COSTUMES!!!
Yesterday marked the first sighting of our tremendous costumes! My costumer managed to find three different rental companies to work with, all of which have some amazing work :) One of which is a smaller theatrical group in town (affiliated with the private school) that offered us the use of their costumes for free if we advertised for them in the program. From them we were able to procure children's "villager" costumes, which worked out really well! Although we didn't have quite enough for everyone to go around, for the rest (which thankfully were all boys) we simply asked them to bring a white dress shirt and brown/black pants from home with brown/black shoes.
Several of the larger "object" pieces came as well today, including the wardrobe, Mrs. Potts, Lumiere and Babette. I've asked each of them to begin practicing in costume for the rest of rehearsals, as these costumes are much more difficult to manage than your average costume! The students have done well, but I think the extra repititions will really help make the acting a lot smoother.
The other costumes are set to arrive (hopefully!) tomorrow afternoon, so that we will have the whole tech week to work with them.
We also worked with many of the chorus "Be Our Guest" pieces, including the spoons/knives/plates/etc. I would have preferred to have them sooner, but having them for at least two days before tech week is wonderful. The students are definitely not used to them, but just as with the other object pieces, the repetition will really help things along I think.
I plan on sending out a note tomorrow that asks parents to send black shirts/black pants and brown/black shoes with their child to rehearsal. I sent a note out today reminding families of the practices on the 4th and 7th, as well as a reminder about the strike on the 10th and the Cast Party provided by the park.
I think I need to start pulling away from the students now-perhaps tomorrow I will talk to them (at least the older high schoolers) about giving out notes. I think that I may be stepping to much into their scenes now, and I needto start pulling myself away and giving them the show.
The lights are coming along quite nicely. The rest of the tech team is also stepping into a run crew role, and starting to do the scene changes on their own (although, with a prompt from me as they have no scripts) which is helping the younger ones get into a rhythm as well. My stage manager (the one that will be calling the show as opposed to the other stage manager who will be supervising back stage) will be here for the rest of rehearsals/show runs, which will be a comfort to have.
The reality of tech week is slowly encroaching on me...although I am quite proud of my students and think that they have created a spectacular show, I am a little nervous...perhaps it is about letting go of the control of the show, perhaps a little nervous that I may have missed something...I am not sure. I have been reassured that I have a good show, but its all a little nerve racking nonetheless.
The students are starting to get a little over zealous now. For the Mob Song, I have pulled roughly 15 different false weapons that I have designated first to the male students, and then to a few select mature girls. Before they were even within eye-sight I explained, VERY clearly, that I had a no tolerance policy for false-play or joking around with the fake weapons. Unfortunately, I had a student who did not pay attention to my warnings, and I removed his prop after today's rehearsal. I think the fact that I actually did take the toy axe away from the student made the other students realize as well the severity of what I had said, and I don't think anyone will be fooling around with them again.
I am hoping to finalize one scene tomorrow, and then I would like to continue with my run-throughs of the show. I have been doing several mini-run throughs, planning on running right through as much as I can and stopping when I hit a trouble spot to work it for a while. However, tomorrow I think I will begin my pull-back, and other than working the Battle scene with the younger boys, I think I will run all the way through and try my best to sit put in my chair and see how they do without me.
More later!
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
June 28
(It's been a while as well as hectic...)
Today marks the second day into the last week of rehearsal before tech week!!!!!
SO much has been accomplished in the last few days...towards the end of last week it became apparent that my actor on wheels needed railings to help him get up the ramps on either sides of the set. Thanks, once again, to my awesome parent volunteers, those were able to go up this weekend, and the actor is now in full swing!
I have noticed, rather unfortunately, that the students have begun to develop a knack for tuning out what I have to say the SECOND after I am done speaking. Perhaps this is a misgiving on my part, and maybe I am not communicating as effectively as I could, but I have noticed a trend that more often than not the students know that since the techies working on the set or backstage are allowed to talk that they find it easier to get away with chatting amongst themselves if they feel like it can be disguised as techies talking for necessity. I HAVE noticed, in the past few days, however, that if I reward their work on stage that they talk less...I find this very interesting.
I think, also, that they become rather bored just sitting backstage/in the audience waiting for their turn on stage. While I give many of them the option of going to play a theatrical game with one of the stage managers, many would rather stay and watch the show or have entrances soon. So, it becomes a problem of how do I occupy them when I cannot send them out of the room? I have yet to actually answer this question.
The students have REALLY delved into their characters lately. One actor in particular presented me with a rather extensive character analysis, using several different methods and including the work of several other actors as well. Ever since the off-book date from the last post, I have been able to delve deeper into the story and really work out some details and deeper work.
I have been told by my students that they really enjoy my directing style...this made me feel beyond incredible :) One more big checkmark next to the reasons why I love what I am doing and hope to do it forever!
I have had two students drop the show at the last minute unexpectedly in the past few days, both for different reasons. Although I have had students drop the show earlier on, I have never had one leave so close to opening. So, again, another learning experience for me (as well as for the students who now have to accommodate for their now absent cast member).
I have chosen, because of absences, to cast two understudies. Both of which, have been an amazing find! Each of the students has taken their roles as understudies very seriously and put a lot of hard work into their added responsibilities. Today I was able to see them both in their roles, and each of them has had only a few days to put it all together, and they really surprised me with how much they've already learned. It kind of makes me wish I had another role to give them too, because they've more than done the work to deserve it!
I have been told that I will have costumes tomorrow. Apparently a good majority of them were picked up today, and the rest will be in on the 4th. I'd like to be able to have more time with them in their costumes because they are large object pieces, but because of renting them a week at a time, the budget simply does not allow for it. So, we will do our best with the time that we have!
The set is (with the exception of one small piece) complete! Other than needing to paint the library/fireplace flat and attaching one more backing flat, we are done! I cannot wait to see it all come together! :)
We have begun to run through the show as much as possible. Although I do some stops and starts, at least I can have this week to do much tweaking and allow the students to fall into a routine of how the show will function on the "big day".
We are having a large group of children come in to see the show the morning before opening night. While they have been promised the entire show, in the future I would like to show them only half the show (since they are seeing it for free) and that way it would encourage them to come back and see the rest of it later on that evening. Again, things I would do differently if I were to do this once more,
That's all for now-more to come later!
Today marks the second day into the last week of rehearsal before tech week!!!!!
SO much has been accomplished in the last few days...towards the end of last week it became apparent that my actor on wheels needed railings to help him get up the ramps on either sides of the set. Thanks, once again, to my awesome parent volunteers, those were able to go up this weekend, and the actor is now in full swing!
I have noticed, rather unfortunately, that the students have begun to develop a knack for tuning out what I have to say the SECOND after I am done speaking. Perhaps this is a misgiving on my part, and maybe I am not communicating as effectively as I could, but I have noticed a trend that more often than not the students know that since the techies working on the set or backstage are allowed to talk that they find it easier to get away with chatting amongst themselves if they feel like it can be disguised as techies talking for necessity. I HAVE noticed, in the past few days, however, that if I reward their work on stage that they talk less...I find this very interesting.
I think, also, that they become rather bored just sitting backstage/in the audience waiting for their turn on stage. While I give many of them the option of going to play a theatrical game with one of the stage managers, many would rather stay and watch the show or have entrances soon. So, it becomes a problem of how do I occupy them when I cannot send them out of the room? I have yet to actually answer this question.
