Assignment 6 Zachary Whitehouse

Overall, I was happy with how our performance went. We definitely could have prepared more, but I think for the most part we all knew our lines. In terms of character development, Scott, Lucas, and I did not always have the correct voice and our gestures could have been more effective. If our gestures were more exaggerated we could have added more humor, but me and Scott's long drawn out hug brought some humor. In the character development of Jeb's, he laughed a lot which was funny for the audience, but ineffective for the focus of the character. Our outfits matched the gender of our characters so I cannot complain there. We did not use enough of the space as I think we would have liked, but for the section we chose I think we did good enough. We could have used more pacing and walking around. We did not always face the ground which may have caused the audience to be less engaged. I thought we did pretty well at remembering our lines and not looking down too often. In the humor side of things, we brought a fair amount of it to our performance. I learned that acting is extremely hard, but I still think it is in my future... as long as I don't have to use a British voice.

Assignment 6- Olivia McCrary

Our performance went fairly well. I think we did good job of staying in character, though I have suspicions that I lost my accent halfway through (and I’ll never know because my voice is barely audible in the recording). Our character development was okay— our portrayals of the characters were defined and accurate, though they could be improved.  The voice aspect was decent as well. We used accents, and our expression and projection were okay, excluding mine. As made clear by the recording, I spoke significantly softer than I had intended to. Also, I think we made good use of props and spacing. The best thing about our performance was probably the fact that we were prepared and had our lines memorized. The overall effect of our effort was positive, though I feel rather disappointed in my own performance- with such an important character, I can’t help but feel as though I failed my group.

This was a fun and memorable experience to some degree, though I’ve now realized that my stage fright is a severe issue. (I seriously need to talk louder.) It’s a miracle I didn’t have a panic attack on stage. I really appreciate The Importance of Being Earnest, more so after performing it. I think Jack might have to be my favorite character— I guess I’m honored to have had that role, though I didn’t really succeed.

Assignment 6- Lucas Soard

Our group had a decent performance. Nothing really stood out, and none of the performances were particularly outstanding. None of us, however, are extremely outgoing, acting types, and I think that showed. Relative to our acting experience however, I think we made out fine. Especially considering the circumstances.

I don’t know what got into Jack, played by our buddy Jeb. This man absolutely lost it. He had without a doubt the most difficult line, and it bordered on monologue. He had prepared pretty well, and was able to perform it perfectly when we were blocking. When Jeb broke however, I think he and the group recovered well. Our props were decent, but after seeing efforts by the other groups, I think we definitely could have done more. Our mastery of our lines wasn’t great, but again, we are novices, and performed well enough. 

Assignment 6: Kaitlyn Nunnelley

Character development: Our character development wasn't that good. None of us wore costumes except for Mark and Logan. Mark's costume helped his development as a lowly servant but Logan's didn't help his appearance as a young girl. Mark's mannerisms for Lane the servant helped portray his character but I don't think the rest of us had that many.
Focus: We all were able to stay in character very well. None of us stopped talking from the scene or stepped out of character.
Voice: Everyone's voices were different from normal, but also different from each other in the play. We probably all should've coordinated accents. All of our projection was loud enough to be heard behind stage and in the audience. Along with our accents and tone we should've had a little more body expression to go along with it.
Space: Our scene all just took place around some chair in the sitting room so we sat at the corner of the long tables and only moved a couple steps around, which I think was fine for our scene.
Preparedness: I was prepared and had memorized my line but Vincent didn't memorize all of his so we skipped a couple and got a little out of order. Our group definitely should've been more prepared  and memorized in our lines.
Our overall presentation could've been greatly improved with memorization of lines, costumes, coordinating accents, and more movement with our bodies as we spoke. My performance didn't bring a lot of comedy to the scene but I think I did an okay job with portraying an older, sophisticated, grumpy woman.

Assignment 6- Emily Chavez

I think my group did a great job at portraying Algernon, Jack, Gwendolen and Cecily in a true sense. Eliza Jane and Weiran were particularly successful in terms of projection and use of the stage. Although a little hard to hear in the video, the two did an excellent job at making sure the audience was able to hear their lines. Also, all of us did a great job with staying in character. I think some of that comes from our use of costumes (McKenna and I wore our prom dress and EJ and Weiran both wore blazers) and McKenna and I used British accents. In addition, we all memorized our lines and didn't distract the audience with the use of index cards.
I think I could have improved with projection and inflection of my voice, and was a little awkward when it was my turn to speak. A lot of that came from nerves, but I could have been a little louder and projected towards the audience. As a group. we could have used the front space of the stage a little more, but I think overall my group did an excellent job with the skit.
Having to really grasp the personality of the character helped me understand the text. Cecily is kind of naïve and that came out in my performance, I believe. I also had a lot of fun preparing for the performance with my group.  It was an awesome experience overall.

