By now many of you will have seen the glorious photos of the show, see the posting below for a compilation of the best, or the facebook page for the entire series.
Today our scenic artist, Mr. Judges, has created a wonderfully effective stage for us to perform on, that I thank him for. I had the slightly less artistic task of painting the floor black! However, complain i shall not for now the studio has been transformed to an in-the-round theatre (by all accounts the first time in many years this design has been tried).
I shall not be showing you that or the many other little last moment finishing touches I add to my productions, instead you will have to attend the production and be prepared to see The Rivals and the in-the-round Crescent Theatre Studio from many different points of view!
So, Sunday saw the first run for the cast of The Rivals, which (considering we have only been rehearsing for 4 weeks) isn’t bad at all. The cast ran the first four Acts and most of the last leaving only the final epic climax to be created before the full play has been worked through in the space on stage. And all things considering – it being our first run with furniture and on the correct sized stage- it went well.
It was also the first time the cast had all met together again after the first session we had back at the beginning of January because of my banning them from watching each other rehearse. And what was lovely (and this is of course the reason i forbade them watching the other scenes rehearse) was that they watched and laughed and found it entertaining! Ah, there was method to my madness after all.
And think all our hard work is paying off so far. And hard work it is because the other day wracked up a whopping over 7 hours of rehearsal – with only a total of 10 minutes worth of break- in an afternoon (or at least it was afternoon when we started!). I’m readying myself to win a sweep of awards including ‘Hardest Task Master’ and ‘Least Popular Director’.
But now, they’re back to being forbidden to watch until we meet again for our next run through. But having done the first run with almost precisely two months before we’re on, gives me time to fine tune to my heart’s content!
Or I may just put my feet up…as i’m sure the cast wish!
I’m only a handful of rehearsals in to the process and already I’m being told my method of working has got the whisper mill working overtime. So, my plans working then!
I don’t want to say too much give things away but i will confirm and deny some rumours.
1.Yes, my cast were all set a research task, you can see some of Matt’s research in his post on the Rivals. This has been invalauable for us to get a more distinct and fresh perspective on the whole play and period.
2. Yes, my cast have been asked to use the correct form of address. I’m referred to as Mr. Nicholson in rehearsals which i find very entertaining but i obviously use it for them also. I find it lends a formality which is peculiar to us but would have been common to our characters, so i thought i’d ask my cast to try it.
3. Yes they are required to dress correctly for Sunday rehearsals, but i shan’t say in what.
4. Yes, this play will have my characteristic quirk to it, it wouldn’t be mine truly if there wasn’t one! I don’t want to say too much but for those who saw my previous work Loveplay, there will be elements of that present and my excellent wardrobe mistress Miss Fielding has some very marvellous ideas on how to present the costume.
5. And finally, yes, my cast are not allowed to watch other rehearsals. The element of surprise is entirely mine!
I hope that has piqued your interest to what happens behind my very closed rehearsal room doors. Suffice to say we’re all having a smashing time creating the play – i’m currently working on the soundtrack!
Just a very last minute reminder that tomorrow (Sunday January 4th) will be the audition day for Sheridan’s The Rivals.
The day will start at 2pm up in the Crescent Bar and will finish at 6pm, and will include a brief read through of some of the script, a workshop on the approach I will take to creating the piece as well a chance for us all to explore the play and world it inhabits and then followed on by auditions.
The day will include some exciting surprises which I hope people will enjoy and will get involved in whole heartedly. I’m incredibly excited about working on this project and I’m sure that those that attend and get involved in the day’s work will be excited too.
I look forward to seeing YOU at the Crescent tomorrow (Sunday January 4th) for a day of The Rivals!
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