Lyrics

        At the heart of the character & narrative module are the chosen lyrics. They will inform and influence the movements and gestures of our character, the pace, the tone, the facial expressions, the characterisation; the entire performance will be based around these lyrics. So it was important to chose them relatively early on, to allow time to focus and develop the animation to suit the lyrics.

        Another point to note is that although we will be working with existing lyrics, we are not constrained by how musicians have previously been performed. We are in fact free to perform them however we wish; giving a Shakespearean rendition of some Rage Against the Machine for comedic effect, for example. Anything that will assist us in building a dynamic and appealing performance.

        I considered a number of different options:

• "Shyness is nice and shyness can stop you from doing all the things in life you'd like to...Coyness is nice and coyness can stop you from saying all the things in life you'd like to" - The Smiths (These lyrics seem quite pertinent to me, as I am very introverted. It may be cathartic to depict a character escaping the confines of their own shyness).
• "This is where I'll be, so heavenly, so come and dance with me Michael...I'm all that you see, you want to see, come and dance with me Michael" - Franz Ferdinand (An opportunity to experiment with some extreme body language. Moom would need some seductive and alluring dance moves to persuade Michael to dance with him).
• "At first I was afraid, I was petrified. Kept thinking I could never live without you by my side" - Gloria Gaynor.
• "I've seen your frown and it's like looking down the barrel of a gun, and it goes off and out come all these words" - Arctic Monkeys (Anger and frustration, or perhaps apathy and exasperation?)
• "I'll be your liqour, bathing your soul, juice that's pure. And I'll be your anchor, you'll never leave shores that cure" - Placebo.
• And a number of Tiger Lillies lyrics.

        Some of these were too abstract, and didn't really give enough inspiration for me to build a performance around. The Tiger Lillies, although many of their lyrics are very entertaining, are very literal, like pre written stories and rhymes, not offering much room for further characterisation or plot development. Others were just too solemn.

        Then I found these lyrics: 

• "I turned around and it was gone. Did I leave it in your car? On a table in a bar? Or in your bed between the sheets? The places where we used to meet? Wherever love has gone I need to know" - Pulp.

        These seemed perfect to me. They clearly suggest certain (searching) actions that the character should undertake, yet there is room to manoeuvre in the tone and delivery. As Jarvis Cocker sings them, they form a love sick and melancholy (even bitter) tune. But read aloud, the first five sentences at least could be quite different; someone puzzling over where they could have lost/mislaid something. 

        Oddly, reading these to myself, rather than picturing a person lamenting their loveless life, I see a cherubic Cupid character who has lost his arrow (physical embodiment of love?). Perhaps Moom could play Cupid.