Blog #4: Pre - Black Walnut Tree

Black Walnut Reading (Sermon)

Determine the impression you'd like to convey, based on your interpretation of the poem itself.  For example, one year, students read a poem titled "Thou Blind Man's Mark," a sixteenth century sonnet in which the speaker was an angry, bitter man confronting "Desire" as an adversary or foe.  Someone he could not escape. So, one group decided a Country-Western theme would be appropriate, and instead of reciting the poem, sang it.

WHAT IMPRESSION WOULD YOU LIKE TO CONVEY? WHY? WRITE ONE CHUNKY PARAGRAPH JUSTIFYING THIS, USING LINES FROM THE TEXT.

During the reading, we are trying to produce a passionate version of the poem based on a church sermon. This will include many hallelujahs and a boisterous speaker. The tone of the poem is solemn and the main purpose of the of the sermon is to convince the readers that the content of the poem is worthwhile to listen to. We want to convey a sense of security when the speaker delivers the service yet urge them to feel some sort of remorse for the speaker as he tells this tragic story. When the speaker delivers the sermon, he will go from a near whisper to a powerful holler. Varying dynamics will keep the audience engaged and interested in the poem.

2.  Determine what props and costuming would be helpful in performing their poems and what kind of lighting you would like. Scenery must be minimal, but the use of the performance space will be discussed.

WHICH PROPS AND COSTUMING WILL BE USED? WHAT KIND OF LIGHTING WOULD YOU USE? WHY? WRITE ONE CHUNKY PARAGRAPH JUSTIFYING THIS, USING LINES FROM THE TEXT.

The preacher wears  a black and white suit to show the audience that he is an important figure in the play. The other character playing as local towns-people will wear casual clothing to represent audience of the sermon. The preacher will use a podium to make the scene easier to understand for the audience. The lighting will be atop of the preacher to signify his importance and let the audience pay attention to him. There will  be a dim light on the rest of the characters to give them some importance which occurs only when they have dialog. The preacher will face the other characters as he gives his sermon.

3. Decide how to order the poems. Are there any patterns or themes that you want to utilize in putting the material together? How do you want to arrange the actors? Will they all be on stage at the same time, or enter separately? In the example from #1, the group decided that, because country songs have refrains, they would need to repeat significant words and phrases to create a refrain.

WILL YOU DRAW ATTENTION TO CERTAIN PHRASES OR WORDS? WHY ARE THESE WORDS (OR WORD) IMPORTANT? WHY DOES THE REPETITION OF THIS WORD/THESE WORDS REINFORCE THE MEANING OF THE POEM AS A WHOLE. WRITE ONE CHUNKY PARAGRAPH JUSTIFYING THIS, USING LINES FROM THE

TEXT.

We are drawing attention to the phrases smashing down, brighter than money, crawl in shame, emptiness, whipcrack. These words are essential because they are able to be visualized and stressed with a sense of importance. Tommy (the preacher) will stand behind the symposium preaching to the audience creating an official/leader-like persona. The theme is freedom because the people in the story are trying to become free of their mortgage yet they won’t sacrifice the tree in order to attain it.