Couldn't have asked for a better opening night - apart from a full house. The cast were stunning, the techs amazing (particularly given they only arrived on Sunday) and of utmost importance - it worked!
It was the production of Macbeth I've always wanted to see, the script worked very well and the effects were great, but really the cast were what made it fly.
If you're in town you have to come and see them!!!!!
Showing posts with label Our production. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Our production. Show all posts
06 August 2008
02 August 2008
Four days to go
Well four days till we have an audience. The cast has done a brilliant job, they're ready to go and I am impressed with them.
The only issue is whether the costumes, lighting, sound and other effects and the cast are working together. Tomorrow we have all the costumes, the smoke, the smells, the props, and the curtains up, but getting the cast and the bits and pieces working together is my big worry.
There is much to do. I spent much of the afternoon hanging curtains, these are the 'set'. I also went to hang the gauze, which was a major effort and I discovered the way we intended to do it won't work.
Tomorrow we are without the stage manager and lighting operator for the morning and various cast have given me ultimatums about when they can start and finish.
What it seems is that it's harder and harder to get actors to rehearsals and to get techs and backstage people at all. Today people are working weekends and evenings and anyone with technical skills wants to be paid. Not having a set seemed to be one way to ensure that we could strike the set each night (as we have to) and save effort and energy.
Well the play looks good.
The only issue is whether the costumes, lighting, sound and other effects and the cast are working together. Tomorrow we have all the costumes, the smoke, the smells, the props, and the curtains up, but getting the cast and the bits and pieces working together is my big worry.
There is much to do. I spent much of the afternoon hanging curtains, these are the 'set'. I also went to hang the gauze, which was a major effort and I discovered the way we intended to do it won't work.
Tomorrow we are without the stage manager and lighting operator for the morning and various cast have given me ultimatums about when they can start and finish.
What it seems is that it's harder and harder to get actors to rehearsals and to get techs and backstage people at all. Today people are working weekends and evenings and anyone with technical skills wants to be paid. Not having a set seemed to be one way to ensure that we could strike the set each night (as we have to) and save effort and energy.
Well the play looks good.
15 July 2008
22 days till opening
First full run tonight. Much later than I would have hoped and not in the venue. The first half held together well, the from act 3 it looked much worse.
Still haven't seen any stage blood, don't know about many of the costumes, music .... oh and we still can't get the whole cast in one place at once.
On the plus side - the edits are working, the cast is strong, my flu has nearly passed.
M and Lady M are very strong. The relationships are excellent. The cast are of a very high qaulity all round. We have a new witch which requires bringing her up to speed with the play. But it's all good.
Still haven't seen any stage blood, don't know about many of the costumes, music .... oh and we still can't get the whole cast in one place at once.
On the plus side - the edits are working, the cast is strong, my flu has nearly passed.
M and Lady M are very strong. The relationships are excellent. The cast are of a very high qaulity all round. We have a new witch which requires bringing her up to speed with the play. But it's all good.
13 July 2008
24 days to go
We open in 24 days. That fills me with dread. We've still seen no costumes, no props and have no sound effects.
On the plus side despite another witch pulling out last week and one of the unnamed Lords having to pull out following a car accident as his leg is in plaster we have a full cast and the play is looking good.
We do have a gauze at last and I have resolved the issues around the staging. Also the lighting plan is being developed and same with special effects seem to be on track. Chanel is sorting out the music.
So provided no more problems arise we are on track.
This is almost the time when I wonder why it matters, why it's so hard and why oh why do we do this.
On the plus side despite another witch pulling out last week and one of the unnamed Lords having to pull out following a car accident as his leg is in plaster we have a full cast and the play is looking good.
We do have a gauze at last and I have resolved the issues around the staging. Also the lighting plan is being developed and same with special effects seem to be on track. Chanel is sorting out the music.
So provided no more problems arise we are on track.
This is almost the time when I wonder why it matters, why it's so hard and why oh why do we do this.
11 July 2008
Opening video for show - spoiler
The video has been created to open the show. It's supposed to look like a webvideo ....
http://www.vidcast.co.nz:80/VidCastPodCastProductionbyTandemVoiceBooth/Player/tabid/86/VideoId/202/Default.aspx
thanks to Tandem Studios for the talent and the production, to Scott Koorey for the music and to a distant cousin of William Shakespeare for the script.
http://www.vidcast.co.nz:80/VidCastPodCastProductionbyTandemVoiceBooth/Player/tabid/86/VideoId/202/Default.aspx
thanks to Tandem Studios for the talent and the production, to Scott Koorey for the music and to a distant cousin of William Shakespeare for the script.
