Observation: Feasibility for American Clock: 21 June 2018, 11:00-12:00

11:00-12:00 21 June 2018
Room B

In attendance:
TSD: Phil Rowe, Karin Schuck, Paul Zacharek, KG
Course Support: Vanessa Onwuemezi
Faculty: Catherine Alexander, Paul Colwell, Nick Moran, Kathrine Sandys, Peter MacCoy
Director: Gretchen
Students: LH (TPM), KH (D4S)

The students have brought copies of the play along with their notebooks. If they actually crack them I'll eat my hat.

This is a real meeting--everyone is taking notes, not just the students.
Gretchen is making a real effort to include the students in the conversation.
Indeed, the students are conspicuously present. Everyone is speaking to them.
Normal smart-ass comments are kept to a minimum. Even I'm exercising restraint.

LH needs to communicate that thus far she's been left out of correspondence and is not up to date with developments that have occurred without her present. She looks like she knew this was going to come up--her tone is measured. She's annoyed, but doesn't want to rile up the teachers. Eyes keep flicking to NM.

Offer of video editing training--felt accusatory.

"Do you want to take that project on?"
"I don't know how to do that."
"That's not what I asked."
"I mean, yes, that would be amazing, but--"
"A training opportunity could be provided."

It was a reminder of her student-ship: while on the one hand, an on-the-spot teachable moment, it also felt deliberately infantilising. She's trying to participate in this meeting like an equal and you're taking this opportunity to other-ise her, diminish her, remind Us that she's a student. Always an attempt to maintain authority.

Usual blend of conflicting personalities, but now in the presence of Kathy and the students. I'm sure she's clocking everything.

 With the students present we all feel the need to communicate more clearly and precisely: we must leave nothing implied or reliant upon previous experience of how we like to do things.

Probably a good thing, really, to invite students along to meetings, as it keeps us from relying on habit or jargon as we go along, which likely contributes to conflict later when we've assumed that others remember "the way we always do it".

PC: maintaining eye contact and an open demeanour with the students at all times. Visually communicating, keeping them included in the conversation.

Positive comment about students not in the room. Very warm! "We have a fantastic stage management team who will be all over that as soon as they're involved."

Costume comment: "we have a few very large actors--proportional, yes--and not quite so--and just, human proportions, really. But they'll likely not fit into anything we can pull from the store. They will likely have an impact on costs." CA was careful, almost protesting too much, to not insult the big guys while they're not in the room in front of the students. Made for a funny moment.

As the meeting progresses the students gain more confidence to speak and ask questions. The tutors speak primarily to the students and the new visiting director. Tone is slightly different, more careful? I can't put my finger on how. Tutors and TSD are a team: we want to inform the director of how we operate; we want to train the students as to why.

WHY MORE ARTHUR THE FUCK MILLER?!!? /endrant

LH's anxiety seems more under control than yesterday. I think PR and PC put her at ease.

PR apologises for bringing up 'boring' topics but the students genuinely hadn't thought about the health and safety implications of what they wanted to do and are furiously taking notes and asking questions. Not boring at all!

We all feel a weird need to nudge the students in some way--provide information and reminders, establish our habits and likes in their heads on the ground floor, I suppose.

The show appears feasible and straightforward. No one is worried. But PC nevertheless can't help teaching. He wants the students to understand the process and necessity of these meetings. "If this doesn't work, or if minds are changed, back to the feasibility stage we go!" He's got a warm and positive attitude and the students are very responsive, but more than anyone PC makes this feel like a meeting with training wheels. I think it has the ability to contribute positively to their professional practice, nevertheless.