Erica N.'s response to "Feel the Bend"

Affirmations:
- I LOVED thinking about the ocean in reference to Anna's character and the play more generally. I think the ocean is a wonderful idea and image to mine as you continue work on this play.

- I also loved the exercise of writing a memory on a card - it made me really understand the ways in which this action is both one of safety/preservation, and of danger/potential loss. The tension between these things haunted my experience of the rest of the script as we worked on both days.

- It was so clear in the Betti/John improv that there is a lot at stake for these characters and that they are more than willing to fight for what they want - the fact that all of us wanted to fight hard (and sometimes dirty!) for Anna shows that your script has really made those needs and desires tangible.

- It was great to watch the relationship between Carol and Anna change especially in terms of BOUNDARIES. This seems like really rich territory - when does boss/employee relationship become a way to distance yourself from a friend when boundaries are crossed? What are the boundaries of a work relationship and how do we use the roles of "boss" "employee" or "co-worker" to our advantage?

Questions:
- How does the very realistic reality of of the office world interact with the more magical elements of the story? Is the play commenting on the non-magicalness of an office environment? Are we supposed to read the hair magic as delusion or heightened reality? How do the office scenes influence the way we as an audience read those moments?

- How does Carol's relationship with Kyle parallel, reflect, or serve as a foil to Anna's relationships with Betti and John?

- How are Anna's lost memories related to the changes in her romantic relationships?


Opinions:
- I'm still not convinced that Carol needs to be in this play. I loved exploring the relationship, especially thinking in terms of "spheres of friendship." Still though, I think there's something about the love triangle as impenetrable that's really exciting for this play.

- Related to that, I'm really struck by Daniel's comments in class about the office space dissipating the energy of those scenes. I agree with that, and would love to see what happened if the world of work was confined to Anna's office, as in, one room. How would the energy and tension around her relationship with John build up if rather than hearing about John form Carol or talking through Anna's feelings toward him, we see their relationship grow, change, etc through a series of moments in her office - door open, door closed, who sits where - the issues of power, boundaries, and the way that those things shift are all really potent in a single office rather than a more generalized reception/work area.