The company performed a 20-minute abridged version of the musical Grease. They showcased their skills in acting, singing, and dancing to key moments from the musical. The performance included scenes and songs like "Summer Nights", "Hopelessly Devoted to You", and "You're the One That I Want". The company adapted aspects like choreography and characters to best suit their abilities and the space. Overall the performance challenged the company to perform to their highest standard across all art forms.

1. Final Evaluation,Summaryof Grease performance-
Withinthe showcase ourcompanyperformedatwentyminute abridge versionof Grease,withinthis
we workedonall three art forms.We showcasedourversatilitywhenperformingassome of our
companymulti -rolledwithinGrease.The showcase challengedustoperformtothe bestof our
abilitywithinall threeartforms.The showcase neededtoincludeahigheramountof dialogue in
orderto helpthe storyfloweasierand create scene changes. Withinourshowcase,we hadtoact
throughoutbothsongand dance as we needed tocontinually portrayourcharactersthroughout.
Our showcase consistedof some of the keymomentswithin Grease;thisincludedanopeningscene
whichintroducedustothe charactersand lead intothe firstsong, ‘SummerNights’.AfterSummer
Nightswe hadsome more dialogue where we foundoutmore aboutSandy’ssummerleadinginto
bumpingintoDanny.ThisendedbadlyandSandywasleftupset andalone.She thensings
‘HopelesslyDevotedtoyou’whichthenflipstothe bedroomscene where Sandyisinthe bathroom
and the PinkLadies are talkingaboutMarty’s love life.Thisthen leadsinto‘Freddy myLove’,after
whichboththe PinkLadiesandthe T-birdsprepare togo to the highschool dance, thisscene shows
the characters pairingupreadyto go to the dance.Firstly, the girlsdance altogetherandthenthe
boysjoininwith them,nextthe musicfadesfrom“Rockn’ Roll Is Here To Stay” into“Born to Hand
Jive”.Afterthisupbeat1950’s Rock and Roll style dance, everyone exitsexceptforFrenchyand
Sandy,FrenchycomfortsSandybytellinghereverythingwill be alrightinvitinghertocome over.
Frenchydid thisto ensure Sandywasalright andalsoto show how theirfriendshiptogetherhas
progressedsince theyfirstmet.FrenchymakesSandyfeel welcome atall timeswithinthe musical as
if theyhave alwaysbeenfriends. Frenchysings ‘Lookatme I’mSandra Dee’reprise toSandytelling
herto keepherheadhigh tryingto keepstrongthinkingpastDanny’sacts. Thisthenswitchestothe
T-birdsonthe highschool fields lookingatthe cheerleadersandfinallyendswith‘You’re the One I
Want’.
Initiallywe lookedintothe musicalGrease andthe backgroundof the musical,we thengotthe feel
for the 1950’s characters by performingsome workshopswhichexploreddifferentcharacterswithin
Grease.For example, we workedoninnocentSandyandhow we believedshe wouldbe portrayed.
An example of howtoportray innocentSandy wouldbe quite shyandreservedwithminimal
physical actions, alsoSandywouldbe quietwhentryingtofitinwiththe PinkLadies tryingnotto
pushherself intothe group.We thenexperimentedwiththe characterRizzowhohastotally
opposite characteristicstoinnocentSandy.Forexample Rizzoisaloudcharacterand has bigsassy
characteristicsincludingbeinglaidbacksuchassittingwiththe PinkLadieshoweveractinglike she
isn’tbotheredeithersmokingorlookingathernails.WhereasSandy wouldbe satup straight,
crossedleggedholdingherhandswhile engagingwiththe othercharacterswithasmile.
Musically,we experimentedwithharmonies toaccompanythe mainmelodyasbackingvocals.
Once we were confidentwithourpartswithinall of the songswe addedthe harmoniestogetherand
practicedaltogether. Duringthis process, we workedwithourvocal coach Mrs Guy whoallocated
our harmoniestosuit our vocal types andalsogave usguidance withoursoloperformances.
Before workingonthe choreographyforGrease,we experimentedindance workshopswere we
learntsome of the keycharacteristicsand basic stepswhich make upthe foundationsof the Jive.
Our dance rehearsalsconsistedof learningkeymotifswithinGrease includingthe main‘HandJive’
motif whichconsistsof clapping,slappingof the thighsandotherhandgestures. Thiswasour
foundationtolearningthe restof the choreography, laterwe made changestothe choreography
and otherart forms, such as once the set wasbuiltwe changedthe spacingof dances.

2. WhenlearningchoreographyforGrease we workedwitha choreographer,MissSweeney.She
workedalongside uswhile learningthe repertoire,thiswasimportantinordertouse exact and
accurate repertoire fromGrease.Notonlythatbutshe alsohelpedtoensure eachmemberwithin
the ensemble wereperformingthe choreographycorrectly andprecisely.We alsoworkedwithour
dance directorMrs Turner,she helpedustoperfectplacementof choreographyandalsoworkon
our timingasan ensemble.Thishelpedusensure we were workingas a teamwithinthe
choreography,notonlythatbut italso made the performance of choreographylookprofessional
and well-rehearsed.
