Antonio

Journal 9/14/09

Givens
My name is Antonio Salazar Castillo. I am 21 years old and freshly out of the Spanish military academy.  I grew up in a small town outside of Madrid with both my parents. My father, Salazar, was in the Spanish military himself but had retired soon after he met and married my mother, Victoria, or Tori, as everyone calls her.  My mother was a French student traveled to Spain to broaden her education and met my father there.  I grew up strong and with a mastery of language, French and Spanish being my specialties.  My father’s stint and position in the military allowed him to gain some wealth and land.  I have one older brother, Raul, who became a businessman and will inherit my father’s property. I was home schooled by my mother and received some tutoring, though. In order to prove myself, I joined the military like my father.  After leaving the academy, I knew how to read and write and knew French well enough to become the General’s translator.  I did this to reach the highest rank in the military I could in the shortest amount of time. I have learned many things about military life by attending to the General’s needs.  I call this “real” experience, or “street smarts.”  I could not help growing quite fond of the General in such close proximity with him at all times.  I have ventured to help him in all his endeavors, no matter how strange or impossible to overcome.  So far I have succeeded in everything he has asked but there is a constant stream of demands and I cannot keep up sometimes.  Success really dependson the General’s mood.  While I have not reached my dream of becoming a captain or a general myself, I believe I am well on my way.  Although I serve my General faithfully, I sometimes cannot help but perceiving that I had a better education than my employer. My father is also proud of me because of my position in the military and because I have to travel around to remain with the General.  He does not know my exact job and I do not tell him because it may shatter his fantasies of my position in the military.  I also believe the General is satisfied with my performance. When I am not attending to the General my favorite activity is reading because of the ease to carry and find papers and the news.  I am also a bit of a neat freak in the case of my uniform and spend some of my free time cleaning and adjusting my clothes. 

Historical Context
During the turn of the century, Spain was a minor participant in the scramble of Africa because it had lost some of its world standing and pride during the previous centuries as it lost New World colonies.  Spanish butlers at this time were similar to English butlers in that they also ran the house and lives of their employers.  While Spanish culture has always been relaxed, the people still did not feel entirely comfortable touching in public (maybe in the privacy of home with friends).  While the Spanish military began to lack prowess, the Spanish culture, in art and music, remained strong and was a source of Spanish pride. The warm climate and heat helped promote a more relaxed and lazy attitude.  People probably smiled more because of the nice weather.  Normal citizens wore shorter cut fashions to be comfortable but military and government officers still wore longer, more proper clothes.  The basic education was to learn to read and write if the economic means were available.  Anything beyond that required enrollment in a trade school or under a certain professional. The military and church were also viable options to further education into certain topics.

You should work on the historical givens with the General and others.

Journal 9/21/09

Movement
Antonio leads his movement from his heels because he is used to following around the General and taking orders from him. He also moves with less weight to his step and is fluid in his movements. Since he is still young he has almost no tension, except in his neck because he looks slightly upward in his stationary position. I am working on repetitive motion, because he stands still a lot (maybe his waiting pose, with arms behind his back and feet together).

Voice
He has a slightly higher voice than my own. It is solid, unlike the General, because he is educated and knows what the General asks of him. Castillian accent, speaking form the back of his mouth.

Journal 9/29/09

Relationships
The General- He is my life. We depend on each other for survival; he needs me to do his bidding and I need him for support and as employment. I have grown fond of him, though, because of his instinctual actions and his emotion. I am willing to do almost anything for him and have earned his trust because of my competency and intellect. It is difficult not to understand or now someone after spending the last few years eating, drinking, and traveling with them for almost every moment of the day. As the play progresses, I plan out most maneuvers with the General beforehand (like when first wooing Lucette). Because I know the General well enough, I can tell when he will do something outrageous or dangerous and be there to calm him down or help him out of a sticky situation. During Act 2, I learn that the General does not need me as much anymore and is competent in dealing with other people and with Lucette while I am not around (while I chase Bouzin). Eventually in the third Act, I understand the amount of devotion that the General has for Lucette and am able to leave without any regrets of leaving the General.
Marceline- I first meet Marceline before the play begins at one of Lucette's club shows. While she was first impressed by the General's wealth and grandeur, she became attracted to me soon after (Olivia and I need to go over how this exactly happened). When the play starts, I immediately notice her again but my primary duty is too the General and I am unable to leave him for fear of an emotional outburst on his part. We do find places where we can chat or look at each other, though, and we build on our relationship. In Act 2, we are able to spend more moments together as I chase around Bouzin and attend to the General. The chaos on stage also allows us to slip away together for a few moments (We both at least know what we want). At the end of the play the temptation to leave the General is too much and I run away with Marceline.
Lucette- I understand Lucette is my General's objective and I do everything in my power to make him seem attractive in her eyes. Whether this means showboating with him or performing stunts, I do what I must. I become less of an impact in her relationship with the General as the play goes on because the General becomes devoted to her and can deal with Lucette when I am not around.
Firmin- He is in the way.
Bois D'Enghien- He first is the person that knows who Lucette's lover is, so he is in the way. Basically the General and I interrogate him for information. When he is revealed as Lucette's lover I chase him and try to capture him similarly to Bouzin.
Bouzin- In the beginning of the play I think he is in the General's way because he also vies for the love of Lucette. I chase him around and do what I must to capture him. By the end of the play I realize Bouzin isn't Lucette's lover and leave him alone.
Fontanet- He plainly needs a breathe mint or to brush his teeth. I stay away from this man and keep the General away from him, too.
Chenneviette- I don't do much with him except for acknowledge him.
Emile- Once again, in the way.
Vivian- Do I even meet her?
Madame Duverger- I respect her status and would do things for her like for the General because she is of the same of similar status.

