Week 1: Playing ...

That's what we have done this week: played with the words on the page and played with them off the page.

We improvised new words, harmonised song-words and physicalised other words into movements for dances.

The creativity of everyone, and the ease with which everyone has worked together this week, has allowed for a physically fearless approach and great imaginative input.

The concentration from our young actors has also been impressive.

This has all been possible because of everyone's ability to laugh at themselves when the most ridiculous things have happened in the rehearsal room and been improvised. And most of these things we have kept in!

These ideas and developments were tested when our young actors arrived later in the afternoon and laughed a great deal at Norbere, our French Fop, in the scene where he woos Beauty and sings 'Come Dance With Me'. Time was spent yesterday crafting a beautiful section of new dialogue for the character which has resulted in some genuinely comical character insights and audience participation.

It was an incredible week in that we got to the end of Act I (with gaps of course), and having run the whole of the act yesterday afternoon, it has allowed everyone to walk away from the week with a clear overview of what we have achieved so far and a clear idea of the performance style of the piece.

The two days' rest for everyone this weekend will be good because it has been a fast and furious 5 days. Time is needed this weekend to assimilate what we have discovered and for lines and lyrics and hamonies and movements to settle in the mind and the body.

The weekend for me, however, is still going to be fast and furious: there is a meeting today at 11am with the Beast's mask-maker in Reading; a production meeting on design (set and costume) back in Bracknell at 1pm; and then there's at least a couple of hours script preparation on Act I tweaking things. 

There's also all the Act II preparations to be done before Monday and another production meeting with the composer, arranger, musical director and myself tomorrow evening at 7pm.

Time will also be spent clearing e-mails back at the incredibly innovative (though I am prejudiced) Jersey Arts Centre, proofing the final copy of our spring 2009 brochure (which I am very excited about) and speaking with colleagues on the machinations of the week back in Jersey. And all this whilst I am, technically, on holiday.

I am suddenly - once again - acutely aware that these unique opportunities and experiences need to be cared for, respected and shared more...