Stepping Out Play Essay

Launceston players production of Stepping Out was performed at the Earl Arts centre on 29th of March, Directed by Mark Horner. This acclaimed comedy told the story of Dance Teacher Mavis Turner and her eclectic mix of adult tap students. The unconventional characters are brought to life when united in the dance studio. They tap and explore their personal issues and unique behaviors and throughout the play, each individual character reveals their motivation to tap. Melissa Wimmer and Olivia Brodinski used Characterisation and Voice to develop their characters and to compose their craft of acting skills; to execute a performance.

Vocal elements such as pitch, projection, articulation, tone and pace are essential in the assemblance of a successful

Throughout the play, Wimmer occupied an unbothered and dispassionate character. This was evident right through the performance, specifically made known when Mavis would be approached with questions from students, Dorothy and Andy, Mavis’ response was brief, disinterested and sarcastic. This detail is noted because Mavis’ character is required to have a tone that shows appreciation for the people that attend, and a love for dance. It was noticed that Wimmer still reacted to her students in an impolite manner, yet a more warm and compassionate tone and volume should have been used. An example of this includes Mavis and Lynnes interactions in regards to Lynnes dreams of becoming a tap dancer, Mavis seemed to be unbothered by this. All Characters demonstrated mediocre vocal elements, including pitch and articulation projection, Janice Molineux was an example of this as she displayed good projection and articulation, considering the nature of her character as upper class and

As the storyline of Stepping Out is based heavily on the uniqueness of each character and their motivation to dance, it was extremely important for the actors to portray their characters well for the audience to interpret. An aspect of the performance that was confused, was the use and misuse of the fourth wall; the space in which separates the performer from an audience. As the play was set in the dance studio, it was evident that fourth wall was in fact a mirror. This was easily identified when Olivia Brodzink and Kerri Gay would stand in front of the audience and pretend to fix their hair or put makeup on. However, Wimmer did not abide by the fourth wall and spoiled this effect for the entirety of the performance. For example Mavis would look up and directly into the audience at the back of the theatre, making direct eye contact with audience members. This action was highly obvious and as a result the remaining characters in the room were upstaged by Melissa Wimmer, as she became the unnecessary focus of the scene. This aspect connects with Wimmer and her facial expressions and body language in response to her fellow characters. Throughout the whole performance, Wimmer stole the attention from moments not concentrated on