Act 1
Moment before- Planning with the General about his meeting with Lucette in the hall while waiting to be let in and introduced.
Moment After- Lucette leaves her house and the General unwillingly leaves her for awhile to prepare himself for the party later.

Act 2
Moment Before- While preparing for Lucette's singing at Madame's house, we become late and hurry to get there, so don't really have time to plan anymore heroic stunts. We arrive breathless.
Moment After- After the General's death threat to Bois, I give Marceline the promise I will see her again soon as the General calls for me and tears me away form her.

Act 3
Moment Before- To win over Lucette, the General looks to find Bois to destroy his competition. We go to check his apartment to find him.
Moment After- Marceline and I run off to begin our life together.

Picture that Inspires Me
burnafterreading.jpg
I am the CIA director at the end, and I get the girl.
The movie is about completely improbably things happening to a man because of outside forces and that his wife starts to cheat on him. The man (Malkovich) is not promoted at his desk job at the CIA, even though he deserves it, and starts to go insane. Another man (Clooney) uses dating services to meet desperate women. Through a dating service he meets a women that works at a gym (McDormand). She finds a tape she believes to have top secret data on it and threatens Malkovich, who supposedly dropped it at the gym. Brad Pitt, who also works at the gym, is her accomplice and he heads to first the Russian embassy then Malkovich's house. Malkovich becomes so stressed out he shoots Brad Pitt and then later kills Clooney in the street when he thinks Clooney slept with his wife. The CIA director at the end follows all of these events, and because there is no apparent cause for anything and nothing connects, he is completely confused. His last line to his inferior agent is "Come back when it all makes sense."
-Antonio is the CIA director in a sense. He is confused by the events of the play because they don't always fit together or connect. (alot of it is because he isn't there when things take place). Basically, the sense I am trying to get from my inspiration is someone trying to figure out the improbably things going on, without knowledge of events, will being at enough distance to separate themselves and eventually move on.

Reality of the time Period
Letter to My Mother
Dear Mother,
It has been a year now since I left home to find work as an interpreter for the military. I have already written to you about General Irrigue and how I felt about working for him. I was, at first, taken by surprise by his energetic and bombastic style, but I slowly grew onto it. His life allows me to do everything I was not able to back at home in Spain: have adventures, do dangerous things, and actually think about how to keep myself and the General safe. I became adapt and useful in these respects very quickly, as I had no other choice. Do not worry though, I am keeping my health and dress in the best of conditions. The General has so much money that I feel spoiled at times to eat fantastic food and to wear the best clothing. My life is now much more spontaneous than back in our house. I have tried to keep a sense of home and Spain throughout my travels, though. I carry the watch father gave me as a farewell gift, and the gold dipped flower you gave me in my trunk. These have given a sense of peace and stability that I sometimes need to keep my head. I mostly can figure out what to do to help the General reach his goals.

How my days normally look
I wake up around 6AM in the morning and wash myself down with water before I change into my uniform. I then take a stroll around outside the room to scope out the area for escape routes and/or enemies of the General laying in wait. In our room, I put on a frontal coverup and begin to make breakfast for myself and the General. He enjoys two eggs over-medium and coffee, served black, every morning. He usually wakes up to the smell of food and eats his breakfast while I prepare his daily uniform. As I dress him I go over who he must meet and what troops he must support during the day. Most of the day is left open for the spontaneity of the General. The General's multitude of resources allowed him to take hold of an automobile and we would leave in it shortly after breakfast to visit the troops and talk to his informants. We would finish all of these tasks before lunch and visit a popular cafe. The General then takes strolls through the street markets in search of a precious item or "mireboble". I of course carry all of these trinkets. During mid-afternoon, we usually become tired and retire to our room for a coffee break. The General takes a nap and I catch up on reading the paper or pamphlets about the day's events. At exactly 7PM the General always wakes up and we have dinner in a fancy restaurant of his choosing. Then the General is drawn into some sort of gambling or betting, usually at a casino but he has not been unknown to gamble in the back alleys. I can only watch in fascination as the General spends enormous amount of money on the simplest of games. He only stops when someone distracts him and his concentration is broken or he becomes violent with anger from losing and we are thrown out. When we arrive at our room, I take off the General's clothes and tuck him into bed. I finish my reading by candlelight then go to bed.

