Rehearsal Report--6/23

We had out first rehearsal at the performance space this evening.  And our first rehearsal with the children's ensemble.  Both were invigorating.

The performance space is a nearly 20 year old structure that was added for outdoor performances of all sorts when Mill Race Park was renovated in 1993.  It is one of those generic spaces that is designed to accomodate everyone, and therefore becomes a space that is suited for no one really.  It's the biggest stage in the area.  There is no wing space and no backstage space.  For theatrical productions, you have to create them.  Entrances come from left and right either up a hill or up a set of stairs.  There are "dressing rooms" underneath.  The space is open at all times and to all weathers.

It is magical.

Auditions

Yesterday, we officially started the auditioning process (though I did see a few people last week), and for actors work on the show begins.  Obviously for directors and other key personnel work began quite some time ago.

As a director the audition period marks a critical juncture on the production of the show:  you get to see if the plans you had been formulating will work.  Sometimes hearing the words spoken aloud tells you more than you can ever imagine than when just reading a text.  This happens with every show, regardless of material.  It's liberating and invigorating as a director to see the words live in front of you.  New doorways open and others sometimes close.

General Update

It's been a while since I have had a chance to work on the show in earnest, even longer since I had time to update my journal, and even longer since I've had a beer.  Work, life and love have gotten in the way.  So a brief update on goings on before I start to work a little harder on the show.

Happy Birthday, Shakespeare!

Welcome to my new blog.  I have been selected to direct a production of Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor for Mill Race Players this summer, and I have decided to keep my director's journal on line.  And what better time to launch it than on the day we celebrate Shakespeare's birthday. 

No one knows for sure what day is Shakespeare's birthday but seeing as he is our greatest poet and playwright, we poetically choose to celebrate it on the anniversary of his death.  More details can be found on my post about his biography here.

This blog will be focused around the upcoming production of Merry Wives.  As a director research is very important to me, and I will use this space to consolidate the research that I do.  I will also use the space to reflect on the decision making process that happens long before rehearsals begin.  While casting decisions will be kept confidential (and off-line), I do plan to record my thoughts during the rehearsal process as a record of how the production develops especially after you include those helpful pests the actors.

My hope is that this Abusing of God's Patience and the King's Speech will chronicle a production from conception through gestation, birth, adolescence, maturity and death.  The seven stages of a play if you will.

So, Happy Birthday, William Shakespeare and Happy Conception, Mill Race's Merry Wives of Windsor!!