Casting
Figure 1: Project Log and Reflections
I was very surprised to be cast as Marjory in Scenes 7 and 9 in our production of The Moors (directed by Sean Linnen), as I felt that she was the character who was the furthest out of my ‘innocent’ typecast. At first, I was very optimistic to play her, as I thought that she would allow me to make many exciting choices and expand my comfort zone. However, I also found myself very confused about who she was as a character, because of her contradictory nature (as seen when she becomes “Immediately transformed” (Silverman, 2018: 70)) and her malice (such as when she suggests that Huldey should “kill Agatha” (Silverman, 2018: 82)). Whilst I am pleased to have such a strong sense of identity to find it difficult to relate to her, I was challenged whilst playing her.
Research and Character Work
Figure 2: Initial Marjory Ideas
My research helped me immensely with understanding Marjory. One of the first things I do in my process is make a list of all the given circumstances about a character, and then build from there. However, due to the play’s lack of Naturalism, I found it difficult to know what was definitively said about Marjory. As a result, in Figure 2, I wrote down anything that may be potentially alluding to her, to keep my options as open as possible. Whilst this gave me an opportunity to make some deductions about her, such as her being “direct” (Figure 2), I found that I had more questions than answers, due to my fear of making any decisions without Sean’s approval. I was also confused after we had united the script and discussed it, as we had many theories and ideas. However, when “a new perspective was offered, I found that I appreciated the play even more” (Figure 1, 24/11/25).
Figure 3: Historical Research
My research of Victorian Britain helped me to understand the world the characters were living in. I initially felt very held back in making choices about Marjory due to my incorrect belief that all servants in the Victorian era were respectful to their masters, which opposes Marjory’s behaviour. However, in Figure 3, I found out that “domestics were frequently lazy or insolent” (Paterson, 2008, p.46), which helped me to embrace the idea that Marjory was a realistic character, rather than a melodramatic villain.
Figure 4: Medical Research
Figure 5: Marjory Questions
I also looked into personality disorders, as I was curious to see if they were affecting Marjory’s decisions. In Figure 4, I realised that she had some symptoms of various disorders, but in Figure 5, I didn’t “think it would be accurate to diagnose her”. I also researched sleep deprivation (Figure 4), due to how overworked Marjory would be. Once I understood the effects of sleep deprivation, like “[i]rritability” (Cleveland Clinic, 2022) (Figure 4), I was able to experiment with theses during rehearsals. This helped me to feel more confident, as I was initially scared to experiment, in case I did something ‘wrong’.
In Figure 6, I was interested in the concept of the “maid of all works” (Waller, 2025), which is what I identified Marjory as. I learned that they would be incredibly busy, as they would have to do many jobs in one day (Waller, 2025). From this, I built a daily routine specifically for Marjory (Figure 5). This highlighted how much she works for the family, which contributed to my understanding of why she puts so little effort into her job, as I believed her to be “exhausted” (Figure 5).
Figure 7: General Research
One area of research that I was not as thorough in was the contemporary context of the playwright (Figure 7). This was because I thought the most important perspective on the piece was our director’s, but in future I ought to see if I can find any nuance in the way I play my character based on the playwright’s intentions.
Process
I felt very confident going into rehearsals, due to my process. However, during this project, we were working with an external director, and I was scared of offending him. This hindered my process, as I was reluctant to ask questions, such as what the characters can see outside of the window. As a result, during the actual performance, “I could not imagine what was outside of that window at all – I just saw rows of people and then the curtain behind them” (Figure 1, 12/12/25), which made me feel very uncomfortable and exposed while on stage. In the future, I will be more comfortable with expressing my needs within my process, as asking for clarity is not unprofessional.
Figure 8: Line Analysis Scene 7
Figure 9: Scene 9 Internal Monologue
After my first in-depth look at Marjory (Figure 2), I based a lot of my character ideas on the fact that she was actually pregnant and had “the typhus” (Silverman, 2018: 27). However, Sean said that “she obviously doesn’t actually have the typhus and she actually isn’t pregnant” (Figure 1, 28/11/25). This shows that I struggled with subtext, as I have a tendency to understand only what is directly given to me by the playwright. Therefore, I was initially worried to make choices, due to not being able to “understand Marjory as a character well enough” (Figure 1, 28/11/25) and making a mistake in front of Sean. However, especially in the last week, I became more comfortable in making choices about the character, such as what her internal monologue would be (Figures 8 and 9). This highlights my growth in my understanding of the character and my increase in confidence as an actor.
