ARS Day 4

It's the day of the show y'all!

Photo by Jay McClure, which he snapped while I was rehearsing a scene as William.

We had a morning meeting to go over what we would do for the next four hours. It amounted to about one hour of scene work/blocking issues and then three hours for music. Chris managed to learn how to play "Blitzkrieg Bop" by the Ramones in twenty minutes, so that was plugged into our pre-show lineup. I spent some time before rehearsal to transcribe the guitar/sax solo in the funk song "Couldn't Get It Right."

I had a good hour to work on my own while everyone else was rehearsing other songs I wasn't in, so I used that time to look at my big Flavius soliloquy in Timon of Athens ("O the fierce wretchedness that glory brings us!"). At a first glance, it looks like a long list of saying the same thing over and over. That is dangerous. But as I looked at the language/verse more closely, I realized that Flavius changes his mind toward the end and fully commits to sticking with Timon, even though both of their lives are essentially ruined. So, Flavius blasts away the compounding factors of Timon's downfall. Navigating those shifts will help memorizing and keep the drama pumping in a seemingly "speechy" play.

Anyway, after a 90 minute break, everyone returned to the playhouse to get prepped for our first "Pay-What-You-Will" Preview. HOLY COW! There were at least 200 people in the house. Greg (playing Orlando), told me he startled a bit right after saying the first line of the play ("As I remember, Adam..."). He plays the drums for the pre-show music and can't really see the crowd.

I've opened quite a few shows in my young professional acting life, and it's always nerve-wracking to step on stage and say the words the first time for a full house. I only have three lines in the first scene, but I admit I was relieved getting offstage after that first scene.

I guess a few "prithees" were called (what we say instead of calling "line"). But the audience doesn't seem to mind. Yes, we have a prompter sitting just to the side of the stage for the Ren Season. There are some legendary "prithee" moments in past Actors' Renaissance Seasons. Perhaps we'll have our own; it's all part of the fun.

Tomorrow, we have two more previews (with the official opening on Saturday night). We're actually done rehearsing As You Like It. The music still needs some work; luckily, we always have a music call before each show, which will give us time to work out the kinks. With the first show, this is the most time-compressed we are for music. The others have some more time to let the songs marinate.

Out-of-context quote of the day: "Are those supposed to be sheep noises? Because they don't sound like sheep."