Backstage @ New Rep

Summer Studio Week 2

2009-07-13T10:29:00.003-04:00

Hi, everyone!

Liz here again. We had a great first week with our strong group of students at Summer Studio. There are so many highlights, I'm not sure where to begin. One piece that was especially exciting for the group to work on was "Mama Who Bore Me" from Spring Awakening. At one point, Ben (New Rep Summer Studio, Musical Director) referred to them as a "choir of angels" singing -- which was an apt comparison. The group is also interested in looking at some of the original Bill T Jones choreography, so Wendy (New Rep Summer Studio, Choreographer) is looking into recreating some of his signature swirly moves. We also worked on "Invocation and Instructions to the Audience" from Frogs, which stretches our comic acting skills. Our facial muscle isolations and work on focal points are coming in handy -- and the group is seeing that Nathan Lane was not built in a day!

On Friday, we worked on monologues, which can be daunting and intense, especially on a sunny Friday summer afternoon. They dove right in, analyzing text for salient words, establishing objectives, and creating a physical life for their characters. It truly wowed me that their early work was so rich and their readings so expressive and natural. (On a practical note, I'm glad they'll be able to rock upcoming auditions with this new material.)

Oh, and how could I forget our new best friend Maurice Parent?! Part of the New Rep’s cast of Ragtime, Wild Party, and Cabaret, funny and charming Maurice came to chat with us about his life as a working actor and creating the role of black in Wild Party, whose music and original text we had sampled earlier in the day.

This morning, I'm watching Wendy give a technique class, and wishing more schools would have formal dance instruction as part of their arts curriculum so teens could have great teachers like Wendy. (There, I said it. Write your school boards!) Later today, each student will show a piece of their own choreography they created this weekend as "homework." One student told me this morning that she's done a production number and we each have a part. I guess I'd better go stretch!

Summer Studio is Sizzling!

2009-07-07T11:24:00.002-04:00

Hi, New Rep fans!

I'm Liz, director of this year's Summer Studio: "Page to Stage." Over the next few weeks, we will be exploring the connections between some of our favorite musicals (like Frogs, Oliver, Applause, Damn Yankees, and Wicked) and the works of literature that inspired them. (Our awesome education intern, Jason Simon, is busy amassing a research library for us!)

Today was our first day, and the group of teen performers is truly fabulous! Wendy Hall, choreographer extraordinaire, gave a great dance technique class this morning and taught a fun 1980s dance combination. In the afternoon, our new best friend and music director Ben Rauhala busted out some of the company numbers for our Showcase (July 30, 7pm, in the Mosesian Theatre). The group was singing in three-part harmony by the end of the afternoon, which is a huge accomplishment on the first day! Best of all, everyone seemed to be having a good time, and the group went off to lunch break chatting like old friends.

A new component of this year's studio is the inclusion of workshops that will encourage these young artists to take on the creative roles of choreographer, playwright, and director. Keep reading to see what this group can do!

Liz Fenstermaker
on behalf of the Summer Studio team

Exciting Changes

2009-04-21T10:12:00.003-04:00

Hi Everyone,

As we are preparing for the New Voices @ New Rep reading of DEPORTED / a dream play, Joyce has been rewriting the script based on our discoveries in the Boston University New Plays Initiative Workshop (please see my earlier entries).There are some major, exciting changes a-brewing! The dream-like quality of the play is growing and characters deepening and changing. I am so looking forward to sharing these changes with you in a public setting!

We have also confirmed the majority of our panel for discussion after the reading about the place theater has in the public discussion and processing on the issue of the Armenian Genocide. We are thrilled to have some wonderful members of the Armenian community on our panel including Ruth Thomasian (Founder and Executive Director of Project Save, the Armenian Photo Archive), Dr. Martin Deranian (the real life son of one of the principle characters in DEPORTED), Mariam Stepanyan (Executive Director, Armenian Library and Museum) and Tina Sajonian (President, BU Armenian Student Association).

We hope you will join us on Monday, May 4th at 7:30 pm for the reading of DEPORTED / a dream play!

Best,
Judy Braha
Director

Discovering Cultural Components

2009-04-13T10:12:00.005-04:00

Hi Everyone,

In February, we had a very exciting experience with DEPORTED / a dream play! Boston University New Plays Initiative gave us the opportunity to work on further developing an already strong script via a workshop production of the play with BU School of Theater students. Joyce and I spent 5 weeks working on the play in rehearsal with 9 BU actors and 3 designers. This rehearsal and performance process was invaluable to us! We learned a huge amount about the world of the play, the characters, the style and the use of Armenian dance, music and film images.

We had the extreme pleasure of collaborating with Apo Ashjian, Artistic Director of SAYAT NOVA DANCE COMPANY. Apo taught the actors in the workshop traditional Armenian dance that wove throughout the scenes of the play. We made some wonderful discoveries about how essential these cultural components were in weaving the play together and evoking a whole culture in a very private world. It became clear that these elements gave us a real link to finding the universal in the particular, to linking the vibrancy of the Armenian culture to the difficult memories of the genocide. It has been most important to us that we speak for life in this play and the opportunity to work with Apo and sound designers Liz Wallbridge and GW Roderigez in adding the dance and sound of historic Armenia to the play helped us immensely!

