This semester in Drama Production, we had to work on and create a production to be performed in front of a live audience. Despite having the choice between multiple other potential plays, we decided to go with ‘Fugee’ by Abi Morgan. This play is a reflection of the life of Kojo, a child refugee, as he navigates life in the United Kingdom, and the trauma of his past. Overall, this experience has been extremely valuable in our drama studies, with us not only getting an opportunity to connect with and play a character but also being able to get experiences performing in front of others and gaining an idea of the different design processes that go into making a production what it is.
Overview and Audience Impact
Fugee is an extremely interesting play, showing to episodic nature of Kojo’s memories, as he relays the most important moments of his life. Kojo is a refugee, who has moved into the United Kingdom on a fake visa. We continue to learn that he lost his family to war, and soon after was forced to join as a child soldier (at the age of 11). Once in the United Kingdom, he goes to a children’s refuge, where he finds friends with similar experiences. However, he is age disputed, and eventually kicked out of the refuge for being ‘an adult’. This results in him going to a hotel with other adults, and eventually him stabbing another person. Interestingly, it starts at the end, the moment when Kojo stabs another man out of fear. Kojo, in this, is directly addressing us, as the audience. He pleads to us, wishing for us to see his hardship. The ensemble is also used to portray the emotions and feelings of others at that moment. After this scene, we go back and forth between multiple different settings in different timeframes, reflecting how one might recall memories. The scenes that are shown include a child refuge, a park, an urban street (where the play starts), a hotel and Côte d’Ivoire. Whenever he is at a children’s refuge, it usually means that he is interacting with other refugees with whom he makes connections (such as Ara, Cheung, Hassan and Roza), or with the manager, translator and social worker (who eventually decide that he is older than what he says and isn’t a child). This space can be a representation of a second home for Kojo, a place where he feels he belongs even a bit. His friends can also show how he has found a new form of family, the first people he likes and feels comfortable around since the death of his actual family. This makes the scene where he is kicked out for ‘not being a child’, even more heartbreaking, as this is the second family that he has lost. The next set is a park. Whenever Kojo is at a park, it is either just after he killed someone, or lashing out at his friends. This place can represent the hardships that Kojo faces, and how it may cause him to act irrationally and with anger even for the smallest of things. The urban street is also another form of that, except being more focused on the impacts of pain and how it can affect others around you. Kojo lashes out at the man for him simply looking at him, showing how Kojo, from a life of war, is so used to everything being a threat. This further shows how Kojo doing this can affect those around him, and how they may perceive him. The set of a hotel shows the pain of being a refugee, and the decreasing mental health and stability of Kojo. The tone during these parts is always darker, showing how Kojo must be independent and survive with people who want to hurt him. Throughout this, he becomes angrier, lashing out at others (including those that he cares about such as Ara). This can show how he is eventually just becoming what society thinks of him, an angry adult who doesn’t care about others. Finally, we get scenes showing Côte d’Ivoire. These scenes definitely have the most contrast, with some scenes reflecting the love of family and how Kojo values them above all, and others reflecting the pain of losing them and what that did to him and his mental health. In the scenes of Kojo’s family, he is always shown as happy, with his deep love of his family. This greatly contrasts with the feelings of dread, hopelessness and overwhelming grief when he sees his family murdered by soldiers, who then go to recruit him (adding insult to injury). The scenes can not only show a change in story and moments but can also symbolise Kojo and the different parts of his life.
One of the biggest takeaways we want our audience to get from watching this show is the overall themes of love, family, friendship and pain (especially that of refugees). Throughout the show, we are trying to remind those watching about the reality of living as a child refugee. We don’t shy away from the hardship, as that is all a part of raising awareness for the viewers. This continues to show how pain can negatively affect someone if they don’t have a support system. We can see how Kojo mentally is breaking further and further as the show progresses, with him lamenting about his love for his family, what he did while being forced to be a child soldier and his experiences in the United Kingdom. He also breaks off from the support systems and friends he had created at the refuge, perhaps showing how he is scared to get close to someone in case he loses them (just as he had his family). Later in the production, he is seen lashing out, resulting in multiple scenes of him stabbing another. Kojo has been through so much pain, making the audience think more deeply about actions that may result from this (and the overall backstory of people who have been in similar positions to Kojo). We also look at family, and love overall, and how it affects everyone differently. We see Kojo’s strong connection to family, and his desire to see them again. Family was such an important part of his life, as it is for many, making the audience feel and make connections to their own family relations. Love is also a direct part of this show. In the script, the characters directly address how love is different for each other, sharing their experiences with the audience. This can make the audience think about their perception of love, and how it affects their day-to-day lives.
The episodic nature of this production and the direct audience address can help show how this is all just Kojo’s story, and what is happening in his mind. Just as details of memories appear in our minds, the play goes back and forth between moments, often with continuity issues and changes. This is further reflected when the scene freezes and the ensemble stops moving, showing how this is all just a memory that can be stopped. This also gives the audience a greater feeling of connection to Kojo and his story, with more interest (as new details are added every time), as it is all just a raw story.
This play intends to provide awareness about both asylum seekers and child soldiers. A somewhat controversial topic in modern media, the story of refugees often goes unheard by many of us today, despite it being such a prominent issue. The play can reflect both the harsh lives that these people had to live, as well as the unforgiving nature of the system used to ‘help’ them. In the show, the audience is first exposed to the image of Kojo stabbing another. They may immediately jump onto the assumption that Kojo is the ‘bad guy’. However, his tragic backstory is revealed and played out, making the audience rethink their first impressions. This can reflect on how we are in everyday life; how can we ever know what someone has gone through?
