Well, as I said previously, today was the last day. Beth and I started off by going to our favorite park on the way to school and sitting by the fountain, just relaxing. We listened to couple of songs that were kind of meaningful for the moment and Russia also. We then continued onto our last walk to school down Traveskya.
Our first class today was movement. We did a new exercise called the sheep. One person is laying on their back on the floor. The other crouches over them on all fours, hands in between legs. The person on the floor wraps around the person that's crouching and then person that's crouching lifts knees and starts walking. An extension of this is the flying sheep where you stand and the perosn on the floor ends up arching their back and looking their flying and the other walking with them like this. We had evaluations also. Vladimir said I had good flexibility, hard worker, I can push myself even further. Also, I'm great with balancing weight and being a good partner. rock on.
Acting. My evaulation was that I'm always in a good mood. lol. First thing he said. Then he asked if I'm from the South because I have this Mediterranean/Carribean feel to me. The temperment I have is free going and relaxing. Everyone laughed at that because, as you know, i'm obsesses with the beach. So, it's funny that I give off those feelings. I just need to work on my specificity and detail, which I knew. Sweet.
We had the farewell party afterward and had champaigne, crackers, cheese, and grapes. We also gave the gifts to the instructors. We recieved a certificate saying we completed our work there and everything. We had some music on and Marianna (our mother for the month) grabbed me to dance with me. Back story: She's very honest and blunt...because she's Russian. Anyway, she whispers in my ear "Thank you. Thank you. You're perfect. You're great with movement, with dance, with talent. You have it all. Don't stop yourself. Don't ever stop. Keep going. You're going places. You have everything you need. You're perfect." That meant a lot to me because she doesn't say something if she doesn't mean it, or she won't say it all or will knock you for it. ha. It really touched me.
It's so crazy that today was our last day of classes. Time really flew by. Can't even tell you where this past month went, but man am I a different person. First off, I eat scrambld eggs for breakfast every morning. ha ha. I need to start the day off wioth a good breakfast since it's such a long day.
Anyway, we're all going to a club I guess soon so I'm peacing out. Tomorrow, we're going to the Stanislavski museum, the market, and then a show. whoo. Have a good night!
Our first class today was movement. We did a new exercise called the sheep. One person is laying on their back on the floor. The other crouches over them on all fours, hands in between legs. The person on the floor wraps around the person that's crouching and then person that's crouching lifts knees and starts walking. An extension of this is the flying sheep where you stand and the perosn on the floor ends up arching their back and looking their flying and the other walking with them like this. We had evaluations also. Vladimir said I had good flexibility, hard worker, I can push myself even further. Also, I'm great with balancing weight and being a good partner. rock on.
Acting. My evaulation was that I'm always in a good mood. lol. First thing he said. Then he asked if I'm from the South because I have this Mediterranean/Carribean feel to me. The temperment I have is free going and relaxing. Everyone laughed at that because, as you know, i'm obsesses with the beach. So, it's funny that I give off those feelings. I just need to work on my specificity and detail, which I knew. Sweet.
We had the farewell party afterward and had champaigne, crackers, cheese, and grapes. We also gave the gifts to the instructors. We recieved a certificate saying we completed our work there and everything. We had some music on and Marianna (our mother for the month) grabbed me to dance with me. Back story: She's very honest and blunt...because she's Russian. Anyway, she whispers in my ear "Thank you. Thank you. You're perfect. You're great with movement, with dance, with talent. You have it all. Don't stop yourself. Don't ever stop. Keep going. You're going places. You have everything you need. You're perfect." That meant a lot to me because she doesn't say something if she doesn't mean it, or she won't say it all or will knock you for it. ha. It really touched me.
It's so crazy that today was our last day of classes. Time really flew by. Can't even tell you where this past month went, but man am I a different person. First off, I eat scrambld eggs for breakfast every morning. ha ha. I need to start the day off wioth a good breakfast since it's such a long day.
Anyway, we're all going to a club I guess soon so I'm peacing out. Tomorrow, we're going to the Stanislavski museum, the market, and then a show. whoo. Have a good night!
Friday, June 27, 2008
Last Day
Well, today is the last day of classes. It's crazy to think a month went by so fast. Every acting class we start off by sharing observations, impressions of being here wither it's theatre, cultural, people we see, events that occur, things we do after class, whatever. Yesterday, I really looked at everyone around the room. We've grown into one emsemble, one company. Oleay was saying that what we have is rare - to take two completely seperate groups (Wayne State and Univ. of Windsor) and throw them together without knowing each other, and in the end, not know the different between the two because it's so interconnected and one. I thought that was really cool. Everyone talked about how much they've changed and grown up as individuals and artists.
Yesterday we had our last chekhov class. It was so sad. We leared a Russian melody that is supposed to give us good luck, I'll sing it to you when I get home, it's pretty - like a lullaby. Mischa commended us on our hard work and said that our teachers have taught us well because we've opened ourselves, used our imagination, and were free and willing to try new things. What an amazing class. I'me so luck to have had Mischa, as well as James Luse, teach me.