How this day is different
Lucette (lengthier explanation below)
The day can be summed up in one difference: Lucette. The General feels crazy about her, like he has never felt about any other women. We met her for 5 minutes after she sang last night in this night club and casino and the General could not stop talking about her. Maybe it was the sway of her body or the brightness of her hair. Besides driving everyone away with his constant chatter, I wanted to calm him down so I myself did not become irritared. Nonetheless, I desired to help my General succeed and plotted with him to capture Lucette. Her sister, Marceline, was also attractive, from the look of things. I hope she is at least with Lucette so I have someone to talk to during our rendezvous with Lucette. When we arrived at her house the General almost knocked down the door to get inside. This snooty butler was in the way the entire time. Once we reached the living room, the General met Lucette and I tried my best to help him to woe her. Somehow I found time to talk with and look at Marceline during our encounter. We followed Lucette's lover Bouzin around and tried to kill him. We chased him from the house and left with the promise of seeing Lucette sing later in the evening. When we arrived at Madame's house, the General went to Lucette and I found Marceline. Bouzin, appearing out of nowhere, arrived and we chased him a long way around the house. During the run it became clear to me Bois was actually Lucette's lover and I simply followed the General around. The General went insane again, choking people this time, and I leave with Marceline. At Bois' apartment we chase Bouzin again and finally talk with Bois himself. The General is finally able to handle the situation himself and talks to Bois to win Lucette over. I am asked to go get Bois' pants and that in the last straw. The General can handle himself. I find Marceline and we leave. Exit Antonio

I think the letter is good but not in Antonio's voice. He would not use terms like tripping or upside his head. Please rewrite the letter to reflect the time period. I was tired.

Props
1. Altoid Box- I keep for when the General smokes and needs quick relief because talking to someone important or a lady.
2. Swords- Used in times of war! But we use them more as props to impress people.
3. Flowers
-Lucette's- Part of the way my General can get to Lucette's heart. I take good care of them and hold them like a baby to keep them fresh.
-Marceline's- She is attractive to me and I can use the flowers to hopefully win her over or plant a seed of my affection.

Costume (I wear these articles of clothing for the entire play)
1. Red jacket- Hand down from the General. Nothing will come to harm on it.
2. Hat- My father's old hat from his younger days. I especially keep it out of the way of harm.
3. White long sleeved shirt- Nothing special about it besides I wear it everyday.
4. Black pants- Same as above.
5. Cuff links- These were also my father's cuff links when he was in the military. I keep them finely shined and prepared.

Diary
Dear Diary,
Today I woke up like normal and cooked breakfast for the General and I while preparing his clothes and planning out the day. The General had stayed out late last night in a club watching Lucette sing and slept in till 9 AM this morning. When he woke up, he could only talk about Lucette and ran around the room in joy while thinking about her. We finally decided to impress Lucette and started to think up ways using our skills. For one, we decided the General should give flowers and gifts to Lucette to win her over. The General also wanted to perform a sword fight inside her house and leap over furniture to seem heroic. I decided I should stay with the General at all times so he did not do anything too rash while trying to woe Lucette. The General and I practiced our sword fight for an hour to perfect it then went in search of flowers. We went to the best stores in town and bought a ring, bracelet and flowers. A flower boy left right away to deliver them and the General could barely finish his food in the cafe next door in excitement for meeting Lucette again.

At a little after noon, we travelled out into the countryside to Lucette's house and waited for her to receive us. Everything went as planned as soon as we arrived. We cleared the room of others and began to put our plan into action. The sword fight worked perfectly and I kept the General from becoming too emotional. About half way through, Lucette's sister, Marceline, snuck into the room to get her glasses and I could not help notice how cute she was. While the General and Lucette had a moment together, Marceline and I also had a moment and made fleeting glances at each other. The General went out of control soon after and I was forced to keep between him and Lucette and get Marceline out of the room. The General and I decided to kill the man Lucette claimed to love. A man, Bodege, entered and whe we tried to interrogate him to find out who Lucette's lover was, Lucette interupted us to invite us to a party. Bodege said the lover was Bouzin. Bouzin came to the house shortly after and the General and I tried to corner him. As he started to run away, he was stopped by Lucette, who threw him out of the house. The General said he would kill Bouzin at the end.

