Unit 2 - Engaging with an Audience Task 4

 Task 4 - Your Wizard of Oz characters

I was fortunate to play the iconic character of Dorothy, in which I still can't believe happened in my first college show. Our script for the show was definitely based off the book, so differing that from the well-known film was challenging in the first few script reads as my head straight away went to how Judy Garland plays Dorothy. I overtime looked at the book's version of each characters and how Dorothy presents herself in it, in which I found that there is not a lot of difference from the book's representation to the movie. I also played both an Ozian and a Munchkin, which were also very different from the film but I did have fun playing them as they allowed you to be way over the top, which was different to how I played Dorothy. Overall, I preferred playing Dorothy since she is a character that exuberates happiness, she always offers to help others but doesn't care to hide her strength and boldness when something she doesn't like is happening. I loved her character so much because of this and I found showing this was so unique in comparison to the other characters alongside her, as it highlighted her leadership and compassion for others. 

Dorothy Gale 

The inspiration in the L. Frank Baum story behind Dorothy and who she really is has appeared to be a mystery for a while to a lot of people, but it known that his own niece died in infancy and her name was Dorothy Gage which may have been a homage to her. This highlights that he found ways to connect the story in to his life, which made it much more personal to himself and his family. It has also been found that L. Frank Baum based the character of Dorothy off of Alice from Alice in Wonderland, due to their similar mannerisms of caution yet excitement. They appear the same age in the books, and go on a similar journey of reaching home. 

In the book, Dorothy is illustrated as a chubby young girl with long thick hair, braided into her trademark braided pigtails. She wears a blue and white gingham dress to appear more like a farm girl, until she reaches Oz where she wears a silk one with lots of jewellery and accessories which is said to make her appear more princess-like. She was given no waistline and a floaty dress to resemble a small, innocent young girl. Without the illustrations, it never makes clear about her appearance which allows the reader to think themselves of what Dorothy looks like. It also talks about these amazing silver slippers which is apart of our script and obviously very different to the film's version of the iconic ruby slippers. 

In the film, the age of Dorothy is a lot older in comparison to the book as in the film, she is a pre-teen and she portrays a child in the book. I feel like this is very important since there's a lot of different feeling and emotions between those ages as you grow up. Her outfit and appearance is similar to the book, with Dorothy played by Judy Garland wearing her trademark braided pigtails and gingham dress with white frilly socks. Judy Garland being a lot older than the age conveyed in the book, meant she was taller and she was thinner than the plumpness of the Dorothy in Baum's novel. Dorothy in the film is a lot like in the book, when it comes to mannerisms and her personality, as she remains a kind, innocent yet slightly braver than the girl in the book. For example, Dorothy apologises for killing the Wicked Witch of the West in the book and in the script we used for the show, but in the film she shows no remorse and she's glad that the Witch is gone.  It shows however that the Dorothy portrayed in the book, isn't letting things slide as she shows her strength upon meeting the Lion after he hurts her friends, much like in the film. This highlights that the producers and directors behind the film made sure to keep her spirit and youth alive, to not disregard it which I love since the magic of Dorothy's story doesn't get lost in the characters and plot. However, they made sure to keep the book as their inspiration and make the film into their own, which I also admire as they in a way, simplified the story when it came to characters and plot.