In acting, our etude was kind of sprung off of my individual one from the day before. We were at Konstantin's funeral, and we had told the priest it was an accident, not a suicide. Medvedenko comes out and says that it was not an accident, but instead a suicide and we were hiding it. The priest says he will not conitnue the service because it is against the religion to hold a service for a man who committed suicide. Holy change of atmosphere! ha. The comments afterward was that it was so compelling and real when we were standing around the dead body and going up to it and touching it (it's under a sheet), that they completely forgot that there was supposed to be an event. Our imagination was being used so well, and we were completely invested in every moment, so when the event happened, it through everyone for a loop because they forgot that there was supposed to be one. Oleeay commended us on that also, that we were able to have the audience live with us at the moment so well they weren't thinking about anything else. It was a great etude. Awesome.
We saw The Seagull last night. It was alright. First show I think I can say that for while being here, everything, as you know, has been described as amazing or incredible or whatever. This show was just very slow in pace and didn't keep mine, or many of the people in my group's, attention. Some of the roles were cast too old, I think also. Oh well. I'm glad I saw it. Maybe I built myself up too much for it because I was excited to see it. Meh.
Funny story, today I went to change and put my belt on. When I got here, I was on the first notch. Today, I'm able to do the fourth notch. If I was still in the weight loss competition right now, I think I could be in the lead. ha ha. I don't know, we don't have a scale. And who knows, I may gain it all back in Paris with wine and croissants. ha ha :)
Anyway, I'm off to my last walk to school with Beth and Kennikki, last movement class, last acting class, and our graduation/final party. It's so surreal, I don't even know how to grasp onto it. Incredible.
Oh! Two nights ago, we were in really good moods, kinda hyper, so Beth, Mo, Alex, and I got dressed in disguise and went to the other side of the third floor (the canadian wing as we call it) and pranked them. ha ha. We were all stealthy and put a garbage can in front of one of the rooms, and then saranwrapped the fridge. HILARIOUS. nothing harmful, just funny. I mean, who saran wraps a fridge? Mo and tiff are from the canadian side, but they were all about it too. In the morning, the canadians thought it was hilarious and were just a little confused. so funny. they enjoyed it. Thought you'd find that funny too. :)
Love you all. Off to class!
Yesterday we had our last chekhov class. It was so sad. We leared a Russian melody that is supposed to give us good luck, I'll sing it to you when I get home, it's pretty - like a lullaby. Mischa commended us on our hard work and said that our teachers have taught us well because we've opened ourselves, used our imagination, and were free and willing to try new things. What an amazing class. I'me so luck to have had Mischa, as well as James Luse, teach me.
In acting, our etude was kind of sprung off of my individual one from the day before. We were at Konstantin's funeral, and we had told the priest it was an accident, not a suicide. Medvedenko comes out and says that it was not an accident, but instead a suicide and we were hiding it. The priest says he will not conitnue the service because it is against the religion to hold a service for a man who committed suicide. Holy change of atmosphere! ha. The comments afterward was that it was so compelling and real when we were standing around the dead body and going up to it and touching it (it's under a sheet), that they completely forgot that there was supposed to be an event. Our imagination was being used so well, and we were completely invested in every moment, so when the event happened, it through everyone for a loop because they forgot that there was supposed to be one. Oleeay commended us on that also, that we were able to have the audience live with us at the moment so well they weren't thinking about anything else. It was a great etude. Awesome.
We saw The Seagull last night. It was alright. First show I think I can say that for while being here, everything, as you know, has been described as amazing or incredible or whatever. This show was just very slow in pace and didn't keep mine, or many of the people in my group's, attention. Some of the roles were cast too old, I think also. Oh well. I'm glad I saw it. Maybe I built myself up too much for it because I was excited to see it. Meh.
Funny story, today I went to change and put my belt on. When I got here, I was on the first notch. Today, I'm able to do the fourth notch. If I was still in the weight loss competition right now, I think I could be in the lead. ha ha. I don't know, we don't have a scale. And who knows, I may gain it all back in Paris with wine and croissants. ha ha :)
Anyway, I'm off to my last walk to school with Beth and Kennikki, last movement class, last acting class, and our graduation/final party. It's so surreal, I don't even know how to grasp onto it. Incredible.
Oh! Two nights ago, we were in really good moods, kinda hyper, so Beth, Mo, Alex, and I got dressed in disguise and went to the other side of the third floor (the canadian wing as we call it) and pranked them. ha ha. We were all stealthy and put a garbage can in front of one of the rooms, and then saranwrapped the fridge. HILARIOUS. nothing harmful, just funny. I mean, who saran wraps a fridge? Mo and tiff are from the canadian side, but they were all about it too. In the morning, the canadians thought it was hilarious and were just a little confused. so funny. they enjoyed it. Thought you'd find that funny too. :)
Love you all. Off to class!
