Bates College SCARAB Honors Theses Capstone Projects 5-2018 Portraying Harper Amaty Pitt: A Process Hope French [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scarab.bates.edu/honorstheses Recommended Citation French, Hope, "Portraying Harper Amaty Pitt: A Process" (2018). Honors Theses. 248. https://scarab.bates.edu/honorstheses/248 This Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Capstone Projects at SCARAB. It has been accepted for inclusion in Honors Theses by an authorized administrator of SCARAB. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Portraying Harper Amaty Pitt in Angels in America: A Process An Honors Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the Department of Theatre and Dance Bates College In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts By Elizabeth Hope French Lewiston, Maine March 28, 2018 Abstract Considered to be one of the most important artistic works of the 20th century, Tony Kushner’s Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes, Part One: Millennium Approaches, is an emphatic plea to alter societal values on religion, politics, sexuality, and American identity. This magical and epic play revolves around two couples who face unendurable circumstances, and their struggle to persist despite the world crumbling around them. Set in the fractured atmosphere of 1980’s New York City, Kushner explores postwar conservatism and its rejection of progressive principles, especially concerning the abandoned gay community during the HIV/AIDS epidemic. This project centers around the character Harper Amaty Pitt, the role I portray in Tim Dugan’s production in Schaeffer Theater at Bates College. I construct the character of Harper through the application of various tools proposed in Michael Chekhov’s To The Actor and Constantin Stanislavski's An Actor Prepares. Chekhov’s method of psycho-physical acting facilitates the exploration of character impulses, development of imagination, and integration of body and voice into my character. Stanislavski’s technique will assist in textual analysis, specifically involving the identification of given circumstances, objectives, and units of action. This thesis aims to explore key themes of the play, its social- historical context, offer in-depth character analysis, and reflect on my process as an actor. These written and performance components broaden both how I approach characters and expand my knowledge of different acting techniques. 2 Table of Contents ABSTRACT 2 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 5 INTRODUCTION 6 I: DRAMATURGICAL RESEARCH 8 I.1: PLOT 8 I.1.I: SCENE BY SCENE BREAKDOWN 8 I.1.II: GENERAL NOTES 11 I.2: TONY KUSHNER BACKGROUND 15 I.2.I: HISTORY 15 I.2.II: INFLUENCES 17 I.2.III: NOTABLE WORKS 19 I.2.IV: ‘ANGELS IN AMERICA’ 22 I.3: THEMES 28 I.3.I: POLITICS OF THE 1980S 28 I.3.III: HIV/AIDS 32 II: ACTING TECHNIQUE 38 II. 1: CONSTANTIN STANISLAVSKI METHOD 38 II.2: MICHAEL CHEKHOV TECHNIQUE 41 II.3: CONNECTION + APPLICATION 43 III: HARPER’S JOURNEY 50 III.1: HARPER ANALYSIS 50 III.2: MR. LIES ANALYSIS 54 III.3: SCENE BREAKDOWN 57 IV: PROCESS & PERFORMANCE 67 IV.1: JOURNAL ENTRIES 67 IV. 2: PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS 79 CONCLUSION 88 BIBLIOGRAPHY 90 3 APPENDIX 94 SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIALS 106 POSTER 106 PERFORMANCE PROGRAM 107 PERFORMANCE PHOTOS 111 4 Acknowledgments When I first declared myself a Theater major (after getting over the initial wave of nausea over making such a substantial life decision) I joined the Bates College Department of Theater and Dance’s yearly check-in meeting for all majors. A reunion usually reserved for ensuring that each student was enrolled in the classes necessary to graduate, I marched in and inquired about Honors Theses. The request was somewhat unusual seeing as the last (and only) Honors Theater thesis available on SCARAB is from 2012. Given this, my unending thanks are due to the Department for putting their extraordinary trust in the sprightly sophomore that approached them nearly to and a half years before her thesis due date; it has not gone unappreciated. Special thanks are also due to those within the department whose collaborative work on Angels in America helped construct a fabulously magical world: Chris McDowell, Michael Reidy, Justin Moriarty, Carol Farrell, and Martin Andrucki. Thanks also to the incredible Kati Vecsey, for your encouragement, and occasionally brutal honesty during my four years at Bates. Next, I would like to give thanks to my inspirational thesis advisor, Professor Timothy Dugan. Your unending energy and dedication for all things Tony Kushner is truly moving, and sparked not only me, but the entire ensemble to dedicate all of themselves to the production. Even when we were having our occasional stir-crazy, loopy moments, you wrangled us together and focused us with ease. Thank you for your continued support that motivates me to become a better