Warriors Don't Cry Review

Prior to seeing "Warriors Don't Cry", I had never heard of The Little Rock Nine nor had I heard of Melba Pattillo. For this reason, I believe everyone should either read the script or
watch this play.

Not only was this particular performance at the Bushnell captivating, it was beyond educational. Like I previously stated, I had never learned about Melba's story, so consequently, I was unaware to the extreme lengths she went through to to gain educational equality for herself, and her peers. Perhaps what I liked most about the play was that it portrayed Melba during her younger years, and during her teenage life. I think that this detail truly makes an impact on the audience, as now they're able to see what extreme circumstances she dealt with at such a young age, and continued to cope with as she grew up.

To be honest, I was in complete shock when I learned about some of the horrors that she went through. I could not fathom that one person who had acid thrown in her face, who was repeatedly beat up at school, and who was threatened over the phone at home continued to return to a school that did not want her in order to change history for those that shared her race. Even though the play portrayed her at times not wanting to continue her education at her high school, it was inspiring to see a character based on a real person who is dedicated to gaining equal rights.

In addition, I think the timing of when we saw the play had a big impact on me. I found that the subject matter of the play was very connected to many current events around the world. Many people in society continue to fight for equal rights, whether it is gay rights, gender rights, religious freedom, or simply freedom of speech. That being said, even though Melba fought for her educational rights in the 1950s through the 1960s, the play can be related to many social issues that people face to this day. This is a another reason why I believe everyone should educate themselves pertaining to Melba's story, challenges, and her eventual overcoming of those said difficulties.

Why I also like this play is because it showed me how far society has come as a whole. This play made me recognize how much society has developed as far as attitudes towards other's races. While we still have a long way to come, this performance made me recognize how thankful I am to live in a community where many are excepted for who they are. If people were to watch this play or at least read about Melba's story and struggles, I believe we can come even further in accepting one another.


I am glad that I had the opportunity to learn about such a strong woman, who went to extreme lengths for all to have access to such a basic right as education. Because of warriors like Melba, society has flourished and overcome huge obstacles.

Warriors Don't Cry

Warriors Don’t Cry, a one woman show, is is based on Dr. Melba Pattillo Beal’s memoir. She was part of the Little Rock Nine, a group of nine African American students that attended Central High School in 1957, when it was only a white student body. However, the Little Rock Crisis soon followed, and in September, Melba and her fellow black students were prevented from attending the school by Governor of Arkansas, Orval Faubus. She was 16 during the time of the Crisis, and throughout the play, she is followed from adolescence into adulthood. 

During her time spent as one of the first black students to enter Central High School, Malba was bullied not only by her peers, but by their parents, was threatened with murder, attacked with explosive sticks of dynamite, and was even injured by getting acid sprayed in her eyes. Yes, despite all of the physical and mental trauma she faced, Melba refused to leave the school.

The Play is written by Zita Christian and Scott Galbraith. It first premiered in The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts and was produced in New York City as well as throughout England. The play quickly became popular, and toured nationwide from 2012 until 2013.  

Progress Blog #3

During this week, I really tried to focus and dedicate as much time as I could to learning the final monologue in the scene and finalizing the blocking in our scene.

In the beginning, I was struggling with learning my lines. Shakespearean language is challenging, but I love having to push myself  to memorize them. That being said, I found three strategies that helped me learn them.

The first, was writing and re-writing the lines. This is muscle memory, I feel that it helped me make the necessary, beginning steps to learn them. The second strategy that I used was recording my lines, and relistening to them. While this did not help as much, I still think it is good to hear yourself on tape delivering you lines so that you change any habits you don’t like. For example, I found that I was talking too fast on most of my line. I knew this was something that I had to work on, but I did not fully understand until I heard myself speeding through the lines. The third, and most helpful tactic I used, was simply saying one line at a time, and gradually adding another as I went. I would keep going back and repeating the lines, and I think this was the most helpful.

Now, I feel that our scene flows more smoothly because we all know our lines very well. After we were able to memorize them all, we were able to add in emotion and body movements to help add emotion to the scene.

However, it is very apparent that our blocking was the biggest challenge of this week. Whenever we ran through the scene, we would have to stop, and discuss how to fix our blocking. Ideally, our blocking should have been finalized last week. I feel that our scene is behind the others in our class because of it. Even though we are challenged with figuring out our blocking, I know that my group wants to make the scene as perfect as it can be, and I hope that we will be able to figure it out before our final draft. I think we could achieve this if we were to run through it, over and over, until we decided on what works, and what we want to keep in the scene.     

I look forward to filming our final draft later this week. I hope that we will be able to make our scene as tight as possible with better blocking, and line memorization. In the past, I have been in scenes where my group has struggled with both of these aspects, and the final draft always turned out better than I could have hoped. That being said, I have a feeling a feeling that our Romeo and Juliet Scene will turn out great. I have loved working in this group and finding out ways to overcome our challenges. Hopefully, our scene will not be hindered by awkward blocking, but instead will feel natural and flow smoothly.   