The students have REALLY delved into their characters lately. One actor in particular presented me with a rather extensive character analysis, using several different methods and including the work of several other actors as well. Ever since the off-book date from the last post, I have been able to delve deeper into the story and really work out some details and deeper work.
I have been told by my students that they really enjoy my directing style...this made me feel beyond incredible :) One more big checkmark next to the reasons why I love what I am doing and hope to do it forever!
I have had two students drop the show at the last minute unexpectedly in the past few days, both for different reasons. Although I have had students drop the show earlier on, I have never had one leave so close to opening. So, again, another learning experience for me (as well as for the students who now have to accommodate for their now absent cast member).
I have chosen, because of absences, to cast two understudies. Both of which, have been an amazing find! Each of the students has taken their roles as understudies very seriously and put a lot of hard work into their added responsibilities. Today I was able to see them both in their roles, and each of them has had only a few days to put it all together, and they really surprised me with how much they've already learned. It kind of makes me wish I had another role to give them too, because they've more than done the work to deserve it!
I have been told that I will have costumes tomorrow. Apparently a good majority of them were picked up today, and the rest will be in on the 4th. I'd like to be able to have more time with them in their costumes because they are large object pieces, but because of renting them a week at a time, the budget simply does not allow for it. So, we will do our best with the time that we have!
The set is (with the exception of one small piece) complete! Other than needing to paint the library/fireplace flat and attaching one more backing flat, we are done! I cannot wait to see it all come together! :)
We have begun to run through the show as much as possible. Although I do some stops and starts, at least I can have this week to do much tweaking and allow the students to fall into a routine of how the show will function on the "big day".
We are having a large group of children come in to see the show the morning before opening night. While they have been promised the entire show, in the future I would like to show them only half the show (since they are seeing it for free) and that way it would encourage them to come back and see the rest of it later on that evening. Again, things I would do differently if I were to do this once more,
That's all for now-more to come later!
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
June 21-22
TUESDAY (21)
I finally managed to get a more direct understanding of one of my lead's work schedules. Knowing now that she will have to miss many rehearsals, I cast an understudy. I now have two understudies for two different lead roles, which is apparently a really exciting experience for both girls. Each of them is proud to have not 3, but now 4 roles to play in the show!
Having so many chorus members meant I had a choice-I could have split all of them into about 6 different groups, one for each of the choral numbers of the show. However, I decided to make sure that each of them was in at least 4 of the numbers (making sure they were all in the first number and the last, and splitting up the younger ones to be in either one of the 2 groups or the other and having the older chorus members in all 6) It also means that more often than not, I have a LOT of students working on one number at a time, and it makes me extremely thankful for the large auditorium that I have to use. I had forgotten just how big that stage was, after working in the Wells Theatre at Monmouth for the past dozen shows or so, and it was a pleasant surprise.
The large stage allowed me to have a much more straightforward set design. I was able to use the front half of the stage for a majority of the scenes, including the village, the tavern, and the forest, and I used the second half of the stage to have a stationary platform for the castle. This way, I do not have to move the 16 foot wide platform, and could simply open the curtain to reveal the bigger, more elaborate set piece.
WEDNESDAY
I'm not sure if I will come to regret this decision or not, but I have decided to work my rehearsals, as much as possible, around the availability of my actress with the work scheduling issues. I have understudied her, but I still want to make sure that I give her every opportunity to perform her given role.
Set construction, with the extremely generous help of my own family and friends as well as that of those of the cast, has made great progress in the last few days. As of now, we have to attach and paint the backing platforms of the castle, make and attach the ramps, and finish painting a few details on the periactoids before we'll be DONE with the set!! Which is extremely exciting!
We have pulled all of the props needed for the show-I only have to acquire a glass cover for the rose and find a way to make it stand up in the casing, which, if I create a false bottom shouldn't be too much of a problem.
We are meeting at 4:30 today to hopefully finish some more set construction as well as again tomorrow after rehearsal gets out. I am beginning to get more and more excited! Only 2 and a half weeks until opening night!
I finally managed to get a more direct understanding of one of my lead's work schedules. Knowing now that she will have to miss many rehearsals, I cast an understudy. I now have two understudies for two different lead roles, which is apparently a really exciting experience for both girls. Each of them is proud to have not 3, but now 4 roles to play in the show!
Having so many chorus members meant I had a choice-I could have split all of them into about 6 different groups, one for each of the choral numbers of the show. However, I decided to make sure that each of them was in at least 4 of the numbers (making sure they were all in the first number and the last, and splitting up the younger ones to be in either one of the 2 groups or the other and having the older chorus members in all 6) It also means that more often than not, I have a LOT of students working on one number at a time, and it makes me extremely thankful for the large auditorium that I have to use. I had forgotten just how big that stage was, after working in the Wells Theatre at Monmouth for the past dozen shows or so, and it was a pleasant surprise.
The large stage allowed me to have a much more straightforward set design. I was able to use the front half of the stage for a majority of the scenes, including the village, the tavern, and the forest, and I used the second half of the stage to have a stationary platform for the castle. This way, I do not have to move the 16 foot wide platform, and could simply open the curtain to reveal the bigger, more elaborate set piece.
WEDNESDAY
I'm not sure if I will come to regret this decision or not, but I have decided to work my rehearsals, as much as possible, around the availability of my actress with the work scheduling issues. I have understudied her, but I still want to make sure that I give her every opportunity to perform her given role.
Set construction, with the extremely generous help of my own family and friends as well as that of those of the cast, has made great progress in the last few days. As of now, we have to attach and paint the backing platforms of the castle, make and attach the ramps, and finish painting a few details on the periactoids before we'll be DONE with the set!! Which is extremely exciting!
We have pulled all of the props needed for the show-I only have to acquire a glass cover for the rose and find a way to make it stand up in the casing, which, if I create a false bottom shouldn't be too much of a problem.
We are meeting at 4:30 today to hopefully finish some more set construction as well as again tomorrow after rehearsal gets out. I am beginning to get more and more excited! Only 2 and a half weeks until opening night!
Monday, June 20, 2011
June 20
We finished blocking today!!
Determined to meet my goal, I spent the entire first half of rehearsal pulling students that I needed in order to fully finish blocking the show. It was a little hectic at first-the students who weren't immediately needed (I think) became a little bored, but it only took a gentle reminder for them to stay quiet for the few minutes that I needed to block the other scenes.
I decided to only use the male villagers in the Servant/Villager battle. I figured that it would even out then with only the principle Objects battling a few male chorus villagers. The battle scene there may have to be tweaked, but we have a good solid basic routine down right now.
The flats for the cottage were finished today! They need painting, but they now are attached together, door frame working just fine, with a bench out front to put flowers on :) The legs are attached-in doing so, I learned a new way of weighting them down in absence of stage weights/sandbags: buckets of recycled paint. They work WONDERS!
The students also had a chance to rehearse their dance routines on a stage that now holds all of the set pieces-this was a great opportunity for the choreographers and I to move students around and see the real limitations of the space that they would be working in.
