Reflection on oral presentation

I love performance on the stage because every performance I play on the stage would help me to develop a lot, and doing a reflection on the performance would help me to understand and comprehend my strength and weakness on performing roundly.
In the before, after I finished my performance, I would recall what I did is good and what should I do better next time in a short time period. But I believe write down strength and weakness is a good way to help me remember my strength and weakness. However, this time, Ms. Guarino asked us to do an oral presentation to judge ourselves, we can bring out note but we can not write down full sentence. In the first time I had no idea what should I write first, so I chose to listen what others spoke and how they manage their speaking time in each section.  Then after I listened two of them, I begin to write down several main points in the note, in the study hall I tried first time to speak oral presentation with my note, but after I began to speak my oral, I found out that I added some extra information every time compared with the original text I prepared to write. During the analysis of my movement on the stage and also the staging setting. I began to think about why I needed to do this action or why I decided to use this background color in this scene. Then I began to remember what I did in each scene and also the reason why I did those action, those actions are helping me to express my emotions and sometimes the actions helped me to interact with others, which also show connections between me and others.
However, during the real oral presentation, I did not know what happened on me, maybe its nervous or anxious, I did twice recordings, the first one after I spoke the introduction part one minute, I found out that I missed speaking several points and there were many grammar mistakes I made in talking about performing. At that time I was very nervous and I tried to calm down and let myself treat this thing in a peace of mind. Then in the second time trying to record oral presentation, I believed I spoke the introduction and staging adaptation and examples of performances, those sections I believed I did a great job, not only I summarized what I did and also I can use several reasons to support my answer. But in analysis literature feature and conclusion part, I think I may miss reporting some details and also at that time period, I found out hat I made many grammar mistakes.  For example in the literature feature part, I did not refer what Danticat mainly drew attention in Haitian revolution impact, and also how the cultural difference and generation gap influenced the relationship between mom and daughters.
But in general, I really loved this oral presentation because it helped me to think roundly about my performance on the stage, and this recording would be a great resource for me to develop my performance skill next time. 

Oral presentation

 • understanding of the text(s)
 • critical perspectives on the dramatic potential of the text(s)
• insights into the performance process experienced from page to stage
• critical evaluation of their particular role and contribution to this process of transformation or adaptation and realization.


Oral presentation:
In Edwidge Danticat's story Krik Krak, it mainly focus on the harsh life Haitian people experienced during that time period and how did they overcome the difficulties or were beaten by the difficulties. In those many interesting stories, there's one story talked about a daughter in an immigrant family, which she was preparing for her wedding.
This time I performed the show Caroline's Wedding in story Krik Krak. The reason why I chose play this story was that it was interesting and realistic, it talked about the connection between fathers and daughters, and how did the Haitian culture and American culture influenced the mom and two daughters. Which made me become interested in editing it into the performance.
Because I played the role of dad, so there's less direct information that describes dad in the book that can help me to write down dad's characteristic and his relationship with his wife and his daughters, Caroline and Grace. But however, from several places in the conversations between Caroline and Grace, they always missed their dad and always wanted to see dad again. Because of those conversations and some potential description of dad, I would write down lines of dad and also I asked my teammates, Betty and Kat about their understanding of dad from the book, those advices also helped me to build the character of dad. And in my mind, even though dad is a Haitian guy but he loved Grace and Caroline, and because of this love, he understood each choice they did.
Because in Krik Krak, the author always wanted to show that the Haitian people were in struggle, they always fought for life but they never lost their believes. In the previous stories, 1937, even mom was in prison and she knew she did not have much time left, but she still contained confidence toward everything. In the night women, even though the main character was a prostitude, but she did that only for her son. This belief also shows in this story,  Caroline's Wedding, the main characters, Grace and Caroline were both Haitians but they had the green cards of United States, which the green cards were the hope for these two characters, or even the whole Haitians because they were in chaos and America was a good place for them to avoid war, the author used those two main characters as the miniature of the whole Haitians. Then during several times, like Caroline talked with mom, Grace talked with Caroline. They both referred the name of dad, which I could directly know that how important dad is in this family. And for dad, these two girl and his wife are the most important people in his mind.
What was difficulties in adapting the story into the performance is the dreaming part, because dad was unreal and we did not have much information compared with Grace and Caroline, so finding his characteristic and decided the plot involved him really challenged me. But I believe from our performance, audience can clearly found out that dad is an important component in the family, especially for his two daughters.
In order to do this performance perfectly, first thing our group did is to think about the start point and the end point. Because dad was died and he is very important in the family, which we made the start point which dad was dying and then the following development is followed by dad. One interesting thing in our story is that we developed dad's role, which even though he was only a ghost but he still missed his wife and daughters and because of this caring, he contributed a lot in order to protect his family members until the wedding night.
In order to perform dad's role actively, not only I need to analyze his characteristic but also I believe I need to interact with other family members on the stage. Which I put this caring into my lines and my actions. I need to show emotion change in order to let audience knew my personality and persistence. The setting was I as dad died in the hospital and then the place moved to haven to start my afterlife, so in the beginning I lay on the bed serenely. Grace and Caroline were crying beside me in order to show that dad is really important in the family, then the lights shut and I moved to the stage right where is the haven. We divided the stage into three parts, reality, dream, heaven, I always stood in right stage and sometimes went into middle stage as the dream to communicate with Caroline and Grace. In my right stage, in order to show the armosphere of heaven, I decided to not put any color of light to show the loneliness, and in the stage middle because it is the dream world, I used blue and red lights to indicate its variness and creativeness. Then in the beginning of the stage, when I went to the heaven, in order to perform that I am weak at that time when I first come to heaven, I coughed several times and used the crutch to support my body in order to show the weakness. But when I found out that I was alive, firstly I just called the name of my relatives: my wife, my daughters. Which this line I spoke very loudly in order to show my caring. Moreover, because I was a ghost, I can hear others conversation but my relatives can't hear me. Even though under this situation, I stilled asked Caroline that she needed to eat dinner with mom and also blamed myself that why I can not protect my daughters anymore. Then in the wedding night's eve, this day I dressed up and I did not use that crutch, because I knew my daughter will marry with Eric and I was very glad to know this. During this conversation with Caroline, I always smiled and congratulated her. And in the end I even hugged with her, this action I believed totally showed my love and caring toward my relatives. Because god reminded me before that I can touch the person who was familiar with me, or I will disappear immediately. But I still hugged with my daughter because I was really happy for her and also congratulated for myself that I won't be worried about my family anymore because Caroline found her mr.Right, Grace was mature enough and my wife can take care of herself. Then the lights shutted immediately which gave audiences a hind about dad's final destiny.
Because of this performance, I can totally understand the author's attitude toward the Haiti and also performed the role of dad gave me the idea experience of how family is important for every member in the family. Also I believed that from my performance both in lines and interactions, audience can feel the caring of father and how did the children of dad supported himself to continue living in this world.