Romeo and Juliet: Final Draft and Link

https://youtu.be/0GCQN63jXFI

I was pleased with the final outcome of our scene. While there were many things I would have improved and changed if we had more time, I am happy and proud of the final draft.

When I watch the video, the biggest thing I notice that we could have improved on is our volume. Throughout the scene, despite everyone having good reactions and emotions, it is hard to hear each line. I think in addition to our struggle with projecting, I think our blocking played a role in this. Because our bodies were turned into each other and our faces were often covered, the audience lost many of the lines.  

Another aspect I would have liked for our scene is for more organized costumes and a more put together set. Although it was convenient that the bed was left on stage from The Dead, I felt that our furniture portrayed a specific time and tone, one that neither of us particularly had in mind. While this is not the most important aspect to our scene, I do think it gave our final draft a certain feeling. Instead of feeling more modern, like I had wanted in the beginning, it now felt more homely and comfortable, due to the quilts, rugs, and many pillows. This taught me what a big role the scenery plays in a scene, and how important it really is when developing a play or musical. I feel as though I now really understand how important the surroundings are not just to the audience, but to the actors in the scene.

In addition, I think our scene felt more natural once we finalized the entrances, exits, and spread out on the stage more. Before we did this, we tall ended to crowd into a corner, and it felt too “tight”. This showed me that my group was able to adapt very quickly when we needed too. Because we each listened to each other’s ideas, we were able to incorporate all of them, and create a wonderful scene.     

I am so happy that I got the opportunity to work with such a great group. Whenever we were together, working, we were focused, and set many goals, all of which were accomplished. Neither of us were satisfied until we had the exact blocking we wanted, and I think that helped us solidify our scene, even if it took us longer to finalize it. In addition, I feel as though we put a good amount of effort into our scene, developing our characters, the blocking, and figuring out how to distinct each character from one another. Again, I think our scene came out very well, and I am overjoyed with our final draft. I think each of our talents as actors, as well as our skill understanding the play, is clearly highlighted throughout our performance. When I watch the video, I see more positive aspects than negative, and I know that all of our hard work and dedication to making the scene as best as we could paid off.  

The Dead: A Reflection

I loved being part of the cast in The Dead. This season, I really felt that we have a solid group of actors who worked well together, was focused, and made the play a great experience. Overall, I loved working with each and every one of them and enjoyed being part of such an unusual play.

During our rehearsals, I loved watching the new theatre students learn about being on stage and helping them whenever I could. It was interesting to see how quickly we adapted when our staging was constantly changing. Because we had learned the play with specific blocking that incorporated protruding walls, it was fun learning how to adapt when the staged was altered into more of a theatre in the round setup. It was my first experience being in a show where the audience surrounded me, and I loved learning how to stand, walk, and dance in such a different setting. In addition, I enjoyed having to do “elderly” makeup. I always find it fun when people ask me to do the stage makeup, and I loved facing the challenge of making Grace and I look elderly.  

What I found most challenging in this play was having to act as an 80 year old woman. Realistically, I am too young to play such a role, but I found it to be an exciting challenge. I was constantly told in notes that I was acting too young, so I had to adjust my walking and talking. That being said, I had to make sure that I didn’t loose my volume. Normally, I feel that I project enough on stage, but I found that my acting impacted my volume. Because of this, I had to be conscious not only of my acting, but of my volume and blocking.

I’m happy that I had the opportunity to be in The Dead; it taught me how to work with such a diverse cast, in a new theatrical setting, and how to act outside of my comfort level.

Final Draft of Script for Romeo and Juliet Scene

Mrs. Guarino,
I am posting the final draft of the script for our scene; I realized I never posted it.

Abigail: Lord Capulet

Nancy: Lady Capulet

Betty: Juliet

Juliet:

O fortune, fortune! all men call thee fickle:
If thou art fickle, what dost thou with him.
That is renown'd for faith? Be fickle, fortune;
For then, I hope, thou wilt not keep him long,
But send him back.

LADY CAPULET
[Within] Ho, daughter! are you up?

JULIET
Who is't that calls? is it my lady mother?

ENTER LADY CAPULET

LADY CAPULET
Why, how now, Juliet!

JULIET
Madam, I am not well.

LADY CAPULET
Evermore weeping for your cousin's death?
What, wilt thou wash him from his grave with tears?

JULIET
Yet let me weep for such a feeling loss

LADY CAPULET
So shall you feel the loss, but not the friend
Which you weep for.

JULIET
Feeling so the loss,
Cannot choose but ever weep the friend.

