Sunday, May 19, 2013

the last month

Half hearted blogger I suppose i must be. We opened this week; a technical rehearsal; two dress rehearsals; 2 previews for staff and family; an invited guest night and 2 public shows.

Why the absence? The last 3 weeks of rehearsals were hard. My father died which, whilst a release for a very long term Alzheimers sufferer was still unsettling especially as I did not go to the UK for the funeral.

Then Ritchie's grandfather accidentally ran over and killed a drunk lad lying by the side of the road one early drizzly dawn. Then Danny's younger sister died of cancer. So we were struggling to maintain one let alone two casts, not to mention the emotions of several cast members; plays are not necessarily the most important things in the world at the best of times.

Despite all of this, many people are claiming it is the best of the big shows to date. We seem to have less unexpected laughter than previous years as people follow the story closely. Its strongest element is probably the swift story telling that Jo manages in the second half as we sense a society on the brink of dictatorship. Feelings run high. Last night Charlie was subject to hissing from a section of the audience as his character entwined himself completely round the gangsters. Many have come up after the show to say it is very close to the bone, telling it like it is etc.

Yet for a director this is a confusing time. The show is no longer yours, you lob in a few notes, tweak the odd scene but ultimately whilst you glow if the audience likes it, watching it every time becomes counterproductive; you worry unnecessarily because you yourself feel no more surprises in the production.

so onwards to Love patrol series 7 I guess.

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