I haven't abandoned this, I promise. But the work's gotta come first, and it's been a busy past week. For one, my parents visited for a few days and were able to catch performances of As You Like It, The Servant of Two Masters, and Timon of Athens. I finally completed memorizing the 500+ lines I have in Epicene.
Yesterday we had our first run of the show, which was also our dress rehearsal. Tonight, we have our first preview, and then we open tomorrow night.
The dress rehearsal was a huge gift and incredibly nerve-wracking at first. There is something luxurious about being on stage for 80% of the show: I don't have time to freak out back stage. I just have to continue pressing forward and move the story along. It's tough for the critical monkey in my head to break through. It took me a little while to find the groove, but I have a much better sense of how the show works even with 7 or so people present for the dress. After the dress was over, I felt the giant weight off my shoulders. There's still spots to sort out and certain turns of phrases to solidify, but I went through the whole show non-stop (not without calling "prithee"--including THE LAST LINE OF THE SHOW...I'll tell that story later).
Tonight will be tricky. The show is funny, but it's also witty and amusing (not always laugh-out-loud). Navigating the audience through the laughs will be the next component (as well as tightening the lines and cues), but I'm used to that (thankfully).
I'll share more thoughts/observations about this play. But for now, I'm going to take a much-needed nap. We had a matinee for As You Like It this morning with 300+ students, and I've caught a cold bug that's been floating around (GRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!), so we'll see how the body/voice/mind keeps up for tonight's show. Right now, it's just a runny nose (which is a major pain).
Later all!
Thursday, February 20, 2014
Thursday, February 13, 2014
ARS Days 37 and 38
I'll conflate these two days because they were so similar.
We managed to stage the second half of the show. It's was a tricky beast. It involves a lot of people on stage there are lots of side conversations, asides that only some people can hear, and a 200+ line scene that is an elaborate jest for Truewit.
On Monday, I went through the scene chart and tried to devise a schedule. I worked backwards. I knew I wanted to get through the rest of the show. This meant staging 1100 lines in two days. I found a good "half-way point" (600 lines for the first day). Then, depending on the nature of the scene, I attempted to give around 45 minutes for 100 lines. It's tough because not all chunks of lines are created equal. When there are shorter scenes with only 3 or 4 people, it's easier to bust through. But when there are a lots of entrances and "business" for characters, more time is needed. Mrs. Otter beating up Captain Otter just needs more time to work out some choreography, for example.
The scene breakdowns (and I'm guessing they are editor scene breaks, but I'm not certain) act more like French scenes rather than Shakespeare scenes. A new French scene begins when a new character comes on stage. The fourth and fifth acts don't have a large passage of time among scenes. The scenes are mostly continuous (much like a Moliere play).
I'm beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I still have a lot of work to do (we all do), but there's some comfort in getting the whole show on our feet. Our first dress rehearsal is next Wednesday.
 |
| That stack of cards contains only my second half lines. |
We managed to stage the second half of the show. It's was a tricky beast. It involves a lot of people on stage there are lots of side conversations, asides that only some people can hear, and a 200+ line scene that is an elaborate jest for Truewit.
On Monday, I went through the scene chart and tried to devise a schedule. I worked backwards. I knew I wanted to get through the rest of the show. This meant staging 1100 lines in two days. I found a good "half-way point" (600 lines for the first day). Then, depending on the nature of the scene, I attempted to give around 45 minutes for 100 lines. It's tough because not all chunks of lines are created equal. When there are shorter scenes with only 3 or 4 people, it's easier to bust through. But when there are a lots of entrances and "business" for characters, more time is needed. Mrs. Otter beating up Captain Otter just needs more time to work out some choreography, for example.
The scene breakdowns (and I'm guessing they are editor scene breaks, but I'm not certain) act more like French scenes rather than Shakespeare scenes. A new French scene begins when a new character comes on stage. The fourth and fifth acts don't have a large passage of time among scenes. The scenes are mostly continuous (much like a Moliere play).
I'm beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I still have a lot of work to do (we all do), but there's some comfort in getting the whole show on our feet. Our first dress rehearsal is next Wednesday.
Monday, February 10, 2014
ARS Day 36
We geared up for a Servant of Two Masters matinee. I worked diligently on my Epicene lines during the first act (about 45 minutes). The interlude bell is my cue to get prepped for the songs, so I'm able to focus on a project quietly in the rehearsal hall without having to keep an ear open for an important line cue. That's a great gift.
After the show, we had a dinner break and then returned for the final rehearsal block of the week. Sunday nights are tough. We've been working hard for six days, and our "Friday" night is on the horizon!
