Can’t believe we’re over half way through the rehearsal process already! Last week was brilliant, got so much done in just a week, and now we’ve finished blocking, it’s all starting to take shape. Yesterday we did our first run through and it was really great to put it all together and see the show more as a whole. The show’s looking really good and I was surprised at how much of the lines myself and the others had absorbed. However personally I am concerned about my singing as I’ve not got the most confidence in my singing, especially my head voice and quite a lot of the songs are extremely high. Also at the moment I seem to be tired all the time, which is having a negative effect on my voice, must just be the early mornings, bit of a shock to the system. Well I’m off home this weekend back to Chester for early nights, family time, lots of script work and some home comforts, lovely lovely.
Am loving working with everyone, am really lucky to be working with such a great company, and am enjoying the script incredibly, getting to really know and understand all my characters now which is exciting. I’d like to now explore further Nancy’s more emotional scenes such as the letters with Burns, and also have all my lines completely well and truly learnt by Monday!! Good luck to me.
Rebecca Bradley
Archive for category Writer / Director
Half Way Through Rehearsals
Jul 23
And so it begins…my first taste of life as a professional actor! This will be my first Fringe performance, and after years of attending numerous Fringe productions, I’m ecstatic at the prospct of actually being involved in one! All last week I’d been really excited about starting rehearsals, so much so that I think nerves came into play on Sunday night as I had the most restless sleep ever!! It sounds ridiculous and, yes, rather dramatic, but it’s just that feeling of embarking on a new project, a new journey and it being something you’re so passionate about.
This is my first involvement in Burns’ works since the tender age of eleven. Och aye, the days of primary school Burns recital competitions, I remember well, and even better the day I won the Burns Competition and was invited to recite my poem, “O For Ane An’ Twenty, Tam” at the Kinghorn & Burntisland Rotary Club Burns supper. I have fond memories of my parents hosting annual Burns suppers with a group of friends, each guest taking their turn at a different part of the preceedings. As well as entertaining their pals, we also had family Burns suppers and to this day, I am not a fan of cock-a-leekie soup and detest haggis! But it was never so much about the food as it was about celebrating Burns insightful, prolific work.
Anyway, to return to the more immediate topic, I am absolutely LOVING the Burns’ songs in the show. They sound awesome! When I first got the sheet musicand heard Matthew, M.D, play my two solo songs to me, I was amazed – they both had the most fluctuting range I’d ever heard in any song arrangement. I thought, “I can’t possibly sing that!” Nonetheless, after a few rehearsals I feel I’m getting increasingly confident with them and am actually totally enjoying singing them now! Yes, Wednesday was a successful and progressive day for me
The Highland accent, required for one of my characters, is actually posing fewer problems than I thought it might. Oh aye, Cathie assures me I’m on the right tracks. Yet, I fear, even though it’s still fairly early days, it’s coming out a tad Welsh. But alright boyo, I’ll work on it!!
Jen
Treasure Island Blog 14/7/09
Jul 14
Lee's Blog continued….
Day 1- We started at the Mining Museum for the morning where we met everybody involved. We then continued with a read through of both shows which were great to hear out loud ! Both shows look like their going to be great fun and there was generally a good vibe after the readings! I then enjoyed some poached eggs on toast from the cafe and off to Rosslyn for the afternoon session…Sword Fighting! Something i thought would just be testosterone filled enjoyment was actually a real challenge and required a great deal of focus! Everyone seemed to help each other plough through and the opening fight scene was bearing some sort of shape by the end of the day. Came home with a frazzled brain but with the satisfaction of a good days work…Roll on tommorow more sword fighting!
Day 2-Met in the Rosslyn rehearsal space again today for 10am. Start with a bit of a group warm up then split the casts and get on with business. We start by going over the fight we had been working on yesterday which is really starting to come togeather. We then decided to think up as many pirate quotes and phrases as we could which could be used for ad-libbing in the show. Next we took a look at the second fight scene between Arrow and Benn Gunn. This fight is more light hearted so we tried to push for as much physical comedy as possible which i think should be pretty funny! This for me in particular was very physically demanding and left me very sweaty and tired, but Bruce seemed fairly pleased with what we had put togeather, so after a bit of tinkering this scene was pretty much complete by the end of the day. My voice feels fairly strained from the pirate banter so may have to take a bit more care of the old vocal chords over the coming weeks before i start sounding like rod stewart!
Ae Fond Kiss Blog 12/7/09
Jul 12
Blog by Rebecca Bradley
Right so it’s the Sunday before rehearsals start so I’m just reading through the script and continuing my work on the Scottish accent. I’m so excited about the play but my main worry does have to be putting on the Scottish accent and doing it well, but that’s not stopping my eagerness and excitement.
I’m on a summer break from the acting course at Queen Margaret University at the moment, which has been lovely, free time and sunny days, but it’s great now to have a project, something to work towards. I really am looking forward to getting my teeth stuck in to the characters of Nancy, Nell and Jean’s mother. So far I’ve been researching Burns life and work to grasp a better understanding of what life was like and the living conditions of that time.
