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Reviving The Margaret Ghost - Tweaking and Polishing
Another post for The Margaret Ghost blog.
This is my favorite part of the rehearsal period. With our abbreviated schedule, it has come on me more quickly than usual, but it is still very welcome. This is the time when all the pieces are in place--the actors know their lines and where they should be when they say them, they have a feel for their characters and the flow of the scenes. The show can run from beginning to end without any major trainwrecks. But it's not nearly as good as it's going to be.
Part of that is just repetition. We'll be running the entire show several times between now and opening night, getting used to it and finding new moments, new approaches each time. But in between the runs, we take the time to polish.
Last night we worked mainly on Act II, which takes place in Margaret's office at the Tribune in New York. This is where we meet Angelo Ossoli and see the beginnings of his relationship with Margaret. Watching the video of our 2006 production, I felt that this was one of the places that we could really improve the show as a whole. Ossoli needed to be stronger, his reactions to Margaret more immediate and passionate, his approach less bashful. So we focus on the exchanges between the two of them, honing the timing, examining each step and each gesture to smooth out the interaction, and then practicing it again and again until it feels natural to the actors.
There was something wrong, a hitch in the pace of one moment. We played it through again and again. Margaret needs to turn slightly more toward Ossoli. Ossoli should come a step closer before his line. Better, but still not smooth. I stepped in to walk through the motions, which often helps--there are limits to what I can understand visually and communicate verbally--but couldn't find it. So we went through it again. When you have two characters and a prop to contend with, there are a lot of moving parts to consider, but this is the kind of puzzle I adore.
Finally I saw it--Ossoli is reaching for Margaret's lorgnette and Santiago's natural politeness has inserted a raise of the hand, a non-verbal request for permission, that is slowing his motion and creating a slight pause. Drop that and the timing works. Twenty minutes spent on a few seconds that most people in the audience will barely register, but it will reinforce the messages we are sending and strengthen the perception of Ossoli.
That puzzle solved, we move on to the next bit, and the next, and the next, polishing each one and repeating it to incorporate it into the flow. When rehearsal is over I am energized, charged up by the sense of having made something better than it was when we walked in and the joy of doing it with such creative, talented and patient people.
Best of all, I get to do it again tomorrow night!
This is my favorite part of the rehearsal period. With our abbreviated schedule, it has come on me more quickly than usual, but it is still very welcome. This is the time when all the pieces are in place--the actors know their lines and where they should be when they say them, they have a feel for their characters and the flow of the scenes. The show can run from beginning to end without any major trainwrecks. But it's not nearly as good as it's going to be.
Part of that is just repetition. We'll be running the entire show several times between now and opening night, getting used to it and finding new moments, new approaches each time. But in between the runs, we take the time to polish.
Last night we worked mainly on Act II, which takes place in Margaret's office at the Tribune in New York. This is where we meet Angelo Ossoli and see the beginnings of his relationship with Margaret. Watching the video of our 2006 production, I felt that this was one of the places that we could really improve the show as a whole. Ossoli needed to be stronger, his reactions to Margaret more immediate and passionate, his approach less bashful. So we focus on the exchanges between the two of them, honing the timing, examining each step and each gesture to smooth out the interaction, and then practicing it again and again until it feels natural to the actors.
There was something wrong, a hitch in the pace of one moment. We played it through again and again. Margaret needs to turn slightly more toward Ossoli. Ossoli should come a step closer before his line. Better, but still not smooth. I stepped in to walk through the motions, which often helps--there are limits to what I can understand visually and communicate verbally--but couldn't find it. So we went through it again. When you have two characters and a prop to contend with, there are a lot of moving parts to consider, but this is the kind of puzzle I adore.
Finally I saw it--Ossoli is reaching for Margaret's lorgnette and Santiago's natural politeness has inserted a raise of the hand, a non-verbal request for permission, that is slowing his motion and creating a slight pause. Drop that and the timing works. Twenty minutes spent on a few seconds that most people in the audience will barely register, but it will reinforce the messages we are sending and strengthen the perception of Ossoli.
That puzzle solved, we move on to the next bit, and the next, and the next, polishing each one and repeating it to incorporate it into the flow. When rehearsal is over I am energized, charged up by the sense of having made something better than it was when we walked in and the joy of doing it with such creative, talented and patient people.
Best of all, I get to do it again tomorrow night!
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