Design Decisions
The first decision about the play that was made was to hold the performance in the upper theatre, rather than the grander CPA. This is because, although the CPA is an excellent performance space, it is much too large and nice to be used for this specific style of production. The black box theatre is more effectively able to illustrate how being a refugee isn’t grand, and how many real struggles come from that (especially considering how our society is run today). The space also can portray feelings of being trapped, due to it being enclosed and painted black (making it seem smaller and more daunting), which can reflect the experiences of Kojo and how he is trapped in the unforgiving system (and in some respects his thoughts and mind). We also decided to perform from one side of the area, with the audience looking at us front on. This can show that, despite us wishing for this production to be quite immersive, it is still often addressed that this is just a performance, reminding the audience of that.
The second choice made, which was specific to the design group I was a part of, was to have the entire ensemble in a base costume and have red as a symbolic colour. We decided to go for the base costume of blue jeans and a white or black top. It is a visual representation of how everyone else’s life may seem simple on the outside, but in reality, everyone’s story is different and unique (with their own hardships). It also provides a way for the audience to have an easy connection to make between the ensemble, and how they are connected in Kojo’s story. This is also illustrated as Kojo is the only one wearing black pants, separating him from everyone else (as this is his story). Red is also a very important part of the costume, as it is symbolising both his family and death. As we know, Kojo’s family were killed, with Kojo blaming himself. Red is used in different costume items on Kojo’s family (to represent his love for them as well as their eventual fate), as well as those in Kojo’s life to who he draws connections of family. For example, the man he killed is also wearing red, showing how Kojo may draw connections to his death and the death of Kojo’s father. Ara is also meant to be wearing red ribbons, as she is the closest to family Kojo has had since he arrived at the refuge.
Finally, we used the cardboard aesthetic throughout the set, with each piece covered in brown cardboard boxes. This can show the audience how this play is very raw and meant to be constantly changing. The cardboard can show how this is all just a memory, that can be manipulated and may not be what it seems (which is again shown when set pieces are manipulated and changed throughout the performance). It can be a representation of poverty and tough experiences, as cardboard is an easy-to-come-by material.
For further information about my design group, focusing on the costumes of the production, please look at my design task ePortfolio Reflection.
Character and Choices Made
My main character role was Ara 1. In the first half of the production, we see her being introduced as a potential friend of Kojo, one who cares for him and only wants the best. However, she is often also the voice of reason and reality, as well as deeply caring for her friends. My first choice as an actor was to play Ara as a no-nonsense, a person who wishes for order and simplicity in her life. However, this does not mean that she is oblivious to what is going on around her, with her acting casual (with some hints of sadness) when reflecting on the flaws of the system meant to help her. I also tried to make her more susceptible to stress in highly intensive situations (as a result of her stressful past), causing her to lash out or act without thinking.
When working on Ara’s voice, I tried to give her a softer tone. This is because she is an extremely kind character, especially in her first interaction with Kojo, and the softness can reflect how Kojo may view Ara (especially in this first half). I also tried to add many pauses to add emphasis to certain phrases, however, I can often find myself rushing when on stage, missing these pauses. Due to the positioning of the audience, I also try to project my voice at a suitable level (one where it can be easily heard but is not considered shouting). I also tried to use movement to portray the character of Ara. I tried to have a slightly stiffer posture, as if to display her more formal side and how she wishes to present herself. Hand gestures were also used, especially considering the language gap between her and Kojo. I tried to use them when she was feeling intense emotions (such as rubbing her head or clenching her hands), while also describing different things (such as gesturing to different places or things). Finally, I tried to use facial expressions as a way to show how my character is feeling and reacting to the situation she must deal with. I tried to, in my first scene, have a quite happy expression, one that sometimes changed into confusion when there were communication errors. This is to help show how she is overall quite happy to meet Kojo. This changes to a very neutral expression (one that changes to sadness at times) when talking with others in the refuge. In the scene after the stabbing, I try to portray quite panicked and frantic emotions, as well as feelings of hurt from Kojo.
Looking towards Kojo 
Looking upwards with a neutral body stance
Performance Reflection
I feel as though my performance as Ara could have definitely been improved in order to enhance the play and connect with the audience greater. I feel as though my way of playing her was often unbelievable at times and did not display a full range of different actor techniques and choices. For example, I never worked on my movement, and how I can make that reflect the character of Ara. This often meant that I displayed movement that reflects me rather than who I am meant to be playing. My ability to realistically portray emotions also sometimes was lacking, with me mostly staying with the same facial expression and tone of voice rather than giving variations to show the changes in emotion. Next time, in order to improve this, I would like to more effectively create a character profile and take time to reflect on all the choices that make sense for what I am trying to show. This means that I can be more prepared and can more greatly reflect my character.
I feel as though, as a whole, the production went quite smoothly (despite a few minor mistakes). All members of the cast performed brilliantly and were able to display their character through both physical and vocal choices. I feel as though the use of the ensemble worked quite well and ran relatively smoothly. The different design areas, such as sound, lights, set and projection also were very effective in creating the atmosphere and giving the audience important information about what may be happening. I feel as though some area of improvement could just be making the scenes tighter and more polished. Many of the scenes, despite much work, still could be further changed just to make them work the best. However, there is always going to be something that could have been done better, and I feel as though what we created was still great.
