Archive for the ‘Stage’ Category
Tuesday, November 11th, 2008
Rehearsals for Twelfth Night have got off to a flying start and I really enjoyed my second rehearsal last night. There are some superb characters and performances already, so it’s promising to be quite a show. Twelfth Night is one of the smallest casts I’ve been involved in for a while, so I feel very privileged and proud that I’ve made it onto the team.
Andrew is shaping up nicely. I find it intriguing that what I work on at home never seems quite right and yet at rehearsal it’s coming together wonderfully. I imagine in the company of my fellow actors and under the watchful eye of our director Caz, the often raucous ambience that’s generated must act as a kind of creative gel, filling in the gaps and smoothing over the rough edges of the character. Ok maybe a bit far with analogy there, but I’m sure you take the point; the positive, jovial atmosphere is definitely assisting the creative process.
I’m very pleased that this early in rehearsals Sir Andrew is already bedding in because it bodes well for what I might achieve by the time we finally get to perform.
Tags: cast, derby shakespeare theatre company, rehearsals, sir andrew aguecheek, twelfth night
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Monday, October 13th, 2008
I’ve successfully auditioned for a role in the next Derby Shakespeare Theatre Company production. I’ll be playing Sir Andrew Aguecheek in Twelfth Night . I’m ludicrously happy about this arrangement and it’s going to be very silly.
You can get more details on the Derby Shakespeare Theatre Company website.
Tags: audition, derbyshakespeare theatre company, sir andrew aguecheek, twelfth night
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Friday, October 3rd, 2008
The Minack Theatre, Porthcurno: Henry's home for a week.
The Minack Theatre is hacked spectacularly into the cliffs of Porthcurno bay a stone’s throw from Land’s End. What struck me about the theatre was the sense of tranquillity you experience as you wander around its nooks and crannies. I say wander, hike may be more appropriate and it’s probably far less elegant than that. More often than not I found myself gasping for breath and rubbing my splitting calves. Get-in was a new kind of hell. At the time I thought nothing of bounding up and down the steps carrying props, costumes and other assorted acting paraphernalia. “How fit as a fiddle am I?” I convinced myself, but waking the next morning my legs were barely functional. This, compounded with the resulting maelstrom in my head from the previous night’s revelries, made for an interesting day running the technical and dress rehearsals.
Backstage at the Minack the horizon feels like it envelops you. “Where else can you go out of the stage door for a cigarette and get a view like this?” said John, our production’s Warwick. Stage right exits and entrances are not a problem, but in order to make your entrances upstage and stage left you have to take a cliff side path. This runs parallel to the back of the stage, with the stage itself being on one side and a vertical drop onto the rocks and crashing spray on the other. Apparently at one time there was no railing and many a promising thesp was lost to the hungry ocean below. Maybe.
Tags: derby shakespeare theatre company, dress rehearsals, exits and entrances, henry v, minack theatre, performance, porthcurno bay, stage door
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Thursday, August 21st, 2008
In the early hours of Saturday morning I will be heading down to Cornwall to perform in Henry V at the Minack Theatre. I’m really looking forward to it and weather permitting it will be fantastic. I’ll blog about it when I get back, but in the meantime click on the image to see backstage photos from the shows at Derby Grammar School.
Fluellen - Angry about leeks or something
Derby Shakespeare Theatre Company frequently hire costumes from the Royal Shakespeare Company. More often than not there are labels inside and you can find out the production, actor and role the costume was used for previously. I was particularly excited to find out that my Montjoy costume belonged to Jonathan Slinger’s Richard II in the RSC’s recent histories cycle. If you click the link it’s the one he’s wearing in the photo, minus the jerkin.
If that wasn’t impressive enough our Fluellen Mat’s suit of armour belonged to Brian Blessed in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.
Tickets for Henry V are available from the Minack Theatre website.
Update: Henry V has been and gone, I hope you enjoyed the show.
Tags: brian blessed, derby grammar school, derby shakespeare theatre company, henry v, performance, robin hood prince of thieves, royal shakespeare company, slinger
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Monday, August 11th, 2008
Harry rallys his troops before Harfleur as Exeter looks on.
I took some photos of Henry V rehearsals yesterday afternoon; click the image to check them out. As you can see, rehearsals have moved to the actual performance space at the grammar school and I’m beginning to get used to the size difference between Shakespeare House and the comparative larger school field. Watching offstage I get a sense that the show is really starting to galvanise.
Onstage our entrances and exits are quite tricky because, being an outdoor production, the wings can be observed from the audience. I can be seen before I make my entrance, so it’s a balancing act because I need to appear in character should the audience look over and yet not be too busy that I pose a distraction to the audience or indeed miss my cues. Another issue is hearing cue lines, yesterday was particularly windy and at times it was a struggle for me to hear cue lines to make my entrances. Barring these difficulties it can be particularly exhilarating to perform an elaborate entrance and time it in such a way that my lines are delivered perfectly on cue. Brilliant!
For more information about Henry V and booking tickets visit the Derby Shakespeare Theatre Company website.
Update: Henry V has been and gone, I hope you enjoyed the show.
Tags: cues, derby grammar school, derby shakepeare theatre company, entrances and exits, henry v, photos, rehearsals, wings
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Thursday, August 7th, 2008
I had a terrific time at Henry V rehearsals last night. Andy our soundman made his first appearance and this meant much topping and tailing of scenes in order that he could work out the cues for sound effects. I spent most of my time standing around chatting or gabbling my lines when required in order to save time. It’s amazing how the rhythm of Shakespeare’s verse can allow you to deliver your lines at pace and how trickier it is to accomplish the same with prose. When speaking prose you have to stick to the cadences in order to maintain speed whereas with verse speaking once you lock into the iambic rhythm you can just whizz along.
Despite being in several of Shakespeare’s plays Henry V is the first I have done in traditional costume and it was the arrival of the costumes from Stratford that really made the rehearsal for me. AMAZING! I’ve been in a few productions, all with terrific outfits, but these are in a different league. Hanging banner-like from the greenroom walls were polythene bags containing the type of military wear that you would have expected to see running around the fields of Agincourt 600 years ago. The room was a melee of brigandines and tabards displaying the Lancastrian coat of arms, barbute helmets, plate armor, gauntlets, hauberks of chainmail and chausses for the legs. Apparently there is more coming from London. It’s all very exciting.
For more information about Henry V and booking tickets visit the Derby Shakespeare Theatre Company website.
Update: Henry V has been and gone, I hope you enjoyed the show.
Tags: coat of arms, costume, cues, derby shakespeare theatre company, henry v, rehearsals, sound effects, tabards, traditional costume
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Tuesday, July 15th, 2008
Henry V poster with, like, two crowns being impaled by a sword.
On the 16th and 17th of August I will be appearing as Montjoy in Henry V. It’s a really cracking part and I’m enjoying the character development as his story weaves its way through Shakespeare’s take on the Homeric epic. The production will take place in the grounds of Derby Grammar School before we travel on to The Minack Theatre in Cornwall the following week.
Since it’s an outdoor production it will be a good idea if you bring your own chairs to the show, unless you’re happy to sit on bales of hay. Bring your own plonk and a picnic too. Let’s pray for kind weather!
Tickets cost six pounds for adults and a fiver for concessions. All seating is unreserved. For more information about ticket bookings visit the Derby Shakespeare Theatre Company website. I hope you enjoy the show.
Update: Henry V has been and gone, I hope you enjoyed the show.
Tags: character development, derby grammar school, derby shakepeare theatre company, henry v, minack theatre, poster, ticket bookings
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