Reflection on my final

For this performance project, Krk Krak. I choose to be the dad in Caroline’s wedding. Who he is the father of Grace and Caroline, but he already died in the story Krik Krak, then I had an idea about showing the story between the died father and two daughters, which I hope to see the growing of my daughters and also show the adaption of dad from hopelessness to happiness.

In my acting, I like the most part is I improve my speaking speed and volume. In the before, the practice trial, I also speak my lines in lower voice and audience may not hear my speaking and also I thought my speaking speed is a little bit fast because I wanted to show my worries toward my daughters. But this time, I improved it better. When I went into heaven, my speaking speed is fast and my voice is very loudly, I wanted to use the loud voice and fast speaking speed to show that I feel worried and I stayed in an unfamiliar situation. However, in the end, when I last time went into Caroline’s dream and talked with her about her marriage, I spoke very slowly and the voice is not too loud because of two reasons, first, after I died to Caroline’s wedding, there are ten years passed, which means dad is already old enough and did not have much time left. Also, this time, as Caroline’s father, I was not worried because my oldest daughter, Grace is already an American and my younger daughter now will be married and she found her happiness, as a father, there’s nothing I need to worry about, which I use a softer voice and slower speaking speed to make the audience feel my emotion change on the stage. Also in the stage, we divided the stage into three parts, real world, dream. Heaven. Heaven is in stage right and after I died I always stood in the stage right to show my situation. And for my acting, I am satisfied on the speaking part, when I speak some lines, I will use some actions or gestures to emphasize my lines, which in this part I like the most.

Moreover, because dad is a died person in the original text in Krik Krak, so I could not find any direct information to help to depict dad. However, from Grace and Caroline’s conversation, I could get some information about dad personality and his contribution to the family, which I used these information to help me build the character of dad. In my acting, there are two places where I highlighted, the first one is when I first went into heaven and second time is when I talked with Caroline about her marriage. These two things are most important, but also there is one thing I wanted to illuminate, in the scene two where Grace and Caroline in dream, they found out me and they wanted to hug me but God said you can not touch the person who you are familiar with. So I just said :” No you cannot touch me or come too close!” However, in the last scene, last part when I said :” I will always love, remember stay safely my love. “ Then I hug with Caroline, even though in this time I know if I hug with my daughter I will disappear immediately, but I still hugged her because this time is my last time and my daughter will marry with a good person, there’s no reason for me to not be happy and proud to my daughter. So in the end I hugged her and then the lights shut down which means the dream broke, and Caroline and Grace’s father, finally disappear from their life. But I think I emphasize this hug as the greatness of father and also the struggle to his fate.

The things I believed I need to improve is the interaction with light, because I thought I needed to follow with the light to speak my lines, and in this part I think I handled it badly, I think if there’s more practice before the final draft, i will done it good. Moreover, I think I need to interact better with that walking stick, the original reason I wanted to use it because it as a support for the dad, it is a symbol of dad that can support dad to face life positively and also accompanied with him. But sometime I think I needed to show this symbol clearly, but I just have a rough idea in my mind, which I want to show that the walking stick is supporting myself, but when in the last wedding ceremony, I gave up that stick because I won’t be worried about anything, I had no regret in the world, my daughters found their happiness and it is time for dad to leave.