Assembly Hall Ignauration Performance

Aim of Task:

Participate in the inauguration presentation of the Assembly Hall and build scenarios entirely with our bodies.

Description of Task:

Steve told us we would be able to participate in the inauguration presentation of the assembly hall this Friday. He told us we were going to make different scenarios of the tourist places of Hong Kong, entirely with our bodies. We decided to present four images of Hong Kong's touristic places:

• The Skyline
• The Big Buddha
  
• Horse racing
• Market
• Li Po Chun's Assembly Hall

We started building the Skyline scenario. We needed several tall buildings, some middle sized buildings and some other should be squared. We decided that the best way of making a tall building would be to sit one person in the shoulders of another one. I participated making one of the tallest buildings, with Amanda on my shoulders but I had to kneel down. We stood with our faces serious, because we were buildings. Buildings are inanimate, so we had to show a very serious facial expression. I asked Steve what did he think about everyone closing his eyes but he told me that it might make the whole image seem dull. In the end, we all made a nicely arranged image to present. Steve also thought it would be good to have a blackout and each of the buildings could have a flash light to make the night lights show.

To make the Big Buddha, several students made the shape of the steps that you can see in the entrance of the attraction. Daniel, Felix, Vincent and I were responsible for holding Adam in the back who was going to be the Big Buddha. This was all a team work, each one of us had to do his part well so the image would seem completely still to the spectator.

For the market and LPC Assembly hall we used an extremely effective and quick method of building scenes. We all sat in a group, and one by one each one of us stood up and started doing an expression in the scene. My classmates came up with different, creative things for the market. Some of them where sellers, others were buyers, some others were just contemplating the environment. While we all stood still, Steve told us that he would go around and tap our shoulders, and we would have to say what our character was thinking or doing at that exact moment. I was just showing amazement, I thought it would make the whole scene brighter and more cheerful if I stood in the back with a very big smile and my arms open. That would convey a feeling of welcoming, happiness, satisfaction that would make the whole image more pleasant. In the end, Steve arranged us in a way were everyone made up a balanced image.

For the LPC assembly hall we did the same thing, each one of the students stood up and made up a part of the scene. I wanted to represent the teaching aspect of the assembly hall. However, I noticed that just making my hand look like it was holding a stick was not enough. Therefore, I told Oda that we could contribute better to the scene if we both represented a dancing couple. The assembly hall is used for dancing lessons like Latin American dance, so this would be an excellent thing to include among everything.

Finally, for the horse raising, I was the horse, with Undine on my back. I had to carry weight in my back in two of the scenes, in the end! We, the horses, tried to make a horse-like facial expression by putting our lips in a "kissnig" shape to emulate the snout of the horse. We had to go really slow, and the audience would be cheering us on the sides.

After rehearsing it several times in the week and doing a dress rehearsal twice, the final presentation went excellent. I was glad to receive good comments from other LPC students and teachers.

Reflection:

It was truly enjoyable to work with this group, a group of creative students that are willing to cooperate for the best outcome. I think creating images with your body is something that requires a lot of teamwork. The fact that we are a unified group helped us work better.

Conclusion:

A good teamwork and cooperative thinking always leads to a good outcome. I was glad that in the end we could all, as a group, come up with a nice presentation for the inauguration. I really appreciated having the opportunity to participate in the event, since I realise it is very important in the history of Li Po Chun.