The reading for the New Rep will be the first reading of the newly revised script based on our discoveries from the BU New Plays Initiative workshop!

Best,
Judy Braha

DEPORTED/ a dream play

2009-04-06T15:06:00.002-04:00

Hi New Rep Bloggers!

I am the director of the upcoming play in NewVoices @ New Rep's reading series, DEPORTED / a dream play. The play will be read at 7:30pm on Monday May 4, 2009! I have been working with playwright, Joyce Van Dyke (A GIRL’S WAR), and a company of ten actors for over two years to create a play based on Armenian genocide survivor stories. Using survivor oral history interviews from the Armenian Library and Museum (ALMA) as well as documents, letters and personal reminiscences by survivors and their descendants, we began holding improvisational workshops based on this material, developing characters, theatrical images and story lines. We began without a script and the script grew out of our collaborative process. The actors in our developmental company include some New Rep favorites, Bobbie Steinbach and Ken Baltin!

The play is a true story based on that of 2 friends— the playwright’s grandmother, Elmas and her close friend, Varter Nazarian Deranian. In dreams and memories, the play conjures worlds of the past as well as the future. It covers events from 1915 to beyond 2015!

We look forward to reading the play at New Rep! This will be our first public reading of the newest version of the play, which continues to evolve! I will be posting thoughts and information about the project regularly! We look forward to hearing from you on this blog and starting a conversation!

Best,
Judy Braha
Director, DEPORTED / a dream play

Welcome!

2009-03-31T23:52:00.003-04:00

Greetings from John Malinowski, lighting designer for New Rep's production of Picasso at the Lapin Agile. I'll be blogging here.

What a wonderful play Steve Martin has written and I can't wait to help bring it to life on the stage in Watertown at the Arsenal Center for the Arts. Danny Gidron, the director, Cristina Todesco, the set designer, Frances McSherry, the costume designer and I met a few weeks ago to brainstorm about the world of a bar in Paris in 1904, which is where Steve Martin set his play.

We decided that the specific period of Paris in the 1900s is a spark that ignited the playwright's imagination. The world of the play is much bigger than Paris in 1904. Steve Martin has imagined a bar where Picasso and Einstein might meet. What would they talk about? What sort of conversation could a brilliant artist and a brilliant scientist have in Paris together? What do they have in common?

I have not seen a production of this popular play, but after hearing the premise of Picasso and Einstein meeting in Paris, I was intrigued. I read the play fresh and open minded about what encounter Picasso and Einstein might have in the mind of brilliant comic.

I'll leave this entry here, where I began several months ago. A script in hand, the famous names etched in my mind, and a modern day comedian bringing them together.

The possibilities put a smile on my face as I sat down to read the script for the first time.

Please come back soon and share my journey.

- john malinowski

Fight Directing "Fool for Love"

2009-03-23T11:03:00.005-04:00

Hello all,

This is Meron Langsner again. This time I’d like to give a quick overview of the fight directing process for Fool for Love.

Like any other design discipline, fight directing begins with the text. After giving the play an initial read, I go through it once more notating any violence or potential violence and where it fits into the script and plot structure. Those notes get sent to the Director, Bridget Kathleen O'Leary, and she and I have a conversation about what she wants out of each moment of violence so that I can go into the choreography with the entire concept of the production in mind.

Something that came up right away was the use of a lasso in this play. Lassoing is not a commonly practiced movement discipline around here and was not a part of my own training, so this was wisdom I had to seek elsewhere. An old friend of mine from martial arts circles, Dr. Peter Ward, an anatomy professor at West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine as well as the head instructor of Greenbrier Traditional Martial Arts Society, happened to have this skill (he is from Wyoming). He came to our aid with a short instructional video he created and sent our way via the internet. This was useful not only in helping Tim Smith obtain that skill, but also in deciding on how certain set pieces would be placed in order to serve both the safety of everyone involved and that specific series of dramatic moments.

Before rehearsals started I attended a production meeting where I was able to assess how I would work within the parameters of the set and costume design, and equally important, get a feel for how the concept was coming together so that everything I composed would fit in with the whole. Ideally, it should be unclear to the audience where my work begins and ends in relation to the director’s. Knowing what the designs look like is an important aspect in making this happen. Questions I ask set designers include whether or not certain set pieces can take weight and/or impact, as well as whether small set pieces can be moved around and used in the fights. When looking at costume designs I need to know how much freedom of movement the performers will have as well as what kind of shoes they might be wearing during the fights.

The main part of my job, the work with the actors themselves, can often be very brief. In this case the entire composition of the fights took something like two ninety minute rehearsals early in the process, followed by a return trip to watch a dress rehearsal and give notes.

As my actors in this piece are very physically adept, I was able to give them some fairly difficult moves with confidence that they would assimilate them into their work safely and effectively. For some sequences they were given very precise movements meant to create very specific illusions. These were drilled in the moments they needed to happen, and then set. For some of those moments the actors and I showed Bridget some options and then we decided which one was most effective choice for that point in the characters’ journey. For other sequences, I gave the actors a framework in which to safely improvise the violence during the rehearsal process before setting it. In those sequences I used a “contemporary violence” technique developed by a woman named Ricki Ravitts, who is an esteemed fight director based out of New York City and one of my first instructors in the discipline. In this method the actors can create some fairly intense movement while staying both physically and emotionally safe. Many of the scenes between Tim and Stacy were developed with Ricki’s methods. The scene between Tim and Andrew was mostly “by the book” as it were, since the moment called for in the script is so specific.