We're hoping to go back into the space later on this evening to get some work done on the ramps and the staircase-I have the good fortune to have very helpful friends that are willing to work with me to get this accomplished. Throughout this whole experience, I am reminded daily of the amazing benefits of having a community of people that is willing to come together for a common cause, and I am more and more thankful for it each time that I see an item checked off of the to-do list!
We were able to do a small "run-through" of the first few scenes of the show today. I was reminded of the need to teach the students the proper way to act back-stage, and to also find happy homes for all of the set pieces/prop table as well as the students themselves. In the past we have, very successfully, placed the students in an adjacent classroom, which allows them a little more "noise freedom" and it also has a moniter in the room so the students can watch the show without too much disturbance to the current performers.
I am reminded of my need to ask for parent helpers during the run of the show today, when 3 willing parents expressed their wish to help during the run of the show. I will put out a parent sign-up sheet hopefully tomorrow.
I also need to send out all of the information for the program soon-I'm hoping to get all of the pictures of the students by tomorrow-in fact, that will be the first thing we do tomorrow.
More after the next rehearsal!
Determined to meet my goal, I spent the entire first half of rehearsal pulling students that I needed in order to fully finish blocking the show. It was a little hectic at first-the students who weren't immediately needed (I think) became a little bored, but it only took a gentle reminder for them to stay quiet for the few minutes that I needed to block the other scenes.
I decided to only use the male villagers in the Servant/Villager battle. I figured that it would even out then with only the principle Objects battling a few male chorus villagers. The battle scene there may have to be tweaked, but we have a good solid basic routine down right now.
The flats for the cottage were finished today! They need painting, but they now are attached together, door frame working just fine, with a bench out front to put flowers on :) The legs are attached-in doing so, I learned a new way of weighting them down in absence of stage weights/sandbags: buckets of recycled paint. They work WONDERS!
The students also had a chance to rehearse their dance routines on a stage that now holds all of the set pieces-this was a great opportunity for the choreographers and I to move students around and see the real limitations of the space that they would be working in.
We're hoping to go back into the space later on this evening to get some work done on the ramps and the staircase-I have the good fortune to have very helpful friends that are willing to work with me to get this accomplished. Throughout this whole experience, I am reminded daily of the amazing benefits of having a community of people that is willing to come together for a common cause, and I am more and more thankful for it each time that I see an item checked off of the to-do list!
We were able to do a small "run-through" of the first few scenes of the show today. I was reminded of the need to teach the students the proper way to act back-stage, and to also find happy homes for all of the set pieces/prop table as well as the students themselves. In the past we have, very successfully, placed the students in an adjacent classroom, which allows them a little more "noise freedom" and it also has a moniter in the room so the students can watch the show without too much disturbance to the current performers.
I am reminded of my need to ask for parent helpers during the run of the show today, when 3 willing parents expressed their wish to help during the run of the show. I will put out a parent sign-up sheet hopefully tomorrow.
I also need to send out all of the information for the program soon-I'm hoping to get all of the pictures of the students by tomorrow-in fact, that will be the first thing we do tomorrow.
More after the next rehearsal!
Saturday, June 18, 2011
June 17
Today was, I think, the most productive rehearsal day that I've had so far :)
The dancers took a majority of the students out into what is essentially an atrium to work on the few dance numbers that they had yet to choreograph while I pulled out my few select "wolves" for the forest scenes. I have never had an experience with organic blocking before, and perhaps it isn't the most desirable means to block with students, but I really enjoyed it with these students (who brought many different ideas to the table) and a script that literally spoke out the actions of the characters.
Going off of the Narrators' cues, we walked through the blocking together, and the students would often throw in thier own ideas. Although some of thier ideas were a little more comical than I wanted to include in the final blocking decisions, I was rather proud to see that they could think of those things-particularly from students who weren't sure they wanted to audition at all less than a month ago.
I spent more time with the "main pair" again today, and we worked on some more elaborate character work, and managed to block all of their individual scenes together. I was hoping to have all of the blocking accomplished by today, but I think I'll be able to get it done by Tuesday at the very latest. If I can negotiate the need for the stage for the whole day on Monday, then it will be done sooner.
We have pulled all of the props for the show so far, with the exception of a few that I will need to procure on my own. I am trying to figure out a way that I can accomplish the dead/dying/alive rose(s). My ideas so far are to use live roses, and perhaps instead of rigging a petal to fall on the displayed rose, I can drop a petal onto Belle and Beast from the catwalk. I think this might be a good way to utilize both the presentational style of the show and the symbolism of the rose as well.
After the students left, with the generosity of the school, I was able to stay and work on the set with one of my stage managers and a parent who'd offered to help. We managed to finish the platforms all together, got them stabalized and secured, as well as to finish building/painting the periactoids. There is still some detail work that the paintings need, but so far we are moving along.
It is a comfort to see things being crossed off of the tech building to-do list. Knowing that building is being accomplished makes me feel a lot more comfortable about the rehearsal process in a whole. Since I am the first director to actually build a set for a SWTA production, its a comfort to know that I really can do this, and that I have a wonderful group of people who are kind enough to help me.
Next week marks the start of the Off-Book date. The students have shown me that many of them have a majority of their lines already memorized, if not the whole thing. The off-book date also means that the songs are due to be memorized, which worries me more than the lines themselves. We shall see on Wednesday!
The dancers took a majority of the students out into what is essentially an atrium to work on the few dance numbers that they had yet to choreograph while I pulled out my few select "wolves" for the forest scenes. I have never had an experience with organic blocking before, and perhaps it isn't the most desirable means to block with students, but I really enjoyed it with these students (who brought many different ideas to the table) and a script that literally spoke out the actions of the characters.
Going off of the Narrators' cues, we walked through the blocking together, and the students would often throw in thier own ideas. Although some of thier ideas were a little more comical than I wanted to include in the final blocking decisions, I was rather proud to see that they could think of those things-particularly from students who weren't sure they wanted to audition at all less than a month ago.
I spent more time with the "main pair" again today, and we worked on some more elaborate character work, and managed to block all of their individual scenes together. I was hoping to have all of the blocking accomplished by today, but I think I'll be able to get it done by Tuesday at the very latest. If I can negotiate the need for the stage for the whole day on Monday, then it will be done sooner.
We have pulled all of the props for the show so far, with the exception of a few that I will need to procure on my own. I am trying to figure out a way that I can accomplish the dead/dying/alive rose(s). My ideas so far are to use live roses, and perhaps instead of rigging a petal to fall on the displayed rose, I can drop a petal onto Belle and Beast from the catwalk. I think this might be a good way to utilize both the presentational style of the show and the symbolism of the rose as well.
After the students left, with the generosity of the school, I was able to stay and work on the set with one of my stage managers and a parent who'd offered to help. We managed to finish the platforms all together, got them stabalized and secured, as well as to finish building/painting the periactoids. There is still some detail work that the paintings need, but so far we are moving along.
It is a comfort to see things being crossed off of the tech building to-do list. Knowing that building is being accomplished makes me feel a lot more comfortable about the rehearsal process in a whole. Since I am the first director to actually build a set for a SWTA production, its a comfort to know that I really can do this, and that I have a wonderful group of people who are kind enough to help me.
Next week marks the start of the Off-Book date. The students have shown me that many of them have a majority of their lines already memorized, if not the whole thing. The off-book date also means that the songs are due to be memorized, which worries me more than the lines themselves. We shall see on Wednesday!
