Well...Production week is over. Fabulous work by designers, technical and stage management and directorial team meant that it was an enjoyable and productive week. Last night was 'Tech. Dress' and - apart from today's day off - we are on stage for the next week. Two more 'Dress Runs', preview night is Thursday, then the first weekend. However, both of us in the cast are treating Thursday as opening, as neither of us want to open on Friday 13th !
The speed of the play is frightening - it definitely felt last night that we were trying to corral a runaway beast: More like breaking a horse than telling a story. Of course, that was also the first time we performed without masks and gloves along with full costumes and wigs, music and effects, too so we were bound to feel a little uneasy.
My man isn't quite there, yet, but he's getting close. Technically, I have to project and enunciate more than I have been - a problem when learning lines at speed meets an actual audience. The movements and overall body carriage that I was concerned about aren't the problem I thought they would be. I just decided that it was up to me how I showed this character's life and this appears to have been successful so far. It takes some concentration, though. Those never ending five minutes at Beginners call are followed by a blur of movement, lights, sound, lines and panic, and then we are bowing 80 minutes later!
As for his 'emotional life', I still have some work to do in order to bring him to life, but there never seems enough time to make many decisions about objective and risks 'on the run'. I can only hope that this gets better over the next 2 runs, before our first night and that I can keep up the pace for the next 5 weeks (If we actually manage to get this production that far in the current growing lockdown environment!). Interestingly, he has turned into someone I wasn't expecting: Proud, scared, manipulative, and forever deflecting his fears onto others (Including God!). Real-life research has helped immeasurably. Now that I know about who he was, what he did and how, it makes my decision making more definite. Hopefully, the overall effect will be a fully fleshed out person. Trust your Director, actors!
Between now and then, it's back to the script to find the corners that have eluded me so far and keep up my now-daily voice and warm-up exercises. Thanks for everyone's feedback, let me know if there are any further questions I can answer and don't forget, the production is online as well as on stage: http://unitedplayers.com/season-plays-and-tickets/
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LOVE the outfit! You must be having so much fun! Man, I bet that's difficult - not WHAT you have to learn but the speed at which you have to incorporate all aspects. I love that reminder, too - trust your directors! But also, from your time rehearsing, trust your scene partners, too. They want to listen to you, too, and play off of what you give them. Can't wait to hear more about the performance days! I'd love to know how the live audience responds.
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Wearing that genre is not easy. I did musical theater piece some time back entitled “Santa and Wonderland. I had to act, dance and sing in a period piece costume
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Claude, I try to make him as 'everyday' as possible, but he definitely has a more Pronounced voice when he is talking 'in public'. My acting partner is North American and her character is meant to be French, so we decided that my native English works as the Italian I am playing.
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See, I LOVE costumed anything... it's probably why I did the RenFest for as long as I did - it just feels normal to me LOL! Well... when it's well-made. Have I mentioned you look smashing, Steve! I hope you're having a ball!