How Did I Feel About the Fall Play?

I attended Cheshire Academy’s production, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time on Friday November, 15th in the Black Box Theater. The play was written by Simon Stevens. The advisers were Jennifer Guarino, Ben Hunton and Emily Roller. Amelia Williams starred as Christopher Boone, Olivia Williamson portrayed Siobhan, Willjam Lempling played Ed Boone, Pacifica Yang acted the role of Judy Boone and Ben Goth portrayed Roger.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time follows Christopher Boone, a 15 year old boy with autism. The play begins with Christopher trying to discover who killed the neighbor's dog, Wellington. The play later focuses on the struggles Christopher encounters because of his autism and the issues he has within his family. The play is a coming of age story as Christopher grows to become more brave and independent. The play is also an Individual vs Society story because he is seen as different than the other people around him. As much as he struggles to understand the people around him, those people struggle to figure out him. The approach that is taken in this performance was to show that not everyone with autism is exactly like Christopher and his family. They wanted to represent each character and not hide their imperfections because that's what makes them who they are. 

The play had a very good amount of props. I liked the choice to have Siobhan look down at Christopher's book. I also liked how there were actual letters which made the scene where Amelia threw them on the floor so much more impactful. I noticed how Christopher was positioned in the middle of the stage often. This is important because he was the most important character in the play. I liked how Wellington was a fake so that he would stay still but Sandy was real. I liked this because I don't think the scene would have been as emotional if Sandy was fake. I liked how Christopher was dressed in just a red hoodie. It reminded the audience that he was a teenager and not a little kid.

Overall, my favorite scene was the train station scene. The noises and lighting made it extremely realistic. It felt like I was actually watching people on a real train. In my opinion Willjam did the best job portraying his role. Christopher’s father who goes through a roller coaster of emotions throughout the play. For that reason I believe he had the most challenging role. There are moments where he is really loving and others where he is extremely angry. Willjam did a very good job of expressing these emotions throughout the performance. I was very impressed by how realistic his emotions were. He sounded a lot like an angry father when yelling at Amelia and sounded like he was furious at Pacifica when screaming at her. He was able to do this by changing the volume of his voice from soft spoken to loud and by choosing specific actions to match the emotion of frustration. 

I really enjoyed this performance of the play. I feel all the actors did a very great job portraying their roles which made every scene very believable. I noticed all my friends were paying attention and enjoyed it. I learned a lot about the theater from watching this performance. Prior to coming to Cheshire Academy, I did not know what a black box theater was. I had only seen performances on Proscenium stages so I found it very interesting  to see how a production could be different and similar in the black box.

Alternate Assignment

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1x5Una1FMDTDZm39b1Cn0EB7CpDWqLKErfivPxEt6nX0/edit?usp=sharing

CI Notes (p. 94-99)

Characters:

Christopher - Does not understand why everyone is not going to be interested in the math question, Did not feel like he did well on his test, very descriptive when describing the room, wants to move in with Siobhan, refuses to talk to father, Get an A on a test, Realizes his own independence

Siobhan - Brutally honest with Christopher about nobody wanting to hear about his math problem, won’t let Christopher move in with her because she is not his mother

Ed - Very proud of Christoper, wants Christopher to talk to him, bribes Christopher with puppy to regain trust.

Judy- Tells Christopher she will be there for the conversation because at first he does not want to have it with just his dad

Plot:

Christopher wants to live with Siobhan but she says no because she is not his mother. His father tries to rebuild his relationship with his son by buying him a golden retriever puppy which excites Christopher. Christopher at the end of the book realizes he can be independent!

Themes: 

Bribery, Independence, Family, Happiness

Staging: 

When the parents enter to talk to Christopher, Judy is behind Ed. The dad bends down to Christophers level to show he is not trying to overpower him. When the dad enters the room with the kitchen timer, Christipher immediately freaks out.

Symbolism:

Golden Retriever- The dog Ed buys for his son is a symbol of him trying to regain Christophers trust. It could be seen as inappropriate that he got his son a dog shortly after he had just killed Wellington which he knows upset Christopher.

Similes:

“The corridor smells like gravy and bleach” (the hallway smelt bad)

“The room smells like socks and pine air freshener” (the room also smelled strange)

Metaphor:

“Lets call it a project” The dad refers to them trying to rebuild their relationship as a “project” because it is something they both have to put work into.

Curious Incident Notes on 5 Scenes

Character: the mental qualities distinctive to an individual

Plot: the main events of a play presented in a sequence

Theme: the subject of a play; a topic

Staging: the organizing of characters and props during scenes of a play

Christopher and the Policeman (p. 4-6)

Character: Policeman does not understand that Christopher has autism, he thinks Christopher is just being disrespectful. Christopher does not like that he was touched by the police officer and therefore acted out. He is not a bad kid, he just did not understand that the police was trying to get him to corporate

Plot: The policeman arrives the night of the crime asking Christopher many questions about what had happened. Christopher is autistic which the Police officer does not understand and is very overwhelmed over the whole situation. The police officer believes he is just being rude when he does not stop groaning and grabs him to which Christopher punches back.