Friday, June 17, 2011
June 16
Much of today's rehearsal was spent on doing tech work and getting blocking into books (which will soon be unnecessary). I spent the first hour and a half working on the blocking with the students, following the same pattern that I have always used as a director: I talked them through the motions first, and then asked them to run it through once or twice while saying the lines. I did some light tweaking through the run throughs, but not a lot of real character work-I'm going to work on the details hopefully next week.
The second half of rehearsal was spent with all of the students working on the dance numbers and the songs, and I went into the scene shop to work on building the set. I have a team of high school students working on the set along with one of my stage managers to be a supervisor.
I asked a friend of mine to come into the scene shop to help build a set of stairs because I have no experience building them on my own from scratch. Thanks to the generosity of my former high school theatre teacher, I have access to a large number of materials, such as wood, tools, flats, and even props that I can use but none of which include a 10ft wide staircase.
My friend and I spent a good hour talking through the use and making of ramps for the student who is wheel-bound. We eventually decided on using the ramps that we had available and lowering the height of the platforms of the set. We weren't able to work for very long, but we hoped to get more done the next day
The second half of rehearsal was spent with all of the students working on the dance numbers and the songs, and I went into the scene shop to work on building the set. I have a team of high school students working on the set along with one of my stage managers to be a supervisor.
I asked a friend of mine to come into the scene shop to help build a set of stairs because I have no experience building them on my own from scratch. Thanks to the generosity of my former high school theatre teacher, I have access to a large number of materials, such as wood, tools, flats, and even props that I can use but none of which include a 10ft wide staircase.
My friend and I spent a good hour talking through the use and making of ramps for the student who is wheel-bound. We eventually decided on using the ramps that we had available and lowering the height of the platforms of the set. We weren't able to work for very long, but we hoped to get more done the next day
June 15
6-15-11
At the midpoint of the week, all of the big numbers have been choreographed. All of the individual "mini" solo roles within the big dance numbers have been cast, and the basic outline of the dances has been established! Both of the choreographers have an incredible technique for designing the dances; They teach the students the whole basic outline of the dances, and add in details and extra movements as they master the basics. This allows them to grasp the main movements, and depending on their progress/time left, they can either add more details or work on perfecting the dance as is-I thought that this was a great idea! And so far, the students have responded really well.
Today marked the first day that I was actually able to spend a good amount of time with the lead actors and spent a lot of time actor coaching. We began with a little bit of table work, and once more I was beyond impressed with the amount of work each of them had already done on their characters. After a little bit of table work we worked on their collective presence as the "main couple" and they responded really well. They showed me what they had worked on so far, and I tweaked it to make their choices a little more effective.
While I am happy that they are thinking of those things, its not always the best idea. Sometimes, I've found that students can get really attached to a certain idea, and tend to close off some of the conflicting ideas that I would like to incorporate. While this hasn't been a big problem with this show so far, I have seen it in some of the actors.
I've found more and more that if I had to work with a large group of students, I would rather work with a large group of younger children. So far, the younger students have been much more coachable, and much more eager and excited to work on different parts of the show. The older students tend to have their own ideas about what they would like to do during rehearsals, and oftentimes aren't as open to the structure of rehearsal as the younger ones. Although, this isn't always the case, and every student is different, and we of course have older students that are very coachable. It's a trend that I have noticed, however, that the younger ones are more eager than the older ones.
At the midpoint of the week, all of the big numbers have been choreographed. All of the individual "mini" solo roles within the big dance numbers have been cast, and the basic outline of the dances has been established! Both of the choreographers have an incredible technique for designing the dances; They teach the students the whole basic outline of the dances, and add in details and extra movements as they master the basics. This allows them to grasp the main movements, and depending on their progress/time left, they can either add more details or work on perfecting the dance as is-I thought that this was a great idea! And so far, the students have responded really well.
Today marked the first day that I was actually able to spend a good amount of time with the lead actors and spent a lot of time actor coaching. We began with a little bit of table work, and once more I was beyond impressed with the amount of work each of them had already done on their characters. After a little bit of table work we worked on their collective presence as the "main couple" and they responded really well. They showed me what they had worked on so far, and I tweaked it to make their choices a little more effective.
While I am happy that they are thinking of those things, its not always the best idea. Sometimes, I've found that students can get really attached to a certain idea, and tend to close off some of the conflicting ideas that I would like to incorporate. While this hasn't been a big problem with this show so far, I have seen it in some of the actors.
I've found more and more that if I had to work with a large group of students, I would rather work with a large group of younger children. So far, the younger students have been much more coachable, and much more eager and excited to work on different parts of the show. The older students tend to have their own ideas about what they would like to do during rehearsals, and oftentimes aren't as open to the structure of rehearsal as the younger ones. Although, this isn't always the case, and every student is different, and we of course have older students that are very coachable. It's a trend that I have noticed, however, that the younger ones are more eager than the older ones.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
In the Arena!
6/13
Today was the day! We finally moved our now 68 person cast into the 400 seat house to have our first experience on the actual size of the stage. The stage, in depth, is actually quite large...much larger than I initially remembered. So, in looking at the stage I was able to solidify the ground plans and see how the dimensions would play out in the designs for the set. This made my job with the tech crew as well as the choreographers a lot easier because I was able to communicate my needs and requests to them with a much greater sense of detail and confidence, which worked out better for everyone.
The students' attitude seemed to go from good to great as well. The excitement about the "real stage" seemed to make the rehearsal process go a lot smoother, and we were able to work out some of the more intricate movements of the dances, and I can see some of the students that I have seen struggle in the past pick up more and more movements of the dances. It's a really awesome experience to see students grasp a concept and to watch their progress as time goes by!
I ended up spending a good majority of the rehearsal in the scene shop. I am quickly learning that my two stage managers are in a word invaluable. It is because of them that I am able to be in 4 different places at once, and know that I can trust the safety of some high school tech students with watchful adult eyes. We were able to establish a list of the things that needed to be done, and it really helped to have students who had worked previously in the space who knew what materials were available and where they could be found. We pulled flats and platforms, and established a list of materials available.
The decision to have rehearsal on July 4th was a big one. I stand by my decision to have the necessary rehearsal, and so I decided to create a note home to parents/family members explaining the necessity of the practice and reassuring that if there are plans in place to be out of town to just let me know and that students would be excused with no problem. Hopefully, these bring about good results and a much clearer form of communication.
I am quickly wishing that I had planned an Actor/Parent meeting as I had with the BCA production. This would have allowed me to more effectively communicate my decisions and policies to the parents and might have avoided possible confusion. So, I am adding that to my list of things to do differently for next time!
6/14
Second day in the rehearsal space. Today we spent another big chunk of time working on the dance numbers. Because the majority of the cast was out working on dance numbers and doing some choral work I was able to work more with the principles, and so far half the show is blocked! It also means that I am not able to see a lot of the work with the choreographer and the musical director, but I have every confidence that they are doing a fantastic job :) The principals are grasping for more and more characterization techniques, but for now I want them to get the basics down before they bite off more than they might be able to chew.
It also helps to be watching the student actors do their thing and to notice just little tiny details that solidify casting decisions. Today, watching a leading actress, I noticed several small details that showed me just how much she had considered her character and that she really was doing lots of work outside of rehearsal to create the best work she could. Having cast members like that, especially in leading positions, makes my job a lot easier, and definitely more rewarding.
