Critical Reflection and Summary: Digital Portfolio

Developed professional questions

In the first part of this module I set about creating a list of professional questions that could add strength to my inquiry research.(Appendix A)This was invaluable for me to begin developing my opinions wanting to understand how musical theatre performers were perceived in society and whose perceptions these were.  Mark ILes comment struck chord with me (Appendix A) about the perceptions of musical theatre which led me to explore in more depth whose perceptions of musical theatre could potentially influence the industry.(Appendix B) Demonstrates my new found out look on how I believe there is a substantial place for musical theatre in education and society and look to see how these perceptions could be changed.

The discussions I engaged in on the musical Theatre SIG were highly informative (Appendix C) (4^th comment down) and further convinced me of my conclusion that Musical theatre is in fact a sustainable career in many contexts not just for performers but teachers alike. Society’s perception plays a significant part in this sustainability therefore bringing further reasoning for me wanting to bridge the gap between performers and their first interaction with musical theatre in mainstream education. I engaged on a SIG discussing the stereotypes of musical theatre and what could be done to change these (Appendix D) which highlights the main focal points for my inquiry demonstrating my first exploration beyond the programme within my own professional community.

Ethical considerations

In the next part of the module I looked into the ethical considerations that were needed within my professional workplace which is where the main focus of my inquiry will be. (Appendix E) Then analysing my findings with my initial assumption (Appendix F) I discovered further importance and responsibilities of my role as an educator of musical theatre adhering to a code of practice in order to improve the perceptions of the industry through education. I came to understand how my moral conduct and respect for others was essential for ethical equality.  (Appendix G) Taking this information forward when analysing a piece of literature (Appendix H) I saw how the writers experiences and techniques were be vital for positive change when utilised effectively with honest motives. This has helped further my professional inquiry developing this honest practice essential for progression (Appendix I).

Evaluation of the tools of Inquiry

In the final part of this module I discovered new ways of sourcing data specifically tailored for my inquiry topic. Through the use of my pilot survey (Appendix J) posted on my blog and SIG I was able to establish which courses and how long people felt training was necessary for. The variety of perceptions displayed showed the impact of how early inclusion of musical theatre can have a positive effect in the long term for a musical theatre career.

This solid foundation of answers gained trough all four tools of inquiry has brought a strong sense of direction moving towards my inquiry (Appendix K) I now know whose perceptions hold most strength and what training is deemed important most seeing areas for improvement and how this could be prevented in the future. I found my interview questions which influenced my pilot survey the most effective inquiry tool because I was able to dictate the questions without straying from my objectives like in my focus group (Appendix L). My experimentation with these newly found tools have led to my belief that I have the necessary tools to increase my knowledge and bring further clarity to my inquiry.

References:

Appendix A - http://rebeccajanegaskell24.blogspot.com/2011/02/task-4a-developing-questions-relevant.html%20

Appendix B - http://rebeccajanegaskell24.blogspot.com/2011/03/4b-musical-theatre-in-educaion-sig.html

Appendix C - http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/topic.php?uid=145821545478191&topic=63 (4^th comment down)

Appendix D - http://rebeccajanegaskell24.blogspot.com/2011/03/4c-developing-my-questions-with-my-own.html

Appendix E - http://rebeccajanegaskell24.blogspot.com/2011/03/task-5a-considering-codes-of-practice.html

Appendix F - http://rebeccajanegaskell24.blogspot.com/2011/04/task-5b-how-ethical-framework-in-my.html

Appendix G - http://rebeccajanegaskell24.blogspot.com/2011/04/task-5c-professional-ethics.html

Appendix H - http://rebeccajanegaskell24.blogspot.com/2011/04/task-6c-literature-review-3.html

Appendix I - http://rebeccajanegaskell24.blogspot.com/2011/04/6a-i-pilot-interviews-and-6b-critical.html

Appendix J - http://rebeccajanegaskell24.blogspot.com/2011/04/task-6a-ii-pilot-survey-6b-critical.html

Appendix K -  http://rebeccajanegaskell24.blogspot.com/2011/04/6a-i-pilot-interviews-and-6b-critical.html

Appendix L - http://rebeccajanegaskell24.blogspot.com/2011/04/task-6a-iii-pilot-focus-group-and-6b.html



Task 6c Literature Review 3

The third piece of literature I will be reviewing is taken from an article by Joan Lazarus who teaches theatre education at the University of Texas at Austin. This article can be found through the following link: http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&res_dat=xri:iipa:&rft_dat=xri:iipa:article:fulltext:iipa00575292 accessed through Athens.

The themes throughout this article are important to my ongoing discussions in my professional field surrounding the perceptions of musical theatre. I am looking to gain further insight behind the differing teaching methods of musical theatre and Lazarus has experienced many and explaining how she feels early inclusion of theatre education may have positive implications to academia. In America their society is more open to musical theatre with long historical links and its inclusion within mainstream education already being historically well established.

Lazarus writes from her own experiences and shares the many styles of teaching she has witnessed in others on her search to discover a more beneficial way of instilling knowledge and allowing progression for her pupils. In her observations Lazarus has found when children are directed to do something they often don't understand the reasoning behind why they do things so aren't able to bring substance to that action. The following exert really sheds some light on the potential teaching methods can have for future progression.