The vocal coach Mrs Guy worked hardwitheachmemberof the companyto ensure eachperson
knewtheirharmonyperfectlyandalsohadthe correctvocal techniqueswhensinging.MrsGuy also
gave assistance toeach memberof the companyto ensure theirsoloswere strongshowingoff the
bestof ourability. Workwasput intoperformingthe mainmelodylinesaswell asharmonysections.
Projectionwasakeyarea I neededtofocusonas well asincludingsome dynamic contrast.This
combinedwithdictionandwordclarity.
Our directorMr Sluman,gave usworkshopsincharacterisationandaccentsbefore beginningwork
on Grease.Thisgave us the appropriate foundations whendeliveringdialogueinanAmericanaccent
and alsoto helpusportray an overexaggeratedAmericanteen.
Duringthe initial stagesof Grease we experimented andexplored all of the characters to ensure we
understoodhoweachcharacterwas differentandtheirspecificattributes.Afterthat eachmember
of the companywas givena character specificallyforthem, mycharacterwas Frenchy.Frenchyisa
girlygirl whoisso excitedabouteverythingandwantstoknow all of the gossip,thisisevidentwhen
Sandytellsthe pinkladiesabouthersummerasFrenchyisso engagedinthe conversation,Frenchy
isa supportive characterasshe cares forSandy whenshe isupsetaboutDanny. I believethat
Frenchywas an appropriate characterfor me as I workedhard to ensure Iportrayedthe correct
attributesandcharacteristicsof Frenchy.Whenworkingonmy characterisationtowardsFrenchyI
had to considerfacial expressions,physicality, accentandtone of voice.I also needed toportraythe
interestandengagementinwhatSandywastalkingabout,notonlythat but I alsohadto comfort
Sandywhenshe wasupsetdue to Danny’sactions.
Duringeach rehearsal we recorded ourwork to ensure the company hadall rehearsalsfilmed.This
gave us the opportunity toself-evaluate ourselves andourprogressmade inpreparingforthe
performance.Thisisimportantasnotonlydo we needtobe performingwell butwe alsoneedtobe
able to identifyourweaknessesandwhat isgoingwrong.Thisisimportantas we now understand
howto make improvementsourselveswithoutrelyingonotherswithinthe company. Byrecording
ourselveswhenrehearsingitalsoallowsustosee if the stagingof the performance iscorrect,for
example once the setwasbuiltwe hadto change the centre of ourperformance tobe in the centre
of the setrather thanthe centre of the stage.
Withinourresearchof Grease the musical we hadto understand the style andformof the musical,
thisisimportant inorder to playthe characters correctlycorrespondingtothe eraand style of the
musical.The style of Grease is rock and roll inthe late 1950’s andthe musical formisa book musical.
Duringour rehearsal processessome of ourchoreographywasadaptedinordertoensure ourvocals
remained strongwithprojectionandwordclarity, while performingupbeatenergeticchoreography.
Thisis importantin orderto showour abilityin all artformsas we wantedtoavoidlackinginone
particularart form. Originally, we learntaJive motif whichwasadapted thatthe girlswouldperform
on theirownand thenwe couldcarry straighton to performthe original handjive motif withour

3. male partners. We alsoadaptedthe choreographyforthe middle of Bornto Hand Jive asone unison
sectiondidn’tlookprecise,sothiswaschangedto eachcouple havingasolosectionwhichportrayed
the characteristicsof theircharacterswell. Thissection addedtothe energylevel andrepresented
the competitionelementof the highschool ball.
Otherareas we adaptedwasthe change of some characters due to our story line andadaptationsof
the musical Grease. Originally,we wouldhave hadtohave changedour characters toomany times
due to the songswhichsuiteach performerbestandalsogivingequal opportunitiesforeach
memberwiththe company.Thiswouldmake ithardfor the audience tofollow andmaycause
confusion,sowe rearrangedthe characters. We decidedtohave twoSandy’s,soto representthis
Sandyhad a signature outfitand hairstyle.Atthe beginningof ourabridge versionof Grease Sandy
isbeingplayedbyEllie,however,towardsthe latterpartof the musical BetsyplaysSandy.Atthe
beginningof ourmusical BetsyplaysRizzoandthenswapsroleswithEllie tobecome SandyandEllie
become Rizzoduringthe latterhalf of the musical.ErinplaysMarty throughoutandRebeccaplays
Frenchythroughout. All of the T-birdsstaythe same throughout,RamyplaysDanny,Brookplays
Kenickie,JackplaysSonnyandBrandonplaysDoody.