Technical work has been going very smoothly. My only concern right now is building a staircase and two ramps for the castle scene (I have an actor on what is essentially a skateboard that replaces his crutches, and need the ramps for him to get on and off the set). I want to make sure that these things are built by experts, and am going to put out a call for parent help tomorrow.
I also settled on a compromise today. After the concern about the July 4th practice, I announced to the cast that if we could get ahead of schedule, and if they could show me that they could work hard enough that we might not need that extra practice, that I would cancel the July 4th practice. I have set the bar high for them, but something tells me that they are going to give it all they've got to surpass it.
More to come later!
Today was the day! We finally moved our now 68 person cast into the 400 seat house to have our first experience on the actual size of the stage. The stage, in depth, is actually quite large...much larger than I initially remembered. So, in looking at the stage I was able to solidify the ground plans and see how the dimensions would play out in the designs for the set. This made my job with the tech crew as well as the choreographers a lot easier because I was able to communicate my needs and requests to them with a much greater sense of detail and confidence, which worked out better for everyone.
The students' attitude seemed to go from good to great as well. The excitement about the "real stage" seemed to make the rehearsal process go a lot smoother, and we were able to work out some of the more intricate movements of the dances, and I can see some of the students that I have seen struggle in the past pick up more and more movements of the dances. It's a really awesome experience to see students grasp a concept and to watch their progress as time goes by!
I ended up spending a good majority of the rehearsal in the scene shop. I am quickly learning that my two stage managers are in a word invaluable. It is because of them that I am able to be in 4 different places at once, and know that I can trust the safety of some high school tech students with watchful adult eyes. We were able to establish a list of the things that needed to be done, and it really helped to have students who had worked previously in the space who knew what materials were available and where they could be found. We pulled flats and platforms, and established a list of materials available.
The decision to have rehearsal on July 4th was a big one. I stand by my decision to have the necessary rehearsal, and so I decided to create a note home to parents/family members explaining the necessity of the practice and reassuring that if there are plans in place to be out of town to just let me know and that students would be excused with no problem. Hopefully, these bring about good results and a much clearer form of communication.
I am quickly wishing that I had planned an Actor/Parent meeting as I had with the BCA production. This would have allowed me to more effectively communicate my decisions and policies to the parents and might have avoided possible confusion. So, I am adding that to my list of things to do differently for next time!
6/14
Second day in the rehearsal space. Today we spent another big chunk of time working on the dance numbers. Because the majority of the cast was out working on dance numbers and doing some choral work I was able to work more with the principles, and so far half the show is blocked! It also means that I am not able to see a lot of the work with the choreographer and the musical director, but I have every confidence that they are doing a fantastic job :) The principals are grasping for more and more characterization techniques, but for now I want them to get the basics down before they bite off more than they might be able to chew.
It also helps to be watching the student actors do their thing and to notice just little tiny details that solidify casting decisions. Today, watching a leading actress, I noticed several small details that showed me just how much she had considered her character and that she really was doing lots of work outside of rehearsal to create the best work she could. Having cast members like that, especially in leading positions, makes my job a lot easier, and definitely more rewarding.
Technical work has been going very smoothly. My only concern right now is building a staircase and two ramps for the castle scene (I have an actor on what is essentially a skateboard that replaces his crutches, and need the ramps for him to get on and off the set). I want to make sure that these things are built by experts, and am going to put out a call for parent help tomorrow.
I also settled on a compromise today. After the concern about the July 4th practice, I announced to the cast that if we could get ahead of schedule, and if they could show me that they could work hard enough that we might not need that extra practice, that I would cancel the July 4th practice. I have set the bar high for them, but something tells me that they are going to give it all they've got to surpass it.
More to come later!
Friday, June 10, 2011
Another Double Header
Once more, I offer a two-fer of notes!
6/9/11
Today would be our last day this week with the choreographers. This provided a great opportunity for the students to have repetition of the songs they missed, as well as to add some choreography to our other big number, the Finale!
The choreographers have designed a routine that is very manageable for all of the age groups of children, and they seem to be picking it up very quickly-not to mention really seeming to enjoy themselves in the process :) Each of the students has taken a responsibility over their part, and could tell the choreographers themselves as to exactly which lines of the song he or she sang, including soloists that needed to be highlighted and which groups of students sang in which parts of the song. It was really rewarding to see them take such a leadership role in each of their individual roles in the show, and it showed me just how important they took this as well.
The students also went another day without scripts in hand and still learning the songs merely by hearing the song itself. I am learning more and more the different types of learning for each of the students and am now able to identify little details about them, such as which students tend to pick up a song easier, and which ones might need a little encouragement to begin singing at all. It has definitely been interesting to see them grow throughout this process, and to see more and more how each one of them works differently.
I have also been able to pass around some of the theatre games that I know onto my stage managers, who seem to really love playing games with them. It is to a point now where I can send off a group of students to work on singing, a group to play games with one of the stage managers while I can do a little character work with some of them.
I feel like up to this point I haven't spent as much time with the students playing the two big leads as I should be. I know that once we are in the performance space that this will change, but I am beginning to have a little guilt at this knowledge.
The next rehearsal marks the last one in the Park District-hopefully, we will have scripts!
6/10/11
They came! The magic box came and now we can say that finally all of the scripts are here and accounted for and ready to go!!!
The students were all very eager to see their scripts-they had been inquiring about them since the start of the rehearsal process, and were all very glad to have their own books that they could write their names in and lay claim to.
Rehearsal with the books also really helped to improve focus level. While they were a big distracting at first, during the singing rehearsals, they helped the students follow along immensely, and I only wish I had been able to get those to them sooner.
Along with scripts came "Family Matters" books, which explained to the students different aspects of theatre and how to properly be an effective member of a theatre troupe. The students were not as excited about these as they were their scripts, but no one left them behind at the end of the day!
Today, I think I have made my first decision as a director that I am now questioning. I have decided to have rehearsal for the students on July 4 because it is the start of our tech week for the show. After looking at all of the conflict sheets, I noticed that only one of the students (out of the 72 that auditioned) marked that day as a conflict. So, at the end of rehearsal, I announced that we were having rehearsal, and it was required that each of the students attend. I fear that I may have angered some parents here, seeing as it would be a long weekend in the summer that might make for a good vacation time, but I also know that no parent marked such an absence on their sheet. They all signed a contract saying that they could be there, but I am now thinking that it IS a national holiday, and maybe that might have stopped them from noting it...
My plan of action is to make sure to address any concerns at the start of practice on Monday, and to reassure students that if their parents have a conflict that I can talk it over with them. Perhaps this is too harsh of a method, but many students have come to me with, "I won't be at practice on (this)day" and I'll ask why to come to an answer that is not a valid conflict, such as leaving for recreational purposes that could easily be postponed until after rehearsal lets out at 12.
Hopefully, I'm wrong and I won't have too many problems, but I have a plan in place if I do, and that is all I can really hope for.
More next week! When we FINALLY get to rehearse in the performance space!
6/9/11
Today would be our last day this week with the choreographers. This provided a great opportunity for the students to have repetition of the songs they missed, as well as to add some choreography to our other big number, the Finale!
