Logbook:

You must record and reflect upon the process of rehearsing your scene. Your Logbook must include:
1. At least 4 detailed recounts of lessons and rehearsals ++
2. 10 FUNDEMENTAL QUESTIONS ++
3. an annotated script divided into units, with objectives and sub-objectives for your character
4. 2 important blocking diagrams with explanations +++
5. a character profile ++
6. reflection on how you developed the character ++
7. reflection on how you used other Stanislavski techniques like relaxation and concentration exercises,
emotion memory and the “magic if”
8. reflection on what you have learnt about the style of dramatic realism

RECOUNTS- WRITE BY HAND

1. – first lesson 24th July

Today was the start to the Dinkum assorted assessment journey. At the end of last term, our teacher gave us
our partners in which we were going to be working with throughout this project. I got the opportunity to
work with Caitlyn- someone who I don’t usually work with so that was good. To start off, Caitlyn and I sat
down to choose the scene we would like to act out form the play Dinkum Assorted. We chose scene seven
which used the characters Joan and Connie. We decided to run through the script to see which characters
were best suited for us which then lead to me being Joan and Caitlyn being Connie. We couldn’t really do
much as it was the first lesson so we continuously read through the script so that we could get an image of
what we will be performing and memorising. In order to be productive until the exam we wrote up a plan so
that we can follow it so that we don’t fall behind. Overall I would consider this a productive lesson as we
worked hard and have a good mindset for this assessment. I am looking forward to how this assessment
practice goes and how we organise and do everything asked. Hopefully Caitlyn and I work together well so
that we do well in the final product.

lesson 2 July 25th

Today was the second lesson to this assessment task. This lesson was not very productive as we only worked
on reading the lines and memorising them. Memorising lines can be difficult yet simple. We continuously
went through the script so that we can interpret and perform is in our own way. Our drama teacher Mrs
Cohen helped us quite a bit with how we should portray out characters when performing. My character is
Joan and I struggled to portray her character and perform it in a way that represented a 35-year-old. With my
teacher’s advice, I managed to get better at performing and expressing the character in a way I never
thought of.

lesson 4 30th july

today w ddid logbook
went throught scrip
memorised lines

2nd August
went through run through of script
did it without dialogue difficult
made some changes to how the characters move and act

7th August 18
last lesson before the exam which is tomorrow
went through the play several times and just made it the best we could
organised costumes
referred back to the guidelines
1. Who am I? In the play dinkum assorted my role is Joan. I am a thirty-five-year-old mother to Helen.
I consider myself as a pretty bad mother as I’ve sent my child to boarding school and she is only eight. I
was born and raised in Warrabadanga hence my strong personality. I have been recently living in a
harsh time which has made me a bit intense but charming. I am a tall, brunette and have hazel coloured
eyes. There are so many hobbies in which I enjoy but my favourite is to bake for people that matter to
me. The motto that I live by in life is “life is not about waiting for the storm to pass but learning to
dance in the rain”.

2. What time is it? It is a cold, winter night in the middle of world war ii in 1942. The wind is so strong
it could blow all of us away. It’s the 20TH century and things aren’t looking great for us at the moment.

3. Where am I? Joan is looking for her daughter on the road leading to quarry hill. There are a lot of
planes flying around creating lots of noise.

4. What surrounds me? On the cold night on the road leading to the quarry, there are lots of planes
flying around me making loud and obnoxious sounds. Connie is close by to me but I don’t like being
around her and many others can agree with me on that. There are a lot of sirens and screaming as it is a
war zone. The people around me are very hardworking as they are trying to keep our land safe. The
smell of petrol and gun powder are really strong but there is no escaping them as it is everywhere I go.

5. What are the given circumstances? Yesterday I spent the day with my little girl and I did so today.
We decided to go for a walk but she ran off. I am a headless chook at the moment as I don’t know
where she as gone. I have been searching for hours and hours and I am really tiered and exhausted at the
moment but I can’t give up. My nails are nearly all bitten as when I am stressed and under pressure I
start to bite my nails which isn’t appealing but it’s a habit. I am really overwhelmed and upset as I don’t
want my daughter to think anything bad about me. Hopefully soon it will all the better.

6. What are my relationships? I have a pretty good relationship with all of the ladies that work in the
biscuit factory except for Connie. Connie is just so stubborn and rude so I don’t waste my time on her. I
have a daughter named Helen and my boyfriend is Douglas.

7.What is my objective? In scene seven, Joan’s objective is to find her lost daughter Helen as she ran
off on a nice stroll. When looking for her daughter Joan runs into Connie and she is not happy about
that. Joan also feels like a terrible mother because she sends her daughter to boarding school and wants
Helen to live with her forever.

8. What is the obstacle? Joan does not want to live with Connie because she thinks Connie is up to
something. Joan is suspicious of this but is still accepting her offer so that she can stay with her
daughter.

9. What is the action? Joan is going to search the whole entire lace in order to find Helen or ask for
help from the soldiers. Joan also gets offered to live with Connie so that Helen can stay with her instead
of going to boarding school. Joan accepts this offer still suspicious about Connie’s mindset.

