Yoshi Oida

Yoshi Oida is someone Ben talks a lot about in rehearsal so to understand why he is so important I thought I needed to do some research. Yoshi Oida is a Japanese actor, director and author. Throughout his career he worked closely with Peter Brook; in 1970 he joined the International Centre of Theatre Research 2 years after moving to France to work with Brook. He has written 3 books-- the floating actor, the invisible actor and the cunning actor.

He believes in finding a rhythm of life and the connection between your body and the world around, being able to exist and notice the world and in turn listening to your bodies impulses to react. There is an exercise which experiments with this in which a group of people would clap together with no one leading, finding a rhythm which eventually begins to build and gain speed and momentum until it reaches a peak by which time you go back to the start and build once again. I think I understand the connection between this mans work and the work we do in rehearsal with side stretch. At the end of the movement when we all come to standing we try and notice the world around us, listening to our bodily impulses, syncing them with the intentions of the whole cast. Building that tension and feeling it rise is a very similar effect to the clapping exercise, when you finally reach a peak- the ha- and without talking or commenting you set up to start all over again.

Both our work in side stretch and the teachings of Yoshi Oida ask us to listen to what our body wants and not matter whether it is right or wrong. Learning to be attentive and sensitive to your surroundings so as to understand what your body is and wants. Developing this and putting it to use when I work with a scene or a character development means learning how to notice my bodies instincts and not deny them so as to keep playing and to keep building the energy and tension within the play.

Taking a walk in Claudia's shoes (literally)

Claudia's costume is where the transformation happens; a costume is named so to indicate that the clothes an actor is wearing are there for 'dressing up' purposes as they exist as another being for however long they are on stage. Claudia's clothing does this for me; and where else to start but with the red shoes. The picture included here are not of the shoes I will be wearing, nor any shoes I believe Claudia would have in her wardrobe, but instead are a very famous pair from 'The Wizard of Oz'. When talking about the power of red shoes you need look no further than this comparison as it holds many of the same explanations as to the power of red shoes. Dorothy's shoes transport her and my shoes transport me- the magical transformation device taking me from a rehearsal room to a cooperate world of business. Walking in the shoes changes a lot about me: my posture, my walk, the way I stand and so using them in the rehearsal room is key so as to connect with them as they become an extension of my foot. Rebecca was described in the New York Times as a dominating figure of business strutting all over the word in 'stiletto heels' and Claudia Roe will be doing just that all across the world we are creating.

The clothing is also a big part of getting into her character because it is a very bold statement and it requires a certain kind of person to pull it off and therefore I have to push everything about her character to literally and metaphorically fill the clothes. Myself and Claudia clearly do not share the same taste in style; a shoulder padded short red dress, leather trousers with a red leotard and an extravagant funeral hat are nowhere to be found in my personal wardrobe. However I think the polar opposite nature of our style helps me. To put this character onstage is daunting, to do as myself is wrong, so to have a costume which allows me to shake off any excess 'olivianess' that I have is essential when I am building a character such as hers.

In the costume parade, when I walked into the workroom wearing my 3 different outfits, there was an audible reception for each which made me a little embarrassed. However things like that are the kind of thing I need to start embracing. A costume is a visual aid to help the audience enter this new realm of business and finance and Claudia's look is one that is made for the soul purpose of standing out. If I am able to work with that I believe a lot of my other insecurities will drift away- when I look in the mirror wearing these outfits, it's not me I see, which means the women onstage is not either giving me the armour I need to be bulletproof against all the nagging doubts I have. The outfit has allowed me to feel like this women the most I ever have so far in this process, so adapting to it and knowing how to work it, will make her come to life. 

Frantic Assembly

When it comes to our physical work, being inspired by the work of people such as Frantic Assembly. will help us as an ensemble to make work that is well structured, imaginative and effective at portraying our story to the audience.

If you take a look at the work in this video you can see that Frantic are able to have a whole cast transition on and offstage with focus and pace without getting in each others way. As a group I believe our ensemble is what will make the play the best it can be. The play will not be made great by a small group of people, it will be made by the whole ensemble working together; it will create a performance that creates this religious cult that existed at Enron. Having a look at the work of a group of young people such as that in the video above, proves to us that it is possible to have discipline whilst still maintaining our creativity and playfulness.

Frantic assembly make a lot of their work in a devising process instead having one person choreograph. They allow their performers to trial an idea and then adapt it until they find a motif, routine or move that they believe works for the company and the project. I think applying this creative approach would work for us but only by using the second half of Frantic's approach which is working within the boundaries of certain rules. Therefore we would be able to create informed work which we had all communicated about, agreeing on the sort of work we were aiming to produce. We are a group with a lot of ideas and a lot of energy, but admittedly sometimes we need guidelines to help the work become less messy so as to give it a clear purpose making it as effective as possible.