LADY CAPULET
Well, girl, thou weep'st not so much for his death,
As that the villain lives which slaughter'd him.

JULIET
What villain madam?

LADY CAPULET
That same villain,

Romeo.

JULIET
[Aside] Villain and he be many miles asunder.--
God Pardon him! I do, with all my heart;
And yet no man like he doth grieve my heart.

LADY CAPULET
That is, because the traitor murderer lives.

JULIET
Ay, madam, from the reach of these my hands:
Would none but I might venge my cousin's death!

LADY CAPULET
We will have vengeance for it, fear thou not:
Then weep no more. I'll send to one in Mantua,
Where that same banish'd runagate doth live,
Shall give him such an unaccustom'd dram,
That he shall soon keep Tybalt company:
And then, I hope, thou wilt be satisfied.

JULIET
Indeed, I never shall be satisfied
With Romeo, till I behold him--dead--
Is my poor heart for a kinsman vex'd.
Madam, if you could find out but a man
To bear a poison, I would temper it;
That Romeo should, upon receipt thereof,
Soon sleep in quiet. O, how my heart abhors
To hear him named, and cannot come to him.
To wreak the love I bore my cousin
Upon his body that slaughter'd him!

LADY CAPULET
Find thou the means,

And I'll find such a man.
But now I'll tell thee joyful tidings, girl.

JULIET
And joy comes well in such a needy time:
What are they, I beseech your ladyship?

LADY CAPULET
Well, well, thou hast a careful father, child;
One who, to put thee from thy heaviness,
Hath sorted out a sudden day of joy,
That thou expect'st not nor I look'd not for.

JULIET
Madam, in happy time, what day is that?

LADY CAPULET
Marry, my child, early next Thursday morn,
The gallant, young and noble gentleman,
The County Paris, at Saint Peter's Church,
Shall happily make thee there a joyful bride.

JULIET
Now, by Saint Peter's Church and Peter too,
He shall not make me there a joyful bride.
I wonder at this haste; that I must wed
Ere he, that should be husband, comes to woo.
I pray you, tell my lord and father, madam,
I will not marry yet; and, when I do, I swear,
It shall be Romeo, whom you know I hate,
Rather than Paris. These are news indeed!

LADY CAPULET
Here comes your father;

Tell him so yourself,
And see how he will take it at your hands.

Enter CAPULET

CAPULET
How now! a conduit, girl? what, still in tears?
Evermore showering? How now, wife!
Have you deliver'd to her our decree?

LADY CAPULET
Ay, sir; but she will none,

She gives you thanks.
I would the fool were married to her grave!

CAPULET
Is she not proud? doth she not count her blest,
Unworthy as she is, that we have brought
So worthy a gentleman to be her bridegroom?

JULIET
Not proud, you have; but thankful, that you have:
Proud can I never be of what I hate;
But thankful even for hate, that is meant love.

CAPULET
How now, how now, chop-logic! What is this?
'Proud,' and 'I thank you,' and 'I thank you not;'
And yet 'not proud,' mistress minion, you,
Thank me no thankings, nor, proud me no prouds,
But fettle your fine joints 'gainst Thursday next,
To go with Paris to Saint Peter's Church,
Or I will drag thee on a hurdle thither.
Out, You tallow-face!

LADY CAPULET
Fie, fie! what, are you mad?

JULIET
Good father, I beseech you on my knees,
Hear me with patience but to speak a word.

CAPULET
Hang thee, young baggage! disobedient wretch!
I tell thee what: get thee to church o' Thursday,
Or never after look me in the face:
Speak not, reply not, do not answer me.

Wife, we have a curse in having her:
Out on her, hilding!

LADY CAPULET

God in heaven bless her!

You are to blame my lord to rate her so.

I speak no treason,

May not one speak?


CAPULET
God's bread! it makes me mad:
Alone, in company, still my care hath been
To have her match'd: A gentleman of noble parentage,
Proportion'd as one's thought would wish a man;
And then to have a wretched puling fool,
A whining mammet, in her fortune's tender,
To answer 'I'll not wed; I cannot love,
I pray you, pardon me.'
But, as you will not wed, I'll pardon you:
Graze where you will you shall not house with me:
Look to't, think on't, I do not use to jest.
Thursday is near; lay hand on heart, advise:
An you be mine, I'll give you to my friend;
And you be not, hang, beg, starve, die in
the streets,
For, by my soul, I'll ne'er acknowledge thee,
Nor what is mine shall never do thee good:
Trust to't, bethink you; I'll not be forsworn.

Exit

JULIET
O, sweet my mother, cast me not away!
Delay this marriage for a month, a week;
Or, if you do not, make the bridal bed
In that dim monument where Tybalt lies.

LADY CAPULET
Talk not to me, for I'll not speak a word:
Do as thou wilt, for I have done with thee.

Exit