"What should I do?" Kent asked. He was working on a scene from the show. He was shifting back and forth on his feet, and his arms, dangling at his sides, seemed heavy and awkward. Kent meant, "What should I do with my body? Should I move? Look somewhere? Stand?"
I said, "Well, Jeff," (his character's name), "where are you at this moment?'
"In my room."
"What are you doing when this scene begins?"
"Avoiding my parents."
"Okay," I said. "Here are some props you can work with if you'd like. Use whatever you need. This is your room. What might you be doing right now, at this specific moment, to avoid your parents?"
The rehearsal progressed with me just asking questions, side-coaching, and encouraging him and his scene partner to try many different choices. The students explored and improvised action and dialogue related to the scene and then worked from the script. By the end of that rehearsal, they had found staging, business, line readings, and powerful moments of action and interaction that were comfortable for them and compelling for an audience. I did not tell them what to do, when to do it, or how to do it, as I used to do. I did not say "I want you to." I just prompted them to consider the dramatic truth of each moment of the scene. I helped them generate choices for those moments, and then we shaped those choices into playable action. They made the choices. They felt like actors. This is a whole new way of directing for me, but, with practice, I have come to love creating theatre in this way, in tandem with students.

Being in tandem with her student’s not just spoon feeding them but by side-coaching as she puts it clearly open up endless amounts of potential displayed in her pupils something which empowered me to want to try and develop in my own teaching practices.

I would like to further my understanding and teaching skills continuing to develop new training methods. In part this side-coaching approach is something that comes naturally to me in the sense that I continually question my reasoning behind the career choices I make and assess others actions around me. These questions led me to bring about answers and understanding of choices I make and maybe could do the same for others.

Another issue addressed by Lazarus is the ethical implications and responsibilities that lay with theatre teachers a topic which I believe should be at the forefront of all educators minds addressing whenever adults are engaged in dynamic educational and artistic experiences with children twelve- to eighteen-years-old, many questions arise. There are other important questions related to material studied and produced with young people. What is age appropriate in a secondary school theatre program? What is too much, not enough, or the right combination of exposure to contemporary societal issues for children twelve- to eighteen-years-old? What is the balance between what is age-appropriate, what is socially responsible, and what is academically relevant?

All these questions brought me right back to my initial inquiry questions and I feel that these may be questions that could bring further expansion to my search for answers. Lazarus’s techniques brought about significant change in her pupils which could be necessary for me in order to find out what is needed /what I could do to improve mine and others future in the musical theatre industry.


Joan Lazarus: http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&res_dat=xri:iipa:&rft_dat=xri:iipa:article:fulltext:iipa00575292


This article is adapted from Signs of Change: New Directions in secondary Theatre Education, Joan Lazarus. Copyright © 2004 Heinemann, Portsmouth, NH. Reprinted by permission. (Accessed 27.04.11)

Task 6a ii) Pilot survey & 6b Critical Reflection

My pilot survey was created using surveymonkey.com which was really convienent and easy touse.I found my results were highly informative and I was very pleased and surprised with the opinions I received. I was able to gain a large variety of perspectives from people right across the board from aspiring performers still in training to recent graduates, teachers and well established performers. All giving frank and open opinions on their perceptions of musical theatre and evaluating the effectiveness of their own training. Also looking at what training is available now showing how significant or not they felt these options were in order to maximise future career success/longevity within the arts in particular musical theatre.

The only downside with this pilot survey was the length of time it took for me to get these varying opinions. If I were to repeat this process as part of my real inquiry survey I would expand this survey beyond my SIG sooner and target a cross section of people within my professional networks from piers to teaching institutions via facebook and email.

I didn't feel a need to determine whether my responses were from male or female or identify them personally because I wanted people to feel free to be as open and honest without fear their opinions would be voiced publically or traced back to them. From my survey I gained the following information:

10% of participants were still in training
50% were professional performers
20% were educators/Teachers
20% felt they were between training and professional performer

90% were aged 22-28
10% were 21 and under

Having this age range I found it useful to use my literature reviews to gain more experienced practitioners opinions along side my survey results as I would have liked to have gained a wider age range and this is something that I would try to facilitate in my real inquiry survey. I would approach this again with the ethical view of keeping all identities and personal information confidential and just use their answers for mass analysis.

Also in my survey I found:

80% of people deemed musical theatre necessary for inclusion within mainstream education
20% seeing musical theatre as a very specific area of study and not one that should be included in everyday class room practice.

50% of people felt that there was no inclusion of musical theatre in mainstream education whatsoever.
30% felt there was less than five years
10% felt there 11-15 years
10% felt 16-20 years of

From this I concluded that most people were unsure of the actual amount of inclusion that goes on within in mainstream education and it’s not entirely clear how much inclusion there is with it being down to the individual schools to assess. I only hope that somewhere within the educational system some emphasis is put on the benefits that can be gained through this inclusion and therefore trying to establish greater respect for the industry as a whole.

Using a scale of 1-10 with 10 being the highest I found in my survey:

50% of people felt there was 5 or less chance of sustaining a career in musical theatre
50% of people were more optimistic and felt there was a 6 and above chance of sustaining a career in musical theatre.

Seeing these statistics made me realise that the harsh reality of the industry being tough to work within is shared by the participants of this survey with half choosing to be optimistic maybe speaking from personal or observational experience this offers hope that their is a chance but the other half seeing it somewhat challenging any maybe looking for others means to stay within a creative arts environment or perhaps moving on to connected areas of teaching.

40% of participants felt it was necessary to have four years or more professional training in order to prepare for a career in musical theatre.
30% feeling three years was sufficient
30% feeling two years was sufficient.