Towards the end of the rehearsal process I attended a dress rehearsal and gave notes. The adjustments I had to make in this case were few and minor. An angle on one illusion had to be reset to sell well for the entire audience, and other than that all that was really necessary was to check in with the actors to make sure they still felt safe and comfortable with the choreography.

The violence in Fool for Love is an integral part of the storytelling. Though there are relatively few moments of actual assault on stage, each one is crafted into the play to move the plot forward.

The Last Word

2009-03-13T11:14:00.002-04:00

March 13th

Well, it had to happen some time, the last words, the last words on this particular blog about this particular production. Who knows, it might be the last time I get asked to write a blog for New Rep, who knows and God forbid, but it might be the last time I ever work for New Rep. If life has taught me one thing, never expect anything, never assume, never predict and never take anything for granted.

I don't mean that negatively, really I don't, as I was saying to a friend of Will's, sorry Mr. Lyman, last night, I mentioned that the play makes you think about all that has happened in the past. To be honest, it also makes you think of what may and will come. It's a play of emotion, passion, all that matters, and all that doesn't matter.

There were a couple of things that happened last night, which whoever is reading this, may find interesting, and if you don't, well sorry about that. Still, I will try to give one last little insight to our goings on, for you our little stage junkie.

Last night, Will, or rather the character he plays André, was half way through his first speech as Oedipus, and there I was sitting in the chair happily listening to him, when all of a sudden it dawned on me, 'I never get tired of listening to this speech’, and yet I hated studying Oedipus at school. Perhaps it is because of a really rather dull teacher I had, but then again I'd seen the RSC do the play, and I was bored stiff with that. However, there I was thinking, 'I never get tired of Andre's Oedipus', and then I thought, 'I better start listening for my cue, otherwise I'll stuff it up and then I'll be mad for the rest of the show'.

The second thing, last night in the scene when I'm telling André about my new play, I was thinking, 'who the heck is talking, whose voice is it? It's coming out of me, but who is it?'

Was I 'in the moment'? I don't think so, after all I've been 'in the moment' before, when emotionally I am fully involved and present in the situation. But last night, it was the first time that the character was all there, and I felt possessed. I wasn't having to be conscious of my accent and inflection. It was all just coming out, a South African voice coming from my mouth, and I couldn't control it. Or as Mr. Lyman, put it, the characters are now in charge.

Finally, it's not because I want my own little 'Oscar' moment, but I just want to say thank you to the individuals I have worked with on Exits and Entrances. For they all deserve a mention.

Thank you for reading my blog. Thanks to Will Lyman (André), Chris Jorie (Director), Amy Weissenstein (Stage Manager), Candice Mongellow (Assist Stage Manager, Danielle Kellerman (Assistant Director), John Malinowski (Lighting Designer), Eric Propp (Costume Designer), Patrick Lynch (Scenic Designer), Basia Goszczynska (Prop Mistress), Dave Wilson (Sound Designer), and Ben Bryant, (The Lighting Dude)! What a team!

Also, my thanks to: Harriet Sheets (Managing Director) , Bridget O'Leary (Artistic Associate), Gia Podobinski (PR & Marketing Manger), Alison Anderson (General Manager), Mark Soucy (Development Manager), Desiree Pedrami (Development & Marketing Asst.), Christopher Webb (Education Associate), Becca Solomont (Cultivation Coordinator), Todd Michael Hall (Audience Services Manager), Rachael Donnelly (Box Office Associate), and of course Joseph O'Dea (Production Manager), (you may like the Yankees, but you are okay with me). The New Rep team! Thank you, and thank you!

Finally, to the House Managers: Dawn, Alison, Anna, Desiree and the new girls. Thank you. Oh and of course, my thanks to all the Ushers, you do a grand job and you are most appreciated.

Well that's it! Good day, God Bless, and hopefully till the next time. If there isn't one, well c'est la vie, and so adieu!

Ross

An Update

2009-03-11T13:25:00.003-04:00

March 9th

Well as the weather wracks outside my window with wind, rain, snow and then whatever else has been picked up and blown across to rattle along our street. As this is all going on and the cats lie at my feet, I thought I better keep my word and jot a few more notes down for your enjoyment.

But firstly, I would like to thank the audiences. Yes, I would like to thank the public that have graced us with their company. For after all without our nightly paying guests, our performance, our 'art' would be nothing. So many thanks to you all, a very key ingredient to our production. I'd also if I may, take the opportunity to thank the House Managers and ushers, who keep the peace, tidy the theatre, become the welcoming faces at the start of the night and especially to the House Managers and Todd and Rachael in the box office who look after the theatre as we thrash about on stage. Oh and a big thanks to anyone who has kept up with my waffle, poor spelling and lapses in grammar. Oh and before I forget a big thank you to Jon and his willingness to talk about his experiences at The Market Theatre in Soweto in the 70's and 80's.

So if you had read my last blog, I described how I tried to avoid direct emotional experience to enhance the performance. Unfortunately, I didn't say it was unavoidable, did I? Also while working so closely with Will for so long, there are now those moments on stage where I don't know if it's 'in the moment' or the fact that as I've shared the company so long with this incarnation of Andre, that I really do get very choked with emotion at the end, and as a by product I can't help reflecting on my friends and loved ones that I have lost in my life.