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Oh, Moscow.
First off, thank you to whoever reads these. I was looking back at posts, and I write a lot. I hope it's intereting.
This morning we had a joint movement class with the other group. We did all of the same exercise, but with 24 people instead of 12, and in an hour and a half. Everything was compacted. It's so exciting to see the results I am getting everytime I go into class. We go every other day, but I'm still improving so much within that day off, without consciously doing anything. It's crazy, but so cool and exciting. You're going to freak when you see me do some of this stuff. Movement went really well. Our final exam/final class is Saturday.
Next, we had the final singing class with both groups combined. We began with a warm up and then jumped right into the showcase. Everyone performed the song they have been working on throughout the month. Some songs were divided into three people to work on, or two people. The would split the verses and make it a duet or whatever, and some had solos. I sang the song "For You, For Me, Forever More." It was definitely the best I had sang it thus far. At one point I grabbed Marina, the vocal instructor, and we swayed and danced to it. It was a lot of fun. I was really impressed with everyone that sang today. So many people improved immensely. I know I've learnd a bit about myself and singing, as well.
Acting was cool. So, I did my individual Chekhov etude from The Seagull today. I did the scene at the end of Act IV where Konstantin is offstage and shoots himself. I knew it was risky and could be a complete failure, but i wanted to explore idea of him going in to kill himself, deciding not to, and then the irony of the gun going off and killing him by accident. Etudes are a great means to explore and discover and possibly uncover answers and developments in stories or in characters. I began be rushing in because Nina had just told me she didn't love me. I ran to the drawer, pulled out the gun, sat at the table, held it to my my jaw, closed my eyes really tight. I opened them and saw out the window the lake. I put the gun down and walked towards the window. The lake calmed me and I decided not to kill myself. I went back to the table, grabbed the gun and went to put it in the drawer when it went off and shot myself in the stomach. I slowly died.
Some of the comments were that it was comedic...it is comedic. The irony of him going to kill himself, deciding not to, and then it going off by accident. It makes sense because he tried to kill himself in Act I, but didn't succeed there either. I wanted to explore this because all it says at the end of the play is that he shoots himself. I thought it left it open ended. He could have shot himself, but still been ok, but everyone assumes he dies. That was another route I was going to take; what if he didn't die? So interesting and so analytical. The etude ended up not being a failure and also not being a success, but I don't regret doing it. I was told it was one of my strongest performances, it was truthful, it raised even more questions because it is very possible that this would happen but no one ever thinks of it, and my imagination was flowing and creating beautiful images - work of a true artist. That stuff meant a lot to me because it was just me going out on a whim and trying something that irked me to go further into it.
Tonight we went to the Russian Circus. I asked Mariana if it is a respected profession because it isn't exactly looked up to in America. She said that Russians are obsessed with the circus. They love it and the performers; it's such a part of Russian tradition. There was this crazy contortionist woman would have her feet by her ears and used them as hands, it was weird, but interesting. Acribatic people in the air barely hanging by anything which was scary, poodles doing dog tricks, a couple clowns, dancing on horses. What I really noticed was how much insane gymnastics was used during almost all of the acts. The whole show was conducted in a theatrical aspect from the lights to the sets to the costumes, the intervals, the storyline. It was in a stationary theatre of its own, also, and was built in like 1886. The circus was very different from anything we've seen, but very interesting to see.
Tomorrow night we're going to see The Seagull. I'm so excited because we've spent so much time discussing it, performing etudes from it, analyzing it, finding questions and searching for answers about it. It's going to be great.
I, again, am exhausted. So, I am off to bed. Have a good evening/day. Whatever it is. :) See you all in 15ish days. PEACE
This morning we had a joint movement class with the other group. We did all of the same exercise, but with 24 people instead of 12, and in an hour and a half. Everything was compacted. It's so exciting to see the results I am getting everytime I go into class. We go every other day, but I'm still improving so much within that day off, without consciously doing anything. It's crazy, but so cool and exciting. You're going to freak when you see me do some of this stuff. Movement went really well. Our final exam/final class is Saturday.
Next, we had the final singing class with both groups combined. We began with a warm up and then jumped right into the showcase. Everyone performed the song they have been working on throughout the month. Some songs were divided into three people to work on, or two people. The would split the verses and make it a duet or whatever, and some had solos. I sang the song "For You, For Me, Forever More." It was definitely the best I had sang it thus far. At one point I grabbed Marina, the vocal instructor, and we swayed and danced to it. It was a lot of fun. I was really impressed with everyone that sang today. So many people improved immensely. I know I've learnd a bit about myself and singing, as well.