Leah Noble Assignment 6

Overall, I think my group did a nice job performing this scene from the play, given that we only had two days to prepare for it. We all did a pretty good job developing our characters, but we could have used our hands more to express ourselves in a way that fits our character. Along with this, I think we did a great job staying in character throughout the entire scene. We memorized our lines and did not leave moments of "dead air" while we waited for someone to say their line or for a costume change. One thing we could have done better, however is projecting our voices. There were times when it was hard to understand or hear what someone said. Though audible, the loudness of our voices was not optimal. We also could have been more expressive, changing the pitch and volume of our voices would have helped the scene seem more realistic and interesting.  In addition to improving our voices, we also could have improved the staging. The table that Algernon and Jack were sitting at was too far from where Cecily and Gwendolyn were standing which led to an awkwardly long walk across  the stage. The stage being set up for the school play also made this somewhat difficult, but if we had tried harder, we probably could have come up with a better solution. We didn't need to use many props, but the muffins we did use were a nice touch.

Doing this performance made me more aware of how expressive you have to be in a comedy in order to make the audience laugh. It's not just the lines themselves that are funny, but the way the actor presents them. I also realized how different reading a play is from performing a play is character wise. Until the play is performed, it is hard to grasp the true identity of a character; there is so much more about people that simply cannot be understood in text.

Assignment 6: Mia Alexander

We performed second to last but I worked with Amir, Alex, and Leah. We acted the scene with the muffins, adding a costume change for the entrance of Lady Bracknell. Overall, our performance was successful. We definitely could have attempted English accents a little more. But also, we should have projected our voices better. Gwendolyn's mannerisms were close to how I would imagine her in real life. I think Algernon was very ostentatious in his mannerisms but it illustrates his disposition and the way Wilde characterizes him in the story anyways.
From the start of our performance, we all remained in character. Sure we could have been a bit more convincing but we never fell out of character which I think is a great start. All of us maintained composure and didn't laugh or just completely forget our lines. Our group as a whole had a medium voice. By this, I mean we did not project or articulate as well as we could have throughout the show. The character I played was difficult to hear on the video, so I assume it was hard for the audience to hear as well. We were considerably prepared. We memorized our lines and we didn't just stop and try to read the lines or anything. I think the part during the costume change was great because it was not just absolute silence. It could have been quicker so it did not feel awkward for the audience. We should have placed ourselves more strategically on the stage so the audience will feel more part of the scene. The muffins were a nice touch. There were also some rises in voice which is great. Overall, I would say our presentation left somewhat of an impression and although it could be improved, we did well for our lack of experience.
My personal performance looked a lot different than what it felt. There were moments where I could have used the stage better, stood up straighter, or projected higher but I was also very nervous and not as prepared as I could have been. I can better understand what Wilde meant with his comments on the traditional roles of men and women by the way some of the phrases sounded aloud and in context. I would love to act more and get more comfortable in theater to better myself and understand/relate to the arts.

Assignment 6- Alex Cooper

My group included Amir, Mia, and Leah. We chose to do the scene where Gwendolen and Cecily are talking in the house, then Algernon and Jack come in to get the girls to forgive them. Throughout our performance of this scene I believe we all remained in character. Amir, playing Algernon was very expressive. Leah first played Jack and acted kind and somewhat informal, then she switched roles to being Mrs. Prism acted pompous and strict. Mia played Cecily and did a good job of seeming immature and ditzy. I played Gwendolen and seemed like a know-it-all. We had good focus throughout the performance and remained in character the whole time.

We articulated our lines well and with an adequate amount of expression. However, we could have projected our voices a little more, Amir does a good job of it, but the rest of us are somewhat hard to understand in parts of the performance.