Another element that Frantic make use of throughout their process is music. I think the Enron soundtrack has been underestimated in the rehearsal room; it creates atmosphere and energy and yet when we create work I often feel as an ensemble we work against it instead of listening to what it is the track can provide for us. Frantic choose music to help tell their story and I think Ben has done the same. Allowing our work to be informed by the soundtrack is fundimental if we want to tell this story to the best of our ability. Frantic's work centres around creating motifs, sequences and performances that tell a story and entertain an audience the same way a more traditional naturalistic play does. Our music is part of taking our audience to an alternative universe, so letting the music run through us will make all our physcial sequences look so much more well rounded. 

The love affair of Claudia Roe and Mike Alfreds

A lot of the advice I have been given in this process and a lot of the approaches we have taken in rehearsal have reflected the work of Mike Alfreds and thus Claudia's character got a second love affair.

From the start of our process I adopted a Mike Alfred's technique to begin my text work. Alfreds asks his actors to action their scripts so as to bring the text to life This is a page from my last scene in which Claudia sees Jeff for the first time since he fired her; obviously a little awkward. Therefore employing Alfreds' technique of actioning, I came up with 4 objectives for the lines. When working on this scene Charlie and I have been able to work with Alfreds theory of developing the actions into physical gestures. The 4 objectives for this scene all seem to centre around Claudia belittling Skilling and metaphorically saying 'I told you so.' To do this I started playing with these objectives in their extreme forms; with my voice, by pushing it's patronising tone and with my physicality by invading Charlie's personal space, with the confidence that he is so broken that he couldn't push me away. Obviously to an audience these actions look very childish, which to an extent Claudia is in this scene, but with Claudia being Claudia her voice and physicality wouldn't show this so blatantly. However playing with the extremes means I can find a happy medium. Knowing my purpose onstage means I can carry it out better and playing around with my actions and intentions allows me to breath new life into this scene.

Alfreds looks for truthfulness in his work; he does't want his actors to pretend to be he just wants them to be- to live, become and be true to the character to the extent that the line between fiction and non fiction should become blurred. With someone like Claudia, me pretending to be her wouldn't work- I am too different to just make an educated guess. Therefore I need to research and dedicate myself to coming to know and understand her so it is not just a stab in the dark, but a well informed, mature response to the character and the stimulus it produces. For a women that is so self assured, if my portrayal doesn't match her on that level, it will just be unconvincing. For someone of my age and experience to have any hope of playing this character well, I will have to be unrecognisable as myself onstage. 

If you ask someone who Mike Alfreds is, the work they are most likely to know is his book 'Different Every Night'. The title of said book is a fundamental aim for our cast. This play has the potential to be playful and fresh every time we perform- whether in a rehearsal room or for one of our shows in the New Theatre. Being able to be playful with this piece will bring a dimension to the performance that a clean cut show wouldn't- it brings raw energy and excitement which means we could have the same audience every night and they would see a different show. If we can have a mixture of Alfreds ideas about structure, rules, playfulness and truth and we can create a dynamic performance which takes an admittedly messy play and make it into something magical. 

How do you make a tie sexy?

In answer to the aforementioned question- who knows? Although I do know how to answer it a little more succinctly after today's session. To transition from the opening scene into the second scene Ben has asked Sam and I to create a movement sequence to get us from one end of the platform to the other using Skilling's tie. I loved the idea when it was told to me; I think it was something I needed and wanted to transition with because the time in between became a little cloudy as to what to spend it doing. So I was keen to start devising.

Our first block occurred before we had even begun as it would appear that I am unable to undo a tie; apparently of all the skills 17 years of life has taught me, undoing a tie is not one of them. So we had to sort that out initially because I was making the whole thing look sloppy and unprofessional, clearly indicating that it was a student on the stage not a 40 year old business women, who has encountered this situation plenty of times (3 to be exact). Weirdly it shouldn't be an issue, but it was one of those things that frustrated me because Claudia would know and I didn't and it's those gaps that start to make me uncomfortable because the clear differences between myself and my character show and that makes me nervous. Yet I suppose the main thing here is that I learnt to undo a tie so it was no longer a problem. 

Sam and I were able to improvise, create and then consolidate a sequence of moves quite fast, so the material wasn't the thing that needed improvement; it was the emotional impulse and connection we had to the movement. When Ben watched our sequence his direction centred around us trying not to do the moves just because it was choreography, but because of the need these two characters have to do it. Truthfully, the reason Claudia has sex with Jeff isn't because she is romantically invested, it is because she can and she wants to- part of me believes that the only way this women could express any connection with a human being beyond formal obligation was in a sexual way. The world of business- especially for a female in that time- was often one of perpetual sexual connotations and Claudia embraces this; it's not romantic, it's not personal, it just is. Contrasting this we have Skilling who genuinely cares for her, he loves her, enough to leave his wife. We therefore have this chemistry that comes together to make something electric onstage. Therefore we have to inject that energy into this instead of just stepping left, right and doing a little spin. Claudia and Jeff's relationship has iconic elements to it and the energy they share whether founded in sex, business, anger, hatred, competition or pity- they are brimming with animation and if Sam and I can pull that off and truthfully invest in it, it could become a vital source of energy in the play. 