We quickly travelled home and freshened up and had dinner before heading to Madame Duverger's house. The General argued with our waiter over the price of our meal so we were late. With no time to buy trinkets for Lucette, he picked flowers quickly from the garden outside Madame's house for her. Once inside the General tried to woe Lucette again and Marceline seemed to be more attracted to me, which I was fine with. We had many glancing touches and got closer until Bouzin entered the room. The General and I chased him out of the house and through the garden and back through the living room. When we returned after kicking Bouzin, the General found Lucette fainted and he rushed to her aid. The General was in command of the situation, even when choking Fontanet and Bodege, so I didn't feel the need to help him. When Lucette openned her eyes I realized, she was faking, and was probably a big fake herself. Marceline came rushing over to yell at her and I took her aside, because at least she was being herself. I carried her out of the room and we fell in love while holding hands. We reentered the living room to laugh at Bodege in his underwear and to hear the General threaten Bodege's life.

I was forced to leave Marceline and returned home with the General. We slept and the next morning, while making breakfast, I asked the hotel staff where Mousier Bodege lived. The General and I rushed to his house at mid morning and demanded to see him to get rid of him. We saw Bouzin along the way and rushed after him even though I knew by now he wasn't Lucette's lover. After we lost him and took someone else out by mistake we went looking for Bodege again and found him in his underwear, once again, outside the apartment. Their arguments made no sense at this point and I was starting to become feed up with these crazy people. Getting asked to find a pair of pants was the last straw. As I entered Bodege's house from the other side I was already thinking of different ways I could lead my life. Marceline somehow found me and she became a way. We listened to more of Bodege and the General's ridiculous argument and I realized Marceline did not have anything wrong with her and proposed to her on the spot. We ran away happily together to start a new life in France.

Performances
I tried not to look out into the audience during any of the performances because then I know who is there and feel like I am acting for them specifically. It just puts more pressure on me. The audience is very helpful when they laugh, though. It helps me know what I am doing is right and funny (its another way to judge myself).

First Performance
I was very nervous and it was difficult to be in the moment and not care about the audience or others, except for the people on stage. My timing was a bit off and I made a few mistakes because of this. The broke a chair by accident by jumping on it and hitting the arm. I need to practice jumping on it without throwing all my weight forward. I also forgot to kick with the General in Act 2 and 3 both times. These are just precision issues and I need to go over my notes.

Second Performance
The second performance went much better. Everything was on time and flowed. I had learned the way in which Scottie was going to move the night before with more detail, so I was able to follow him and work with him more easily. My relationship with Marceline also expanded because we figured out places to show our affection the night before. (Stuff like holding hands at the right time and not getting too close or flirting with touch)

Third Performance
The beginning was clean and I went through all the scenes with Scottie about the same. I added detail about how I was thinking about what Scottie said or did through facial expressions and internal-monologue. I added more detail and reacted similarly to the General (like moving my head at the same time, etc.) I mistimed the second kick is Act 3 but Charles reacted in the same way so it looked fine. My relationship was Marceline also changed a bit. I almost forced her or made it seem like she had to work harder than before because I paid more attention to the General. I don't know if it showed more of a separation from the General when I did leave with her.

Evaluation
1. How would you approach this role differently next time?
I would spend more time looking up spanish culture to see how it was different from French culture and how I react and act in my new surroundings. Also, I would think through how I met the General more thoroughly and talk with him about our relationship beforehand (not figure it out along the way).

2. What might you have incorporated earlier on?
The stillness and precision of Antonio. How to react to what the General says and does, to be in wonder or horror.

3. What do you wish you had known earlier?
How to be useful to the General and that I should escalate on the times I translate for the General.

4. How was your level of commitment?
I tried to be as committed as possible. It was sometimes difficult because I did not know everything about my relationship with Marceline and how to react to the General. Commitment became hard when outside influences bothered me, like the day or who was in the audience, so I tried to forget all of that stuff. But what I had to perform as Antonio, I was Antonio, even if I didn't have a perfect internal monologue or precision about my character. It really helped that I incorporated movement into rehearsals quickly because I had something to work with about my character.

5. How willing were you to take risk?
I do not know what you mean exactly but I did make choices and go through with them too see if they worked or not. Until performances I took those risks to try and figure out what to do to create business for myself.

6. How well did you do all of the out-of-rehearsal work?
I tried to do it all on time but it was difficult. It was going well until the last week when I had both soccer and play rehearsal everyday. That actually made it possible to do diaries or evaluations about the performances and I only took some notes about what to fix and do better.

7. How complete is your Performance Journal?
I am probably missing something, but the parts I did, I tried to do with as much detail as possible.

8. How did you grow as an actor?
I learned the most flashy actions possible aren't always necessary or make the scene better. Sometimes you just have to do your part without getting in the way. I learned more about creating my internal monologue through givens and creating details for my character. The little things and moments can be just as important as the big ones if done with precision every time.

Note: My textwork was good.

Unless otherwise stated, the content of this page is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License