In one of my movement classes we were asked to go to a gallery and pick a piece of art with two or more figures in it that grabbed our attention. I picked the Death of Sardanapalusby E. Delacroix. In the painting Sardanapalus, facing military defeat, ordered the death and destruction of all his worldly possessions including slaves and concubines. Based on a story by Lord Byron, I picked this piece mainly because of its vivid colors, tension in movement, and the dichotomy of all the worldly riches and comforts being destroyed.
The assignment itself was that we were to direct people in order to create this image, the moment itself, and the moment before and after, in away so that is was alive not just a picture. In this project we were allowed 2 props and music. While I found it easy to recreate the image, I found it much harder to give it life and thought behind it. So ‘my cast’ and I created and entire back story, thought process and memories for the characters, which gave just a little more life to the picture. But it was only when we added sound that there was real intention there. I asked each to transfer from each moment and make whatever sound they pleased. The difference was amazing. I think it was because making sound forces you to invest fully in the moment and so the picture became even clearer. Then adding music to it also helped set the mood and pace. I used Izgrejala by Vas, which helped set a eastern mood that had a hint of violence and sensuality about it. Again, it made the pictures’ reality more tangible. It was really interesting to see what made people react and not, and learning how to motivate with different stimuli.