We start each rehearsal with a meeting to plot out the rest of the day's work. I decided to bite the bullet and bring up the furniture conundrum. People seemed to be in general agreement. It does mean that we have to do some backtracking (some time lost). I think we determined that the furniture can just be for the first act, we'll coordinate a way to remove it going into act 2. I think this will only require 45 minutes at most. The other thing to consider is: do we work on getting that in now? Or plug along?
It's hard to know, and it's really up to me. Since the furniture doesn't seem to be needed in the later scenes and I've already got some ideas on how the first scenes can incorporate it all, I figured it would be best to keep plugging along with the workthru and move along to the second half (which is unfamiliar terrain) on Tuesday. We do have a total of 36 hours of work before our first dress rehearsal (within the span of a week). I'm confident the pieces will come together in time.
The game plan for this rehearsal was to finish our workthru of the first half--the third act. Because there are so many bodies on the stage, the shape we've created is pretty solid. We didn't have to do major overhaul. Someone had a great idea for the music that bursts in on Morose's wedding reception. "Cacophony" best describes the moment. It should be a pretty fun way to end the first half of the show before interlude.
At the end of the rehearsal, I decided it would be best to have a detailed rehearsal plot for the rest of our time with this show for my own sanity. We've been taking each day in stride a bit (which isn't how we've been rehearsing the other shows this season). That said, it does mean I have to hunker down and figure it all out, which will take some time. But I'm gonna work on that right now...
After the show, we had a dinner break and then returned for the final rehearsal block of the week. Sunday nights are tough. We've been working hard for six days, and our "Friday" night is on the horizon!
We start each rehearsal with a meeting to plot out the rest of the day's work. I decided to bite the bullet and bring up the furniture conundrum. People seemed to be in general agreement. It does mean that we have to do some backtracking (some time lost). I think we determined that the furniture can just be for the first act, we'll coordinate a way to remove it going into act 2. I think this will only require 45 minutes at most. The other thing to consider is: do we work on getting that in now? Or plug along?
It's hard to know, and it's really up to me. Since the furniture doesn't seem to be needed in the later scenes and I've already got some ideas on how the first scenes can incorporate it all, I figured it would be best to keep plugging along with the workthru and move along to the second half (which is unfamiliar terrain) on Tuesday. We do have a total of 36 hours of work before our first dress rehearsal (within the span of a week). I'm confident the pieces will come together in time.
The game plan for this rehearsal was to finish our workthru of the first half--the third act. Because there are so many bodies on the stage, the shape we've created is pretty solid. We didn't have to do major overhaul. Someone had a great idea for the music that bursts in on Morose's wedding reception. "Cacophony" best describes the moment. It should be a pretty fun way to end the first half of the show before interlude.
At the end of the rehearsal, I decided it would be best to have a detailed rehearsal plot for the rest of our time with this show for my own sanity. We've been taking each day in stride a bit (which isn't how we've been rehearsing the other shows this season). That said, it does mean I have to hunker down and figure it all out, which will take some time. But I'm gonna work on that right now...
Sunday, February 9, 2014
ARS Day 35
Double-Show Day: Timon of Athens matinee + As You Like It on a Saturday night (! -- it's been a while)
No Epicene rehearsal.
We had a nice mid-sized crowd for Timon this afternoon. I thought the show went pretty well. BUT...
(sigh...) I called prithee at the beginning of my cave scene with Timon. (What we say instead of "line" at ASC.)
I went blank when I discovered "yond despised and ruinous man...full of decay and failing." It was a moment when I had no idea what was coming. I considered trying to struggle through it, but it was a little soliloquy, and my attempt to patch up the memory lapse would have resulted in laborious paraphrasing and stumbling that the audience would have wince at. After some quick deliberation, I called prithee. Chris, as prompter, was primed (probably alert to the longer-than-normal pause), spoke the next two words, I immediately knew where I was line-wise. It was pretty terrifying in that instant. But I think I handled the situation as best as I could.
I don't want to call "prithee" if I don't have to (I don't think anyone wants to, really). I fully expect that to happen in Epicene (not that I'm banking on it--I just know it's possible, if not likely for this particular show). There have been some moments in Timon when I've mentally jumped to other scenes. Flavius has language in speeches that, on paper, seem very similar in others. He repeats turns of phrase often enough.
Anyway, it's out of my system. It may happen again, and I'll just keep going along.
