Residential

Teddy Ferrara (rough notes):

Part 1-

The performance was in thrust staging, with a corridor at the back and a balcony overhead.

The use of thrust staging creates a claustrophobic atmosphere and, in the audience, instigates a feeling of being observers.

The use of a balcony created a literal separation between characters, this was used to demonstrate the unspoken feelings of detachment the characters who went up there were feeling.

The corridor was also used symbolically, the teachers who used it spoke derogatorily about the students who were gay in it, and this suggests it was representative of the internalised thoughts of society. This is even more significant as it is where Teddy’s memorial is

The presence of a balcony is used as a way of showing the audience the internal separation from others the characters who go up there feel, physically. It was also used to create tension as the first time the balcony is used, Teddy Ferrara jumps off, committing suicide. This means that when Gabe goes up on the balcony, clearly distressed, we are in suspense and feel great sympathy and concern for him.

The first time we see him, Gabe is stacking chairs at the sides. (This happens a lot throughout the course of the play.) This illustrates the lack of presence and increases the sense of them being observed and closed in. There are also two boxes of colourful cupcakes that no-one has eaten. This could be symbolic of the fact that the people going are ignoring the nicer, brighter, sweeter aspects of life or maybe that they weren’t participating.

The first time Gabe meets Teddy, he dehumanises him, saying ‘you think I’d have sex with that?’ this shows the hypocrisy of the situation: throughout the play the characters are fighting to be accepted, yet they don’t easily accept others. This is particularly relevant as the depression many (if not all) of the characters feel is caused by oppression such as this.

Teddy was clearly very depressed, but hid those feelings. The only sign he gave to the other characters that he was unhappy was his nervousness. He appeared to be the personification of anxiety, and apparently (outwardly) the antithesis of his online personality.

Gabe’s costume seems to reflect his thoughts and feelings. He is always wearing at least one item of blue, this could represent isolation, sadness or possibly fear (for instance the fear of intimacy that was frequently pointed out but never admitted to).

Ii think the most poignant moment in the play was that the only time Gabe remembered Teddy’s full name until he had died, when Gabe was told the news of ‘some freshman jumping of the 9^th floor balcony. Teddy something…’ he suddenly shouted ‘Teddy Ferrara’. I think this is an incredibly important and significant point/ theme that runs throughout the play: death is the only way to get noticed, to be remembered and make a difference.

Interval-

During the interval there was a memorial set up in the corridor (a corridor that often housed negative comments towards people who were classed as ‘different’ by the characters that spoke there). It was a picture of Teddy (without his name), surrounded by seemingly discarded flowers. Within what we can only assume is two or so days, the memorial is gone. This is demonstrative of how whilst those who die make more impact, it is not necessarily a lasting impact.

Part 2-

During the demonstration, Jacque was at first the only voice, and the others only started to join in gradually. This may show the gradual acceptance of others to diversity. Also in this scene, the fourth wall is broken, as Provost stands in the audience during the Headmaster’s speech. This gives the audience the impression they are part of the school’s audience, making the scene more impactful. However, nothing seems to change despite the protest. It implies that despite all this fighting for acceptance, all they ae receiving is tolerance.

I think they used sound and lighting very well and effectively in order to make the performance more engaging; particularly in the ‘toilet’ scene. It created a tense and uncomfortable atmosphere reflective of Gabe’s emotional trauma. This was further emphasized by Gabe’s facial expression. He was looking up, sadly and appeared to be on the verge of tears; it was as if he was giving something up, giving in. 

And Gabe clearly wasn’t the only one suffering from emotional trauma: Drew is also struggling with events that have unwillingly lead to him recalling past issues. He was ignored after sex by Kevin in the past and then by Tim. He seemed lost and it was the most honestly and openly vulnerable we had seen him. 

There is another meeting, which Gabe is late to. This begin the anticipation and concern of the audience over Gabe’s mental health, especially due to the conversation over his depression and isolation after Teddy’s death before his entrance. However, it is clear that Gabe is, at the very least trying to, not blame himself for Teddy’s suicide. He absolves himself of responsibility, saying ‘I talked to him at length’, a fact the audience know not to be true. This may be due to his guilt, but also due to his hatred of self-victimization (something exploited in a way that irritates both Gabe and the audience): he doesn’t want to blame himself and become self-piteous, he won’t be seen as a victim of Teddy’s suicide.

In my opinion, the most influential scene for Gabe and the pinnacle of the audience’s concern for him, is the scene where he is on the balcony. He finally understood and empathised with Teddy, he finally realised the separation he had put between himself and others and failed in his desperate attempts to reach out to someone. It was blatant to the audience that he was seriously considering jumping, and I think the only thing that stopped him was his refusal to become a hypocrite and see himself as a victim.

However, I think the most poignant scene of the play is the last scene. The play concluded on a moment of silence for Teddy Ferrara. This is significant as the play, which is called ‘Teddy Ferrara’ (despite him, arguably, not being the main character), finishes after just a short moment of contemplation, his story doesn’t continue, he is forgotten (much like Kevin) and the vicious cycle begins again. His life becomes nominal.

Photograph 51 (very rough notes):

• Use of grey lighting when in the present and Dr Rosalind Franklin is dead is reflective of the collective mood (guilt, sadness, regret etc.).
• Use of a very resonant sound effect when changing between flashbacks and the present create a nostalgic and reminiscent feeling and effectively separate the atmospheres created by the two time periods.
• Actors are always, in some way ‘present’. They are either on stage, portrayed as ‘round the corner’ or are standing under the arches at the back. This further enforces the idea that they are recalling these events, especially as the only character that does (often) leave the stage is Franklin.
• Light on the floor are used symbolically, possibly to represent life or lack thereof: rather than having a physical model of DNA (the very essence of life) they used the lights; and when Watson and Crick were examining their completed and perfected DNA model, and Franklin was being taken to hospital and diagnosed with ovarian cancer (due to the x-rays used to take her photographs of DNA), Franklin stood in the light (not only was her life was cut short but she could no longer produce life).
• Acting wise, there was a mixture of good and bad. Franklin (Nicole Kidman), Dr James Watson (Will Attenborough), Dr Don Caspar (Patrick Kennedy), and Dr Ray Gosling (Joshua Silver) were very realistic and the audience became completely absorbed when watching them. However, Dr Francis Crick (Edward Bennett), and Dr Maurice Wilkins (Stephen Campbell Moore) were not as good, Crick’s character didn’t seem as in depth as the others; and Wilkins put emphasis on words unexpectedly, making his lines seem disjointed and appearing as if he didn’t know the script very well.
• Use of “what they would of said”s in order to make the audience consider all the possibilities and ‘what if’s and encourage their empathy with the characters.