Once the set wasbuilt we neededtoadaptthe stagingof the performance inordertolook
aestheticallypleasingandavoidclasheswhendancing. Whendancingitwas hardto figure outour
spacingwiththe setas we had a smallerspace toperforminandhad to be wearytoavoid clashing
intothe band or the stepscomingdownfromthe raisedstage. Notonlythat but we alsohad to
ensure thatthroughoutourperformance we remainedcentre tothe setratherthanthe centre of
stage as thiseffectedthe overallaestheticsof the performance. We decidedthatwithinthe Hand
Jive thatone couple woulddance onstage in the centre andthe otherthree couples formeda
triangle formationonthe floortomake it looklike adiamond.Thisgave usmore room when
performingandenabledustoavoidclashes,the adaptationsmade tothe setmade usimprove our
spatial awareness.Spatialawarenesswasimportantonce we hadthe setas thiswas a keyskill to
have to avoidanyunprofessional aestheticproblems,notonlydidwe have tobe wearyto avoid
clashesbutwe alsohad to make the performance off the centre of the room to be inthe centre of
the stage.
I workedindividuallyonmycharacterisationandotherweaknessesIhadwithinGrease.Todothis
effectively, Igave myself weeklytargetsinordertohelp me improve. Isetmyself specificrehearsals
withineachweektofocusoncertainelementsto worktowardsmyweeklytarget.Forexample, to
improve onmycharacterisationIgave myself smallerelementstoworkon includingmyfacial
expressions.Facial expressionshelp me toportraymy character betterandcorrespond to feelings
such as beingexcitedaboutSandy’ssummer.Additionally, Iworked onmyphysicalitytoensure I
was showingthatFrenchy wastryingto comfortSandy,theythen stoodcloselytogetherFrenchy
wrapsher arm aroundSandy’s shoulderto reassure Sandythateverythingisgoingtobe alright.
AnotherelementIworkedonwithinthese rehearsalswasmyAmericanaccentas I initiallystruggled
whendeliveringlinesinthe accent.Iset thistargetfor twoweekstoensure IperfectedmyAmerican
accent ensuringconsistency whendeliveringlines. Isetmyself the taskof watchingvideosonhowto
speakwithan Americanaccent,Ialsolistenedtopeople withanAmericanaccentwhichenabledme
to understandhowtoperforminan Americanaccent.Suchas emphasisingdifferent lettersincluding
the letterr whichthe Americansaddmore emphasisto.Notonlythatbut I alsoaskedpeerstohelp
improve myAmericanaccenteachmemberof the companydeliveredone of mylinesinan
Americanaccentthishelpedme asI understoodwhere Iwasgoingwrongandhow to improve.To
ensure Icontinuedimprovingonmyaccent I audiorecordedsome of mypeersperformingdialogue

4. inan Americanaccentwhichhelpedme whenpracticingindividually. Iwasable to lookbackwhenI
was strugglingwithparticularwords.
The company workedwell togetherasanensemble,we overcame issuessuchaschangesinthe Jive.
Thiswas importantasthe companyneededtoremainstrongtogethertoensure all choreography
and performance elementswhereshownprofessionallyandaccurately. Everyone withinthe group
were all verysupportive of one anotheraswe gave constructive criticismtoone anotherwhen
necessary.Thisisimportantas the advice frompeershelpstoimprove notonlyyourindividual
performance butalsothe overall outcome of the group. All peershadapositive attitude towardsthe
performance andworkedhardto ensure we all hadthe correct level of energywithinGrease and
towardsmakingfurtherimprovements.
My strength withinthisprocesshasbeenmy characterisationskills,Iinitiallystruggledtoportraymy
character effectivelyhoweverafterworkinghardwithinindividualrehearsals myfacial expressions,
accent andphysicalityimprovedimmensely whichimprovedmyoverallcharacterisationof Frenchy.
Thisis seenwithinthe recordingsinthe leaduptothe performance,includingthe dressrehearsal.
Anotherstrengthof mine wasdance as mymusicalitywasgoodthroughoutalongside myenergyand
enthusiasmwhichwasseenwithinthe Jivedue tothe bouncycharacteristicsof the piece and my
interactionwithmypartner.
My weaknesseswithinGrease weremy vocal projectionwhendeliveringbothmy linesandalso
whensinging,alsoincludingadynamiccontrastandmaintainaccurate tuninginmy solosong were a
weakness.
To ensure Imake improvementstomyprojectionforthe future Iwill setmyself smallergoalsto
eventually improveand alsoworkhardon usingdifferentvocal techniquestoimprove projection. I
will alsoensure thatmydynamiccontrastswhensingingare clear,Iwill achieve thisbyworkingon
my clarityof soundsand alsoworkingonparticulardynamicsIam findingmore difficult.
Followingonfromthe showcase Iamgoingto continue working onmy projection,tuningand
dynamiccontrast. To ensure I improve onthese Iwill setmyself longtermtargetsonthisandalso
use smallerSMARTtargetswithinthisprocess.Iwill setmyself regularexerciseswhichwill
eventuallyall contributetobecomingbetteratthese performance skills. Thisisimportanttoensure I
have a professional careerwithinthe industry.