That evening we had a large crowd for As You Like It, which was a treat. We hadn't done a Saturday evening AYLI for quite some time, and it was fun. Saturday nights are often the big ticket each week. I knew we were in store for a fun show from the very beginning when people snickered throughout at Orlando's first speech. Greg has navigated it clearly, it's full of tension and some good little parenthetical remarks. He manages to create a young man with strong convictions, but also lets his doubts slip to audience members and Adam. And there's humor in that.
No Epicene rehearsal.
We had a nice mid-sized crowd for Timon this afternoon. I thought the show went pretty well. BUT...
(sigh...) I called prithee at the beginning of my cave scene with Timon. (What we say instead of "line" at ASC.)
I went blank when I discovered "yond despised and ruinous man...full of decay and failing." It was a moment when I had no idea what was coming. I considered trying to struggle through it, but it was a little soliloquy, and my attempt to patch up the memory lapse would have resulted in laborious paraphrasing and stumbling that the audience would have wince at. After some quick deliberation, I called prithee. Chris, as prompter, was primed (probably alert to the longer-than-normal pause), spoke the next two words, I immediately knew where I was line-wise. It was pretty terrifying in that instant. But I think I handled the situation as best as I could.
I don't want to call "prithee" if I don't have to (I don't think anyone wants to, really). I fully expect that to happen in Epicene (not that I'm banking on it--I just know it's possible, if not likely for this particular show). There have been some moments in Timon when I've mentally jumped to other scenes. Flavius has language in speeches that, on paper, seem very similar in others. He repeats turns of phrase often enough.
Anyway, it's out of my system. It may happen again, and I'll just keep going along.
That evening we had a large crowd for As You Like It, which was a treat. We hadn't done a Saturday evening AYLI for quite some time, and it was fun. Saturday nights are often the big ticket each week. I knew we were in store for a fun show from the very beginning when people snickered throughout at Orlando's first speech. Greg has navigated it clearly, it's full of tension and some good little parenthetical remarks. He manages to create a young man with strong convictions, but also lets his doubts slip to audience members and Adam. And there's humor in that.
Saturday, February 8, 2014
ARS Day 34
Started off the day with an actor-scholar council. These are podcasts where some actors discuss the creativity and challenges of working on shows. Graduate students from Mary Baldwin and members of the education department attend and ask questions. I was invited to join the As You Like It round-table and provide a voice as a first-timer to the Renaissance Season. It's a mix of scholarship talk and process. I think these are pretty interesting and enjoy hearing what actors have to say about the work. When I was looking up theatres that I would like to work at, I remember listening to as many podcasts from ASC as I could. I'll let you know when the As You Like It episode becomes available.
After that, we went back to Epicene land. The idea was to go back from the beginning and work through the first half of the show. Someone mentioned that these "work-thrus" that we've been doing of late are relatively "new" to the Renaissance Season, and that when we say work-thru, we shouldn't be hesitant to stop and actually work stuff. I know I have the temptation to want to barrel through and get on with things. With that in mind, we definitely worked on stuff. The first scene is giving me some troubles. I can't quite put my finger on it. I mean, it's kind of like an episode of Seinfeld and there's some big exposition-y things going on. Jonathan and I worked on it a bit. I switched up a couple crosses and stage pictures. After that, it felt better, but something was nagging at me. Part of the trouble is that Truewit walks into the room of his good friend Clerimont with no real agenda but to waste the day away. They gossip and chatter for a while and then Dauphine enters with news that his uncle plans to disinherit him by marrying a silent woman. That's when the play kicks into high gear. The "stasis" of the world is interrupted and isn't restored until the end of they play.
Then, during a break or something someone put a bug in my ear about furniture. That's what's missing: something to sit on! I never entertained the idea of putting furniture on stage for this show. It honestly never crossed my mind. It's not that we don't use furniture at the Blackfriars. Even last year for She Stoops to Conquer, we had quite a bit. Other actors started sharing other things from past ren seasons and other shows.
I guess I had avoided the thought because it's a bit of a logistical hassle. Anyway, the more this idea reels in my head, the more I can clearly see the kind of scene I'd been hoping for with this "addition" of furniture. It's just a shame that it's dawned on me rather late in the process. So....I've been chatting with some other actors about this over break. I think there seems to be agreement that it would be helpful and that it's possible. I will broach this on Sunday when we have rehearsal again. That's the bear. Do we go back and work implementing this significant change? Or do we charge forward? (Stay tuned...)
We continued working through the first half--not getting quite as far as we'd plan. But, from my perspective, it was a necessary to slow down and solidify moments/traffic patterns/landing jokes, etc.. I mean, we probably won't get to work on these until right before we open.