10 July 2008
Script edits
I know I'm not the person to say this - but the edits rock. If anyone anywhere is looking to do a complete production of Macbeth and wants a 65min script - I have it!
22 June 2008
Okay I take it back
After all my high sounding commentary in the posts 2 and 3 days ago I spent today's rehearsal simply blocking. There was nothing much else going on.
Rehearsal Sunday 29 June
I'm calling everyone for rehearsal at 2 pm. The rehearsal is at the theatre.
20 June 2008
Progress
One of the goals I set for myself for this production is to make the relationship between the Macbeths and their murder of Duncan plausible. This has been the underlying problem with nearly every production I have seen and most of the movies.
Last night working with the two actors I have for these roles I believe we made huge progress in cracking this dilemma. Both are fantastic actors who can convey subtlety as well as a broad range of emotions and motivations. I was momentarily scared as we worked on Act 1 Scene 5. Lady M was terrifying as these lines came to life:
"Thy letters have transported me beyond This ignorant present, and I feel now The future in the instant."
After we had finished I realised how much I owe to a newsgroup called Act Pro that I used to be a member of and to people, conversations and experiences which have developed my rudimentary understanding of Meisner, Stanislavsky and method. We had both Ms in the moment and alive to the motivation in the script and alive to the intentions of who they were and where they were going. Add to that drawing on their own personal experiences to make the moment alive with genuine emotion and we really were creating.
This is shaping up as the best production I have done. False hope / vaulting ambition? I too as a director am caught in the desire to create something based in authenticity - not just for the actors and the audience but also for me.
Last night working with the two actors I have for these roles I believe we made huge progress in cracking this dilemma. Both are fantastic actors who can convey subtlety as well as a broad range of emotions and motivations. I was momentarily scared as we worked on Act 1 Scene 5. Lady M was terrifying as these lines came to life:
"Thy letters have transported me beyond This ignorant present, and I feel now The future in the instant."
After we had finished I realised how much I owe to a newsgroup called Act Pro that I used to be a member of and to people, conversations and experiences which have developed my rudimentary understanding of Meisner, Stanislavsky and method. We had both Ms in the moment and alive to the motivation in the script and alive to the intentions of who they were and where they were going. Add to that drawing on their own personal experiences to make the moment alive with genuine emotion and we really were creating.
This is shaping up as the best production I have done. False hope / vaulting ambition? I too as a director am caught in the desire to create something based in authenticity - not just for the actors and the audience but also for me.
18 June 2008
Three different witches
The unfortunate exit from the cast of our witches (due to employment reasons) has focussed attention on the need for them to have individual personalities in some way. In other productions (to sound like a broken record) they are usually virtually indistinguishable. In the productions where there is an attempt to make them distinct there is often an older leader and a younger initiate. I'll work with Chanel, the AD, to see what we can do to give the 3 of them personalities.
15 June 2008
Macduff
One of the many things on my list to try and improve in this production over others I have seen is to make Macduff stand out. Normally he is invisible until he is tested and he leads the attack on the castle and kills Macbeth at the end. Banquo is always easy to spot, but the Malcolm, Macduff, Ross, Angus, Menteith, Lennox distinction is harder to make.
The Court Theatre here in Christchurch did a production set in Japan a few years ago, a tribute to Kurosaka I believe. In that production Macduff was given a ludicrous hat. Even then he didn't stand out that well.
In this production we're opting for Macduff as someone who is sees through the thrall and sees Macbeth for what he is. Maybe his goodness means he isn't (as easily) enchanted. That means he stands apart from all the others, perhaps is more modern in his dress, and at the beginning of the play looks askance at Macbeth. If he is also socially awkward it might explain why he isn't trusted by Malcolm and seems to have missed the victory banquet.
This standing aside positioning and scrutiny of Macbeth combined with a touch of a puritanical view of the world worked today in rehearsals, and the actor playing Macduff seems to be able to use this to make the character of Macduff strong and distinct.
We may still give him some distinct costuming - but no dumb hats.
The Court Theatre here in Christchurch did a production set in Japan a few years ago, a tribute to Kurosaka I believe. In that production Macduff was given a ludicrous hat. Even then he didn't stand out that well.
In this production we're opting for Macduff as someone who is sees through the thrall and sees Macbeth for what he is. Maybe his goodness means he isn't (as easily) enchanted. That means he stands apart from all the others, perhaps is more modern in his dress, and at the beginning of the play looks askance at Macbeth. If he is also socially awkward it might explain why he isn't trusted by Malcolm and seems to have missed the victory banquet.