Figure 10: Marjory Physicality
This project gave me many opportunities to work on my use of movement. From my research on maids, I was able to creatively extrapolate on what Marjory’s physicality would be within the heightened world in which we were playing. In Figure 10, I found that Laban efforts of “[p]ress” and “[s]lash” helped me to physicalise her frustration, so I ended up doing this before some of the runs (Figure 11). However, because my scenes were later in the play, I found that by the time I was performing, I could no longer feel the benefits of doing that. Despite that, any work in practising her posture, which would consist of “[r]ounded and forwarded shoulders” (Figure 10) “from bending over and scrubbing” (Figure 10) was good rehearsal time, since it helped me to easily go in and out of it (Figure 12). The same applied for her walk, where I thought she would carry her weight in her hips. At first, I thought that her walk would be relatively indirect, due to how I find it easiest to walk when my weight is in my hips. However, since she would not want to waste her energy, I realised her walk would be direct, which I was able to do by ensuring that my feet did not cross over each other. Another aspect of my physical work was the idea of giving her gestures that would distinguish her from myself. At first, I tried three different gestures (Figure 10, Question 2), but as the process went on, I found that I was only able to comfortably incorporate one of them consistently throughout my scenes. This was “picking at her calloused hands” (Figure 1, 5/12/25). However, I found that I had a tendency to lock myself to this, but when I freed myself from this, it “felt a lot more expressive than before” (Figure 1, 11/12/25). As a result, I have learned that I do not need to be so rigid and controlling with myself when applying my process.
Figure 13: Scene 7 Notes
Figure 14: Scene 9 Notes
Figure 15: Run Notes
The aspect of this project that I struggled with the most was the vocal work. The most consistent note that I got from Sean was “be louder” (Figures 13, 14 and 15). This made me feel really insecure as an actor, because it is such a basic thing that I needed to be constantly reminded of. I was worried that it made me “absolutely tedious to work with” (Figure 1, 9/12/25). As a result, I started coming in early to do a warm-up, and when I did this, “I did not receive the note of being louder during rehearsals” (Figure 1, 3/12/25). I also would practise being louder with proper vocal technique by connecting with my breath and saying my lines across an empty studio. This made me feel very powerful in my line delivery, which helped me enjoy playing Marjory even more.
Figure 16: Notes from Chat with Jess
I also must work on my general vocal technique. I discussed some of my worries with Jess, such as volume and “[p]ain” (Figure 16) and she gave me some good solutions, such as drinking water and remembering to “reset [the] larynx” (Figure 16), but I found that these were very difficult for me to apply whilst in the high-intensity scenes. As a result, I must work on embodying my vocal technique, so that it is something that automatically happens within me, as I found that trying to think about my vocal technique during the assessment made me feel exposed and vulnerable. However, something that I was surprisingly successful in (other than a couple of minor moments during the beginning of the process and the actual assessment) was my General American accent, which Jess had very few notes for. I find this to be incredibly encouraging, as I found accents to be very difficult in first year.
Figure 17: 9 Questions
Something that I wish I had done which could have developed my performance was truly recognising her unbroken line of action, which may have helped me to feel more present during the scenes. I attempted something similar to this by doing “Uta Hagen’s Nine Questions” (Theatrefolk, n.d.) (Figure 17), but I did not do this as thoroughly as I should have. I would like to attempt these questions in the future when I am playing another character, as I do think that answering them with specificity can allow for great discoveries about a character that can help with making offers during the rehearsal period.
Learning Experience
I have learned so much from this project. My biggest learning is the fact that I am continuing to grow as an actor at an encouraging rate. This is most notable from how I was initially scared to make mistakes, but in the actual performance, I embraced the mistakes that we made, and found it “very exciting” (Figure 1, 12/12/25). I believe that this made the scene feel more alive, as it forced me to stay present. I am excited for any future projects, as I intend to use a more fearless mindset when working on scenes.
Another thing I have learned is the importance of contextual research. I found that the more research that I did, the more valuable it was for the practical work. For example, I would not have known how realistic “lazy” (Paterson, 2008, p.46) (Figure 3) staff were. As a result, this aided with my understanding of Marjory, which was something that I was really struggling with at first.
Finally, I have learned that there is still so much for me to learn and develop throughout the rest of my training. The most prominent of those is my vocal technique, as I had a tendency to be far too quiet during rehearsals, and when I was becoming louder “I could really feel it in my throat” (Figure 1, 10/12/25). This was a point of concern for me, as I know how integral proper vocal health is for a long-lasting career. Along with that, I must also learn how to collaborate with a director effectively, so that my process is being fulfilled, whilst sticking to what the director wants. Throughout this project (but most notably at the start), I found myself being scared to ask for things that would help me with my process and performance, but I have learned that there is no point in being afraid.
