Extra! Extra!!

The rehearsal on Tuesday evening (25th June) proved a point, not only to me but to others who, perhaps, didn't believe me when I said that being an extra in any production was just as hard, and just as rewarding, as having to learn hundreds of lines and dash about a lot! Although in this instance, there's a huge amount of dashing about as well as standing doing not-a-lot - an equally tiring and difficult thing to do!
Another beautiful evening...

And to think I could have been working...!

...and we we're joined, earlier than usual (it was a school night, after all!) by members of the junior section of another local theatre group - and a few of the adults too - who have appeared in many of our productions. Little Sod's, as they are affectionately known (Stoke Fleming Operatic and Dramatic Society...I think I've got that right) are great friends and supporters of DSW and they always answer the call. 
This year, we have an enthusiastic and talented group of them playing the Bedlam Beggars and they came to their first rehearsal and were coached, cajoled and generally choreographed by our own Lynne Deller. 
It never ceases to amaze me just how quick these guys are in picking things up and getting on with it! Couple of dry-runs, a listen to the music, then we got the other actors up on the stage and we were virtually running the section within an hour of starting. Brilliant.

How's that looking?

Thing is, these characters, and let's not make nay bones about this, they are most definitely characters in their own right, are only on stage for about three...maybe five minutes in all. But they are already becoming the bedlam beggars; and from the look of it, having a pretty good time as they learn their moves.
Lynne's absolutely amazing with all the movers and dancers that join us at the castle...and always gets the most fantastic performances from her troupe.

A few of the beggars will also have to hang around for the very end of the play...but if you want to know why, and see what's left for them to do, well, I suppose you're just going to have to come and see for yourselves.

And then there are what are known as, in some circles,  the 'spear carriers'. Stop it! These actors...and make no mistake, they are actors, and bl...very good ones too...are asked, usually by me, to walk on with the main characters, look interesting and interested, maintain concentration and character for what, sometimes, amounts to a long long time, react to the action and then remember their exits and what they are required to do next. In this production we're doubling, and sometimes trebling, some of the roles these people are playing. They have quick costume changes to make - from servant to soldier and back again - and, in the instances seen below, they have some quite complex choreography to remember as well. It all takes time and practice, which is what we were up to on Tuesday evening as well. There was a lot going on that night! Oh yes, and the musical cues too, that's another thing. And being an 'extra' is easy?!? Not a chance. 
That's another little bug of mine: 'extra'. They're not extra, per se, they're an integral part of everything that goes on around the other actors. And in this production, some of the main characters (like Oswald, the Duke of Cornwall, the King of France, the Duke of Burgundy etc) are also 'coming back from the dead' to bolster the number of those all-important peripheral characters. It ain't an easy ask, but they're up for it...thank heavens!
You may have seen the video of the initial flag practice: this week, Lynne rolled up her sleeves - again - and did a huge amount of work with the battle sequence too.   

 So no matter what production you may be watching, professional, non-professional, panto, drama, musical, whatever...when you see those actors who appear to be standing around, be nice!! They have a difficult job to do, and if it wasn't for them, I can pretty much guarantee that the production would lose something of its sparkle and life.

If all that wasn't enough, we also moved a few other scenes about as well. Did some detail work on the hovel scene and the lead-up and lead-out from that. The characters are really starting to shine through now...just little things that only I might notice, perhaps, but they make a world of difference. 

One thing you may have noticed about our productions: they're in the open air. So what happens when it rains? Well, if it starts during a performance, the simple answer is: we, and the audience, get wet. The mics are switched off (but we have a cunning way of keeping them dry...condoms. Don't ask.) and we soldier on regardless. The last twenty minutes of 'As you Like It' in 2011 immediately springs to mind...and if you were there, you'd remember it too!
However, if it's absolutely tipping down before the off, we transfer the basics to our wet-weather venue, St Petrox church, just down the hill from the main auditorium.
Fingers-crossed, we've only ever been in there four times in eleven years, but we always make contingency plans and have rehearsal, as such, in the church. Which where we're off to on Friday...but we'll doing other stuff outside too.
As lovely as the interior is, and it is amazing, it alters the whole feel of the production and we have to make changes to certain things...and that's what we'll be doing. Making notes and talking about certain aspects of Lear that will need to be done differently inside. It's a seat-of-the-pants experience, believe me.
But we've ordered brilliant weather, so not to worry. 
(I'm banging my forehead on a large chunk of two-by-four as I type)

And once again, huge thanks go to Keith Gould, wizard of the lens, for getting these wonderful shots out to me so quickly. Dunno how he does it...but I'm awful glad he does!

In other news....there is no other news.