Our use of the stage was somewhat awkward because it was set for the 12 Angry Jurors. It would have been nice if Cecily and Gwendolen were a bit closer to Jack and Algernon, but it was not feasible to make that happen. As far as props go, we did have muffins, which was beneficial so the audience knew what Algernon and Jack were doing sitting outside, but it would have been nice if we had made a prop for the window, to make it clear they were outside and couldn’t hear what Gwendolen and Cecily were saying.

Overall I feel our group performed well and was prepared. I think it could have been much better if we had more time to rehearse but with the time allotted we performed well. We were prepared in the sense that everyone had memorized their lines, and wore fitting attire to act their characters, but more rehearsal time would have allowed for a smoother performance.

My performance helped me to better understand the relationships between the characters. Before we actually performed the scene, I didn’t realize how much Cecily copies what Gwendolen says. Performing this also allowed me to see the comedic nature of the play more clearly and to appreciate the lines that were funny in the performance and not as much on paper. It also gave me a lot of respect for actors because I was able to experience how difficult it is to memorize lines, then recite them while controlling your movements and expressions appropriately.

Assignment 6 Julia Wilson

Overall, I think my group gave a very well-done performance. We rehearsed the scene multiple times with blocking before our performance and were able to deliver it without using a script. I momentarily forgot one line, bur overall I succeeded in memorizing and delivering my lines. All three of us easily managed to stay in character the entire time. An extra layer of difficulty was added to the performance by trying to make it humorous. I had to use specific inflection on some words in order to generate a comedic effect. Projection came easy as I am typically a very loud talker. Mannerisms I used that helped to develop my character include pacing back and forth, putting my hands behind my back, and looking around frantically when my character was stressed. Rena was exceptionally good at adding more to her character, such as when she started hyperventilating when my character stated that he was born in a handbag. We also utilized props including a top hat, rolling suitcase, and a pen/notebook. This made the scene more realistic and easier to follow. One aspect that I found especially hard in the performance was blocking. We used a simple setup of a few chairs pushed together to create a couch. All blocking including getting up from and sitting down on the couch. At one point my character gets up from the couch and starts pacing back and forth. This was hard because I had to continue staying open to the audience as I walked back and forth. I think memorizing our lines and using props added to our performance, however it could have been improved by adding a wider variety of blocking.

This experience has further emphasized to me that comedy is not easy. If you don't pick up on the moments in the script that are supposed to be comedic and deliver them with the right inflection, the effect will not come through. Acting is also far more difficult than I thought. Memorizing lines is hard enough but it becomes extra difficult when you have to not only remember your lines, but stay engaged with your fellow actors and do the correct blocking. This performance helped me understand The Importance of Being Earnest on a much deeper level because I had to put myself in the shoes of the characters.

Scott Street Assignment 6

The Importance of Being Earnest itself is a play in which the emotions and mannerisms of the actors really help accentuate everything that is happening within the story. Unfortunately, I do not think I and my group did the best job in bringing out the personalities of all of the characters in the story. Whether it be our sheer lack of acting ability or lack of concentration, the presentation itself left a little to be desired. When rewatching the video, I noticed that our projection of our voices was subpar, as I could barely hear what we were saying. Those facts being aside, I believe we prepared very well and mostly memorized our lines (except for one small slip-up on my part). We stayed in character, and I believe we did a good job of using the entire floor space to our advantage. The props may have been a little weaker, but then again for our section there was not much we could have used.

By learning about all of the stage directions and actions firsthand, I believe I learned a great deal about the personalities of the different characters. I learned how their actions corresponded to their personalities, and by doing this I felt a deeper connection and understanding of the characters that I would not have felt if this activity was not conducted. I also learned that acting and vocalizing is a lot harder than it seems, as exemplified by our performance.

Assignment 6 Vincent Pisacano

I thought that overall, my group had a pretty good performance. I played the role of Algernon, and attempted to portray mannerisms such as snarkiness and arrogance. I was able to stay in character throughout the play, except for when I made a mistake with my lines, in which I had to regroup my thoughts for a few seconds. I believe I spoke loudly enough and projected my voice, but I could have worked on my expression with my face and body. As for space, I think we could have utilized the whole stage more effectively than we did. It seemed to me like we were confined to the middle of the stage. Overall, I think we presented our portion of the play accurately, although I definitely could have prepared more in memorizing my lines. Lastly, being a part of this play made the text much funnier once you were able to act out the comedic parts. Also, it helped with the understanding of the satire and sarcasm, as you realize how ridiculous some of the things they were saying are once you're the one actually saying it.