Acting was cool. So, I did my individual Chekhov etude from The Seagull today. I did the scene at the end of Act IV where Konstantin is offstage and shoots himself. I knew it was risky and could be a complete failure, but i wanted to explore idea of him going in to kill himself, deciding not to, and then the irony of the gun going off and killing him by accident. Etudes are a great means to explore and discover and possibly uncover answers and developments in stories or in characters. I began be rushing in because Nina had just told me she didn't love me. I ran to the drawer, pulled out the gun, sat at the table, held it to my my jaw, closed my eyes really tight. I opened them and saw out the window the lake. I put the gun down and walked towards the window. The lake calmed me and I decided not to kill myself. I went back to the table, grabbed the gun and went to put it in the drawer when it went off and shot myself in the stomach. I slowly died.
Some of the comments were that it was comedic...it is comedic. The irony of him going to kill himself, deciding not to, and then it going off by accident. It makes sense because he tried to kill himself in Act I, but didn't succeed there either. I wanted to explore this because all it says at the end of the play is that he shoots himself. I thought it left it open ended. He could have shot himself, but still been ok, but everyone assumes he dies. That was another route I was going to take; what if he didn't die? So interesting and so analytical. The etude ended up not being a failure and also not being a success, but I don't regret doing it. I was told it was one of my strongest performances, it was truthful, it raised even more questions because it is very possible that this would happen but no one ever thinks of it, and my imagination was flowing and creating beautiful images - work of a true artist. That stuff meant a lot to me because it was just me going out on a whim and trying something that irked me to go further into it.
Tonight we went to the Russian Circus. I asked Mariana if it is a respected profession because it isn't exactly looked up to in America. She said that Russians are obsessed with the circus. They love it and the performers; it's such a part of Russian tradition. There was this crazy contortionist woman would have her feet by her ears and used them as hands, it was weird, but interesting. Acribatic people in the air barely hanging by anything which was scary, poodles doing dog tricks, a couple clowns, dancing on horses. What I really noticed was how much insane gymnastics was used during almost all of the acts. The whole show was conducted in a theatrical aspect from the lights to the sets to the costumes, the intervals, the storyline. It was in a stationary theatre of its own, also, and was built in like 1886. The circus was very different from anything we've seen, but very interesting to see.
Tomorrow night we're going to see The Seagull. I'm so excited because we've spent so much time discussing it, performing etudes from it, analyzing it, finding questions and searching for answers about it. It's going to be great.
I, again, am exhausted. So, I am off to bed. Have a good evening/day. Whatever it is. :) See you all in 15ish days. PEACE
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Breathe.
"Breathe" is the title of one of the songs I listen to every morning on my way to class. It's from the "In the Heights" soundtrack. I don't know why, but there's some type of connection with it. I need to listen to it at least once a day - usually in the morning. So weird, but hey, whatever, it works. And, honestly, after the last few days fiasco, breathing is all I can do. Just breathe.
Here's the situation with the Bank card. Apparently Russia put an international block on all debit and ATM transactions with National City, which is why I could not use it. After hours of drama, e-mails between Nicholas, me, and mom, phone calls to the bank, to our correspondance at the bank, to another number at the bank - we came up with a solution...well, EJ did. He gave me his account number and mom put money in his account and he withdrew it today. So, I have money. No worries, it was just a rough uphill climb to get there with a lot of stress...and unnecessary and stupid stress because this shouldn't have happened. Stupid banks. ha. Everything works out. Gotta have faith.
Today we had our last ballet class. We combined the class with both groups. We did our warm ups and dances first. They weren't bad. I wish I would have done a little better, but ya know, whatever. I was fine. I'm just too much of a perfectionist...as ALL OF YOU know. Afterwards, I gave Larissa like 5 hugs at different times because this woman is amazing and I didn't want it to be over. She is so brilliant. She told me to keep dancing and make sure I learn these crazy jump spin things. She told me she wanted to get me to jumps and spins, but not enough time, and that she really enjoyed having me in class. P.S. new news about her. Apparently she was prima ballerina at the Bolshoi for 22 YEARS which is twice the normal amount of time a prima ballerina is there. Also, she choreographed for many Russian films and was in some as well. She is such an amazing woman and I feel privileged I was able to learn from her in my life.
I can't believe this is all coming to an end. I've learned so much and have become a whole different person I think. Before I came, I was beginning to get into movement and dance aspects of theatre, but now, I know that that is where I need to be. I need to take classes and keep improving after this trip. I love it all and this is my strongpoint right now so I need to embellish it.
Chekhov class today was neat. Someone would pose on the chair and someone else would have to come up and pose with them and name the picture. Then that person would stay and the previous person would leave, but a new person would come and invent a new story. It was dealing with psychological gestures and how your imagination can work to invent all of these new situations. The next time we did it, you had to keep adding on to build a new picture, however, every picture had to be of different content and name with the same poses, though. Sounds confusing, but it makes sense because you can change the meaning of something or the way something looks because of your interpretation of it.