Theme: Lack of understanding and overwhelming situation for Christopher

Staging: Mrs Shears is on one side of the dog and Christopher is on the other side. The policeman bends down next to Christopher. Siobhan is off to the side not in the actual scene.

Christopher, Siobhan, and Ed (p. 12-15)

Character: In the beginning of the scene Christopher is shown to be very concerned about his mother being in the hospital. Ed is not allowing Christopher to see his mother for reasons not yet revealed. Siobhan is supportive and understanding of Christopher, while still trying to lead him on a path that won't get him in trouble.

Plot: Ed reveals to his son Christopher that his mother is in the hospital. Christopher understandably is very concerned and curious why he can not go to see her. Christopher then tells Siobhan that he wants to find out who killed Wellington. Ed then informs Christopher that his mother has died.

Theme: Concernment, Curiosity, Death

Staging: Siobhan is off to the side or in her own spotlight until Christopher arrives at school. This is because although she is narrating, she is not actually present in that scene. Christopher's dad is said to have been going downstairs to which on stage he should exit off the side. At school it would make sense if Christopher was in a seat and Siobhan was standing to show authority in the classroom.

Christopher and Mrs. Alexander (p. 18-20)

Character: Mrs Alexander is very kind and patient with Christopher, most likely understanding he has autism. She seems to have a good way of communicating with him. Christopher shows some common signs of autism in this scene. This includes, liking and disliking specific things because of the color, knowing his exact age and not going into Mrs. Alexander's house

Plot: Christopher arrives at Mrs. Alexander's house trying to find out who killed Wellington. He at first asked her some questions about his investigation but then she asks him some things about himself. She talks to him about things such as his pet rat and seeing him on the bus on the way to school. She offers some tea and food but has to work hard to find foods he will eat.

Theme: Investigation, Neighbors, Understanding, Kindness

Staging: Christopher is at Mrs. Alexander’s house. She is inside with the front door open and Christopher is taking to her from outside the house.

Judy's Letter (p. 42-44)

Character: Judy - Impatient, Struggles to understand Christopher’s autism, hated herself, lonely, Selfless

Plot: Judy writing a letter to Christopher informing him why she moved away explaining she felt she was not a very good mother and he would be better off without her

Theme: If you love somebody set them free

Staging: Christopher reading in Dad’s bedroom. Mother writing from sofa

Christopher, Roger, and Judy (p. 85-87)

Character: Roger- Mean to a teen boy with autism/ shows his colors, Judy- Does not understand that Christopher will not be able to handle having to take his test the following year, Christopher- Can’t handle that mom will not let him go home to take his A level

Plot: Everyone wants different things. Judy wants the best for Christopher, Christopher wants to go home to take his A level and Roger wants Christopher gone!

Theme: Family issues

Staging: Everyone sitting around a table having a discussion

Performances Reflection

The first performance I chose to analyze was Boy and Egg acted by Bowen and Tom. This portrayal does a great job emphasizing how innocent the young boy was. It shows how because of this, he experiences a great deal of joy and happiness over discovering something as simple as an egg. Their presentation also highlights the part of the poem where many other children, while playing with a ball, make fun of the boy with the egg. The performance made me think differently about the poem because Bowen does a great job portraying the innocence of his role. This was a characteristic I did not see in the boy as an individual when just reading the poem. When bringing the original poem to the stage, this portrayal does a great job showing the misery of Bowen's part when the other kids begin to bully him and play without him. This presentation also does a great job explaining the setting with barely any props. Viewers understand where the scene takes place without it ever being mentioned in the character’s lines. My favorite aspect of the performance was how despite Bowen's role being much younger than Tom’s, he was still able to stand up for himself enough that Tom did not end up stealing his egg. I enjoyed this part of the presentation because even though he was young, Bowen’s character does not let himself be pushed around by the bully. The other performance I chose was Eating Poetry portrayed by Paige and John. This presentation emphasizes the parts of the poem where the librarian becomes heartbroken over the man destroying the poetry in the library. The performance made me think differently about the poem because I did not understand when reading that the poetry was actually physically ripped up. John does a very good job portraying his part so this could be better understood. This portrayal accomplishes so much when bringing the poem to the stage. This is done as Paige and John achieve very good timing throughout their presentation. Right after the man rips up the paper is when the librarian looks shocked and then once the papers fall she begins to cry. Once the man walks out, the librarian falls to her knees in sorrow. I believe the best part of the performance was how the great timing allowed the viewers to see a clear progression of the grief and sadness the librarian felt over the man's actions.