Can’t wait for tomorrow, get to see where we’re performing, meet everyone and do a bit of singing, great stuff.
Aaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yup, that about sums up my level of nervousness and excitement at the prospect of trying to do justice to arguably Scotland’s favourite son….EVER!!
I was amazed, humbled and terrified in equal measure when I was informed that the role or Burns was mine. I have been a great lover of Burns’ work from a very early age and competed in many Burns recital competitions throughout primary and high school. I even based my drama school ‘Movement Assessment’ (possibly the most daunting thing I’ve ever done, considering how ‘gracefulness impaired’ I have always though of myself) on debatably Burns’ greatest masterpiece, Tam O’Shanter.
Now I find myself trying to bring the great man himself to life and one question stands out like a sore thumb every time this concept springs to mind…WHERE DO I START??
Thus far, I’ve spent most of my spare time reading various biographies, guides and opinions of Burns and I think I’m starting to get a better understanding of what is a very complicated individual. From such humble, agricultural beginnings, it is fascinating to see just how far his talent and passion for the written word would take him…and yet how unfulfilled it would ultimately leave him without the love of a good woman (or twelve!!) to share it with. I was also very pleased to learn that, contrary to popular assumption, Burns’ was actually around 6’2” tall (only an inch and a half less than myself, as opposed to the 9 inches I previously thought I had on him) and was not quite as slim as many of his statues etc would tend to suggest…which considering he spent so much of his early life toiling in the fields, would seem to make sense also. I’ve got a long way to go to match his trademark “sideboard” facial hair, but I’ll give it a bloomin’ good go!!
All in all, I am incredibly excited to get started and really get my teeth into this amazing character!
Here tae us, wha’s like us…?!
Treasure Island Blog
Jul 8
Lee's First Blog
With only a few days before the start of Rehearsals, now feels like a good time to start blogging! I have spent a good bit of this week working with my good friend (The Puppet) trying to gain a bit of confidence with my puppetry skills which prior to this week were pretty non existent, but we will get there! We also spent a day at The Mining Museum in which we had a great deal of fun with the publicity shots at various locations within the museum, which apart from the unusually hot weather was exciting stuff! Need to go through the novel one more time before Monday which i will be doing with Puppet in hand, as I have found this the best way to practice thus far! We also had a costume fit the week before last which was the first real cast meeting. This was a first for me….wearing tights is surprisingly comfortable….but removing them was a challenge in itself! Cast and crew seem to all get along splendidly and i'm looking forward to the adventures ahead…
Andrews Blog 1
Oct 21
First Rehearsal – Andrew Warnock (George Bailey)
For some time now I have been looking forward to this project with equal measures of excitement and trepidation.
Lets take the latter first. How could anyone approach such an iconic and well loved character as George Bailey and not feel a little overwhelmed? The story of Its A Wonderful Life and the characters therein tend to mean more to people than those of other Movies. So many people (me included) have grown up with the story and have attached a great deal of sentimental value to it over the years. For anyone taking on such a story, the fear of being compared and coming up short proves a gigantic psychological barrier and in weaker moments you just can't help but imagine a sea of dissappointed faces, shedding tears and wondering how you could do such a thing to them.
That's the trepidation part. And the Excitement? All of the above reasons. The challenge of taking something that people think they know inside out and presenting it as something new and fresh and relevant. The prospect of illuminating areas of the story that maybe people didn't see before, or at least hadn't thought of.
Anyway, it was with all these thoughts swimming round my head that I arrived for the first rehearsal. The day got off to a shaky start, as the rehearsal space at Roslyn Glen Hotel was unexpectedly shut. This proved a brief and minor set back and actually allowed us the opportunity to walk along to the nearby Chapel (one of our performance venues) and have a good look round. That done, we returned to the Hotel and got down to the business of analysing the text and breaking it down into small workable chunks. This is a vital part of any rehearsal process as it helps the cast towards a greater understanding of the story and the part they will play in it. The cast assembled here have thrown a lot of interesting thoughts and ideas into the mix and I am already starting to feel excited about the direction that the story might in go and the way its characters will develope.
All in all, its been a fruitful first day.
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Tonight’s the night….
Jul 30
Well, the first night is upon us. The fact that I haven’t updated you for over a week gives you an idea of how busy we have been. This show has presented more of a challenge than any that we have done before.
I must take this opportunity to praise the actors who have worked tirelessly to create rounded, believable and enjoyable characters. This years show has been a challenge from the outset and they continue to meet each new obstacle with determination and no shortage of creative solutions. They really have worked wonders.
We are now at the stage of being ‘ready for an audience’ obviously during all of the rehearsals you are aiming to achieve something for an audience but it’s not until one actually arrives that you truly understand what it is that you are creating.