That night, we had a performance of Servant of Two Masters.
After that, we went back to Epicene land. The idea was to go back from the beginning and work through the first half of the show. Someone mentioned that these "work-thrus" that we've been doing of late are relatively "new" to the Renaissance Season, and that when we say work-thru, we shouldn't be hesitant to stop and actually work stuff. I know I have the temptation to want to barrel through and get on with things. With that in mind, we definitely worked on stuff. The first scene is giving me some troubles. I can't quite put my finger on it. I mean, it's kind of like an episode of Seinfeld and there's some big exposition-y things going on. Jonathan and I worked on it a bit. I switched up a couple crosses and stage pictures. After that, it felt better, but something was nagging at me. Part of the trouble is that Truewit walks into the room of his good friend Clerimont with no real agenda but to waste the day away. They gossip and chatter for a while and then Dauphine enters with news that his uncle plans to disinherit him by marrying a silent woman. That's when the play kicks into high gear. The "stasis" of the world is interrupted and isn't restored until the end of they play.
Then, during a break or something someone put a bug in my ear about furniture. That's what's missing: something to sit on! I never entertained the idea of putting furniture on stage for this show. It honestly never crossed my mind. It's not that we don't use furniture at the Blackfriars. Even last year for She Stoops to Conquer, we had quite a bit. Other actors started sharing other things from past ren seasons and other shows.
I guess I had avoided the thought because it's a bit of a logistical hassle. Anyway, the more this idea reels in my head, the more I can clearly see the kind of scene I'd been hoping for with this "addition" of furniture. It's just a shame that it's dawned on me rather late in the process. So....I've been chatting with some other actors about this over break. I think there seems to be agreement that it would be helpful and that it's possible. I will broach this on Sunday when we have rehearsal again. That's the bear. Do we go back and work implementing this significant change? Or do we charge forward? (Stay tuned...)
We continued working through the first half--not getting quite as far as we'd plan. But, from my perspective, it was a necessary to slow down and solidify moments/traffic patterns/landing jokes, etc.. I mean, we probably won't get to work on these until right before we open.
That night, we had a performance of Servant of Two Masters.
Thursday, February 6, 2014
ARS Day 33
Another full day, but things went better for me. The nerves of the first day wiped away, and I was able to roll up my sleeves and get to work. We also had less to work on, which was helpful. Our goal was to stage all of act three and then run it at the end of that so we could spend a good two hours working on music.
The thing that tripped my comrades (Jonathan and Andrew, playing Clerimont and Dauphine) and I the most was eavesdropping on Captain and Mistress Otter. We're spying from the center curtain and tried a variety of combinations. I think what we've settled on is a "tee-pee" configuration with three heads on top of each other. It's tricky to get there, but I think we've figured out a way to do it. The more we run that, the easier it should get. We have other options, but this is the funniest.
I also revisited the big "railing on marriage" scene which is essentially two and a half pages of non-stop verbal pyrotechnics from yours truly. I also have a horn and a noose in the scene to use as "weapons" against John Harrell. Needless to say, it's a lot of fun (and an intense workout). His character, Morose, HATES noise. Much of the play is centered on creating a noisy hell for him. Bwahahahahahahahah.
By the days' end, we managed to stage the first half (1000+ lines). We've got just over 1000 to go. Fun fact, John Harrell cut this play. He had to take away a third of this play. If you're ever near a copy of Epicene, check it out and see the giant chunks of text--pages even--that some of the characters spew. It's astounding.
After six hours of rehearsal, we're pretty much spent. But we persevered and continued with some music. Greg brought in an AWESOME, incredibly catchy song by the Australian band The Cat Empire to work on. I'd heard of the band before, but I've never really listened to their music. Anyway, at the risk of spoiling some fun pre-show/interlude music, we started working up their song "Sly." I love it. There's a killer trumpet motif that I'm working up. So if you want a fun song to jam to this weekend, here it is. And, I promise, the lead singer is singing "funk-inflicted," not something else.
The thing that tripped my comrades (Jonathan and Andrew, playing Clerimont and Dauphine) and I the most was eavesdropping on Captain and Mistress Otter. We're spying from the center curtain and tried a variety of combinations. I think what we've settled on is a "tee-pee" configuration with three heads on top of each other. It's tricky to get there, but I think we've figured out a way to do it. The more we run that, the easier it should get. We have other options, but this is the funniest.
