In our first exam on East is east we were asked to create a family portrait of the Khan family in our groups. I was Abdul in our portrait and I portrayed this by sitting down quite proud and looking up to George, my father. We also used levels to show the status of all the family members in the portrait, we showed Sajit as the lowest status because he is sitting on the floor but we then showed George being the member with the highest status as his standing up and is looking down on everyone else.
In addition, it is a symbolic moment when George rests his arm on Abduls shoulder as it shows a sign of dependence and them bonding. Furthermore, in our portrait we used Drama medium such as space, costume and props. For example, we used space to show how Sajit was very distant from the rest of his family as his sitting further away from the family. We also used costume to show how proud George is by dressing him in a suit. We used props such as a cigarette to show how stressed Ella is in the portrait. This symbolizes that she can never get a break from her family. Also when we see Abdul smile it shows the audience that he is happy that he has connected with his father, George.
Defining the Essence of a Scene
Later on, our task was to define each key moment or issue in each scene in Act 2, we had to do this in our groups. We then decided to show the key moments by creating still images of the key moments, we then also included more than one key moment in a still image. For Act 2 Scene 1, our group did a still image of Tariq eating sausages in their chip shop while Meenah is trying to cover the smell with an air refresher. We chose this moment in the scene as it was the one which showed the most contrast between George’s views and the children like Tariq and Saleem.
In Act 2 Scene 2, our group done a still image of George beating Ella while Sajit is secretly watching and Abdul is praying in the next room. This event stood out in the scene as it shows how bad Ella and George’s relationship can get and yet they’re still together. It also shows how George has influenced his children by convincing his children to follow his culture, but is not aware of it. This shown by Abdul praying in the other room.
For Act 2 Scene 3, we chose to show Ella getting ready for Mr. Shah’s visit and is getting Abdul and Sajit to get dressed while George watches over her as she does it. George is smiling showing that he is pleased with what Ella has done with Sajit and Abdul. This also shows that he expects her to do this always but she does not always agree.
In Act 2 Scene 4, our group chose the moment when Abdul came back from the pub and is sitting in the chair crying, he shows this by burying his face in his hands and starts sobbing, while George is praying behind him, Tariq is also there trying to comfort Abdul by placing his hand on his shoulder and kneeling down to his level to try and talk to him. We made this moment into a still image.
For Act 2 Scene 5, we chose to make a still image of Tariq, Saleem and Abdul lunging towards Mr. Shah’s lap as Saleem’s model falls on his lap. This moment is when Saleem’s secret is revealed publicly. This shows that even if the whole family tried to hide something from George, it would eventually somehow reach him.
EXAM 2
Firstly for the 2nd exam we had to of a mime of either Sajit, Maneer, Tariq or Ella. I chose to do a mime of Tariq sneaking out of the house at night. I showed this by tip toeing around the house and opening doors very slowly to try and show that I’m trying to make as little noise as possible. This mime is connected to the power, control and leadership in the Khan family, the theme of the play. This mime exemplifies the fact that members of the family with lower power and leadership have to tip toe around the members with higher status as this is the only way they can get the way they want.
EXAM 3
For Exam 3, we had to individually make an improvisation portraying conforming. This task did not necessarily have to be connected to the play but could be. What I chose to show a guy sitting at a bar alone, trying to make conversation with the people next to him but they keep on blanking him out. This exemplifies conforming and also fits in with the East is east play script as it is similar to Abdul scene of when he is at a bar telling jokes to other English people about himself but doesn’t feel right later on at his home.
In Abdul’s situation there is guilt, he feels guilty as he went to the pub and made jokes about his own culture and identity like it meant nothing. We then had to rehearse Act 1 Scene 5 of the play, getting ready to finally act it out to the rest of the class. Our group chose to use explorative strategies such as hot seating and thought tracking to help us get into character before we acted. As a result of this, it helped me to make right decisions about my acting to be able to represent that character much more accurately and in depth.
EXAM 4
On our final exam we had to talk about George and his past, I did this by doing hot seating George. As a result I produced some conclusions that helped me understand George’s character and background. I asked questions such as how was your relationship with your father, what made you leave Pakistan and so on. I then decided to show George at three different points in the play with still images.
For the first I showed him angry at Sajit’s none circumcision, secondly when he was with Ella happy and thirdly at the end of the play after his beaten Ella and is crying. I believe that these three moments show different situations that George was in and how he reacted. These scenes really help to understand George’s character and help get into his character. My improvisation of his past was when he hears Nazir’s news of him becoming a hairdresser. I chose this moment as it might explain where all his anger came from. I believe this is because his trusted Nazir with everything and Nazir disappointed him.