Assignment 6 - Meagan Hale

During our performance, I thought that Silvia's character development was best during her part as Lane. Her respectful stature made her character as a servant believable. I attempted to have a more snarky demeanor since masters aren't required to show the same level of respect towards their servants. I thought Silvia and I both managed to stay in character. I also believe we articulated our lines well enough so that the audience could understand us as well as projecting loudly enough. In my opinion, we used the space efficiently. Though we didn't use much space, we used the small amount of space effectively. We chose to keep our area smaller because that seemed more natural. Had we walked all the way across the stage we would have used all of the space available to us, however, that would seem very awkward. We didn't want to use space just for the sake of using it. We kept our zone smaller so that we maintained a natural sense in our scene. Silvia was much more prepared than I was. Her lines were memorized as mine were only partially memorized which showed in that her overall performance was better than my own. I thought that our overall performance was good however I know that it would have been better had we both been more familiar with our lines. This would have kept our speech from being strained from nerves and the act would have flowed more naturally.

I've always been afraid of acting however this experience has shown me that it is nothing to fear and can actually be fun. I knew the story was a comedy but I didn't realize just how funny it was until I performed my scene and watched my peers perform their scenes. Seeing it visually as well as hearing they way it was meant to be performed opened my eyes to the hysterical nature of the play. Simply reading it was comedic but no where close to the level of humor as seeing the actual performance.

Assignment 6 Jeb Brumley

I feel that my group was well prepared for our skit/performance. We had practiced it many times and each of us had our lines memorized, but had some notes just in case we needed them. Other than me, my group did a good job of staying in character throughout the performance. As I was speaking my second or third line I started laughing a little bit and then completely lost focus and could no longer stay in character. We continued our performance through my struggles and were able to finish, somewhat. We tried to use a good amount of space on the stage rather than having each character sit in the same place during the entire performance. Voice is probably the aspect of the play that we struggled with the most. We all could have (especially me) improved our projection and articulation of our lines, but did pretty well for our first skit like that. The performance helped me feel more engaged into the story. I also learned that acting is hard and you really have to focus to stay in character.

Assignment 6 Corey McMullin

My group's presentation was lacking. We  devoted little time before the presentation to practice our roles, and so we read from the script for nearly every line. There were a few moments when I even lost my place trying to read Tora's script upside down, while Charlie had my script to fill in for Jesse. Costume was by far the best aspect of our performance. I even wore antique clip-on earrings to accompany my dress. We did, however, remain at the corner of the table for all but the very beginning of the performance. There was not much for our characters to do in regards to moving around the stage, but had we allotted more time towards blocking, we could have added variation to our scene.
By performing this scene, and watching the other groups, much of the humor became more apparent. While some of the jokes were obvious during the reading, it was not until it was performed on stage that the irony and puns were able to really shine.

Assignment 6 Tora Sellers

My scene in “The Importance of Being Earnest” wasn’t all together bad, but there were several improvements my group could’ve made. The biggest issue was that we didn’t memorize all of our lines. I had a few lines memorized from the many times we practiced in class, but I still struggled to say my lines without reading the script. Corey didn’t have his lines memorized all the way either, and perhaps that coupled with nervousness made him stumble around for a few of his lines. We also could’ve move about the stage more, since we remained practically stationary at the corner of the table on the stage for the whole performance. One thing we did well was staying in character. Apart from few lines we messed up, Corey and I both used inflection to convey the character’s tone. Overall, I think we did well and that it was a fun way to show the effect of comedy in literature. 

Assignment 6: Jesse Konopka

The performance of the group I was supposed to perform with overall was for the most part uninteresting. Honestly, the character of Gwendolen is all that made it worth watching. Her character development can be seen in the high quality of her costume, unlike the lack of a costume for the others. The focus, however, is lacking for all characters. The performers seem more interested in ending the performance rather than portraying their characters. Now, the voice for the character of Gwendolen is very good, and does fit the character quite well, but the other characters do not try to convey a voice at all, and ultimately fail to convince me of their characters. The spacing, while slightly awkward, was overall fine. There was enough room for each character to maneuver as much as they liked. Honestly, none of the performers were prepared to perform at all, and it shows. Overall, the presentation was saved by the character of Gwendolen, which was very good. The character I was supposed to play, Merriman, adds nothing to the performance to be honest, and wouldn't have even if I had played him. He is simply an extra in both the real performance and this one.