The choreographers have designed a routine that is very manageable for all of the age groups of children, and they seem to be picking it up very quickly-not to mention really seeming to enjoy themselves in the process :) Each of the students has taken a responsibility over their part, and could tell the choreographers themselves as to exactly which lines of the song he or she sang, including soloists that needed to be highlighted and which groups of students sang in which parts of the song. It was really rewarding to see them take such a leadership role in each of their individual roles in the show, and it showed me just how important they took this as well.
The students also went another day without scripts in hand and still learning the songs merely by hearing the song itself. I am learning more and more the different types of learning for each of the students and am now able to identify little details about them, such as which students tend to pick up a song easier, and which ones might need a little encouragement to begin singing at all. It has definitely been interesting to see them grow throughout this process, and to see more and more how each one of them works differently.
I have also been able to pass around some of the theatre games that I know onto my stage managers, who seem to really love playing games with them. It is to a point now where I can send off a group of students to work on singing, a group to play games with one of the stage managers while I can do a little character work with some of them.
I feel like up to this point I haven't spent as much time with the students playing the two big leads as I should be. I know that once we are in the performance space that this will change, but I am beginning to have a little guilt at this knowledge.
The next rehearsal marks the last one in the Park District-hopefully, we will have scripts!
6/10/11
They came! The magic box came and now we can say that finally all of the scripts are here and accounted for and ready to go!!!
The students were all very eager to see their scripts-they had been inquiring about them since the start of the rehearsal process, and were all very glad to have their own books that they could write their names in and lay claim to.
Rehearsal with the books also really helped to improve focus level. While they were a big distracting at first, during the singing rehearsals, they helped the students follow along immensely, and I only wish I had been able to get those to them sooner.
Along with scripts came "Family Matters" books, which explained to the students different aspects of theatre and how to properly be an effective member of a theatre troupe. The students were not as excited about these as they were their scripts, but no one left them behind at the end of the day!
Today, I think I have made my first decision as a director that I am now questioning. I have decided to have rehearsal for the students on July 4 because it is the start of our tech week for the show. After looking at all of the conflict sheets, I noticed that only one of the students (out of the 72 that auditioned) marked that day as a conflict. So, at the end of rehearsal, I announced that we were having rehearsal, and it was required that each of the students attend. I fear that I may have angered some parents here, seeing as it would be a long weekend in the summer that might make for a good vacation time, but I also know that no parent marked such an absence on their sheet. They all signed a contract saying that they could be there, but I am now thinking that it IS a national holiday, and maybe that might have stopped them from noting it...
My plan of action is to make sure to address any concerns at the start of practice on Monday, and to reassure students that if their parents have a conflict that I can talk it over with them. Perhaps this is too harsh of a method, but many students have come to me with, "I won't be at practice on (this)day" and I'll ask why to come to an answer that is not a valid conflict, such as leaving for recreational purposes that could easily be postponed until after rehearsal lets out at 12.
Hopefully, I'm wrong and I won't have too many problems, but I have a plan in place if I do, and that is all I can really hope for.
More next week! When we FINALLY get to rehearse in the performance space!
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
A Double dose of rehearsal notes
To make up for one missed day, this post contains two days work of rehearsal notes
6/7/11
Today was going to be the last day of simply singing rehearsals. Since we only have one piano to work with currently, we felt it best to continue perfecting the 2 big numbers (both opening and closing numbers).
The students are starting to really nail the notes. A majority of them came in with a good knowledge of the songs (which is possibly the only reason we have done so well without chorus books for so long) and now we merely need to work on timing. Since we are not using a live orchestra, but instead an accompaniment CD, which means that the timing cannot be altered. However, they have shown remarkable progress so far, and I am very confident in thier abilities.
The students continue to surprise me every day. Every day, each one of them either really nails thier one line solo, or shows me a bit more advanced acting than I would have ever expected. It's definitely a rewarding experience, and its those little moments that remind me why I love doing this every day!
It is an interesting experience watching another person handle the directing aspects alongside me. It reminds me of having to do the group microteachings in my education classes at Monmouth. Each person has their own methods of directing and managing the youth that vary in thier effectiveness. It is also hard to determine which methods work the best. Each of the (now) 68 cast members reacts differently to each director. For the most part, the younger ones respond well to praise and encouragement, while the older ones didn't seem to take me or the other directors seriously until we backed up our encouragement with a little warning and a more direct tone.
6/8
Today marked the first rehearsal with the choreographers! The students had been warned all week about the coming "guests" to rehearsal, and were excited to get started. We did, however, use about 45 minutes of rehearsal to work on the song that they would be dancing to, so that they could begin to connect their singing parts to their dancing parts.
I am not entirely sure if I should have worked both the dancing and the singing at the same time, or if I should have worked a little bit more with them on the singing before we introduced the dancing. Since many of the dance movements were simple steps that they did in large groups, all of them seemed to catch on very quickly, and I could see many of them singing along as they learned the dance. Although I do worry about overloading any of the students, I think that in the end it will work out alright.
Today was also the day that I officially had all of the "every day" helpers come into rehearsal. This included myself, the musical director, 2 volunteer stage managers, and my production assistant. With all of the help, managing all 68 cast members was definitely easier today.
I've noticed more and more that my teacher education has come in quite handy. All of the students, regardless of their age, respond very well to being kept busy, a clear expectation, and a reminder every now and then of the fact that All of the "teachers" in the room are watching them. More often than not, rather than having to constantly ask them to "be quiet and pay attention" I often only have to walk over to thier area and my presence is enough to remind them of what they are to be doing.
6/7/11
Today was going to be the last day of simply singing rehearsals. Since we only have one piano to work with currently, we felt it best to continue perfecting the 2 big numbers (both opening and closing numbers).
The students are starting to really nail the notes. A majority of them came in with a good knowledge of the songs (which is possibly the only reason we have done so well without chorus books for so long) and now we merely need to work on timing. Since we are not using a live orchestra, but instead an accompaniment CD, which means that the timing cannot be altered. However, they have shown remarkable progress so far, and I am very confident in thier abilities.
The students continue to surprise me every day. Every day, each one of them either really nails thier one line solo, or shows me a bit more advanced acting than I would have ever expected. It's definitely a rewarding experience, and its those little moments that remind me why I love doing this every day!
It is an interesting experience watching another person handle the directing aspects alongside me. It reminds me of having to do the group microteachings in my education classes at Monmouth. Each person has their own methods of directing and managing the youth that vary in thier effectiveness. It is also hard to determine which methods work the best. Each of the (now) 68 cast members reacts differently to each director. For the most part, the younger ones respond well to praise and encouragement, while the older ones didn't seem to take me or the other directors seriously until we backed up our encouragement with a little warning and a more direct tone.
6/8
Today marked the first rehearsal with the choreographers! The students had been warned all week about the coming "guests" to rehearsal, and were excited to get started. We did, however, use about 45 minutes of rehearsal to work on the song that they would be dancing to, so that they could begin to connect their singing parts to their dancing parts.
I am not entirely sure if I should have worked both the dancing and the singing at the same time, or if I should have worked a little bit more with them on the singing before we introduced the dancing. Since many of the dance movements were simple steps that they did in large groups, all of them seemed to catch on very quickly, and I could see many of them singing along as they learned the dance. Although I do worry about overloading any of the students, I think that in the end it will work out alright.