I can see by the variation of opinions my view of their not being a right or wrong answer per say to the necessary length of course needed just putting the decision down to the individual is somewhat shared. The one point that everyone did agree on was that there is definitely a need for professional training to establish oneself as a performer within the arts. I believe the more training that can be gained to more strength of experience you can pull from and utilise in professional practice. So siding with the 40% majority the longer the training gained the better the future career potential will become.

In my survey I listed six methods of training that could potentially add strength in aiding a professional career in musical theatre the following is the order of importance participants felt they held:

1st-National Diploma course
Joint 2nd-Degree / Btec
Joint 3rd-MA /Alevels&GCSE'S
Last- Aprentaship

I was surprised to see the variation of opinions but pleased to see the most popular choice of training was a vocational one which can only be attained at an accredited college. A view which is supported by an overwhelming majority only adding substance to its impact and reassuring my continued inquiry. I can see a correlation with the training methods and career success.

My next survey inquiry question was developed by predicting what I believed the answers of the previous question would be. Weighting the effectiveness of training on Diplomas and Degrees I compiled the following list of courses and sought to find out opinions of the most respected ones for progression into the musical theatre industry. Results from my survey showed the following in order of importance:

1st-Degree in Musical Theatre
2nd-National Diploma in Musical Theatre
3rd-Degree in Acting and Theatre Performance
4th-National Diploma in Acting
5th-National Diploma in Professional Dance

With this information in mind I believe my views of professional Vocational institutes being respected and an important part of musical theatre's ever increasing popularity my decision to include this as a key point in my inquiry and include in my award rationale are substantiated further.

Task 6c Literature Review 2

The second article I have chosen to review is taken from MThe:UK blog which is a record of the reports generated by MThe:UK conferences. MThe:UK is a collective of institutions and individuals who teach Musical Theatre in Higher Education in the UK and beyond. They facilitate open space conferences to address the question, "How are we shaping the future of musical theatre?"It is exactly this question that I was to focus my inquiry around.

I'm am still learning as a professional performer and I want to shape my own future in musical theatre in turn gaining a greater knowledge to use to pass on to others.

On this blog I came across an article entitled 'The New West End Pay Deal…Can MT be a long term career choice or is it a graduate stop-off before a 'real job' presents that pays the bills? ‘And it really made me stop and think again about my question "Do you value Musical Theatre performers as professionals and as a sustainable profession alone?"Taken from my blog http://rebeccajanegaskell24.blogspot.com/2011/04/6a-i-pilot-interviews-and-6b-critical.html.
This heading is very poignant to my on going investigation for my inquiry and is one of many discussions on this blog found through the following link:
http://mtheuk.blogspot.com/2010/06/new-west-end-pay-dealcan-mt-be-long.html

With these opinions coming from individuals who teach Musical theatre at a higher level I was extremely interested in reading their professional stance on this matter. The were strong statements and questions raised within this conference revolving around graduating students training and whether or not they were fully understanding what they were preparing themselves for in their chosen professions. 

Many of these questions have led me to reassess and refine my inquiry topics now seeing how my theories are supported by other established HE professionals. The need for clarification and a sense of direction for graduates expected training out comes is very important. I can see from my own experiences when I graduated the knowledge I lacked then is still found to be lacking in new graduates so why is this? Even now institutions where musical theatre is taught question “Is there still a whiff of the amateur in the approach to being an MT practitioner? Is it seen on some level still as a bit of fun, an all consuming hobby, rather than a ‘proper job’… would a room full of architects or lawyers be as disinterested in what they can hope to achieve/earn? We believe not! None the less it is a ‘hobby’ that graduates will find needs to earn them a viable living…shouldn’t there be more attention in training to making your art work for you?"Even in these professional institutes they feel the perceptions of musical theatres reputability is questioned within society. The comment about making your art work you however is very close to my inquiry about trying to change misconceptions of musical theatre not being a viable/sustainable career path. If we can see where weaknesses lay then surely a need for change can be sought. Knowing I have added support with theses opinions voiced on the MThe:UK blog I have decided to ask a new inquiry question:
What do aspiring performers, teachers want and expect from their training and what can be done to ensure they are given the tools to facilitate this aspiration?


I also want to talk about another article taken from the same blog addressing the issue "Is there enough musical theatre training in government education?"This can be found through the following link: http://mtheuk.blogspot.com/2010/06/is-there-enough-musical-theatre.html 
I have chosen to keep this part of my second literature review because it comes from the same source highlighting a similar topic related to my on going inquiry.

A subject questioning whether there is enough training in government education is just like my interview inquiry question- If Musical theatre were to disappear from the public domain/mainstream education/ how significantly would this affect you considering your career/everyday life? Clearly an issue which Mthe:Uk feel is important enough to address. I believe the earlier on people are introduced to musical theatre the better perception and understanding could be had. My view is the earlier musical theatre is introduced the longer the experience, room for development and more informed youngsters can be. Having the best possible preparation to decide which training path is right for them.
MThe:UK said “If the curriculum was developed to include musical theatre that would mean more youngsters would want to do musical theatre in the future rather than make the decision at age of further education when often students join courses thinking they want to do musical theatre but then discover it isn’t quite what they thought it was going to be which is due to lack of previous training in the schools." 