The next exercise was to go up front and be a character from The Seagull with no words and the class had to pick who you were...no words, just because of the character youbecome. Inorder for the audience to understand you and see the character, you have to live it and embody it. For some this was easy, but for others it was more difficult. You must have an event and a forward motion, gesture - something that makes you live the character instead of just sitting and waiting. This was a very interesting exercise. You could tell the characters by the physicality, rhythm - fast or slow, or song. We had to hum a tune or sing a song that represented the character also. Finding the character's inner song was cool because it connected to their inner motivations and self and kept the character grounded and free.
Acting was good today. We did an etude from The Segull. It was that Arkadina had a closing party for her show and everyone was in attendance and the event was that she was introducing Konstantin and he blew up and yelled and made a big scene. Changed the scene to that of discomfort. We didn't rush right out after, but instead, each character found a way to dealwith this awkwardness whether by taking a sip of the drink, looking other way, conferring with friend, whatever. The response was good change of atmosphere, great character definition/relationships, not rushing.
The interesting thing I'm finding is that I've been trying to figure out what I've learned so far here in Acting because we do the same things everyday. But that's the thing, we do the same thing - perfecting our craft. I've never thought it was useless at all, but I didn't see results like I could in movement, dance, or singing, probably because this was the only class we have everyday. I realized today that I've expanded on the ability to create a character, explore all possiblities of this character, establish relationships with other characters, and live in the moment - all happening organically and naturally and not rehearsed. It's a beautiful thing, but difficult. I used to think way too much when in these situations. You need to let your mind free and go with your soul/gut leads you.
Last night we watched Sergei's (our instructor) 2nd year class's showcase. It was all etudes. ha ha. Go figure, right? It was pretty incredible. They made rain and a thunderstorm with nothing but their hands, fingers, and mouths. It was amazing how believable it was. They then did object and animal etudes (like we have done, also). One that sticks out is that there were 6 girls in a row as guitar strings. There was someone offstage playing guitar. Everytime that string was plucked, that girl would move her body. He played a song and they all moved accordingly, so amazing to watch. Then one string broke. She left and was replaced by a guy string. It was just really cool to see the personalities a guitar string might have because no one thinks of it. Being an actor, it's important to give everything a personality and a story; every object has a story - where it came from, who it was created by, how old it is, where it is now, what it's gone through, what it thinks of the world, etc. So fascinating to think about and get into. Others that were interesting were a pack of wolves, marionettes, bees. For the human parody ones, they parodied auditionees for the MXAT. Hilarious - there the was the gangster, freak, too nervous to speak, and nerdy one. Different variations of teachers - old, intelligent, and eccentric. Then they did famous people. A boy band where they ended up having watering cans pouring water on them, fans flowing their hair - HILARIOUS. Enrique Iglesias with 4 beautiful women and him getting scared. Britney Spears going from somewhat conservative Baby One More Time to stripping clothes off for You Drive Me Crazy. Hilarious to watch, as well. It ended with Gloria Gaynor. The character study these kids must have done on these specific individuals had to have been intense because they had details down to the lip quiver and head nods. So funny to watch and incredible to see where you can be led with the guidance of such exercises as etudes.
On another note, today we were complimenting Sergei on his class and he told us that 25 of them were in the show last night and 6 were dismissed today, so now their class is down to 19. It began at 32 at the beginning of first year. Every year they cut people out that they don't think will make it. They hope for success for these individuals, but the MXAT is not the place for them. I knew it was a serious school, but I didn't know it was like that. It's good because it gets them prepared. "it's the business" - Sergei. It's just intense to think of getting kicked out of your program, not because you don't have talent, but because you're not there yet or whatever the case. Crazy. it's all crazy that I get to study here. Everyday I walk past lines of people in front of the MXAT just t audition to study here. Everday, huge lines, and I just walk by with my little card and go to class with the instructors they're dying to work with. They audition thousands a year and only take maybe 30. I'm extremely privileged to be have been able to have this opportunity. I know I keep saying this, but it's so true. I';ve sent myself here, and it's one of the best decisions I think I could have ever made. I've learned so much through acting, moving, singing, but also through culture, being in a different country and not knowing the language, handling myself in difficult situations, living with so many people, and being ok. :)
I'm about to go to bed. OH, the most important note of the day...I found a Starbucks. The lady of course had no idea what I was saying when I said carmel mocha, so I got a carmel latte, but still. AND...I have a London and Detroit Starbucks mug...well, I now have a Moscow one to join them. I was so excited that they had that. That was one of the only things I wanted to buy myself here, and I did. Lame, I know, but whatever. It's my thing I guess.