Today was also the day that I officially had all of the "every day" helpers come into rehearsal. This included myself, the musical director, 2 volunteer stage managers, and my production assistant. With all of the help, managing all 68 cast members was definitely easier today.
I've noticed more and more that my teacher education has come in quite handy. All of the students, regardless of their age, respond very well to being kept busy, a clear expectation, and a reminder every now and then of the fact that All of the "teachers" in the room are watching them. More often than not, rather than having to constantly ask them to "be quiet and pay attention" I often only have to walk over to thier area and my presence is enough to remind them of what they are to be doing.
Monday, June 6, 2011
6/6/11
Today marks the first rehearsal after the choreographers' call.
The leading choreographers called me and asked me to set up groups of children so that she could more easily choreograph numbers such as "Be Our Guest" and "Belle".
My musical director and I decided that it would be better for her as the vocal expert to pick out the individual singing solos herself. She has also worked with a good number of the cast members before, and most definitely knows their vocal abilities better than I do.
So far, we have managed to work two big numbers (the 2 that we have decided to involve the WHOLE cast, "Belle" and "Finale", consequently the opening and closing numbers of the show) without scripts in a good majority of the student's hands. However, today we decided to change that. After carefully looking at the contract we found something called a Chorus Book for the students, which would be perfect for the students that do not have named parts. It is also significantly cheaper, at less than half the cost per book. After discussing with my supervisor and my vocal director, we decided to purchase 50 chorus books, 50 (more) family matters books, which explain the value of theatre in a community as well as ways to be the most effective production member possible, and 3 rehearsal CD's for Gaston, Belle, and Beast. It was definitely a good thing to actually call up the MTI representative and talk to them and to see what the process of altering a contract is.
It was also an eye opening experience to know that they can make mistakes too. Many aspects of their contract were inaccurate, and to be able to find that, and to perhaps add a level of humanity to the legal issues. It went a long way to reassuring me of what I was doing.
I have a growing concern in an actor, particularly a lead actor, leaving rehearsal early today to have surgery on his foot. I am told by him that he will be fine by performance time, but it is definitely a concern. Although, it was the first of many today. I officially was told that 4 members of the cast have dropped out, although thankfully they are members of the chorus whose absences are much more easily managed. I was also worried when I had another lead cast member tell me that she would be gone for almost 2 weeks, cutting right up until the final dress rehearsal. I calmly explained to the young actress that such a large absence should have been noted on her audition form, and that I would be assigning her an understudy. Unfortunately, said actress was moved quite literally to tears at the thought, and so after rehearsal I spoke to her guardian/parent. It turns out that her absence is actually going to be only 4 days during the week before tech week, which is much more manageable...although, it was definitely a first for me to have to worry about replacing an actress.
Today also marked the first bout of unacceptable behavior from some of the students. While the student in question has some social disabilities, it is still not acceptable to be hitting other students repeatedly because "its funny" during rehearsal. This was a difficult position for me, one that I very carefully had to handle. Luckily, I was able to witness the situation, so I knew exactly what had happened. But there have been reports from other students that he has done this before, and now I'm wondering if I handled those as well as I could have.
I am also starting to question my decision to double cast the student playing "Gaston" as the "Prince"...while I know that I originally wanted to have a second student ready to step in as the Prince while I had someone else as the Beast, I'm thinking that I might have chosen the wrong character....but I am also not exactly swimming in male high schoolers to choose from. Now I am considering keeping the Beast the same, and merely pulling off his mask and fur coverings and replacing his jacket. I think that with the right tech crew I could do it very quickly, and it might work out better that way. However, for now I am still undecided.
So far, this experience has been beyond incredible...despite not being in my actual performance space, I think that we are making great progress. I am very truly excited to move forward as much as possible in the coming weeks!
The leading choreographers called me and asked me to set up groups of children so that she could more easily choreograph numbers such as "Be Our Guest" and "Belle".
My musical director and I decided that it would be better for her as the vocal expert to pick out the individual singing solos herself. She has also worked with a good number of the cast members before, and most definitely knows their vocal abilities better than I do.
So far, we have managed to work two big numbers (the 2 that we have decided to involve the WHOLE cast, "Belle" and "Finale", consequently the opening and closing numbers of the show) without scripts in a good majority of the student's hands. However, today we decided to change that. After carefully looking at the contract we found something called a Chorus Book for the students, which would be perfect for the students that do not have named parts. It is also significantly cheaper, at less than half the cost per book. After discussing with my supervisor and my vocal director, we decided to purchase 50 chorus books, 50 (more) family matters books, which explain the value of theatre in a community as well as ways to be the most effective production member possible, and 3 rehearsal CD's for Gaston, Belle, and Beast. It was definitely a good thing to actually call up the MTI representative and talk to them and to see what the process of altering a contract is.
It was also an eye opening experience to know that they can make mistakes too. Many aspects of their contract were inaccurate, and to be able to find that, and to perhaps add a level of humanity to the legal issues. It went a long way to reassuring me of what I was doing.
I have a growing concern in an actor, particularly a lead actor, leaving rehearsal early today to have surgery on his foot. I am told by him that he will be fine by performance time, but it is definitely a concern. Although, it was the first of many today. I officially was told that 4 members of the cast have dropped out, although thankfully they are members of the chorus whose absences are much more easily managed. I was also worried when I had another lead cast member tell me that she would be gone for almost 2 weeks, cutting right up until the final dress rehearsal. I calmly explained to the young actress that such a large absence should have been noted on her audition form, and that I would be assigning her an understudy. Unfortunately, said actress was moved quite literally to tears at the thought, and so after rehearsal I spoke to her guardian/parent. It turns out that her absence is actually going to be only 4 days during the week before tech week, which is much more manageable...although, it was definitely a first for me to have to worry about replacing an actress.
Today also marked the first bout of unacceptable behavior from some of the students. While the student in question has some social disabilities, it is still not acceptable to be hitting other students repeatedly because "its funny" during rehearsal. This was a difficult position for me, one that I very carefully had to handle. Luckily, I was able to witness the situation, so I knew exactly what had happened. But there have been reports from other students that he has done this before, and now I'm wondering if I handled those as well as I could have.
I am also starting to question my decision to double cast the student playing "Gaston" as the "Prince"...while I know that I originally wanted to have a second student ready to step in as the Prince while I had someone else as the Beast, I'm thinking that I might have chosen the wrong character....but I am also not exactly swimming in male high schoolers to choose from. Now I am considering keeping the Beast the same, and merely pulling off his mask and fur coverings and replacing his jacket. I think that with the right tech crew I could do it very quickly, and it might work out better that way. However, for now I am still undecided.
So far, this experience has been beyond incredible...despite not being in my actual performance space, I think that we are making great progress. I am very truly excited to move forward as much as possible in the coming weeks!
Friday, June 3, 2011
It's not over until the....small children...sing :)
Friday 6/3 Rehearsal
Today marked the second rehearsal for B and B Jr.
We spent a good majority of the day working on the opening number (in terms of singing). Surprisingly, the kids made it through a good portion of the day without scripts and doing rather well. I'm chalking this up to the songs being very familiar, and them knowing the words from watching the movies. However, towards the end of the day, it appeared that scripts at least for a few measures were necessary.
