Review of Titus Andronicus Play

In preparation for our project our BTEC Media class went to see Titus Andronicus at Stratford upon Avon. Viewing the professionals interpretation of the play and the way certain characters were portrayed and the use of spacing gave us a new perspective on the play. For instance, as a group we felt sorry for Tamora and that she was a very weak vulnerable character. However, they way she was portrayed in the play was actually as a much stronger evil character. Another aspect of the play I thought was creative was the use of multiple time periods such as some soldiers were dressed as traditional Roman soldiers, and Titus' sons were wearing hoodies and riding BMX bikes around the stage. This was useful to us as we have decided to set the film in a more modern time so seeing the play being successfully performed in the different time periods with it still being understandable means that we should be able to replicate this within the film.

The play itself made me consider multiple aspects of our film production due to my role as the main editor, While watching the play I was gaining a greater understanding of who the important characters were in each scene which I would have to represent by the shots used in our production. Another interesting part was the way the play transitioned between each scene in a creative yet fluent way, I knew that I would have to have some attempt at recreating this in the post production of our film to not only maintain the continuity but to also still have creative and interesting transitions between the shots while maintaining the focus on the key characters. 

Additionaly, as we have been given a specific segment of the original text which had parts cut out to work from. I will need to make sure there is a smooth progression through the film, allowing the audience to be able to understand what is happening at each part of the film and its relation to the play. It will also be important to create some significant contrast in the segments of the text where the build up to the point is not present, the visual differences will hopefully clarify the change in position within the piece itself to prevent the audience from becoming confused. From reading through the final scripts I have gained a greater understanding of the essential messages specific to each part of the texts which will need to be portrayed equally through the performance of the cast, but also through the cinematography and style of editing accompanied by special effects to emphasise the performance and therefore messages and themes within the piece.