I thought it would be wise to do some research into my character before we started rehearsing too deeply. Luckily there is a lot on Wendla, due to the musical being a West End hit, and her being such an interesting and ambiguous character. By many she is viewed as being innocent, curious and vulnerable, being ignorant of the truth, but by others she comes across as a strong willed, flirtatious and intelligent young teen who gets caught up with the longing to know and experience unknown situations. This is something Devan and I have to explore together as the rehearsal process continues, as we need to agree on certain main characteristic choices for our portrayal of Wendla.
I looked to two sources of media for information about my character: the internet and films/ the musical. Google describes Wendla as being 'sweet and very innocent, but she has a streak of defiance and some dark undertones to her personality, underneath all that sweetness. She's fascinated with death, specifically her own, and her desire to experience real, intense emotions and sensations sometimes drive her to take drastic measures [like the beating scene]. She's very intelligent and compassionate, she's extremely curious about the world around her, but most of all, she's just a teenager discovering herself' This very detailed description, in my opinion, summarises up Wendla pretty well, she wants to discover new things but is unsure how to approach them in the society she is living in. After reading a fact sheet about my character I think I have a better understanding of how to build the grounds of this character, and I have discovered that after a few rehearsals I have been able interpret Wendla in my own way. The internet also says that Wendla is 'young and giggly' I think this is a common perception of Wendla and I would like to play this innocence and possible naivety as the affect of her growing up under such an oppressed society. I would like to experiment with the comedic potential I think this character holds too. I also noticed that the character descriptions of Wendla differentiated between the musical and the play. The Wendla in the musical seems to be in love with Melchoir and wants a future with him. She is more romantic and fragile in a sense. The Wendla in the play is described as being more intellectual and ignorant in some ways. I found this very interesting and thought I would incorporate the two different perceptions while adding my own take on Wendla.
I then watched some different interpretations by actresses who have played Wendla in the musical over the years (I couldn't find any footage of the play being performed) as I thought this would give me a better understanding of the character in new levels. I watched a few acitng scenes when Lea Michele played Wendla and then when Charlotte Wakefield portrayed her. I noticed that Michele really played up to Wendla's youth whereas Wakefield focused more on her curiosity and determination. I enjoyed both portrays but found Michele's choices were stronger and I preferred how she acted around Melchoir; keeping up with his wittiness and not letting him always take the lead. I researched the cast for the Headlong production of Wedekind's 'Spring Awakening' and found out that Aoife Duffin would be playing Wendla. I couldn't find any reviews or clips of her portrayal of Wendla, but I remember Tim telling us that he went to see the production, which he enjoyed but didn't like the modernisation of the play. I agree with this as the play is so classic I think it requires the old fashioned costumes.
This research has helped me to gain a basic understanding of how I could play this character and has made me excited to work with Devan to create a new Wendla which we can put our own personal touches on as rehearsals develop.