The choreographer was there today-she observed most of the day, taking notes. She seemed a lot younger than I expected, but she also seemed very friendly. I asked her many questions, wondering if she needed anything from me or Lana, asking her what she was thinking, any ideas that she had, and had little luck. She looked over the DVD that came in the ShowKit, and was not particularly interested in using what she saw, so I'm not quite sure what she and Jenny are thinking of doing, but knowing their work from having seen some of thier dance recitals, I know it will be fantastic.
In order to make up for them not being at auditions, we had all of the kids get together to make a "dance party". I encouraged the children to, if they had it, show off their dance training. Overall, the choreographer asked me the names of some of the children (I had given her a roster with their names, ages, and level of experience in acting/singing/dance but she needed to be able to put a name to a face) but other than that, I am actually quite unaware of what she gleaned from attending today's rehearsal.
For those students that are not in the opening number, I sent them out into the hallway and into the adjacent room to memorize. Many of the older students have also asked about character creation techniques, and we have worked on objectives and figuring out exactly who their characters are. Many of the older students are perspective theatre majors in college, and are eager to learn about acting exercises and how they can better create their characters.
I also talked to the older ones today about how to be a leader, and what I expected of them, and sort of officially gave them their unwritten roles as the older ones of the bunch. They were all eager to participate, and will be a great asset to the show :)
I have begun to worry about the amount of time that I will have to complete the set. Because I will not be in our space that we will be performing in until the 13th, I am worried that I will not have time to build all 3 sets that are needed. I do have a tech team that I can call on, and am planning on putting out a call for parent help next week to come in and help us build sets, particularly the castle (which will be the biggest challenge).
That's all for now...more to come later!
Today marked the second rehearsal for B and B Jr.
We spent a good majority of the day working on the opening number (in terms of singing). Surprisingly, the kids made it through a good portion of the day without scripts and doing rather well. I'm chalking this up to the songs being very familiar, and them knowing the words from watching the movies. However, towards the end of the day, it appeared that scripts at least for a few measures were necessary.
The choreographer was there today-she observed most of the day, taking notes. She seemed a lot younger than I expected, but she also seemed very friendly. I asked her many questions, wondering if she needed anything from me or Lana, asking her what she was thinking, any ideas that she had, and had little luck. She looked over the DVD that came in the ShowKit, and was not particularly interested in using what she saw, so I'm not quite sure what she and Jenny are thinking of doing, but knowing their work from having seen some of thier dance recitals, I know it will be fantastic.
In order to make up for them not being at auditions, we had all of the kids get together to make a "dance party". I encouraged the children to, if they had it, show off their dance training. Overall, the choreographer asked me the names of some of the children (I had given her a roster with their names, ages, and level of experience in acting/singing/dance but she needed to be able to put a name to a face) but other than that, I am actually quite unaware of what she gleaned from attending today's rehearsal.
For those students that are not in the opening number, I sent them out into the hallway and into the adjacent room to memorize. Many of the older students have also asked about character creation techniques, and we have worked on objectives and figuring out exactly who their characters are. Many of the older students are perspective theatre majors in college, and are eager to learn about acting exercises and how they can better create their characters.
I also talked to the older ones today about how to be a leader, and what I expected of them, and sort of officially gave them their unwritten roles as the older ones of the bunch. They were all eager to participate, and will be a great asset to the show :)
I have begun to worry about the amount of time that I will have to complete the set. Because I will not be in our space that we will be performing in until the 13th, I am worried that I will not have time to build all 3 sets that are needed. I do have a tech team that I can call on, and am planning on putting out a call for parent help next week to come in and help us build sets, particularly the castle (which will be the biggest challenge).
That's all for now...more to come later!
Thursday, June 2, 2011
First Rehearsal
6/2/11
Today marked the first day of rehearsal for the SWTA production of Beauty and the Beast, Jr.!
I arrived close to an hour early, hoping to get in touch with the park director to make sure that everything was ready to go with the forms for the park (it being a summer program, and needing to pay to be involved and such). Come to find out that I was there a half hour before she arrived for the day. I spent my time studying my temporary rehearsal space (it being a common room, very long and narrow with a maximum capacity of 60 people for my now 73 cast show (plus the grown-ups). I am choosing to mark it as yet another fire safety related theatre experience, and moving on.
Rehearsal began, in typical fashion for a director, of being swamped with people, questions, concerns, and issues. I honestly felt like a bait ball in a crowd of Blue Fin Tuna. However, much was communicated and accomplished, so it was very successful.
Well, once everyone had gotten a bite, I realized that it wasn't actually that late in the allotted rehearsal time and my vocal director began starting the students in on a vocal warm up rehearsal. This was a slight shock for me, because I hadn't known that she had started rehearsal, but it worked out quite well. The students were now organized and starting their work on the show.
The rest of rehearsal was made up of lots of paperwork, and talking about how we were going to behave as a cast family. We did manage to use a good majority of the rehearsal for a read through (which worked out well despite our decision to only purchase scripts for those with principle parts) and began to work on the opening number in terms of vocal work.
I took the other students not involved in the opening number and began running through memorization work as well as some table work for the older students involved.
I think though that I should have allotted time to talk to the high school students about their positions as leaders in this community project. I plan on doing so tomorrow, but I do feel that it is something that I will make sure to work on the first day in my next Children's Theatre production.
Tomorrow, we introduce one of our choreographers and hopefully the dance/acting/singing leaders of the production (myself, Lana, and the choreographers) will be able to sit down and discuss details.
That's all for now-more to come tomorrow!
Today marked the first day of rehearsal for the SWTA production of Beauty and the Beast, Jr.!
I arrived close to an hour early, hoping to get in touch with the park director to make sure that everything was ready to go with the forms for the park (it being a summer program, and needing to pay to be involved and such). Come to find out that I was there a half hour before she arrived for the day. I spent my time studying my temporary rehearsal space (it being a common room, very long and narrow with a maximum capacity of 60 people for my now 73 cast show (plus the grown-ups). I am choosing to mark it as yet another fire safety related theatre experience, and moving on.
Rehearsal began, in typical fashion for a director, of being swamped with people, questions, concerns, and issues. I honestly felt like a bait ball in a crowd of Blue Fin Tuna. However, much was communicated and accomplished, so it was very successful.
Well, once everyone had gotten a bite, I realized that it wasn't actually that late in the allotted rehearsal time and my vocal director began starting the students in on a vocal warm up rehearsal. This was a slight shock for me, because I hadn't known that she had started rehearsal, but it worked out quite well. The students were now organized and starting their work on the show.
The rest of rehearsal was made up of lots of paperwork, and talking about how we were going to behave as a cast family. We did manage to use a good majority of the rehearsal for a read through (which worked out well despite our decision to only purchase scripts for those with principle parts) and began to work on the opening number in terms of vocal work.
I took the other students not involved in the opening number and began running through memorization work as well as some table work for the older students involved.
I think though that I should have allotted time to talk to the high school students about their positions as leaders in this community project. I plan on doing so tomorrow, but I do feel that it is something that I will make sure to work on the first day in my next Children's Theatre production.
Tomorrow, we introduce one of our choreographers and hopefully the dance/acting/singing leaders of the production (myself, Lana, and the choreographers) will be able to sit down and discuss details.
That's all for now-more to come tomorrow!
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