As for talking about losing my Dad, I thought about that for a snap second on Saturday, and I nearly lost the plot, so I will stick to thinking of my character's father in future, and after all isn't that what having the God given gift of imagination is all about. That after all is what part of the challenge of acting is - the use of imagination.

One thing that I should report, last night as Andre was saying 'To be or not to be', I lapsed into dwelling on one friend I lost recently. Guardsman Darryl Hickey KIA in Helmand, Afghanistan 2007. So I suppose Daz, that one was for you. I also want to add that once again this has been one of my most treasured Theatrical experiences and I will always be in debt to Mr. Lyman. After all 'Everybody loves Will'. (If you have been to the talkbacks you'd really know what I'm talking about, although yes there is a little bit of inspiration to Raymond.)

Well must go.

Yours Aye,
Ross

Keeping it fresh

2009-03-06T17:49:00.004-05:00

March 6th

The awful truth dawned on me last night, we haven't got long left! It's bad enough to know that after a year, I actually don't know when I will act again. But compounded to that fact, we have only days left to go, okay a week and a bit, but really it's not long left, and it's sad. Well it, the situation, saddens me, after all shortly I will be like the 'Playwright' reflecting on what has been.

Oh well, lets not get too depressed, after all, the good news, you (whoever you may be) will not have much of my blogging waffle left. I will try and provide enough amusement over the last few articles, although sadly not much scandal.

We had the added joy of a double show yesterday, which during the break I managed to enjoy a nice hard run to and from Cambridge. Word to other like minded actors, it's a great way to enjoy those double show days and a way of not spending your hard earned pennies in the delights of Pannera.

Alright, I know this is all really a lot of harmless waffle, so for anyone that may be wanting to glean some sort of, words of wisdom about 'the craft' of acting during production.

Well firstly you've come to the wrong place, but secondly in all seriousness, I'd say the following. We or rather I, during my drama school training was encouraged to 'the colouring of the word', this is especially useful in Shakespeare and indeed any well written play. You see, day in, day out, you cannot rely on being ' in the moment' it's not always there for you, especially during a long run.

At least it's not for me, and if it is for you, good for you, but if you are putting yourself through an extreme emmotional process day in, day out, and bear in mind I've been off book for 5 weeks, and I've been in productions that have lasted two months, it's not healthy, I mean after all I have to talk about a Father dying in this one. If I thought about my actual Dad, (who thankfully is still here in good health and long may he be), I'd be a wreck by now.

So anyway what I try to do, to keep it fresh, is that I try to keep everything new, by the way in which I work the script. I basically think about what I am saying (I can hear my mother saying, 'that's a first'), I let each thought come to me as I am finishing the last thought, just in the way I am writing this lot of old nonsense at the moment. I'm moving from one sentance to another, and if I find a particularly colourful thing to say, well I go ahead and say it. Sometimes, when I talk about the moon, I think about a full moon that I've seen on a clear night in Spain, the Alps, Africa, and even on all those clear nights in Afghanistan and when I talk about that moon, I really try and say it with the feeling of the way I saw one of those moons.

If I talk about dying I give the necessary weight to the word, the inference of the pain and the suffering, and the loss, but I really try to avoid thinking about the loved ones who've gone, or even those odd occasions when I dealt with death out there in Helmand Province in 2007. Occasionally I admit things slip, last night for example my final scene with Andre, I couldn't help but think about my old friend and neighbour, Michael Murray-Grant, and before I dwelt on his loss, I cheered myself on the bitter sweet moments of late night heated debates over numerous bottles of this and that. All this going on, whilst waiting for my cue, and staying in the scene, so you see for all those who go through the psycho-emmotional method, sometimes you'll find yourself so wrapped up in the process, that you'll forget about the person you are dealing with and the scene you're in.

On the other hand there are those who need to work on their gravitas, anyway before I sound like a critic. I'll be off The wife will be home soon, we need to have some time together, and of course give some attention to the cats.

Good day, God Bless and talk to you soon.

Ross

First Week of Performances

2009-03-06T17:29:00.005-05:00

4th March

Well here we are 5 days later and still nothing of note. So really here we go!

Our first week of performances is well and truly over. Our director has gone west, seeking new opportunities, so sadly Boston's loss is California's gain. I am selfishly keeping fingers crossed that Chris has a successful meeting or two in San Francisco as Alison (the wife) and I would love a working holiday out there, well work for me, holiday for her!

We started last week, with a preview with more than a glitch or two! Which was frustrating in itself, and hardly a nice warm up for our 'first night', but well Will and I put that behind us and took 'Press Night' in our stride. Adrenaline was a big mainstay, and it wasn't so much the idea of 'the press' that stirred the nerves, but more the fact that Kate Warner, New Rep's new Artistic Director, was out there, and a few too many peers of the Boston Theatre World. Thankfully there were also a lot of 'home fans' in friends, and of course the wife! All in all it was an enjoyable night and a good way to kick off 'the week'.

The funny thing about when a show is up and running, there is always the challenge of keeping it fresh, of trying to keep it new, not to dwell on 'bits' that seemed to go so much better the night before, or as was the case on Sunday night, finding something so new that it completely throws you and you forget your next three lines!

