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2021-2022 Season

Filming Day for Turn of the Screw

by Makenna Johnston, dramaturg “Pay no attention to the [film crew] behind the [fire] curtain.”

Dramaturgy work is not limited to the stage; dramaturgs are needed in film as well.  Because of the multimedia nature of The Turn of the Screw, I was able to attend a filming day for some of the pre-recorded scenes. I made sure to attend the day when the most gore and violence would be filmed, because, like those in the Victorian era, I have a fascination with the macabre.

  Filming took place on the Pardoe stage behind the fire curtain. This created a dark, rectangular space for the cast and crew to work in. I spent the first few hours as a silent observer, watching the shots get set up again and again. My silence did not last long though, for we dramaturgs sure do like to ask questions! In the moments between shots, I talked with some of the film crew about their jobs. I was super interested in how the sound was being recorded so I spent the most time talking to the audio technicians. They showed me how the mics were set up, explained terminology, and even let me listen to a few minutes of the recording over the headset.

Later in the day, the stage manager asked me to help set up props for a picnic scene. He asked me to investigate how picnics might have looked during Victorian times. I went right to work, happy to be of some help! Paintings from the time provided me with the most information that could be applied to the film. I helped the crew wrap pieces of food in cloth and used a film crew member's pocket knife to slice up sausage. Because I was so involved in the shot, people thought I was a part of the props team. Throughout the day I helped make the room safe for the fight sequences as well as help the makeup designer apply fake blood to Mile’s headwound. Though every opportunity I had to help was exciting, the most thrilling part of the day was the filming of Ms. Grose’s watery death.  

To prepare for the drowning sequence, an inflatable kiddie pool was set stage left and filled with water from the light lab’s sink. The pool was then covered in duvetyne fabric to hide its playful images of sharks and fish. Small weights were added to keep the fabric submerged. Because the show was double-cast, and only one actress was needed for filming, the film team had to be extra cautious. They needed to angle their shots so that the audience would not be able to tell which actress was playing the character. To achieve this effect, the entire crew had to work to find a solution. After many lighting adjustments, fight choreography practice, and walkthroughs with the director, a solution was found, and we were ready to roll. With only ten minutes left to film with the actress, for she needed to leave, and her costume and wig could only get wet once, the film director set places and called action. It was eerie watching as the Governess plunged Ms. Grose’s head under the water and her limbs flail. Even though I knew what I was seeing was fake, there is something about watching someone drown that puts one on edge. After a few minutes of (safely) drowning, the actress let her hands float limply to the water’s surface, signifying the death of Ms. Grose. The final filmed product was almost as eerie as watching the drowning take place in person.

I am grateful to have spent a day helping with filming for The Turn of the Screw. It was a rewarding and entertaining experience that solidified my belief in the versatility of dramaturgy. Dramaturgs truly have a place everywhere.   

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Margaret More Roper: Scholar and Daughter

July 26, 2022 12:00 AM
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="376"] Margaret Roper[/caption] Margaret More Roper: Scholar and Daughter by Adam White, dramaturg Thomas More was a family man; he was married twice and had four children with his first wife, Jane Colt. After being married for six years, Jane Colt More died, leaving More with four children: Margaret, Elizabeth, Cecily and John. However, More quickly remarried to the widow Dame Alice Middleton, marrying her within a month of his wife’s death. While many of his friends resisted the rapid nature of the arrangement, More went through with it. Thomas and Alice More would raise the four children Thomas More had with Jane, as well as Alice’s daughter from her previous marriage and a foster daughter. Certainly, More valued his family and the welfare of his children. More also valued the power of education. He insisted that his daughters be educated through rigorous schooling, and this was unusual in 16th-century England, as society at large believed women unfit for scholarly pursuits. Despite cultural and institutional norms, Margaret More, the eldest of the More children (and More’s favorite, some would argue), would grow to become one of the most educated people in all of England, a woman of great scholarly knowledge. Margaret More Roper was tutored at home and became well-known for her studies, particularly for her adeptness in Greek and Latin. Her skill in writing and speaking Latin would impress the clergy of England. This specialty is reflected in a scene in Bolt’s A Man for All Seasons where Margaret and King Henry VIII engage in a bit of Latin language sparring. She would also become the first woman who was not of royal birth to publish a translated book. In October 1524, Roper published an English translation of a book called ‘Precatio dominica’ written by Thomas More’s good friend Erasmus. This book was based on the Lord’s Prayer. Instead of translating the book directly from Latin to English, Roper would use her extensive knowledge of both languages to construct the themes and the meanings Erasmus had written in to the treatise with her own words. [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="291"] Erasmus, Dutch humanist and good friend to Thomas More[/caption] It was Margaret who would visit the imprisoned Thomas More the most often. They were very close, writing letters to one another regularly the duration of their relationship. It was in a letter to Margaret that Thomas More confided, “I do nobody harm, I say none harm, I thinke none harm, but wish everybody good. And if this be not enough to keep a man alive, in good faith I long not to live.” We have good reason to believe that Margaret More Roper very well understood what would be her father’s fate. After Thomas More’s execution, Margaret More Roper and her husband William Roper would continue to carry on his legacy in their own ways. William Roper would write the first biography of Thomas More, a glowing and gracious document that would influence our understanding of More’s personality for hundreds of years to come. Margaret More Roper actually kept her father’s head after his beheading, pickling it to preserve it from decay. While many of us may find that historical tidbit a tad macabre, I would like to believe that Margaret More Roper had deep admiration for her father; perhaps it was out of this feeling she kept his head. Please stay tuned to the 4th Wall Dramaturgy Blog to catch clips of my interview with Mallory Gee, the actress who will portray Margaret More Roper in BYU’s A Man for All Seasons. Bibliography: Abernathy, Susan. "Margaret Roper, Daughter of Sir Thomas More." Early Modern England. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Feb. 2014. Duerden, Richard. "A Man for All Seasons." Telephone interview. 31 Jan. 2014. "Margaret Roper." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 28 Sept. 2013. Web. 02 Oct. 2013. "Sir Thomas More Quotes and Quotations." Sir Thomas More Quotes and Quotations. Luminarium. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.
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July 26, 2022 12:00 AM
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Come And See Us!

July 26, 2022 12:00 AM
[caption id="attachment_4573" align="alignleft" width="222"] Mother Courage Counsels her children to "be careful," in the war.[/caption] Hello all you 4th Wall Fans! Mother Courage and Her Children opened on Friday to a major success. Tickets are still available for other showings, but they are going fast. You can buy them online by visiting this link: http://bit.ly/1WTCpMW See you soon!
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