Alright, I'm off to bed. I just made chicken for tomorrow for dinner because we wont have time to come back to the dorms. It's done, so now I can go to sleep. Have a wonderful day. :)
Here's the situation with the Bank card. Apparently Russia put an international block on all debit and ATM transactions with National City, which is why I could not use it. After hours of drama, e-mails between Nicholas, me, and mom, phone calls to the bank, to our correspondance at the bank, to another number at the bank - we came up with a solution...well, EJ did. He gave me his account number and mom put money in his account and he withdrew it today. So, I have money. No worries, it was just a rough uphill climb to get there with a lot of stress...and unnecessary and stupid stress because this shouldn't have happened. Stupid banks. ha. Everything works out. Gotta have faith.
Today we had our last ballet class. We combined the class with both groups. We did our warm ups and dances first. They weren't bad. I wish I would have done a little better, but ya know, whatever. I was fine. I'm just too much of a perfectionist...as ALL OF YOU know. Afterwards, I gave Larissa like 5 hugs at different times because this woman is amazing and I didn't want it to be over. She is so brilliant. She told me to keep dancing and make sure I learn these crazy jump spin things. She told me she wanted to get me to jumps and spins, but not enough time, and that she really enjoyed having me in class. P.S. new news about her. Apparently she was prima ballerina at the Bolshoi for 22 YEARS which is twice the normal amount of time a prima ballerina is there. Also, she choreographed for many Russian films and was in some as well. She is such an amazing woman and I feel privileged I was able to learn from her in my life.
I can't believe this is all coming to an end. I've learned so much and have become a whole different person I think. Before I came, I was beginning to get into movement and dance aspects of theatre, but now, I know that that is where I need to be. I need to take classes and keep improving after this trip. I love it all and this is my strongpoint right now so I need to embellish it.
Chekhov class today was neat. Someone would pose on the chair and someone else would have to come up and pose with them and name the picture. Then that person would stay and the previous person would leave, but a new person would come and invent a new story. It was dealing with psychological gestures and how your imagination can work to invent all of these new situations. The next time we did it, you had to keep adding on to build a new picture, however, every picture had to be of different content and name with the same poses, though. Sounds confusing, but it makes sense because you can change the meaning of something or the way something looks because of your interpretation of it.
The next exercise was to go up front and be a character from The Seagull with no words and the class had to pick who you were...no words, just because of the character youbecome. Inorder for the audience to understand you and see the character, you have to live it and embody it. For some this was easy, but for others it was more difficult. You must have an event and a forward motion, gesture - something that makes you live the character instead of just sitting and waiting. This was a very interesting exercise. You could tell the characters by the physicality, rhythm - fast or slow, or song. We had to hum a tune or sing a song that represented the character also. Finding the character's inner song was cool because it connected to their inner motivations and self and kept the character grounded and free.
Acting was good today. We did an etude from The Segull. It was that Arkadina had a closing party for her show and everyone was in attendance and the event was that she was introducing Konstantin and he blew up and yelled and made a big scene. Changed the scene to that of discomfort. We didn't rush right out after, but instead, each character found a way to dealwith this awkwardness whether by taking a sip of the drink, looking other way, conferring with friend, whatever. The response was good change of atmosphere, great character definition/relationships, not rushing.
The interesting thing I'm finding is that I've been trying to figure out what I've learned so far here in Acting because we do the same things everyday. But that's the thing, we do the same thing - perfecting our craft. I've never thought it was useless at all, but I didn't see results like I could in movement, dance, or singing, probably because this was the only class we have everyday. I realized today that I've expanded on the ability to create a character, explore all possiblities of this character, establish relationships with other characters, and live in the moment - all happening organically and naturally and not rehearsed. It's a beautiful thing, but difficult. I used to think way too much when in these situations. You need to let your mind free and go with your soul/gut leads you.
Last night we watched Sergei's (our instructor) 2nd year class's showcase. It was all etudes. ha ha. Go figure, right? It was pretty incredible. They made rain and a thunderstorm with nothing but their hands, fingers, and mouths. It was amazing how believable it was. They then did object and animal etudes (like we have done, also). One that sticks out is that there were 6 girls in a row as guitar strings. There was someone offstage playing guitar. Everytime that string was plucked, that girl would move her body. He played a song and they all moved accordingly, so amazing to watch. Then one string broke. She left and was replaced by a guy string. It was just really cool to see the personalities a guitar string might have because no one thinks of it. Being an actor, it's important to give everything a personality and a story; every object has a story - where it came from, who it was created by, how old it is, where it is now, what it's gone through, what it thinks of the world, etc. So fascinating to think about and get into. Others that were interesting were a pack of wolves, marionettes, bees. For the human parody ones, they parodied auditionees for the MXAT. Hilarious - there the was the gangster, freak, too nervous to speak, and nerdy one. Different variations of teachers - old, intelligent, and eccentric. Then they did famous people. A boy band where they ended up having watering cans pouring water on them, fans flowing their hair - HILARIOUS. Enrique Iglesias with 4 beautiful women and him getting scared. Britney Spears going from somewhat conservative Baby One More Time to stripping clothes off for You Drive Me Crazy. Hilarious to watch, as well. It ended with Gloria Gaynor. The character study these kids must have done on these specific individuals had to have been intense because they had details down to the lip quiver and head nods. So funny to watch and incredible to see where you can be led with the guidance of such exercises as etudes.
