Peder mentioned that he found it easier to use the correct form of address with Jeff when he was dressed as befitting as Hauptmann, as opposed to just doublet and hose like we peons wear. In other words, situational cues influence Peder's portrayal.

In the related thread on this page, Gwen mentions that she would have difficulty typing a message online in character while wearing blue jeans or whatever. So while Gwen does a fantastic portrayal at events, even she is stymied by a lack of situational cues.

The question I'm leading up to is how much of a period environment does each of need to "fall into character"? As I mentioned on the other thread, I have a hard time even at SCA events (too much duct tape, too many people talking modern). But I discovered that I can do a portrayal, albeit imperfectly, at RC encampments.

I personally find it next to impossible to maintain medieval character when those around me are not.

If your group is one that has decided to make this one of the "bars" to strive for, the onus is on all members to do what they can to see that conversations stay the course.

to this end, we have found that gentle cues "Hey Anne-Marie, tell me a story about Margery Kempe!" help keep us on the straight and narrow.

I must admit I'm one of the worst ones for this. I dont really have much of a theatrical background and so this kind of stuff is not second nature to me.

Still, when the lights are low and everyone around me is playing the same game I find it much easier to stay in character and play along.

Our group has some things we do to try and keep the straying to a minimum that I can share with folks if you're interested,

hope this helps
--Anne-Marie

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Boy, if that doesn't sound like a description of schizophrenia, I don't know what does!

Anyway, I have taught myself to "be" Ginevra, especially for the members of the Red Company out of context at meetings and gatherings in an effort to demystify the process and inspire - "See, this isn't so hard! This is fun! You can do it!" usually accompanied by my happy Golden Retriever routine. I do it for a purpose, but feel pretty silly since I'm not much of an actress. I can do it just like I can put on a New Jersey accent- it's not me every day, but a put on.

More thoughts- blame these on dropping by a renfair a couple of weeks ago then going to a SCA "war" this weekend.

It strikes me that there are two main modes of conduct in re-creation groups, externally driven and internally driven. The former are theatrical groups, such as are seen at renfairs. Their object seems to be to give the onlooker a historicalish experience. So they may consistently act a part (perhaps the same lines all day), but never believe it themselves. Internally driven groups, such as the SCA or Adria, are concerned with giving the participants a historicalish experience. External cues such as combat boots are not relevant if they can mentally edit them out.

For example, consider a sword combat presented by these groups. A renfair might have a stage combat, perhaps even with fake blood. A participant would never get a "this is like combat" feeling. On the other hand, a SCA combat, as goofy looking as all that duct tape and bargrills are, would give a participant a combat feel even if no onlooker would mistake it for a real sword fight.

Ok, I'll get to my point When we do demos, we are externally motivated. We are there so the audience/tourists can feel as if they are meeting someone out of history. Essentially, a historically accurate renfair presentation accomplishes the mission, as our internal thoughts are immaterial. Even if we "talk modern", we are displaying historical crafts and clothing. At least we have shown the audience what a (for example) cook of the time would have looked like and done.

Ah, but internal for us is far harder. Now we are trying to experience for ourselves what a person of the time would have experienced. But unlike SCA/Adria, we want to have the real thing, not just a vague feeling of long ago and far away. And a big part of that experience is the mindset and customs of the people of the time. If we don't do this, we are essentially modern people walking through an accurate stage set. Our demand for reality precludes the "compromise" of creating an alternative culture of medieval/modern, such as exists in the SCA. We end up either in or out of a medieval mindset- unfortunately, for most of us, it doesn't seem to take much to kick us back to the 21st century.

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