I know this is a somewhat biased statement but this reaffirms my views and in all honesty I believe if this were implemented then the perceptions of musical theatre would become more positive and future performers could become stronger and more successful because of it. The outcome of this could have positive effect on all areas of musical theatre and bring aspiring performers longer time to prepare them for the industry. Rather than just limiting themselves to 1-3 year courses where everything is thrown at them they would have more time to digest their career decisions and hopefully have a sense of direction beyond graduation. 

Reading various blog on Mthe:Uk has been essential for focussing the direction of my inquiry and given me a substantial amount of informed opinions to strengthen my inquiry ideas.   


MThe:UK:http://mtheuk.blogspot.com/ accessed 26.4.11

Task 6c Literature Review 1

For my first literature review I will be looking at the following article written by Susan Elkin quoting Richard Eyre who is the president of Rose Bruford College of Theatre & Performance. This article is taken from an Education & Training blog on The Stage website aimed at at graduating students looking to inspire these future artists who can shape the future and create purpose within the arts. The whole article can be found at: http://blogs.thestage.co.uk/education/2010/11/richard-eyre-president-of-rose-bruford-o/

This article looks at the value of the arts at a time where politicians seem to under value their status and importance, an opinion which I can relate to. The article is aimed at like minded professionals wanting to promote the value of education in their chosen disciplines. Trying to instil his faith that the government cuts to arts funding won't silence the arts in the long term.

In order for me to establish where musical theatre and its perceptions fit in with society views, Eyre's comment “There is no society that doesn’t engage in the apparently useless activity of making art. It’s a universal instinct: it must therefore be contributing something that’s indispensable to human life.”  Makes a very clear statement and argument implying that the arts, including musical theatre, are essential throughout all lives in society. Giving an answer perhaps to my inquiry question of whether or not musical theatre is necessary or beneficial in mainstream academia/society. Having established its essential inclusion in society in Eyre’s opinion I hope to now explore the potential for justifying its necessary inclusion within mainstream academia.

This article brings reassurance to the reasons why I and many others choose to perform or decide to explore a performance career. This is a question that I don't feel needs an answer more just an understanding as Eyre puts it "the apparently useless activity of making art" is a natural instinctive reaction something that just IS with out the need for justification.

Progressing on to my inquiry of varying methods of training I have been evaluating the effectiveness and possible career potential these courses may hold. Eyre's statement “It’s through education and the arts that the potential of each of us is fulfilled" as a teacher I strive to develop this potential in others and in myself as a performer. I am looking to find ways to maximise this potential and understand how to these choices are being made by others.

Summing up my appreciation for the industry as a whole and bringing me ever closer to discovering the best balance of training needed to ensure maximum career success Eyre's words give me hope not fact's but by simply sharing his opinions. I am aware Eyre's comments were aimed at new graduates about the value of the arts offering no promise of sustained employment or career longevity but instilling his wisdom and optimism instead to motivate and give hope to the future within the arts.

Eyre is clearly a well respected musical theatre, television, opera and film director having received 5 Laurence Olivier award's for best director and is the newly appointed president of Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Performance. With this wealth of implied knowledge and experience to call upon his thoughts and opinions shared in this article hold much weight with me and my inquiry. I have been exploring society’s perceptions of musical theatre and the different training options available in order to prepare for a career within musical theatre and the arts.

I chose to review this article because of the variety of directing experience across many genres within the arts from musical theatre, television to film. Eyre's opinions hold much substance with his vast experience to call upon. 

By Susan Elkin on November 1, 2010 9:36 AM The stage website:
|:http://blogs.thestage.co.uk/education/2010/11/richard-eyre-president-of-rose-bruford-o/

Task 6a iii) Pilot Focus Group and 6b Critical Reflection

For my focus group I came to the decision with time against me trying to co-ordinate six different individuals discussed in my previous blog http://rebeccajanegaskell24.blogspot.com/2011/04/task-6a-iii-pilot-focus-group-plan.html was going to be too difficult near impossible with everyone’s time table constraints.

So on last Saturday I went ahead with my smaller pilot focus group with just three people. Using the same questions from my pilot interviews found on http://rebeccajanegaskell24.blogspot.com/2011/04/6a-i-pilot-interviews-and-6b-critical.html I went ahead and began my pilot focus group discussions.

People were happy introducing themselves and it was great to get an insight into all of their personal training and professional experience backgrounds relating to musical theatre, acting, singing dance and teaching within the arts. The diversity of the group was good but ideally I still would have liked to include all six of my initial candidates.

By keeping the group smaller I felt it allowed a lot of ideas and discussions to develop minimising the risk of some maybe stronger personalities overtaking and stopping other less out spoken people having an equal input if the group were to have been larger.

Trying to collate everyone’s opinions and decipher where they came from and what question or statement had led them to that conclusion made it difficult to trace all comments back to the source at times. If I were to repeat this scenario I would require permission to video all applicants response where I could re assess and notate all comments for further use once the session was complete.

I can see how having my initial proposed six participants would have been somewhat challenging to have kept thoughts and ideas focussed on my inquiry exploring the different training methods performers choose in order to prepare themselves adequately for a professional career, without becoming side tracked and loosing the main area of focus.

Having explored the benefits and limitations of my pilot focus group I'm not sure comparing it to my one-on-one interviews and survey information if this process could bring anything more for my inquiry. On the whole I felt with my interviews I gained an open and honest response where the interviewee was free to discuss their opinions without having to wait their turn or be spoken over. Although I felt opinions were shared openly in the focus group they weren't always able to share freely having to wait for an opportunity or possibly miss their chance.