I am told the audience weren't aware of the mistake, but it wasn't helped by the fact that in the matinee, I was so sure I said my line, that I didn't know I hadn't, until Will informed me after the show, which explained the strange line that he threw to me as a lifeline. Still it's what keeps us on our toes!

It's been a long time, since I've enjoyed myself so much on a show. The script is simply fantastic, and the story of the friendship that centres around these two men is incredible. (It actually reminds me of a friendship I had with a neighbour, who sadly passed away about three years ago.)

I also can't get over how much I am enjoying my craft each and every night out there on the stage. I admit though from time to time I am getting a little tired pulling 'listening faces', and sometimes wondering if I am overacting in my listening, but so far Will has said nothing!

I am sure he will, if my 'shocked face', grows to 'oh my goodness, an Oscar for me' face. Mind you if in the ten million to one unlikely event of that happening, I think I'd be expressionless due to the fact that I would have keeled over and died from the surprise of not only winning but also the fact that I should have put a dollar down on those odds!

Ross

Friendship and Revelations in Rehersal

2009-02-16T17:54:00.004-05:00

February 16th

It's funny what comes out of the rehearsal process, and when I say this I am talking about matters that will not be evident when we get onto the stage. If any of these other matters, do happen to appear on our performance nights, I can safely say that they will more likely be found to be sitting in the audience.

I'm sorry I don't mean to be so cryptic, but I am trying to introduce such subjects as friendship, memories from the past, and perhaps I may even touch open all the discoveries I have made in the last week that I genuinely believe have helped me adding a deeper layer to the character of "the Playwright" in Exits and Entrances.

Friendship, to a degree is what you will see in our production it's after all a story that involves a friendship. A friendship of many levels and the way in which that friendship changes in a period over five years. Well needless to say, by working on such topics one soon thinks of one's own personal friendships and relationships. I think of my wife, my parents, my brother, my Grandparents both of blood and adoptive, of friends I've made over the years, the ones I've met whislt working as an actor, my army mates, old school friends and of course my childhood friends. I think of my close friendships, ones that have lasted over the years, and the brief but happy friendships over my rugby years, as well as the close ones made. You end up considering all the valuable lessons and experiences you gained in the company of others and the heartbreak and anger when friendships have ended.

We humans are a funny animal species, most of us thrive in being able to be in the company of others, we can't or at least I can't be happy in my own company for any considerable length of time. It's as though we are only complete by a relationship with others, and sometimes we find it in a spiritual format but we also need the actual physical presence of someone to at least share a chat and a bit of laughter.

So you see there has been quite alot of thinking going on, which is a somewhat differant experience from my last outing at New Rep, where my main concern was blowing my brains out on the right line! No seriously, I loved working on The Lieutenant of Inishmore, which by the way congratulations to Colin, Karl and Lynn for their 2008 IRNE nominations, where was I, ah yes, no I seriously enjoyed that mad comedy but the nature of Exits and Entrances stirs up a multitude of deep feelings.

Sometimes it's not even the script, at times it's just pure accident, for example the girls, Amy and Candice (our lovely stage management team) had to put some wax on a particular tough draw. In doing so the smell of the wax threw me back to to my childhood home and the smell of a polished hall floor and thoughts of a lady crying in our cloakroom, and my dog, and my sliced chin involving 'Superman' slippers, and Ireland rugby jersey and a carpet divider! You see all through some wax.

So you see, it's not just the joy of hard work and creative muscle flexing that I am getting out of these intense rehearsals, but a whole range of emmotions and feelings that could be really be gone into deeper detail if it wasn't for the fact that I have to go and do some rugby coaching.

So I guess new revelations found in week two of rehearsals will have to wait.

Hope you have all had a marvelous 'Presidents Day'.

All the best,
Ross

How everything is so interlinked, even from your early days of training.

2009-02-13T10:37:00.003-05:00

February 12th

There have been a lot of books over the years written about the 'art of acting.’ Theories, methods, and lets face it many schools/academies/conservatoires/colleges of drama have been founded on the base of one style or another.

People/actors/artists have lived and died (in more ways than one) by what's the best approach to working as an actor. In fact, I remember working on a play on the London fringe with a chap who'd quit his day job and embarked on the life as an actor. He had no training whatsoever, and instead believed that he could do it all by reading books by Ugen, Stanislavsky, and all the forms that were in fashion in 1998. I don't think he ever for once thought about the joy of acting, and entertaining the audience.

Anyway I digress, which is what I do, by nature anyway. The point, or rather the original point was to introduce my subject for this particular blog's discourse. Which was, how everything is so interlinked right from your early days of training, to your first professional production on now to what must be the thirtieth! Thank goodness all that money I spent on drama school wasn't for nothing.

We are now right amidst the 'snot en trane' of our preparation, and although every day is still a joy, it is also hard work. It's what acting is all about, finding the 'right notes', the 'light and shade,' etc. You work at finding all the levels, running with the emotions, which for both Will and I, there are quite a lot to deal with, as well as the detailing, the fine tuning, and on top of all that, remembering the lines.

The funny thing everyday we find new ways too deal with a speech, a line, a reaction, sometimes I find it easy to make the change, sometimes it's a matter of finding the right intonation, sometimes a thought of 'what would it feel like if that happened to me', sometimes it's picturing what I say as I say it, sometimes it's the 'super objective', sometimes it's 'I wonder how he would pour the drink at this moment'.