Biographical Information- Saving Sourdi

Biography- May-Lee Chai

• Born to an Irish-American mother and a Chinese father
• She moved from Southern California to New York to South Dakota
• While in South Dakota, the Chai family fell victim to racial tension and random acts of cruelty
• Very involved with a community of Cambodian and Southeast Asian refugees
• Degrees in both East Asian studies and creative writing
• Written eight books

 (Very limited amount of information. Sorry!)

Amir Abou-Jaoude Assignment 6

Since we were a four person group that contained three girls and one boy, we were limited as to what scenes we could pick from the play. We chose the scene in which Gwendolen and Cecily discuss their predicament now that they have found that "Ernest" is a fictitious personage. We were among the first groups to reserve our pages from the play. When we found that this section was too short, we attempted to add some of Algernon and Jack's lines from the end of Act II. We were informed that another group had reserved this section. (It is still unclear to me why another group performed some of our section.) Nonetheless, this meant that we had to combine the scene we had with another scene from later in the play, in which Lady Bracknell confronts Algernon about the spurious "Bunbury." Adding this part meant that Leah had to change costumes in order to go from Jack to Lady Bracknell, but I thought the costume change occurred flawlessly and in no way slowed the performance.

I would have liked to improve the staging. Algernon and Jack were eating muffins at a table that was quite far from the center of stage, where Gwendolen and Cecily were standing. To get to them, we had to traverse the stage. I would have preferred performing in a smaller, more intimate setting. However, since the set for 12 Angry Jurors was already on the stage, there was little we could do to change it. The costumes were appropriate for the scene. I was dressed in a suit, Alex and Mia wore their prom dresses, and Leah was dressed so that she could easily change from Jack to Lady Bracknell. This attire was appropriate for people of high society. We all were able to stay in character, and even when the audience laughed, we were immersed in Wilde's dialogue.

The characters in Oscar Wilde's play are not great dramatic personages like those that inhabit the pages of Shakespeare and Chekhov--rather, they are archetypes, caricatures of well-to-do figures. As such, we focused on making the scene humorous rather than developing great characters. I do not feel that British accents would have added to our performance. It is difficult to maintain a uniform accent throughout a five-minute performance, and mastering the nuances and comedy of Wilde's lines was already difficult enough. Furthermore, as archetypes, these characters are not defined by their British heritage--one of the reasons Wilde's work is so loved is because Algernon, Jack, Gwendolen, Cecily, and Lady Bracknell could be shallow high society figures in almost any setting.

As for my own performance, I thought that I was able to deliver my lines with passion and appropriate inflection. Looking at the videotape, I wish I had cheated out a little bit more so that I had less of my back to the audience. In addition, I was forced to improvise dialogue that was not original to Wilde's play to cover the costume change. Still, I hope that what I made up was in the vein of Wilde and did not detract from his performance. All the members of my group memorized their lines, and there were no slip-ups in reciting them. I wish we had had more practice time and had known from the outset that the stage would already contain the set for the school play so we could have planned more appropriately. With the resources we did have, I felt that my group did an admirable job, and it was clear that we had put a lot of work into the performance.

Plays are not just meant to be read--they are meant to be performed. Performing this scene made me realize how witty Wilde really was--so many of his jokes depend on how a person delivers his lines. Inflection, different volume levels, and especially timing make a difference when reciting Wilde's words. In class, we read the play sporadically--a few pages every few days. Sitting in the theater and watching the performances in chronological order made me appreciate Wilde's skill. All the pieces of the play really do fit together to create an exquisite comedy of manners. Wilde delicately pokes fun at his characters, but at no point does he tear them down or make them seem stupid. Instead, he gracefully reminds us, to quote the final words of the play, of "the importance of being earnest."

Assignment 6 Mark O'Brien

          I think that our groups performance went well for the most part.  We used the stage adequately and developed the characters well there were only a few things that could have been done better.  Our costumes could have been much more extravagant, but that would have required much more planning than what was feasible.  Also not everyone in our group had their lines fully memorized, so there were a few minor hiccups that may have disengaged the audience.  But despite the rough patches our group was able to get back on track and develop our portion of the story quite well.  My performance went well.  I only had three lines so I was determined to make them count.  The accent was a little bit sketchy, but the mannerisms of a servant made up for it.  Hopefully I will be able to pursue acting again this year in this class because it was a phenomenal experience.