I was able to somewhat keep the topic of conversation on track relating to my inquiry topic looking at how, where and when all performers training started and how beneficial or not they felt it was, is or could be to their future, current career success and life span.
Taking into consideration the variety of people within my initial proposed pilot group of six people, on reflection I feel that some may not have been as open with how they viewed their stance and experience because it may have been difficult to ensure complete confidentiality with all involved. I felt the larger group became people would become more aware of possible opposing opinions and may be less likely to speak their mind.

With my actual pilot focus group of three people I informed all participants that I would keep their opinions private and not disclose their identity to anyone outside of the group unless they allowed me to quote them with prior permission. The more people brought into the equation the more I felt the possibility of ensuring anonymity from all parties would become more challenging. With this in mind the lengths I would have to go to get all participants to sign disclaimers out way the overall outcome of the process.

The focus group was great for looking at the variety of courses and institutes people trained at and gave me a great insight into areas that could strengthen my inquiry. However looking at the results I feel using one-on one interview, observations and my survey would aid my inquiry and information discovery freer and easier in the long run and the focus group couldn't add much more than the other inquiry tools could.

If I were to repeat this focus group in order to see if I could make the process more beneficial I would maybe combine two tools by interviewing all candidates first and then put them in a focus group together to see if their opinions changed or not to reaffirm their stance and therefore I would know I had as much strength in their true opinions as possible and everyone would have had an equal as possible input into my inquiry.

6a i) Pilot interview(s) and 6b Critical reflection

My line of enquiry will be looking in to how the Arts are necessary and beneficial within academia and beyond in order to sustain and develop a professional performance career.

My method of interview was semi-structured interview which included 18 set questions which allowed the flexibility to explore interesting and useful issues related to their experiences.

I tried to phrase open questions to allow for more in-depth answers and therefore deepen my understanding but still allow for expansion of answers in keeping with my main topic.

For my pilot interviews I chose to interview two people to compare their opinions but on a one-on-one basis. The first person I interview via telephone was with an aspiring actress who is in her final year of study who has a singing and dance background and the second who is an ex dancer who has since started her own performing arts school with a Musical Theatre department. I chose these two candidates because I thought it would be interesting to see how their opinions would compare being at either end of the scale and to see how successful or not my pilot interview questions were in practice.

Both interviews were conducted via telephone as it became near impossible to meet face to face given our differing schedules. Since then I have met face to face with the actress who helped form part of my focus group.

The following is a list of proposed questions I used in my interview:

1. Please identify your stance on Musical Theatre e.g. are you an actor/dancer/musical theatre performer/teacher/still in training which area (who’s perception)?

2. How important is musical theatre to you as a performer/teacher/spectator -for entertainment value?

3. If Musical theatre we to disappear from the public domain/mainstream education/ how significantly would this affect you considering your career/everyday life?

4. How different do you think your educational learning would have been if musical theatre hadn’t been incorporated into your up bringing? I.e. singing/dance/drama/ music classes

5. How early do you feel musical theatre influences should start in a person’s life to and what could this include?

6.  is a dancer’s appearance more or less important than a musical theatre performer with regards to physique?

7. Would you say if talent wasn’t compromised physique shouldn’t be an issue?

8. Often at a young age image can be focused on more than enjoyment of the subject. Did you find that this was something you came across in your training/upbringing?

9. Where does the distinction between a dancer/musical theatre performer come both can sing which term is more appropriate/socially recognised?

10. How important was it to your learning experience for musical theatre to be incorporated into mainstream education (before the age of 16)?

11. Did you find musical theatre/singing/dancing/music/acting/physical activity had a positive effect on your emotional development/enjoyment in school and beyond? Would you agree that this added to your decision to go on and receive further higher/vocational in dance/Mt/acting?

12. Which would you say made for a well rounded and effective teaching background/approach for your involvement in musical theatre, an academic (curriculum based) approach or professional experience (practical) approach?

13. Do you feel there is a sustainable place in mainstream education for Musical theatre performers looking to teach?

14. Do you value Musical Theatre performers as professionals and as a sustainable profession alone?

15. Should performers automatically be able teach in mainstream education or vocational institutes?

16. Do you believe that all performers are capable of teaching is this just a given in your opinion?

17. Is there a difference between straight acting and musical theatre acting ?Can the two be nurtured using the same techniques just applying different methods or do you think the two must be approached separately and should not be merged?

18. In your opinion what form of training is the best to insure maximum success for a professional performance /teaching career?

I wrote notes throughout the interviews which I can read through and refresh my memory when needed and gained verbal consent from both participants to store this information.

http://www.ico.gov.uk/for_organisations/data_protection/the_guide/the_principles.aspx

I have referred to the above link and have ensured that all data I have compiled will be stored securely on my laptop and will not be shared publicly unless such permission is granted. I informed both interviewees of this and allowed them to review my notes once I had transferred them to my computer to make sure they were happy with what I had noted. I conducted my pilot interviews in a professional manner as possible not trying to ask any leading questions which may be seen as forcing an answer or make anyone feel uncomfortable just to suit my inquiry. I also informed them that all information they gave me was in the record unless they felt it inappropriate once reviewing my notes then I could remove any statements they weren't comfortable with. I wanted them to feel they had freedom of speech and could trust my professionalism.

Merits of my interviewing process:

• I was able to gain honest opinions as both interviewees felt relaxed and were free to talk in there own time to suit them.

