I’d have to say that this whole process has definitely been the greatest experience of this first term. As Danie and I developed our scene with Nima’s help, we were able to incorporate the reaction of our various audiences (as they grew in size), as well as the feedback of the rest of the company.
Friday night’s open dress rehearsal went well. As a whole, I think the company’s performance was rough, but obviously well prepared. Considering last night’s performance, I think our dress rehearsal was absolutely where it should have been, in terms of the production quality. It was in no way perfect, or eve where we’d have wanted it to be for a final performance, but it was the final trial run of the show, in a sense.
In my scene, Danie and I had a great time with the finalized set pieces and props. The cashews were a “hit,” and the dress rehearsal was the perfect forum to experiment before a live, untested audience. We did have some trouble with lines though—the line progression was derailed momentarily, at the end of the second scene, and it took a moment before we righted ourselves.
But having the audience there—and the laughs—was one of the most fulfilling elements of the whole thing. It was the first of the final pay-offs, because, to that point, I feel as if we were never sure if the masses would appreciate our scene, and find it poignant and funny. In rehearsal, members of the cast and crew become accustomed to the rehearsed beats of a specific scene or scenes, and so it’s easy to fall into a pattern of expectance when handling audience reactions. But I’ll reiterate again what a great team I feel that Danie and I make, and so I was still totally confident in our abilities to adapt to the demands of the audience.
And so by the end of Friday’s performance, while bitter about my own line mishap, I was totally confident in our ability to perform it to the very best of our abilities on Saturday night, for the final show.
Overall, I think most shared my opinion about the dress rehearsal. There was a positive audience reaction, but from those to whom I spoke, who had attended both the dress as well as the final show, it was made clear the disparity in terms of crispness between the two.
And I think that crisp might be the best way to describe the final show. In almost every way that it could have been, I felt it to be flawless.
I am totally confident that Danie and I gave, hands down, the best performance we’d ever given. The audience’s reaction was at a positive level such that we’d never experienced, and by the end of scene two, I was terribly sad to say goodbye to “Art”. Because that’s what we made—on Saturday night, but throughout the process, too. We were artists, all of us.
I am incredibly proud of what we as a class of first years accomplished. Each of us, many with little to no prior experience, managed to put on an incredible show, one which showcased a remarkable diversity in cultural and dramatic influence from the many world theatres from which its parts were drawn.
For next year, I’d like to remember some small things:
- It might be better to have two backstage crew-members to facilitate everything during the show, and the rehearsals leading to it
- Creatively, a second year assistant director to oversee the creative development of each scene, from the very beginnings of each group’s individual rehearsals, through to the final dress, might be beneficial to the overall cohesiveness and creative flow of the show, as well as the focus of each group
- Perhaps some discussion on the nature of performance decorum as an actor prior to the show would be helpful—how to leave an actor be when she or he is in “the zone,” and how to respect a performance from backstage, while it is taking place
Overall, though, what I’d like to remember most is the way that the production can make first years feel welcomed into the powerful campus and artistic force that is Pearson’s theatre community. I am sad to see the end of the show’s run, but am incredibly satisfied with the result. I’m already looking forward to directing at this time, next year.
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