Assignment 6: Anne Russell

Overall, I was proud of our little performance. There were many elements that played in to making it successful. Our character development was created in large part by vocal tone: Amelia R. did a good job of using a snobby tone of voice, and keeping her head held high to portray Lady Bracknell's self-righteous, arrogant nature. Amelia C. employed a hesitant, shameful tone to convey Miss Prism's embarrassment of losing the baby, and then switched to a very bright tone to reflect her switch to Gwendolyn, who is very optimistic and oblivious. I attempted to use exaggerated gestures to give life to Chasuble, who would otherwise be a rather stagnant character.

 I would say all of us stayed in character fairly well, including our two character switches. Amelia R's self-righteous tone remained throughout the excerpt, which reflected the unchanging temperament that Lady Bracknell possessed. Olivia wore Jack's sentiments on her sleeve, from her eagerness as to the story of the handbag, to her conviction in her final conclusion in the end regarding the "vital importance of being earnest."

I would say voice contains both our strongest and weakest points. Our accents added to the play, both realistically and comically. However, we all could have spoken a bit louder, and maybe slightly clearer. But perhaps the video makes it even harder to hear than in reality.

Space was slightly difficult for us, as our scene was not one that was full of action, but I think we best made use of the space when we paced across the stage during particularly long lines. It provided some additional interest as the audience listened to many words from the same actor, and it allowed for the character speaking to interact non-verbally with the others on the stage. For example, I walked away from Jack to show Chasuble's disappointment in him for changing his mind about the christening. Also, Amelia C was able to use a chair to her advantage as she sank into it to portray her guilt from the day she carelessly lost the baby. Given our lack of significant action, I think we used the space around us the best we could. Also, we tried to make the characters on stage still matter, even when they weren't speaking. For example, I gasped loudly when Lady Bracknell mentioned a baby. There were many moments when I was merely a spectator on stage, so I tried to make my facial expression and body language mirror what was going on around me. I think we could have made that even more exaggerated and dramatized to add interest to the characters who were not directly involved in a particular scene.

Thankfully, we were all very prepared and never stumbled over our lines, which allowed us to focus more on our actions, and the embellishments that made the scene come to life. Our overall presentation I thought was mostly polished, aided by our costumes, sound effects, and subtle movement around the stage. We brought the scene to life as best we could, in our own way, and paid tribute to a play that has brought laughter to many different audiences.

Performing this scene definitely gave me a greater appreciation for both that particular scene, and the play as a whole. Many things don't become funny until you say them out loud and grasp the full meaning and implications from the inflection in your voice. I was able to better understand the banter between the characters when we acted it out, and better empathize with the characters when we were able to see their emotions manifested through our own reactions. A new appreciation for acting grew within me, too, as I realized just what a challenge memorizing lines is. You really have to be in the mindset of your character in order to feel what you are doing and saying, so that you are more like a person and less like a robot. I am grateful for the experience and hope that this won't be my last time on stage.

Assignment 6 Amelia Rogers

Our group performed the last scene of the play, and I think we did a good job and were able to convey the humor in our scene. Our focus was consistent throughout and we all had our lines completely memorized which definitely helped us keep a good flow and stay in character. My accent sort of shifted in and out but I thought the rest of our group’s accents were perfect. Using the accents also helped us get into character. One thing I struggled with was not knowing what to do with my hands when I wasn’t speaking, which I guess that is part of knowing the character’s mannerisms better. We could probably have all projected more, especially Olivia and me. I thought Amelia did the best job with expression for Miss Prism and then switching it for Gwendolen, making both characters uniquely funny. Also, Anne’s short scene as Algernon with the mustache was great. We used the space about as well as possible, although sometimes we got in each other’s way, like when Amelia needed to sit down, but Olivia and I had ended up in a bad position for her to do that. Our use of props was limited, but I think the ones we used to make noise were definitely effective, maybe even too loud. Overall, though, we were prepared and I think our performance was successful.

Being Lady Bracknell definitely gave me a better understanding of the humor that comes from her character, like her snide remarks and the little ironies that she says in perfect seriousness. I also have a greater appreciation for acting now. I ended up really enjoying this assignment, which kind of surprised me. It pushed me out of my comfort zone a little bit, but I had a really good time.