#01 Wonderful Experience
The Script Round-Up lasted for 4 months, with 10 sessions based around 2 scripts and over 30 script lovers attending. In one hour every week, we immersed ourselves in the delicate writing, tight story line and thought-provoking Girl Power theme; when we encountered differences in opinions, we would have heated discussions and express our own views; when we learnt about the fate of the characters, we would deeply empathise with them and even shed tears.
These experiences of crying and laughing together invariably turned this reading session into a deep memory, and the words we read can be transformed into a force to support us when we encounter difficulties in our future lives, whether at work or at home!
#02 Reading Insights
In Top Girls, we follow the main character Marlene, a successful career woman at ----, as we see the sexism she suffers in a so-called ‘gender-equal’ workplace, and the abandonment of a happy family life behind the back of a seemingly successful and glamorous woman. The ‘life work balance’ seems to be a problem that can never be solved. But fortunately, through understanding the fate of women in history and exploring their sense of resistance, we can find that the status of women is gradually progressing, with the idea and right to control their own lives, and everything is slowly getting better.
#03 Introduction to the Format
A script reading is an event where multiple people sit around and read the script aloud. It is a form of performance between a script and a performance. Before rehearsal, the actors sit together and interpret the script in a read-aloud manner, which enables the writer or director to make judgements in advance and make more precise demands on the script or the actors. Playwrights also use this to polish their scripts, often holding multiple readings of their plays from the beginning of the writing process to the final presentation.
Through the script reading, we can deeply appreciate the beauty of the language, the ups and downs of the plot, and the intensity of the emotions of the play. With face-to-face reading, the actors are able to grasp the rhythm and emotion word by word, and a play reading is also a memorable emotional exchange for the actors.
#04 Participant Feedback
“Zhou"
I really gained a lot from attending the two readings! It's a pity that I didn't attend the Top Girls Masterclass 😭, in fact, I was attracted by the women's theme + drama at the beginning, but after attending the reading session, I found that there are actually a lot of history and myths involved, and I can feel that the two hosts really prepared a lot of content, and I really liked the addition of the Oedipus myth in Antigone and the Archbishop's story in Top Girls, as well as some events that sound outrageous but may have really happened to women. I really enjoyed the addition of the Oedipus myth in Antigone and the Archbishop's story in Top Girls, and the fact that some of the events sound outrageous but could have actually happened to women, and there were a lot of great family members to discuss it with, which was a really good experience now that I think about it! And finally lastly I really wish I could see a replay of the Top Girls masterclass, I feel like I missed out on a lot 😢
“Lee-san
The script chosen is perfect for the theme~! Especially since there are a lot of female characters with different identities in the script, I think it's interesting to explore the reasons and stories of women's different personalities and images hehehehehehe
“X” student
Unfortunately, I was only able to participate in one session of the reading due to scheduling reasons, which was a shame because it was the only time we met together, and it was very interesting! It was great to see the variety of ideas that come out of different theatre/literature interests about the text collide and intertwine...it was wonderful. The readings were immersive, and the interpretations were deep, which is especially helpful when it comes to understanding a text in depth. I'm grateful for the experience and will be back next time if I have time!
“Ma student
This co-reading session was an exceptionally good experience! Both hosts have prepared a full of dry goods, I feel that the pen is going to fly up! And the atmosphere of the class is also very good, there are questions private chatter host they also super patient reply, really super moved, love LUMOS!
“Lin student
Host is a very, very good friend of mine, and I could tell that she really loved the reading, and some of the late-night calls were telling me about the reading ~ not to be outdone, she also organised the reading very well, and it was very contagious. I'll definitely make sure to schedule a slot for it next time 🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗!
#05 Activity Flow
--It's important to build on the previous session in the 5-10 minutes before class. Because we have a variable number of people in each session, we preface the session with a summary of what we did in the last session as well as a warm-up for this one.
--The next 40 minutes or so is our scripted huddle reading time. Because of time constraints, the organiser will choose some famous or representative passages, and everyone will adopt the character they are interested in, bring in their emotions and background stories, and then perform, controlling their voices according to the character's joys and sorrows, and at the same time gaining a better understanding of the character; other students can also have a deeper understanding of the passage.
--The last 5-10 minutes are usually spent on a global topic related to the theme of the session, such as matriarchal societies or the clash of different viewpoints, which is what most participants look forward to the most.
#06 Conclusion
This reading started as a small idea with a friend last year, and I decided to do it in a flash. 6 months, 200 days, 30 script lovers, thank you very much for participating in this event and supporting the small dream in my heart!
As one of the organisers of the Common Read, it was great to see the event come to a successful conclusion. The quality of the event was high and everyone worked well together, the atmosphere was high and the points of view were all sharp and incisive.
"The organiser said
I was particularly impressed that when I read the first act, I did a character background supplement, expanding the biographies of some characters with you, so that you could have a better understanding of the subsequent text. When I introduced women from different races, countries and cultures with similar tragedies in history, most of the students showed disbelief and sadness, and felt sorry for their sufferings. After the class, one of the students approached me and discussed with me the question: ‘Even if they already had a sense of female resistance at that time, they could not decide their own destiny’. We discussed this for nearly an hour, and by the end of it we were both in tears because of our empathy. This also gave me a deep impression of the charm of the reading session, where we had the opportunity to experience the lives of the characters as they went through their lives.
The reading was a great success and everyone was able to participate and voice their opinions. Thank you to everyone who took part and I look forward to seeing more of you at the next reading.