I made sure when it came to me performing as Dorothy, I would play on the childlike actions and emotions, like when she first meets the Scarecrow, play on the fact she's very young and seeing a talking Scarecrow at that age, would probably be very exciting. Alongside this, I always made sure to incorporate as much of the book's tellings of Dorothy, and since the story line and plot was the same to the book, it didn't make it hard, it helped me become the original telling of Dorothy and who she is. When it came to staging, it felt strange being the only consistent character in the show - meaning I stayed on stage for the most amount of time - and meeting so many different people, some that stayed with me for the rest of the show like The Scarecrow, Lion and Tin Man was also new to me, as I haven't played a main character in a show before. Dorothy expresses her thoughts to the audience a lot, which is so important in the telling of the story as it invites those watching into the show and the world of Oz, which as a viewer I always love during shows. Being Dorothy also meant using an accent. Dorothy speaks very soft and has a slight southern american accent. I love performing in accents as it takes your character to a whole other level, so I didn't find maintaining it difficult since I tend to practice accents, as you never know when you'll need them. Being a soft-spoken girl however, meant having to really project my voice which I tried to as much as possible. I definitely learnt a lot from the amazing girls also playing Dorothy, both Millie and Latoya, like how they handled being on stage under the lights on their own and how they explored the character which they both did gracefully and combined the direction they were given to go down with their own. Personally, I found making Dorothy, at the start, into my own was challenging as I didn't want to mess with a concept of an iconic character that has been recognised for many years and make her small mannerisms completely different. Over time, I brought in my own direction to Dorothy, I made her sweet, innocent but made her more sincere and cleverer which is not very noticeable in the film or the book with her being so young, and her kindness being the main highlight. For example, when speaking to the audience she says "I won't say anything because I think it's better to have both.." conveying how she is grateful for the things she has, that other's don't despite the fact, a lot of the story is Dorothy and her friend's wanting what they desire the most, but in reality, all have it, they just don't realise. To highlight her sincerity, when saying the line, I used a lot of my body language and facial expressions by turning to my friends and looking away after the line, showing sympathy on my face that I wish they had what they don't. Dorothy in the script is quite confident when it comes to meeting her new found friends, especially the Lion as she evens hit at him which I wanted to make clear whenever I could, that she is brave and speaks her voice when necessary. I feel it is transparent when speaking to the Wizard that she is both clever and confident, since she uncovers his true identity by being curious and questioning his words. 

The process of becoming Dorothy was such fun. Practicing and rehearsing in character meant I was constantly in her headspace, and I needed to channel her youth and emotions all the time. What made the journey so magical was working with the Makeup team. I feel like I learnt so much from them, from the way they care for their clients - in this case, all of the actors - to the lovely talks they had with one another. I had two makeup artists turn me into Dorothy, Sarah did my second show day and Millie did my first. Millie was nervous since she knew Dorothy was a big character and didn't want to mess up, and I was nervous since I was playing her and didn't want to mess up. Being in the same boat meant we were talking easy and it wasn't an unenjoyable experience for the both of us. They both did an amazing job and both my hair and makeup got so many lovely compliments. With the makeup, they kept it simple yet exaggerated so that on stage and under the lights, the audience can see it clearly. It resembled the film's makeup of Dorothy as the book doesn't show her wearing any, only some slight pink blush on her cheeks. With my hair, it was obvious what style it would be but due to my awkward hair length, it served quite a challenge. However, thanks to Nina, who teaches the makeup students, she would tightly curl the fronts, then plait it and bobble the end to then attach a red ribbon in the ends to finish the look. My hair was sprayed with lots of hairspray, and with the makeup, I felt like Dorothy completely which always made me even more excited for the shows. Kelly had a blue gingham Dorothy dress, which fit perfect and with a pair of decorated red glittery shoes, I was ready to skip down the yellow brick road in no time.

Dorothy was such a fun and complex character - much more than I thought - to play, as each line told you more about her, and her inner thoughts I tried to make clear to provide her with some depth and background. I'm so glad I was given this role as it allowed me to explore my acting abilities and adventure out of my comfort zone. As much as I tried to give her my own direction, I felt that all I needed to do was make her small traits even bigger - like her cleverness and confidence - as she is well known for being kind and loving and I wanted to keep that strong. If I played Dorothy again, I would act even more childlike as there were moments where I felt it slipping away. I would also try and act more curious in Oz and take in my surroundings around me. Over than this, I had such a joy working with the people around me and my skills were definitely tested whether that was down to slight improv during a missing line, or even trying to remember all of my own. I felt that the group of 4 we created became so special, and I really hope I'm able to act with them again in the future.