Peter Brooke describes in his book ‘The Empty Space’ ‘A man walks across this empty space whilst someone else is watching him, and this is all that is needed for an act of theatre to be engaged.’ In one way of course he is absolutely right. However, for me true theatre takes place when you have the space, the audience, the players and most importantly something to say. In our case this is the magnificent story of Romeo and Juliet. Tomorrow will be our first opportunity to really see whether our story affects an audience in the way we hoped. If you would like to contribute your thoughts after watching the show please feel free to keep us updated with anything you liked or disliked.
As with our production of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream we have some outside sections in the gardens of the chapel. However the weather forecast is not too favourable for tonight but we’ll just have to keep our fingers crossed that the rain holds off. It really adds something unique to the evening to be in the open air listening to Shakespeare – just as it was 400 years ago.
Finally I would like to say a big thank you to everyone who has worked tirelessly in the supporting roles in the creation of this year’s show. In no particular order, Brenda Murphy who has assisted me brilliantly and offered excellent insights and asked thoughtful questions and made well thought out suggestions throughout and been a great support. Cathie Owen our Voice Coach who has given the cast such tremendous support and help and been a great supporter of us all. Bill Scott whose costumes seem to get better and better. They are stunning creations and all made from scratch. Michael Osborne who has whipped us into shape in terms of his stage management and found and made some excellent props. Fiona Rutherford whose Clarsach is so wonderful to listen to. All original creations (bar one) that fit and build the mood and atmosphere beautifully. Thank you all.
I will update you over the weekend as to how we go…
The only way is up……
Jul 15
In March 1923, in an interview with The New York Times, the British mountaineer George Leigh Mallory was asked why he wanted to climb Mount Everest, and replied, 'Because it's there'.
Without wishing to give too much away about this years show we have set ourselves a couple of very difficult tasks which at this, the mid-point of rehearsals, you start to question. The quote above I think goes some way to answering it.
I should stress that creating a play is nowhere near as strenuous as climbing a mountain and I am thoroughly enjoying the process but the challenge is valid as a comparison. The sense of setting a difficult task and then trying to achieve it is applicable to the mountains and the rehearsal room.
I am pleased to report that, to continue the mountain metaphor, we have established base camp and are well on the way to summiting on July 31st – The team is in good shape and extremely well supported by a very capable crew.
This (the mid-point of the rehearsal process) is always an interesting point in any show because you find yourself with a lot of work achieved and an awful lot more still to do – it genuinely is like being half way up a mountain – the thing that drags you to the top is the determination to get there winning over the desire to give up and go back down. Especially when you know that it potentially is going to get harder before it gets easier.
Anyway, back at sea level we are really making great strides with the show. We have some lovely moments already created as well as some very interesting characters. The scenes outside are going to be really effective I think. I will try to give you another update as we go.
We have been concentrating on developing each of the scenes to really allow us to tell the story of this particular version of Romeo and Juliet. As always with Shakespeare the trouble is that the more you work on it the more you find and so many options present themselves to you because of the genius of the language. Finding the right decision for the character, the actor and the story takes a lot of careful thought, and, really 8 weeks of rehearsal (like the Royal Shakespeare Company). We have only the 3, but I think we are making excellent progress. Onward and upwards…..
First Day of Rehearsals
Jul 7
Well, would you believe the first day of rehearsals are upon us? 11 days have passed remarkably quickly. So the process has now begun in earnest and we have 18 rehearsal days until opening night…. Now that is scary.
Last week I was in Inverness working with the National Theatre of Scotland Learn team on their ‘Exchange’ project: http://www.nationaltheatrescotland.com/content/default.asp?page=s4_3
This was a high energy week with around 70 young people from across Scotland who were performing shows and participating in workshops. I had a particular connection with Vertigo Theatre in East Kilbride and the Rusty Boat Theatre company from Greenock. Both groups did themselves proud with great performances and I was very proud to be associated with both of the groups.
It is amazing how much you learn form working with young people. Their appetite for theatre and their ability to be completely socially interactive with dozens of different people is genuinely moving. Also the power that theatre can have in changing people in extremely positive ways. Confidence, sociability belief in oneself and pride are just some of the things I saw developing before my eyes during the action packed week.
Now the focus turns completely to Romeo and Juliet. Today was first day of rehearsals and traditionally this involves reading the play and discussing the themes. We also welcomed Fiona Rutherford, our Clarsach (Harp) player back after 2 years. Hearing the harp leaping into life in the Chapel again was wonderful it evokes an incredible atmosphere and supports Shakespeare’s words so beautifully.
We did a little bit of work on the first meeting between Romeo and Juliet tonight which was great fun and instantly exciting and flirtations and enticing. This is arguably the most important moment in the play as it sets up the whole cascade of events that follow thereafter.
We have a huge amount of work to do over the next three weeks to bring the beauty of the language to life and tell the story with as much vigour and relish as we can. Everyone involved is extremely enthusiastic and I’m genuinely excited by the possibilities that lie ahead.
We begin filming our podcast/video diary tomorrow so hopefully by the weekend you will be able to see what we’ve been up to. In the meantime if you have any questions you would particularly like answered then please do get in touch by commenting on any of these blogs.
Gallop a pace you fiery footed steeds……