• The questions allowed for expansion and developing ideas where I was able to see what related to my ongoing inquiry.

Limitations of my interviewing process:

• The only down side to conducting my interview via phone calls were that the face to face observations were lacking and I felt at times maybe the flow of conversation veered of course but was difficult to monitor.

• I feel personally face to face interviews may have been better suited to my type of questioning wanting in depth answers and discussion.

• Maybe next time I could have sent a copy of questions before hand if a face to face interview isn't possible so they have a brief idea on where the interview is heading are able to answerer quicker and be able to refer to where they are actually having the questions in front of them. 

• Because I am quite close to both interviewees at times it was tempting to go of on a tangent and let our attention sway from the main objective so I needed to be careful not to allow that to happen but on the other hand not dictate the direction to much for fear of coercing answers. 

I have realised that the need for me to remain neutral in an interview situation would be useful to gain an honest un influenced answer then I could joining with discussions based on their opinions and perhaps challenge/explore their views deeper once established.

I found the way I approached my interview to be very informative and useful towards my inquiry as some of the questions in particular question 10/11 which in both pilot's led to a in-depth discussion on how any why people are influenced in choosing certain courses and what they believe needs to be considered when choosing the right career path/course.

For my inquiry I want to understand what type of performance courses people give merit to and see what they feel is the best way to gain/sustain career success.

I intend to incorporate this interview technique as part of my live inquiry, after assessing the outcome of these interviews I found them to be very useful methods of obtaining opinions.

I found after these interviews that my initial perceptions of musical theatre performers and differing routes to break into the professional industry are shared by others. There is no right and wrong ways to train and develop talent per say but certain avenues are shown to be more successful than others. Perhaps we never stop developing even after graduating from vocational institutes and gain professional experience.

Task 6a Observation Pilot & 6b Observation Evaluation

This observation was written from an excert in my diary about an audition I attended/observed last month. I didn't know when writing about this experience that this would be part of my pilot observation but on reflection it seems a very relevant and useful observation to recall and evaluate.

My experience that I've chosen to write my observations about was from an open audition I attended and is recorded in a qualitive nature in order for me to look at the main content of what is happening.

The brief for the audition said they were not only interested in casting people who can only do street dance or theatre. They said their clients are demanding more versatility so all dancers were required to be able to turn their hand to commercial pop / contemporary lyrical / hip hop routine also. The requirements for this audition seemed so diverse that I knew I might be a little out of my comfort zone attending but should still go along for the professional ad observational experience.

I consider myself technically strong in jazz and contemporary it was more the commercial hip hop that I felt might hinder me. I thought if I were to stand any chance I would need to have the right look (whatever that means), wear the right outfit, and make sure I picked up the routines quickly.  

So with my preconceived ideas I entered the audition room and queued up with everyone else. I would say there was about 90 female dancers and around 15 male dancers in total which was a normal occurrence with females out numbering males.

We were taught three different routines on mass by three different choreographers which was a great opportunity to experience different teaching styles. After lunch we were split into groups of four where we were then to perform the previously taught routines.

Throughout the audition a camera man was present recording every part of the audition process aiming to get everyone on film for later consideration as they were casting for many different jobs. It was explained to us that the camera man had vast experience recording music videos and he was part of the panel that we needed to impress. So we were being assessed from every angleat all times.

On reflection I thought this approach was quite unique in the sense we had many more opportunities to show our talents and impress the panel if we weren't noticed on the day or didn't do our bes twhen it came to perform the routines in smaller groups.

I was number 73 so I had along wait until my group went up the perform so this gave me time to observe 

• Who they were putting through to the afternoon auditions
• Whether or not I felt I fitted the criteria they seemed to be looking for
• The height and size of the dancers going through
• The successful dancers hair colour so I could see if they might need any more girls with auburn hair like me
• What didn't impress the panel

and to be honest it was the most diverse selection of dancers that I was left completely clueless as to what they were looking for. I know they wanted dancers who were quick at picking up and who had 'real' figures that would look good in clothes if required to model them when dancing.This audition was turning out to be the one of the most unpredictable  auditions I've attended. In the past you can usually get an idea of what impresses the panel and what doesn't, what image is right, and the style there looking for. Maybe because they were casting for so many different things it was impossible to predict what was right or not.

I know this sounds more, like a personal analysis but I felt in order for  me to asses the situation as a whole I needed to understand my own stance within it.I found myself watching every dancer ones I deemed to be similar in standard to myself, others who looked funky/commercial types to try and see who I thought might make the cut. One girl in particular stood out when practicing near me she had a curvaceous figure, very pretty/edgy looks and her lyrical dance was beautiful. She attacked the hip hop routine and delivered a great performance and her commercial pop was technically sound. So I was sure she would be successful I felt she fitted the criteria they had stipulated exactly. Then when her group had finished performing she was cut I couldn't understand why wasn't she suitable I was sure she would have gone through. Was there something on her CV that the casting director hadn't liked? 

This possible over analysis on my part led me to worry when it was my turn to perform the three routines. By being involved in the process myself it became difficult to stay un bias an evaluate observations I was seeing and not let it affect my personal performance.When it came for my group to perform I tried to stay focused  on my personal objectives- retain the routines, show my personality throughout and remember there looking for real people. I loved the commercial pop routine so I felt this one went well the lyrical piece they were looking for more emotion so again I gave it all I had. The final routine was the hip hop I know I don't have the look of a hip hop dancer but I had to show attack and just throw myself in to it anyway if I'm to stand any chance.