I also revisited the big "railing on marriage" scene which is essentially two and a half pages of non-stop verbal pyrotechnics from yours truly. I also have a horn and a noose in the scene to use as "weapons" against John Harrell. Needless to say, it's a lot of fun (and an intense workout). His character, Morose, HATES noise. Much of the play is centered on creating a noisy hell for him. Bwahahahahahahahah.
By the days' end, we managed to stage the first half (1000+ lines). We've got just over 1000 to go. Fun fact, John Harrell cut this play. He had to take away a third of this play. If you're ever near a copy of Epicene, check it out and see the giant chunks of text--pages even--that some of the characters spew. It's astounding.
After six hours of rehearsal, we're pretty much spent. But we persevered and continued with some music. Greg brought in an AWESOME, incredibly catchy song by the Australian band The Cat Empire to work on. I'd heard of the band before, but I've never really listened to their music. Anyway, at the risk of spoiling some fun pre-show/interlude music, we started working up their song "Sly." I love it. There's a killer trumpet motif that I'm working up. So if you want a fun song to jam to this weekend, here it is. And, I promise, the lead singer is singing "funk-inflicted," not something else.
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
ARS Day 32
Today we started EPICENE, OR THE SILENT WOMAN by Ben Jonson.
We began with a table read of the play, which was full of laughter and groaning. There are some crazy lines and language in this play (not to mention some slightly convoluted plot points).
We've got a growing list of songs (which promise to be fun).
This is my "big" show in the Ren Season. I definitely have the most lines (500+). When you've got that load, people start looking to you for leadership. Needless to say, I've got a big load on my shoulders.
Anyway, we determined to focus on getting the first half of the play up on its feet for this first week. Time is somewhat on our side with this show (since we're in full swing with student matinees and rotating rep during the weekends). I'm grateful for that. Of course, this is a tough play to split the cast up. We can't double-dip that much. Most people are needed whenever we work scenes. It's tougher to divide and conquer. That said, there's going to be a lot of downtime for other actors, which I'm sure they will appreciate.
I was overwhelmed much of the day. The tough part is figuring out with what to really concern myself. Right now it's a jumble of recalling lines, figuring out blocking, and making sure we're all on the same page with the story and what's actually happening in the scenes. A big thing about this play is characters are commenting on other characters without them hearing (and often it's not noted whether or not it's an aside). It's tricky. I'm also one to want perfection on day one, which is just setting myself up for disappointment. All that said, we've managed to get 2 of five acts on their feet within the first day. I've already got a list of things I'd like to work out.
That's the other thing that's challenging: how much to you sketch out on the first look at scenes, or how much do you try to solidify right away? I'm feeling a pressure to just slap some paint on the canvas, hoping to get the details in later. But there's another part of me that would love to explore a little more and hope more of the scene sticks. At breaks, I frantically scribbled out blocking (which is constantly shifting).
I know it's only been day one. Things will be just fine. But this show is going to be quite the learning experience.
We began with a table read of the play, which was full of laughter and groaning. There are some crazy lines and language in this play (not to mention some slightly convoluted plot points).
We've got a growing list of songs (which promise to be fun).
This is my "big" show in the Ren Season. I definitely have the most lines (500+). When you've got that load, people start looking to you for leadership. Needless to say, I've got a big load on my shoulders.
Anyway, we determined to focus on getting the first half of the play up on its feet for this first week. Time is somewhat on our side with this show (since we're in full swing with student matinees and rotating rep during the weekends). I'm grateful for that. Of course, this is a tough play to split the cast up. We can't double-dip that much. Most people are needed whenever we work scenes. It's tougher to divide and conquer. That said, there's going to be a lot of downtime for other actors, which I'm sure they will appreciate.
I was overwhelmed much of the day. The tough part is figuring out with what to really concern myself. Right now it's a jumble of recalling lines, figuring out blocking, and making sure we're all on the same page with the story and what's actually happening in the scenes. A big thing about this play is characters are commenting on other characters without them hearing (and often it's not noted whether or not it's an aside). It's tricky. I'm also one to want perfection on day one, which is just setting myself up for disappointment. All that said, we've managed to get 2 of five acts on their feet within the first day. I've already got a list of things I'd like to work out.
That's the other thing that's challenging: how much to you sketch out on the first look at scenes, or how much do you try to solidify right away? I'm feeling a pressure to just slap some paint on the canvas, hoping to get the details in later. But there's another part of me that would love to explore a little more and hope more of the scene sticks. At breaks, I frantically scribbled out blocking (which is constantly shifting).
I know it's only been day one. Things will be just fine. But this show is going to be quite the learning experience.
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