On another note, today we were complimenting Sergei on his class and he told us that 25 of them were in the show last night and 6 were dismissed today, so now their class is down to 19. It began at 32 at the beginning of first year. Every year they cut people out that they don't think will make it. They hope for success for these individuals, but the MXAT is not the place for them. I knew it was a serious school, but I didn't know it was like that. It's good because it gets them prepared. "it's the business" - Sergei. It's just intense to think of getting kicked out of your program, not because you don't have talent, but because you're not there yet or whatever the case. Crazy. it's all crazy that I get to study here. Everyday I walk past lines of people in front of the MXAT just t audition to study here. Everday, huge lines, and I just walk by with my little card and go to class with the instructors they're dying to work with. They audition thousands a year and only take maybe 30. I'm extremely privileged to be have been able to have this opportunity. I know I keep saying this, but it's so true. I';ve sent myself here, and it's one of the best decisions I think I could have ever made. I've learned so much through acting, moving, singing, but also through culture, being in a different country and not knowing the language, handling myself in difficult situations, living with so many people, and being ok. :)
I'm about to go to bed. OH, the most important note of the day...I found a Starbucks. The lady of course had no idea what I was saying when I said carmel mocha, so I got a carmel latte, but still. AND...I have a London and Detroit Starbucks mug...well, I now have a Moscow one to join them. I was so excited that they had that. That was one of the only things I wanted to buy myself here, and I did. Lame, I know, but whatever. It's my thing I guess.
Alright, I'm off to bed. I just made chicken for tomorrow for dinner because we wont have time to come back to the dorms. It's done, so now I can go to sleep. Have a wonderful day. :)
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
I hate National City.
Well, the exciting events of yesterday and today have been me not being able to use my ATM card for some reason. We went to the bak beforehand, had everything worked out, my ATM card has been working fine...until Sunday. Now, ever ATM is declining it. Had mom call National City, they said it's the people in Russia's fault. Call the bank in Russia - Citibank (which happens to be a branch off of National City) and they say it's National City's fault. So, Mom is currently trying to figure out what the problem is with our correspondance that helped me get the international thing set up. This is the kind of thing that you do not want to happen when you're not at home, by the way, because there's literally nothing I can do. It'll all work out and everything will be ok. I have faith...and I know my mom won't quit until it's resolved today. ha ha. She's a tough one.
In regards to classes - we started off with movement today. My right leg is pretty much behind my head, and my left is a little more. So of course, in Russia, they push you to the max. So, Vladimir, the instructor, comes over and pushes them behind my head. So, yes, I had both feet behind my head today. CRAZY! Danielle - there's a lot of balancing exercises I think would be fun to with you where we share the weight between each other, you hop up on my legs and lean back with me just standing there. Pretty cool. It'll be fun. Vladimir now does a short warm up because we should be able to get warmed up in that amount of time with everything compacted instead of spreading it out throughout a longer period of time. Then the after-training is more intense.
Acting was good. We did this exercise where you had to hold hands with everyone in a circle. Study their hand by feeling it. Know it. Then run around the room. Freeze. Close your eyes. Find the people that were on either side of you by feeling only hands. It was really cool and really helped to heighten your senses and keep you aware. The specificity and detail involved in finding your partner can be used onstage with a scene partner or even a prop or object. Everything matters in an object - look, size, texture, smell. All of these probably seem like games to some of you - which they are. However, each game has its meaning. He doesn't tell us what the meaning is, I just gather what I've learned from it and that, to me, is the meaning of the game. I'm generally right because you get a good sense of each exercise. We also did this one where three people were along a wall: one in one corner, another in the middle, and one in the other corner, backs facing the fourth person who was down center stage area. This fourth person had to direct sound and energy toward one of those people and if the person thinks it's them, they raise their hand. It's harder than you think because the sound bounces off the walls. You have to direct all of you towards this one person otherwise a couple people raise their hands, or no one does. This exerces deals with directing your energy to your other and not just having it go all over the place. You need to have a direct connection, and this exercise helps to establish that connection.
We went and watched out Acting professors second year students final showcase tonight. It consisted completely of etudes. Here are some highlights. At the beginning, the entire class simulated a thunderstorm and rain. Amazing what sounds you body and mouth can make. I felt like I was in a storm. They also did animal etudes and objects such as marionettes, like we have done so far. My favorite was actually girls in a line being guitar strings. They would roll their body when their guitar string was strum. Then one broke, and a guy replaced her which crated this sexual tension. Hilarious. It's amazing to see what kind of a life a guitar string would have becasue each string had its own distinct and funny personality. Another one that stood out was everyone was seated as if in an orchestra and an instrumental song started playing. Everyone brought up their imagined instruments and each played their instrument as if it was there. You could see the weight and shape of this imagined object. Astonishing to see how they created this image with nothing there. I really felt I was at a concert. I get blown away more and more everyday.