Whatever way we go, I find the joy and disappointment of trying numerous other ways to try the speech, before we (Chris, and I) think that it's now going in the right direction. Or indeed it's even more fulfilling that we are going through a scene and we try it angry, jesting, pitying, hating, with love or just getting on and saying the lines, and then we ( Chris, Will and I) make a few changes and then it's like, 'oh yes, that's the way, wasn't that so simple'.

Of course it's probably me that's making it too bloody complicated, and I can't help but apologize to Chris and Will for my awful Hugh Grant apologizing antics, 'sorry, so sorry, that was, well awful, do you think we could try that again?'

Then on top of all that it's the ability to say the line, help put a toga on Will, while, bless him, there he is standing in his underwear as I witter on about dreams and Oedipus. Now before I go too far and reveal the story, I hope you get the idea that this play is a lot of bloody good fun! In fact, sometimes I am proudest that I can pour a drink, fold a pair of trousers, hold a prop script and say a line, all at the same time, now that's acting!

My thanks as always to Will, Chris, Danielle, Amy and Candice for their constant help and support everyday.

Also I am going to take advantage and say, Alison MacDonald, Happy Valentine's wifey, I Love You.

Cleo and Devon, (the cats) stop messing about!

Yours Aye,
Ross

A Bit of Publicity

2009-02-09T11:48:00.002-05:00

February 7th

So last night we ended the day with a bit of publicity, which like everything else was alot of fun. I must be a bad influence on my colleagues as an air of naughty schoolboy glee filled the room. Except when Chris (Jorie) had to impose some self-control and played the teacher and had me leave the room whilst he was being interviewed for the viral video promotion, to be fair he had Will leave the room as well, as a sign of equality and to spare me any offense, or so he claimed, I think Will would have taken up the mantle if I had been solely banished from our improvised studio.

Today we rehearsed in the Black Box, which was a change, thankfully it didn't cause that much of a differance to our work, although it did add to a sense of performance by being in the Studio. It's a lovely space and just a reminder of how spoilt one is working at New Rep, especially when some theatre companies struggle to have one decent rehearsal space and here we are with two.

Our work was in the same vein as the last few days, building on the layers, shaping our characters, processing our characters thoughts into the direction of our steps towards performance, going through the play, covering scenes that need elements of more formal 'blocking', discussing the direction we are taking, reviewing the work, then going back working through both tender and heated moments, finding the 'reality' and the 'art', getting to grips with the 'political' without becoming heavy handed and becoming flat tuned.

Right time to go, as you should know by now, wife and cats are waiting.

Cheers,
Ross

Truly Entering the Rehearsal Process

2009-02-09T11:42:00.004-05:00

February 4, 5, and 6th

Before this starts resembling my journal with only a couple of pages a month, I thought it best to add to my recent contribution. After all if I don't, they'll be at least two unhappy people, the lovely ladies who asked me to be this production's blogger!

We are now well and truly into the rehearsal process, and it is an experience where each day is another step not only to opening night, but more importantly it's a day of discovery and discussion, about the characters, the relationships that exist between them, the world that surrounds the characters, and the world that we the actors live in. It's a luxury (in the best sense of the word), each day is a luxury in the 'process' of rehearsal, a luxury in the work of an actor to explore thoughts, feelings, and relationships of the character that this play allows us to inhabit. It's a luxury in observation and reaction, a luxury to be on stage or at this present time, to be in the rehearsal room and watch Mr. Lyman at work or to be guided Mr. Jorie in finding ways to allow me to find the character of 'The Playwright'.

I wish I could be more detailed in these early days of rehearsals, but it's almost as if my attention is focused on the work that needs to take place in the rehearsal room rather than to be able to document it all down clearly. Then again, I know that sounds like an excuse, which to be fair it's a rather good one, but in all seriousness alot of what we discuss is part of the development of the character. Then again, once my day off comes round on Monday, I can put it all in perspective and bore all three readers that I have with a long detailed report of the 'story so far'. Or maybe at the moment I am running shy of reporting the day to day goings on, in fear that my charismatic 'Playwright' is turned into an avid reporter, which is fine if I was in Frost/Nixon but it's no good in Exits and Entrances. Mind you I've never been one for the method, but I am not going to run the risk.

Truth is, I am tired, it's late and the wife and cats are calling.

Cheers,
Ross

First Day of Rehearsals...

2009-02-09T11:36:00.003-05:00

February 3, 2009

It’s been a long time since I can say that today was a special first day of rehearsals. Not that I want to offend all the lovely people I have worked with so far in Boston, but I can’t remember a first day like this since my first job after drama school. Back then a lot of it came down to the fact that I actually had got an acting job! But this time, well I suppose the reasons are a bit like the play we are embarking on, there are both obvious and complex ones.

There is of course the fact that the people I am working with are all pretty special. (I don’t want to wax too lyrical about the team as they will all start to think I am being an awful brown-noser.) There is also the theatre and of course there is the small matter of the script. It’s not the first time I’ve worked on a ‘modern classic’, but this play is special, as Chris Jorie (Director) said, ‘each time you read it, there’s something else’ and it’s true. It certainly helps to work alongside such a powerhouse in Will Lyman. (Oops there’s the brown nosing!) But the fact is now that you begin to work off a living breathing Andre, there are two characters in the play, Andre (Mr Lyman) and the Playwright (yours truly), then there is already more and more surprises occurring on every page, or should I say in every moment.

