Day three of rehearsal for Into the Woods, and already I’ve had my first inquiry of “when’s the next blog post?”
We’ve been moving very quickly. Tonight we almost finished blocking Act I. We started blocking last night at 5PM. We stopped in the middle of the Act I Finale (in this show the openings and finales of the acts are probably the majority of the running time). Then we went all the way back to “Once Upon a Time” and ran as far as we could before the end of the night, which was to the end of “It Takes Two.” It was really amazing to see how much of a coherent story we’ve already constructed. We also continue drilling music throughout the day, because, well, the score is evil. I continue to be amazed at how well the cast can absorb and retain it.
I am also becoming aware of the fact that calling the show is not going to be a cakewalk either, and that by tech I probably will need to know the score as well as the cast does to be successful. I’ve started marking my script where obvious cues should be, because there will probably have to be a whole lot of them as focus bounces all over the stage at a rapid pace. During our run tonight I actually started circling a couple places where those cues might best be called. I always feel good when I can get to that point, because it makes rehearsal relevant to my preparation for my part in the show, rather than just being a secretary and furniture mover for other people’s process.
I’m having a great time just enjoying the performances that are taking shape. We have a great group of character actors who also happen to be very strong singers. I found myself wondering why some of them aren’t Equity yet, and then remembered that they’re still in college! I’ve been here for six years and still can’t get over how much talent of all ages and experience levels can be found hiding out in the Boston suburbs.
I’m super jealous! I love that show! Congrats on completing the “Kids show” version (you know….where everything ends happily). Enjoy the exploration into Ever After!
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Comment by Nick Tochelli — June 4, 2010 @ 7:32 am