The second part was them doing etudes as people such as teachers (old, cranky, nerdy, stupid ones), auditionees for the MXAT (skanky, ghetto, nerdy ones). So funny how each had their own personality. The last part was people etuding singers, lip synching but with the music on in the background. This included Elton John, a boy band who had cheesy dance moves and did the stereotypical dance moves, rip off the shirt with water ( a watering can actually - really funny), a fan blowing their hair. Then there was Britney Spears who was slightly conservative with baby one more time and did then ripped it off for a lot more a revealing outift for Crazy. Then there was Enrique Iglesias and Gloria Gaynor. They were all great. To study a person or character so intensely to get even the lip quiver down to a T. Amazing the amount of work and effort the students put into things. This attention to detail is what gets actors places. Awesome to watch.
Tomorrow we have our final dance class. I'm really sad about that because that's one of my favorite classes. I love them all, but I really like this one. It's going to be both groups combined so that we can show each other the dances we've been working on. Then Chekhov, Acting, and off to see a show.
I'm going to write in my journal and head to bed. Hope all is well in America. Night!
In regards to classes - we started off with movement today. My right leg is pretty much behind my head, and my left is a little more. So of course, in Russia, they push you to the max. So, Vladimir, the instructor, comes over and pushes them behind my head. So, yes, I had both feet behind my head today. CRAZY! Danielle - there's a lot of balancing exercises I think would be fun to with you where we share the weight between each other, you hop up on my legs and lean back with me just standing there. Pretty cool. It'll be fun. Vladimir now does a short warm up because we should be able to get warmed up in that amount of time with everything compacted instead of spreading it out throughout a longer period of time. Then the after-training is more intense.
Acting was good. We did this exercise where you had to hold hands with everyone in a circle. Study their hand by feeling it. Know it. Then run around the room. Freeze. Close your eyes. Find the people that were on either side of you by feeling only hands. It was really cool and really helped to heighten your senses and keep you aware. The specificity and detail involved in finding your partner can be used onstage with a scene partner or even a prop or object. Everything matters in an object - look, size, texture, smell. All of these probably seem like games to some of you - which they are. However, each game has its meaning. He doesn't tell us what the meaning is, I just gather what I've learned from it and that, to me, is the meaning of the game. I'm generally right because you get a good sense of each exercise. We also did this one where three people were along a wall: one in one corner, another in the middle, and one in the other corner, backs facing the fourth person who was down center stage area. This fourth person had to direct sound and energy toward one of those people and if the person thinks it's them, they raise their hand. It's harder than you think because the sound bounces off the walls. You have to direct all of you towards this one person otherwise a couple people raise their hands, or no one does. This exerces deals with directing your energy to your other and not just having it go all over the place. You need to have a direct connection, and this exercise helps to establish that connection.
We went and watched out Acting professors second year students final showcase tonight. It consisted completely of etudes. Here are some highlights. At the beginning, the entire class simulated a thunderstorm and rain. Amazing what sounds you body and mouth can make. I felt like I was in a storm. They also did animal etudes and objects such as marionettes, like we have done so far. My favorite was actually girls in a line being guitar strings. They would roll their body when their guitar string was strum. Then one broke, and a guy replaced her which crated this sexual tension. Hilarious. It's amazing to see what kind of a life a guitar string would have becasue each string had its own distinct and funny personality. Another one that stood out was everyone was seated as if in an orchestra and an instrumental song started playing. Everyone brought up their imagined instruments and each played their instrument as if it was there. You could see the weight and shape of this imagined object. Astonishing to see how they created this image with nothing there. I really felt I was at a concert. I get blown away more and more everyday.
The second part was them doing etudes as people such as teachers (old, cranky, nerdy, stupid ones), auditionees for the MXAT (skanky, ghetto, nerdy ones). So funny how each had their own personality. The last part was people etuding singers, lip synching but with the music on in the background. This included Elton John, a boy band who had cheesy dance moves and did the stereotypical dance moves, rip off the shirt with water ( a watering can actually - really funny), a fan blowing their hair. Then there was Britney Spears who was slightly conservative with baby one more time and did then ripped it off for a lot more a revealing outift for Crazy. Then there was Enrique Iglesias and Gloria Gaynor. They were all great. To study a person or character so intensely to get even the lip quiver down to a T. Amazing the amount of work and effort the students put into things. This attention to detail is what gets actors places. Awesome to watch.
Tomorrow we have our final dance class. I'm really sad about that because that's one of my favorite classes. I love them all, but I really like this one. It's going to be both groups combined so that we can show each other the dances we've been working on. Then Chekhov, Acting, and off to see a show.
I'm going to write in my journal and head to bed. Hope all is well in America. Night!
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