10.What is my super objective? Joan’s super objective is that she does not want to be a failure of a
mother and doesn’t want her daughter Helen to think she’s not worth it. Joan wants to overcome the
feeling of her daughter not wanting her anymore. Joan’s other super objective is to find her daughter
throughout the start of the scene.
NAME: JOAN SMITH AGE: THIRTY-FIVE

HEIGHT: 170 CM WEIGHT: 58KG

BIRTH DATE: 1907 HAIR: BRUNNETTE

EYES: HAZEL COLOUR BIRTHPLACE: WARRABADANGA

OTHER FACIAL FEATURES/OTHER APPEARANCE DETAILS:

SLIM, HAS MEDIUM LENGTH HAIR, SHARP JAWLINE, HAS A PETITE NOSE,
WEARS SAME SHOES AND CLOTHES EVERYDAY

DRESS STYLE:
OLD FASHIONED DRESS WITH BELT

DESCRIPTION OF HOME:
LIVES IN A SMALL ROOM AT THE RAILWAY HOTEL, VERY NEAT BUT CAN GET REALLY MESSY.

DOMINANT CHARACTER TRAIT

VERY INTENSE AND HAS A STRONG GUARD UP SO THAT SHE DOESN’T GET STEPPED ALL OVER BUT YET
RELALY CHARMING AND KIND

BEST FRIEND
MILLIE PATT

ENEMIES AND WHY

NOT A FAN OF CONNIE AS SHE IS VERY RUDE AND STUBBORN- KEEPS TO HERSELF BUT WHEN SHE TALKS TO
ME IS OBNOXIOUS.

FAMILY
DIVORCED BUT NOW HAS A BOYFRIEND NAMED DOUGLAS
CHILD NAMED HELEN (8 YEARS OLD)- STAYS AT THE BOARDING SCHOOL

WHAT KIND OF PERSON IS CHARACTER WITH OTHERS?

JOAN IS SWEET TOWARDS OTHERS AND HELPS THEM OUT IF NEEDED BUT CAN BE STUBBORN

SEES SELF AS:

A TERRIBLE MOTHER TO HELEN AND A HARD WORKER

AMBITIONS:
WANTS TO GET OUT OF WARRABADANGA AND TO LIVE WITH HER DAUGHTER AND DOUGLAS INSTEAD OF
SENDING HER TO BOARDIBG SCHOOL

HABITS:
BITES NAILS AND PACES UP AND DOWN WHEN STRESSED, ALSO RUBS HEAD WHEN OVERWHELMED

HOBBIES:
LOVES TO READ BOOKS AND BAKE IN FREE TIME, ALSO LIKES OT GO ON WALKS WITH DAUGHTER
Reflection on developing my character Joan:

When I first looked at the character Joan I thought it was going to be simple to portray it…. but I was
wrong! Developing a character and getting into character so that the play would be interesting is a lot of
work. I struggled to come up with things to do for my character while I was acting so I got a few
pointers from my drama teacher. Playing a character is not only about what the script says but is about
interpreting it in whatever way you would like. When this advice was told to me I decided to do a little
research on how women acted during wartime and looked really into my lines. I asked myself several
questions on the way my character Joan was feeling and made it into something interesting. I had to
keep reminding myself that in the play I am not a teenager I am a 35-year-old women so I had to act like
one. From all the advice and research, I decided to test out different ways to act my character. Some
ways were very silly but others actually looked decent. After lots of thinking and getting other people
opinions I decided to portray my character as being stressed and overwhelmed and tired. Acting is about
how we portray and express the character’s emotion not what the script tells us to do. Overall creating
the character Joan and developing it was really fun and hard work.

Reflection on how you used other Stanislavski techniques like relaxation and concentration exercises,
emotion memory and the “magic if”:

Techniques from Stanislavski’s system really helped in developing my character and the acting of the
play Dinkum Assorted. These techniques included the emotion memory which was when you recall
memories of the emotions you felt when you were in a similar situation, ‘the magic if’ which was when
you ask yourself the question “what if?” to create the experience by using more imagination and the last
technique relaxation which is when you relax in order to think properly. When acting and performing
scripts I’ve never seen before, I tend to get a bit overwhelmed and start to overthink things. The
technique relaxation helped in this part as I would just sit down or stare and think about what I was
doing because it’s all about having fun. I also used the other two techniques; the magic if and emotion
memory. With the emotion memory I had to think of a time where I was stressed and overwhelmed and
I managed to find a situation like this. I related to these emotions throughout my first exam block
throughout high school. I was really overwhelmed and stressing over all my exams as I really wanted to
do well but I got through it eventually and did my best. I used more of the emotion memory and the
relaxation techniques than the magic what if although I did ask myself questions to create the play more
interesting and less complicated. All the techniques intertwine and relate to one another and play a big
role in the process of learning and interpreting scripts.

Reflection on what you have learnt about the style of dramatic realism
Realism was a movement that began in the 19th century. Stanislavski devised a series of techniques to
help actors or creators create believable characters. These techniques are also known as the system
which I recently spoke about in the previous paragraph. For this assessment, the character I had chosen
was Joan. In order to become like Joan, it required me to think hard as to how I walked, how I acted and
what I was doing when I was standing still. Following the guidelines of realism, I had to make the
character believable and relate it back to an experience or something in my life. I decided to research
the women from the 1940’s and see how they dresses and acted as well as what it was like for them
living in a war zone. Researching helped me to get an idea of what I should do when something bad had
happened which in this case my daughter ran off so I decided to get overwhelmed and stress out. I
represented the stressing and overwhelmed emotions by biting my nails and pacing back and forth.
Throughout the process of finding yourself through the character and establishing what the character
acts like, I learnt that talking and thoroughly thinking with your partner is important or else everything
will fall apart. Realism acting requires lots of thought and practise but I learnt that in the long run it
would help you out a lot as everything in drama I based around realism. Once you get a good idea of
realism and the basics of Stanislavski’s techniques you start to enjoy drama more.