Head Chef Character Study

 In our ‘The Witches’ performance I play the part of the ‘Head Chef’. The role of Head Chef was very interesting to me upon first seeing the script. The Chef had their own scene, all to themselves and it was a very comedic scene. All of the audience’s attention was on them. I thought to myself that even though it is a small role, I could make a lot out of it, if I really put my mind to it. So, when I was preparing for my audition, I looked into different chefs and what chef’s world is like on YouTube.This was suggested to me as a piece of direction to make my acting better by our Director Kelly. One such chef being Gordon Ramsay and looking at what it’s like to be in a real kitchen. Noticing all the little details of a chef’s movements and control over the other chefs. The change between a calm shift and a busy shift, all these small details I wanted to implement into my audition piece, to make it feel not only funny but realistic.

After I obtained the role, I continued doing some research on a chef’s day. I am very lucky because it just so happens that I live with an executive chef, a former restaurant manager and a former waitress. I had everything one could possibly need to research my role. I proceeded to ask Gareth, the chef whom I live with, what it was like for him working in an amazing and busy kitchen? He went into a lot of detail on how he would react to the people around him. If he was very stressed and trying to make sure the food was ready to an exact standard, how everything becomes laser focused and nothing else matters. The ability to have a first-hand account on how a real kitchen works was brilliant. I also inquired of him what he would do if a mouse came into his kitchen and started causing mayhem. He didn’t quite know how to answer that question as it the responsibility of a head chef to make sure the areas they are in are kept clean and have no known signs of animal activity. The only thing Gareth did manage to add was that he hated the little things.

 Me, My Aunt ,Sophie, Her Partner ,Gareth,
and My Sister, Madeleine

Additionally, I asked the two other people in my family and house about what it is like working for a chef and working in a restaurant in general. My Aunt, Sophie, said it could be very stressful, you have to be mindful of every little detail. When a chef is in the middle of service, you have to make note of what, when and how you say things. Especially on busy nights, how many checks have they got on? Is the timing right for another? Are the checks, right? The chef’s job is to concentrate on the food, not to make sure you have written the right order. If you mess up the chef will soon sharp let you know. I found it very valuable to be able to talk to others who have worked on the front of house side of a restaurant, it allowed for another perspective and showed me things that maybe Gareth hadn’t even noticed.

To prepare for my role I created a series of mood boards to help with my characterization. Simply click on the links below to find them.

Outer Presence Mood Board

Inner Presence Mood Board

I also took inspiration from the 1990 ‘The Witches’ movie, as a particular favourite of mine from childhood. This is reflected in my costume wearing a similar striped apron to the kitchen staff in the film. Another nod to the original movie was at the end of the scene when I pulled the trousers down of the other chef. The kitchen staff also do this to the chef with the mice in his pants in front of Rowan Atkinson.

The part of my scene that involved the most staging was the movement of our characters in sync and the timing involved therein. My friend, Jeffrey and I needed to be in sync for the scene to be comedic. At the beginning this seemed to be quite awkward but as we kept rehearsing the staging evolved to become cleaner and more fluid. Part of what makes the scene comedic to those that have worked in the hospitality industry is the realism of the scene. I knew I wanted to seem like an actual chef and therefore did my research for that. The other half of a successful comedic scene is being able to let go and not be so stiff, when panicking about there being a mouse. I concentrated on that and leaned on my scene partner, who seemed to have no trouble with this issue.