Out of my group only girl went through unfortunately I wasn't one of them. Throughout the day I'd seen some exceptional dancers go through and others get cut not knowing what the difference was between them or why. Some who were good all rounder’s went through which was fair enough alongside others who were just good in one area so where was the logic?

When I’d finished I decided to stay and watch the rest of the groups perform the last 3 groups were all male they had decided to save them until the end. I wondered why this choice was made as happens so often in auditions. Male dancers on the whole seem to be accomplished in many areas and with them being in shorter supply than females so are more likely to be hired. Most males on the day went through with others being told that they would be probably required for future projects so on the whole all of them will work for the company at some point in the future.

The whole days experience made me realise by trying to combine an observation whilst being a participant makes it difficult to stay neutral and evaluate the experience in a professional manner. 

I feel my pilot observation was useful and informative however if I were to apply this experience to my real inquiryy tool I would carry out my observation(s) in a very different manner.

Firstly if possible I would position myself on the panel of a dance/acting or singing audition where I could gain an insight into the casting director requirements therefore giving myself a more informed stance even before the auditions began.I now see how being on both sides of the audition process can be informative but ulitmately I feel trying to do both can have a more negative impact on my iquiry. I want to stay professioal and focused not allowing my stance as an auditionee impact on my overall observation process.  

At the audition that I wrote my pilot observation about all of dancers signed a disclaimer giving permission to be filmed and given the option if they weren't comfortable to opt out. I viewed this as a good ethical consideration and something which I would include in my real observation inquiry making all participants aware that I was simply there to watch the experience and not a member of the panel that they needed to impress. All information/opinions I collected were simply for my inquiry and their identity would be kept anonymous and none of their personal details would be used in any publications. However If I were in a theatre and could remain out of sight then I wouldn't feel the need to notify the candidates of my presence as to not influence their behaviour in anyway. Either observational set up would hopefully still allow a true scenario and not alter people’s behaviour. I would however take into consideration peoples privacy and not disclose any personal information gain through this experience.

One thing that I would be interested in finding out if I were to observe another audition would be how many of the successful applicants had previously received a vocational level of training and if so in what area(s). This would fit into to my inquiry looking to see the effects on musical theatre performers (including singers, dancers and actors) success taking their training into consideration. I would be looking to see a pattern in the type of training received and job success rate and whether or not this was something that the casting director looked for or was swayed by when ultimately making a decision. Again being able to communicate with a casting director/employer and view candidates cvs in order to obtain this information would have to be correctly implemented and I would seek to gain prior permission before obtaining this information allowing complete anonynimity and none participation if prefered.

The practice of recording an audition allowing me to re evaluate the experience could be somewhat useful and allow me to focus on the performers who were successful and see if their actions throughout the audition process in some way helped their success. This would also allow me to capture more details without relying on my memory alone.I would obtain written consent for this and ensure it was strictly for my own viewing and would be disposed of when my inquiry was over.

Hopefully being able to see how the training of a performer and the weight this training may hold with a casting director would help strengthen my inquiry seeing how important the type of training could potentially have on a performer’s career success.

Task 6d Delicious Academic/Professional resources

Hi I've just started using the website Delicous and I can't believe how useful its been I've already found lots of articles and bookmarked them so I can now access them all in one place instead of having multiple widows open. I can add notes and see where I'm up to with a simple layout the web sights and articles are so much easier to access and share information. I've included some of my professional sources that I use on a daily basis as well as literature and articles that will aid with my ongoing inquiry. Please find below a link to my Delicious page feel free to browse and share any bookmarks that may be of interest. I will continue to add relevant book marks when I can.


http://www.delicious.com/Rebeccajanegaskell

Task 6a iii) Pilot Focus group plan

When looking to arrange a my pilot focus group I had a good idea of who I'd like to approach and gain their input. The main issue I've already found is trying to pinpoint a time where all 6 of us are available to meet up.
I wondered if I were to arrange a sort of conference call where all of us could spare at least an hour to discuss our points of view would this be considered a focus group still? I know this immediately comes with limitations as the face to face connection is lost and I will have to ask individuals to introduce themselves when sharing ideas in order for me to identify them. I want to get participation from a variation of performers at different stages and areas all linked in one way or another to Musical Theatre's progression/inclusion to education and society.

Should I compromise the quality of information I might receive by making my focus group smaller maybe just two or three people and meet face to face afterall?

I know I need to make a decision soon and I won't be able to do both types of focus group without compromising the results having already discussed issues in one therefore opinions maybe be more influenced if I tried to repeat the same process with the same people.

The following is a list of the different type of individuals I'd like to include in my focus group trying to explain the relevance to musical theatre and thus their potential strength they might give to my inquiry:

• A professional female dancer who is currently training to become a teacher whilst performing professionally full time.(Vocational training background)
• A professional female singer with a vast acting and musical theatre background.(non vocational training background)
• A professional female dancer/choreographer who now runs her own performance company with a large musical theatre influence.(Vocational training background)
• A male actor who has toured in musical based theatre shows and appeared in more serious TV roles.(Acting degree)
• A female actress who is in her final year of training at university who also has a large vocal and dance background.(Acting Degree)
• Finally myself with professional acting, dance and singing credits (Vocational Musical Theatre/Classical Dance training background )

I can see even before I conduct my pilot focus group that I am experiencing limitations but to maximise the effectiveness of combined information I need to accumulate as many opinions as possible.I am able to gain each individuals opinions on a one-to-one basis but I feel there combined opinions would be stronger.

