It is Gregory D. Hicks again, just checking in!
A lot has happened since I last blogged: all of our dress rehearsals, the opening of the show, etc. Time is moving SO fast! IT seems like only yesterday that we were all auditioning. Now, we are three shows into our run!
From an audience's standpoint, doing a show (especially with all the emotions that this show has) may look draining and monotonous but like Emily has said, we are still playing and discovering. Just because there is an audience (speaking of which, the playwright, Deborah Brevoort will be in the audience tonight!!!! But, no pressure!) present that does not mean we stop discovering. In order for this wonderful thing called theatre to work, we save the best for last: the audience!
I have been told and agree that the following are elements to any theatrical, staged performance: the first thing you need is a text. The text is where it all starts. There will be something in it that will draw people to it. So, in order to shape the text, you need a director. They will be the first one’s drawn to the script, because without the text to draw someone to do it, you do not have a show. Next, you have your design team/stage managers/crew. These are the ones who you (the director) trust to help create the world from the text and help keep everything flowing smoothly. Next, you get your actors. These are the (crazy, but fabulous people, lol) that embody the text. As the directors has done, the actor focuses specifically on their character making for a much richer interpretation on the text. This is because new ideas are bring brought to the characters by the actors AND the director can focus on the entire picture and help the actors along as they go. Now, you need a world for the actors to explore: the set. The set is a mixture of the director's vision, the necessary requirements from the text, and execution of the crew. With only two more components left, you are very close to having your show when your actors get into costume/makeup. At this point, you have a very solid foundation: a leader, officers with their specific assignments, a created world, the clothing that would be acceptable in your created world and the last ingredient to this perfect concoction is the audience. This makes everything complete because now there is live energy; an energy that can only be felt in the theatre. Actors feed off of this energy and it allows us to really be in the moment, whatever that moment may be, and share it with someone that is not on stage. This is where the all the sharpened tools are ready to make the best “concoction”. We are then ready to have fun, make more discoveries, focus on the other, raise the stakes, and live in the moment as the people we have created throughout the rehearsal process.
It may seem like doing a show several times, with the same lines, same set, same people may be boring but it is just the opposite! It is exhilarating! When you have all the right tools: a wonderful cast, crew, (all the crews: costume, set, sound, light, etc.) and director everything just falls into place. It is just like cooking a good chili: when it is first done (and if you put in the proper work into) it is great. But, just you let those spices set. Let the chili powder really soak into the beans and the meat. Let the cumin really mix in with the salt and peppers. And when you reheat up your well-made chili, you are amazing that something that was already great just became extraordinary!!!