I would love to say more but to be honest I better get on, my wife and I haven’t had a moment, and then of course there are the cats!

Cheers,
Ross

"Cabaret" Audience Response

2009-01-26T10:37:00.002-05:00

Check out what audience members are saying about Cabaret. Cabaret is now playing until February 8th. Call the box office at (617) 923-8487, or visit www.newrep.org to buy your tickets today!

1-17-2009 Table Reading

2009-01-20T11:53:00.001-05:00

Last night we had a table reading of The Devil’s Own Game in preparation for the New Voices @ New Rep staged reading on February 9th. This play was one of my main projects last season when New Rep hosted me in a National New Play Network Emerging Playwright Residency.

I had a round table reading of an earlier version of it at an NNPN event hosted by the Lark Play Development Center in NYC last March as part of that same residency. That event did quite a bit to develop my conception of the play.

The play itself sort of takes up where most versions of the Faust story leave off. With Faust in hell. And wanting out. What this play is really about is the promise of the present moment and the nature of knowledge. It also explores themes of jealousy and loyalty, corruption, and hope. Much of my theatre life is movement oriented, so I like to think of myself as a very physical writer. I feel that this comes across well in this script.

The table reading was facilitated by Bridget O’Leary, New Rep’s artistic associate, who also read one of the roles that evening. Meg Taintor, who will be directing the reading, was there, as well as two thirds of the cast I’ll have on the day itself, Zillah Glory and Jennifer O’Connor. I’m really excited about my cast. Both actresses gave strong readings and were really great casting choices.

The purpose of a table reading is to help the playwright see what rewrites and adjustments need to be made. I learned a lot about what I want to do with my script before my New Voices reading, both from hearing the play and from the feedback I got from the people in the room.

I look forward to having an audience for this in a couple weeks and learning more!

1-15-2009 OPENING NIGHT!

2009-01-20T11:50:00.002-05:00

We are open! Many final things were ironed out in tech and previews (during which I was too busy working on the show to blog much) and now the final product is up and running.

Rick got a standing ovation for his curtain speech, which was another touching Boston theatre moment.

I had a great time with this cast and production team and look forward to working with everyone again in future productions. My next two New Rep projects are a staged reading of my play, The Devil’s Own Game next month as part of New Voices @ New Rep, and composing the violence for Fool for Love, directed by Bridget Kathleen O’Leary which will go up at Downstage @ New Rep in March.

1-13-2009 Goodbye Rick

2009-01-20T11:48:00.003-05:00

Last night much of the Boston theatre community came to the Arsenal Center for a surprise sendoff party for Rick. It remained a surprise almost up until the party itself.

Though we’re all sad to see Rick & Co. go, I have to say it was really amazing to see that much of the theatre community come out for this event.

1-7-2009 A Cool Dialect Detail

2009-01-20T11:45:00.001-05:00

I was talking about the dialect work in this show with Aimee Doherty (our Sally Bowles) and she mentioned that she actually has to learn two different British accents. One is the upper class accent that Sally maintains as a pretense, and the other is the lower class accent that comes out in times of emotional stress and which is the one she comes by honestly.

I should also point out that many of us are in danger of being stuck in German accents for quite some time. Ja.

1-4-2009-- Kicklines

2009-01-20T11:43:00.001-05:00

We had our first stumble through today. There was far less stumbling than anyone might have expected.

I was thinking today about the kickline numbers since we saw quite a bit of work on them recently. Kicklines were one of two elements that were part of the “Americanization” of popular entertainment of the time (the other being Jazz). The appeal of the kickline in that cultural context was the military precision. Not to kid myself or anyone else, there was of course an erotic aspect to it, but what attracted so much commentary was its resemblance to military drill.

A bit of history trivia: though the kickline was perceived as being very American and modern, the first dance company of note that performed in this style was British.

1-3-2009 Staging the Beat Down

2009-01-20T11:41:00.001-05:00

Today I staged the big fight in the Kit Kat Club. It begins with a conflict between Ernst and Cliff, and ends with Cliff being attacked by the Nazi guards I described in an earlier entry.

It’s important in fight scenes that the integration of my work with the director’s be seamless. Ideally it should be difficult to determine exactly where one begins and the other ends. To that end, I concentrate a lot on how personal conflicts escalate into physical confrontations. In this case there is an argument between Cliff and Ernst which eventually makes Cliff snap and punch Ernst. Much of this was already set by Rick of course, but I made some modifications with the actors both in the interest of sight lines and to make the escalation into a physical blow make dramatic sense. The technique I used for the punch itself is a variant of what is commonly referred to as “ The John Wayne Punch.” It’s a pretty big move that’s visible and effective from nearly any angle, and also works well in isolation from other techniques as the sort of thing that might come of an emotional outburst.

A bit of detailing: after the punch lands David plays that he hurt his fist punching Ernst. This is a pretty realistic moment as most people would not be able to punch a solid surface without sustaining some pain. There is also the character moment of disbelief over his own actions. Cliff goes to comfort Ernst and is rebuked, and at that moment is ambushed from behind by the two guards.