On my next blog I will try to update you on my progression with my focus group pilot.Wish me luck.

Task 6a i) Pilot Interview(s)

I have now managed to conduct two pilot interviews, one with an aspiring actress who is in her final year of study who has a singing and dance background and the other who is an ex dancer who has since started her own performing arts school with a Musical Theatre department. I chose these two candidates because I thought it would be interesting to see how their opinions would compare being at either end of the scale and to see how successful or not my pilot interview questions were in practice.

Both interviews were conducted via telephone as it became near impossible to meet face to face given our differing schedules.

Once I have completed all 4 pilot tasks I will blog more about what I found and which method I felt was the most informative.  

Task 6a ii) Pilot survey

I've just created my first survey called Perceptions of Musical Theatre. 

I Hope through this survey to gain a deeper understanding of how society in particular professional educators &/or performers perceive/understand/appreciate/see areas of weakness/need for improvement in order to strengthen my inquiry and expand my knowledge on the progression of musical theatre in education through previous generations to the present day. I am trying to broaden my understanding by gaining different perceptions in order to utilise for future teaching practice of Musical Theatre whether it be singing, acting or dance.

I would really appreciate you taking a few minutes to complete the following survey.

 

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/HF68X7B

Task 5c Professional Ethics

How what I've Learnt fits into the theoretical ethical framework.

I've discovered that both my personal ethics and professional ethics are necessary for continued productivity in everyday life. 

'Hobbes (1651) viewed ethics as a practical solution to social harmony and good through

the vehicle of a social contract’.

I have found at times my personal morals and ethics have been overruled by my professional work place ethics. The realisation that I ultimately must allow a parent to parent their own child and not undermined their authority even if I feel it impedes their learning potential is necessary for this social harmony(even if it feels like a contradiction to my job). This moral dilemma has at times left me questioning my personal views but knowing I have a professional work ethic to abide by I am bound to these obligations.

If I allowed my (personal) emotions to rule my (professional) head I would be in breach of these 'moral rules' which Hobbes (1651) describes 'in order to achieve peaceful, co-operative social order we need to adhere to a set of moral rules'. These rules are necessary because if there were no set rules to abide by and seek guidance from how mistakes are learnt from, procedures improved upon and ultimately clarification of status and professionalism. Hobbes (1651)'Without moral rules, these facets would lead to a constant state of war with one and all, which would be intolerable'.

What I have learned about ethics in a professional context.

One thing I can take from this realisation is when mistakes are made lessons are learnt and by seeing what went wrong you find what is right and follow that pattern to make up guidelines of your own for both personal and professional conduct. This is something that I have come to use in my professional practice already. I guess it would be fair to say that learning happens from both sides not just from teacher to pupil. When I teach I have discovered how my teaching methods are beneficial or not so I can question this maybe I was too strict or not strict enough to bring out the most potential. Professionally speaking I need to be seen as authoritative but personally I want the pupil to enjoy there lesson's and not feel under pressure. 

Everyone has expectations for the professional ethics within the school I teach for my personal ethics as a teacher.     

My employer's expectations of me are ones of professionalism, commitment and co-operation all things I would expect from them in return. By reaffirming theses expectations and understanding these guidelines set out by them has given strength to my inquiry.

By broadening my understanding behind the workings of an educational institute I believe I am in a more knowledgeable position moving forward to prepare me for my hopeful career transition, at some stage into a Vocational Education setting. 

I realise the difference between my personal ethics and morals which make up my character and my professional ethics which determines how I work and by what code I am ruled by.

I see how my moral code is built up of virtues which I live by making up my character and how I behave. Abiding by a professional code of conduct is something that becomes instinctive to achieve professionalism. Through this task I have gained a deeper insight into the running of my school/organisation and new found respect for my input.

How what I have discovered fits in with the ethics of my professional inquiry

My professional inquiry is based around the social /educational impact musical theatre can have. I found these ethics brought clarity to my professional inquiry by differentiating responsibilities, expectations and legal protocol needed.

Through my inquiry I wanted to look at how and where musical theatre training starts and the process ultimately a performer goes through to achieve the end result working in the professional industry.

I intend to deepen my understanding of others perceptions of musical theatre within an education and a professional setting and see what I could bring to make this transition more successful if possible. One way in which I have tried to do this was by starting my own SIG on facebook with the heading 'Musical Theatre Education' With this I’m continually aiming to gain opinions seeing how musical theatre, whatever interpretation of it, impacts peoples learning.

I want to find out who has these perceptions and how have they been established over time.

Having looked at ethics in a professional context I see the impact that my personal and professional ethics has a significant impact on more than just my pupils in the moment. It clearly is something that will overlap at times in order for me to stay connected with what I enjoy and bring harmony to my professional conduct.  

Personal ethics and professional ethics ultimately are combined to make up a 'large society for the promotion of social good' according to Hobbes (1651) which ultimately I have to agree with.

All things I believe makes up my Personal ethics:

Honesty*

Integrity

Reliable

Tenacity

Open-mindedness*

All things I believe makes up my Professional ethics:

Ambition*

Resilience

Being Meticulous

Tactfulness

*True for both ethical stances.

Hobbes, T. (1651) The Leviathan. London: Penguin Classics