actor, and theater-maker. I would like to thank the cast and crew of Angels in America for their continual love - never before have I met more talented, compassionate, and powerful people. This show required phenomenal amounts of emotional and physical strength, and we all pulled it off with the help of one another. Also, if 20+ hours of tech rehearsal do not create a family, then I do not know what will. Thank you to my amazingly supportive family. My mother, Karen, for constantly listening to me on the phone in each stage of the rehearsal process and texting me inspirational Bitmojis. My awe-inspiring dad, Barry, who is always available to send a little love my way. My hilarious brothers, Will and Charlie, thanks for keeping me grounded, whether that be through gentle teasing or yelling at me to “chew my gum!” I love all of you with every inch of my heart, thank you for providing me with this tremendous opportunity. Finally, the thank-yous that are possibly ridiculous, but still incredibly necessary. First, thank you to my lovely roommates – Julia, whose zen demeanor always managed to calm me down. Alyssa, your eagerness for early dinner managed to tempt me out of the library on days when I figured I would be holed up on the second floor for all of eternity. Jacqueline, your endless supply of cupcakes and cookies always brightened my day, although may have fattened me up a tad. India, thank you for deciding to take thesis second semester, our moments of anxiety coincided perfectly and spectacularly. Jackson, I will always appreciate the endless amount of love and support I can rely on you for – thank you. Thank you, Spotify’s, ‘Ambient Chill’ and ‘Brain Food’ playlists for keeping my blood pressure at a normal rate, even while reading my 500th article on Tony Kushner’s political stance. Next, my dogs Finn and Percy – your adorableness always put a smile on my face, whether it was from catching you on FaceTime, or wearing my pair of socks with images of your faces splattered all over them. Lastly, thank you to Advil, Gatorade, and Little Lad’s Herbal Popcorn for keeping me alive when I caught the stomach flu the weekend before thesis deadline. What a joy it has been to take part in this journey – thank you to all involved. 5 Introduction Theater is a unique form that unites actors and the audience in creating an extraordinary world where a message both intellectual and visceral may be universally shared. Tony Kushner, the playwright of Angels in America, upholds the theme of magical environments, and uses this concept to create a fantastical and imaginative location that may illuminate profoundly political and social ideas. This thesis will specifically examine Kushner’s Angels in America, Part One: Millennium Approaches, and the portrayal of Harper Amaty Pitt through dramaturgical and performance research. The research process of this two-part thesis was conducted over the length of the first semester with the aid of my advisor, Professor Timothy Dugan. First, I undertook an in-depth analysis of Angels in America through the review of pre-existing literature, scholarly articles, documentary viewing, and the examination of previous plays written by Tony Kushner. Then, after an evaluation of my character, Professor Tim Dugan offered me the role of Harper Amaty Pitt. He introduced me to the two different acting techniques that could be utilized to interpret my character comprehensively. The study of Constantin Stanislavski’s Method was accomplished through the reading of his publication An Actor Prepares. Similarly, Michael Chekhov’s Technique was applied through extensive analysis of his book To the Actor: On the Technique of Acting, and the observation of masterclasses investigating his teachings from the Michael Chekhov Association. These two methods were evaluated and integrated together in order to aid in a thorough construction of my character and enrich my final performances. Second semester focused solely on the performance, and written process of my thesis. Rehearsals for the production began on Tuesday, January 9th, until the opening night of our 6 show, Thursday, March 8th. The cast was typically called six days of the week, varying from lengths of fifteen hour to twenty-five-hour work weeks. Evidently, this was a large-scale play, and the ensemble committed themselves fully to respecting its legacy. The closing night of Angels in America, Part One: Millennium Approaches was Monday, March 12th, after five days of performances. Throughout this preparation I was also finalizing and transcribing the written section of my thesis. This is divided into four parts: Dramaturgical Research, Acting Technique, Harper’s Journey, and Process and Performance. The first portion is the collection of the research conducted during the first semester. Acting Technique is the investigation of the methods proposed by Stanislavski and Chekhov, and how each theory was connected and applied to my performance.