This standing aside positioning and scrutiny of Macbeth combined with a touch of a puritanical view of the world worked today in rehearsals, and the actor playing Macduff seems to be able to use this to make the character of Macduff strong and distinct.
We may still give him some distinct costuming - but no dumb hats.
12 June 2008
School resource completed
Chanel and Andre have completed a curriculum school resource which is fantastic and the next step is to get it posted to schools!
It's more comprehensive and interesting than I had ever imagined!
It's more comprehensive and interesting than I had ever imagined!
03 June 2008
First rehearsal
It's good when you sit with your cast for the first time and think 'this is going to be fantastic'.
I'm now trying to tune into the way in which people work best. I like to ask actors lots of questions about their characters, their motivations and their feelings at any given time, but this is not best for everyone.
The gold in this play is character motivations, and the decision to go with emphasising the supernatural elements gives a lot of scope for characters to talk about what they see versus what is going on, or what they fear. Not everything is as it seems. Most of the characters are led a merry dance by the main protagonists and characters relationship amd reaction to the evil that pervades the play is a great place to start.
I'm now trying to tune into the way in which people work best. I like to ask actors lots of questions about their characters, their motivations and their feelings at any given time, but this is not best for everyone.
The gold in this play is character motivations, and the decision to go with emphasising the supernatural elements gives a lot of scope for characters to talk about what they see versus what is going on, or what they fear. Not everything is as it seems. Most of the characters are led a merry dance by the main protagonists and characters relationship amd reaction to the evil that pervades the play is a great place to start.
31 May 2008
Read through and first cast get-together
I'm looking forward to getting the team together tomorrow - although there are one or two people who can't make it, notably the production co-ordinator Victoria. Although I've read everything and talked through a hell of a lot I still feel under-prepared.
27 May 2008
Cast selected for the play
With one or two exceptions I have a full cast. The posts now will include production issues and the processes we go through.
The normal story: 8 women capable of playing Lady Macbeth and 3 men capable of Macbeth. All of the witches I've cast could take on the role and I rejected a Lady Macbeth / Macbeth combination of 2 of the finest actors in town. However I am very pleased with the Macbeths have cast.
There were dramas in the auditons made worse as I haven't help proper auditions for 10 years having shoulder tapped since then. By the end of the day my brain was fried and judgement impaired. Also some really basic things about the next steps weren't conveyed to auditionees, by this I mean I forgot among other things to check their availability for the first read through.
Anyway as I like to sign my emails now - it's all good.
The normal story: 8 women capable of playing Lady Macbeth and 3 men capable of Macbeth. All of the witches I've cast could take on the role and I rejected a Lady Macbeth / Macbeth combination of 2 of the finest actors in town. However I am very pleased with the Macbeths have cast.
There were dramas in the auditons made worse as I haven't help proper auditions for 10 years having shoulder tapped since then. By the end of the day my brain was fried and judgement impaired. Also some really basic things about the next steps weren't conveyed to auditionees, by this I mean I forgot among other things to check their availability for the first read through.
Anyway as I like to sign my emails now - it's all good.
22 May 2008
Angus is a woman?
The male shortage has led me to think through my earlier idea of having one of the thanes as a woman because, really, she's a modern Scottish army officer. Eg Major Janet Angus. This has an added complication because Angus has taken on being killed by Macbeth in the penultimate scene instead of Young Siward. This creates problems around the 'man born of woman' dialogue. Anyway more thinking to do.
21 May 2008
The audition notice in the paper ....
has netted 1 audition enquiry as at 3 pm... more this evening I suspect.
20 May 2008
Script
I have the rehearsal copy ready to go!
It will need some changes depending on the actors I get - but it's very close.
It will need some changes depending on the actors I get - but it's very close.
Slots for auditions filling up
Anyone wanting an audition time should get in touch! The slots are filling fast.
Meanwhile the curse of Macbeth is my laptop has been crushed losing some vital files for the play in the process. Good news is I have got a copy of 'The Occult philosophy in the Elizabethan Age' by Frances Yates which is a good relevant read.
Meanwhile the curse of Macbeth is my laptop has been crushed losing some vital files for the play in the process. Good news is I have got a copy of 'The Occult philosophy in the Elizabethan Age' by Frances Yates which is a good relevant read.
14 May 2008
Audition enquiries suggest excellent auditions
I'm really impressed with some of the people who have contacted me about the auditions. Some because they're experienced, a couple because they're knowledgable, but most because they're keen.
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