The challenges:
- Act I in week 1
- Act II in week 2
- Open in week 3
It is lunatic to think that this is possible with a musical: to conceive, develop and craft the music, the dance and the drama - three plays in all, really - by the end of week 3 with 8 adult actors and three teams of 8 children (that's 32 actors in total) in the rehearsal room.
How is this achievable without compromising anything on the artistic front whilst remaining receptive to new ideas and being able to retain spontaneity?
- Planning
- Casting
- Energy
- Creativity
- Belief
I had never tried this before but (having cast actors with whom I had worked before - with one excpetion) I had asked everyone to offer up something at the first rehearsal that would somehow define for them why they were there.
Not party pieces. Not audition pieces.
Just something that they wanted to communicate, do, share, inhabit, exchange, whatever! There was clear 'pressure' but the fun that was had was beautiful.
I did The Gingerbread Man song after 17 years to break the ice (my heart thumped in my head - big pressure!); there was an exquisite, new piece of writing in the form of a short story; there was the best Over the Rainbow I have ever heard; the learning of a fruity salsa dance; Walt Whitman's 'Song of Myself' from Leaves of Grass expressed at a haunting pace; an absorbing extract from Berkoff's Decadence; a very funny song with accordion inciting much laughter; and a beautifully lyrical, original song with piano accompaniment.
It was inspiring.
It gave everyone in the company an insight into why everyone was there.
It could have been disastrous - the risks were great - but there was no back-firing.
The contrast in what was offered up, the interests and the performance qualities of each actor were self evident. There was no need for introductions, explanations, ramblings, curriculum vitaes.
A natural, honest, performative quality was achieved at the very start of day one and it all just got even better.
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