13th nov - rach

Today we did a full speed run of Act 2. We haven't done a speedrun for Act 2 in a while, nor have we done a proper run through, so this was refreshing to our memories of performing it before.

The feel to this act is exceedingly contrasting to the 1st act in terms of emotion and the oncoming events. Juxtaposing Act One, the majority of Act 2 portrays a negative vibe, sad, tense and an air of melancholy which carries through most of the scenes. The act opens with 'Seasons Of Love', which is a very purposeful song for the beginning scene. 'Seasons Of Love' contrasts from the last scene in Act 2, 'La Vie Boheme' which was very upbeat with high spirit. The lyrics in this song heavily foreshadow the events to come, specifically the last verse "In truths that she learnt, or in times that he cried, in bridges he burned, or the way the she died". "She died" gives the warning of death that could indicate to any of the female characters, for example Mimi comes close to dying, but in the end it only applies to Angel. "He cried" could also refer to Collins mourning over the death of his loved one.

The song "Happy New Year" I feel is where Act 2 officially begins, returning to the characters who are in slightly different positions after the new year. This song seems to mislead and confuse what is to come in the rest of this storyline, as everyone is back in high spirits and celebrating the new year. If anything, "Happy New Year" is simply ironic as it soon after spirals downhill as the following scenes completely oppose this song.

The feel to my character, Joanne, is mainly aggression and frustration. She has finally had enough of Maureen's attitude to their relationship and clearly exhibits this especially in the songs 'Take Me Or Leave Me' and 'Goodbye Love'.

A technique used in Act 2 is Luke's character, 'Mark' steps out of that character, and narrates some scenes as if he's a journalist observing the scene. For example, in 'Take Me Or Leave Me', he begins the scene briefly recapping on the whereabouts of the other characters, as well as introducing our characters (Joanne and Maureen) and our situation e.g "Valentines Day...Maureen and Joanne are rehearsing".