Learning to walk and talk like Claudia Roe - the talk

On the long list of 'things I don't share with Claudia' one of the most obvious ones is that we have completely different accents. Perfecting your vocals for any character is essential, so when it is someone with a different accent you have an even harder job; if my accent isn't convincing then all the other elements that I have built her character with will suddenly share the same quality- amateur and fake. For a women who uses words in such a calculated, effective way, her voice has to have a quality to match. Her voice has to be just as perfect as everything else about her person.

Although I have been rehearsing in an American accent for weeks having an accent coach in to actually tell you what your mouth is doing to make the sounds, irons out an creases in your technique and she was also able to answer the specific questions I had regarding things I couldn't quite get my tongue around. As far as mouth placement for different sounds the key rules I learnt were:

• The Enron cast's new motto- flat, back and wide. These are the three things that describe the mouth and tongue placement for an American accent- flat tongue, speaking from the back of your mouth with you mouth wide open.  When getting into your accent it is a good phrase to repeat over and over so as to adjust your mouth to it's new setting. 
• The l sound used in the American accent is called a dark l. The word 'little' contains both a light and dark l sound, with the first l sound being light and the second dark. That 'ul' sound created at the end of this word is the sort of sound an American accent will use to form the l sound. 
• The t sound is made by placing the tip of your tongue behind your front teeth instead of how a British accent places it, past the front teeth and onto your lips. 

Something a little random that I finally addressed with the accent coach today is one word that I cannot say without turning from a DC accent to a thick New York accent; the word 'divorced.' This word from Claudia's monologue has taken on a life of it's own and I can't help but do it in a New York accent and I have no explanation as to why. However our coach was able to to tell me that when I make the 'or' sound I needed to stretch the top of my mouth instead of keeping it rigid, which makes the sound lighter and rids it of the deeper, grittier tones of my freak New York accent. 

Even though my mouth had been forming these shapes and making those placements for weeks because I didn't know what I was actually doing there were inconsistencies. Claudia's voice has to match the smooth style that you see in every aspect of her character. Everything she does is to draw attention; it's something she needs to function. Her voice has got to be that of a women with command, sex appeal and 40 years worth of knowledge. Her voice will be such an important aspect when trying to convince people that I am that person because if my accent is executed skillfully, I've already won half the battle in my attempt to transform. Now that I have solid roots in the accent I can play and put my stamp on it, knowing that I have a solid foundation I can build on. Layering on all these elements is really starting to make me feel like I can give a convincing, informed performance.  

The REAL Claudia Roe

Jeff, Andy and Ken are all real; this begs the question who the hell is Claudia? If you read up about the play many critics and theatre enthusiasts will talk about the presence of Claudia acting as a foil for Jeff and yet I was curious as to how the detail in her role could be culminated if not based on someone true. My answer came in a surprisingly familiar, blonde, stiletto wearing women named Rebecca Mark.

 My first clue came in the form of a New York Times post from 2006 about the 10 Enron Players and where they landed after the fall. The article described her as 'Enron's flashy ambassador abroad' dominating the world of business in 'stiletto heels and a miniskirt'. The article also said Mark was 'widely reported to have been a rival of Mr. Skilling's to be named chief executive.' And if that wasn't enough proof, there was more. The article also praised Mark for being 'listed on Fortune's annual index of the 50 most powerful women in business'. So then my second clue arose. I was able to find this particular list from 1998 and filling the number 14 spot, just as Claudia did, is Rebecca Mark. The evidence is conclusive: Mark ran the Dabhol Power Company in India and Claudia "just happened" to run the same plant. Mark resigned in August 2000 when it was the clear there was no support left for her within the company. She sold her shares for $82.5 million and was never accused of any wrongdoing when the company fell. And now- she is president of Resource Development Partners who invest in water, energy and agriculture whilst Jeff is still serving his 24 year and 4 month sentence; so by all accounts Ms Mark did get out and she got out just in time.

The hints across 'Enron' leading to this connection are not only really clever and interesting for me to uncover, but oddly rewarding. At the start of this process and the beginning of everyone's character development many of the other central characters had stimulus to work with- they could find pictures, interviews, statements and articles all assisting them build a picture of who and what they're character was and is. Claudia was the anomaly to this rule. By uncovering her all to similar doppelganger, there is a sense that I have answered a whole heap of questions and filled in a piece of the puzzle in terms of my interpretation. Of course my Claudia Roe isn't going to be the same as Rebecca, not only because it is a dramatization and therefore some creative license has been employed, but because I do not want  a carbon copy, most probably because that is not all that entertaining. And yet having this glimpse into who this woman is, where she started, the parallels from her time in Enron and where she is now informs me about a core part of this women I am grappling with to bring to life.