An ambush from behind is a delicate thing on stage. The cues need to be very specific in order to keep everything both safe and believable. It is also usually the case that the actor who is playing the victim is the one who is in fact actually in control of the action.

We used a variety of techniques in the beat down (another technical term), Here we replicate both impact techniques (punches and kicks), and pain compliance moves (exactly what they sound like). Because this fight happens in a very specific dramatic context, Ernst is a participant. He does not strike Cliff, but the guards offer him the opportunity. He lifts a handkerchief to his mouth which comes back bloody (a prop placed there by Rick) and motions the guards to finish Cliff off. I won’t go into a play by play just now as you should come see the show, but it is important to remember that at their best, stage fights are designed with the rest of the production in mind as a way to help move the story forward.

This beating is a slow and somewhat methodical one. This is as much a political display of power as anything else. A regular patron of an establishment is being beaten at the establishment in full view of the other patrons, and no one dares interfere. They drag him out by his hair in full view of those same patrons and still, no one lifts a finger. People are discomforted, people cannot watch, the band stops playing for a moment, but no one interferes. This lack of interference is a powerful indication of where the culture has gotten to at that point. We said at the first rehearsal that we were looking at the thin veneer of civilization. At that point in the play it is barely there anymore.

12-31-2008--Captains and Dancing

2009-01-20T11:38:00.006-05:00

We decided that Maurice Parent will be my fight captain. That means his job will be to run fight calls and maintain both the safety and integrity of composition of the fight choreography. I’m really happy about this choice as he is an actor with a great sense of movement who will be great about making sure that everyone is being specific in all their work. He is not in any of the fights himself, which is often an advantage for this position as it lets him concentrate on what the actors in the fights are doing without worrying about his own choreography.

Fight calls, for those who don’t know, are special mini rehearsals held before each run or performance in which the fights are done twice; once just marked out and once at performance speed. Fight calls are essential for safety and also maintain the specificity of the choreography. I often describe stage combat as a combination of sleight of hand and ballroom dance rather than being any sort of martial art. Many of the moves are counter intuitive and it’s important that the performers practice them in order to maintain an effective illusion.

Earlier in the process Annie Kerins was appointed the dance captain. She is responsible for maintaining the dance choreography throughout the show. It’s a fairly large job in a production like this, and there will be rehearsals where she’ll be running dance numbers in Kelli Edward's, the choreographer, absence. I had a look at her book of dance notation and it was interesting to see how different numbers were notated according to the way in which they were choreographed, meaning that if a sequence was counted out according to the music then the moves would be similarly spelled out whereas if Kelli set moves according to word sequences they would be spelled out that way.

A great thing about the choreography in this production is that Kelli is finding unconventional ways to use conventional dance vocabulary. Since much of this musical is a show within a show, what she is doing works especially well in this context. There are a lot of complex structures she is creating using almost the entire company where each dancer is moving in time with the rest, and then they break into another structure where each dancer or group of dancers have very individual moves before rejoining the group.

Speaking of dance, today we were short two cast members because they were performing in First Night so Adrienne and I got to stand in for them for part of a dance composition rehearsal. That was all kinds of fun. We did a part of “The Telephone Dance” in which Kelli had progressions of structural changes in the choreography going from synchronized to individual movements. It was important that there were stand ins for the choreography as the timing of the changes has to be precise. It was a lot of fun. And I got to work out a funktastic upsidedown lift and spin sequence with Michele DeLuca that her partner will learn when he comes back (funktastic is of course a technical choreography term that is still missing from the majority of textbooks).

Happy New Year everyone!

12-30-08 – Staging Nazi Scenes

2009-01-20T10:39:00.002-05:00

One of the things we worked on today was the song “I Don’t Care Much,” in which the Emcee will appear bruised and with his arm in a sling and there will be Nazi guards in the club. This is also the scene that will include the biggest fight in the show, which I’ll choreograph later in the process.

One thing we’re working on in this scene is the placement of the guards. We tried a few variants. The first was Nazi guard would stand at attention on either side of the Emcee scanning the club. The sense of threat this created was interesting, but the option we decided on (which you’ll see in the production itself) is that the guards are off duty, sitting at tables in the club, drinking with everyone else, and being rowdy. And that their rowdiness would be an obvious problem that no one else in the club would do anything about. This was a very different sort of threat and made more sense for what we were doing with the rest of the scene.

Something that really struck me about the character work in this play is the way Paul Giragos is approaching the character of Ernst. Cabaret is popular enough musical that I don’t think I’m spoiling it for anybody reading this if I reveal that Ernst turns out to be a rather highly placed Nazi. And yet, this is one of the funniest and most charming characters throughout most of the play. I think that that is one of the things that makes the threat most real, and most powerful. The people who became Nazis did not start their lives as monsters, things happened that led them to go down that road. That said, Paul is playing him as an affable playboy who really believes in his cause. We really want to like Ernst, so the moment that we find out he’s a Nazi it really feels like a betrayal. I always felt that this sort of thing is one of the strongest humanist aspects of stage work. Putting a live face and a realistic and likable character on someone involved in what I can only describe as criminal politics has the potential to create a powerful impact on the audience. It’s a common strategy to dehumanize one’s opponents in war and politics. How much more would we learn as a society if we made it a more common practice to humanize those holding opposing viewpoints instead?