blog by Mo Brady (Barnaby) written Tuesday 3/24
Once a show settles into a consistent rhythm, the cast can begin to concentrate on developing the moments between the moments. What I mean by this is we're developing everything between the lines - the fleeting glances and knowing looks that take place onstage. This is one of my absolute favorite parts of acting - existing onstage in the moments when I don't speak, but get to simply react to the other characters and the plot they are developing. The delightful challenge of this is to create a realistic through-line that informs and connects the dialogue.
"Dancing," the full company dance number near the end of Act I, is full of these kinds of moments. In this song, I only speak twice. However, I get to exist onstage in the world of Barnaby for five, delicious non-verbal minutes. Without uttering a word, I get to take Barnaby out of his shy shell, learn to dance, meet a girl, and fall in love. All without saying a word!
Part of this story was developed by David Armstrong's staging. His choreography gave us guideposts for the journeys we each take during the song. For Barnaby, this journey begins by being so frightened of dancing that David has staged me literally hiding in the closet. From there, he created moments for Barnaby to come out of his shell, first by dancing with instructor Dolly, then with cohort Cornelius, and finally with the fabulous fashionista Minnie Fay. David's choreography shows Barnaby's shift from cautious, to ecstatic, to finally confident for the first time in the play.
Between these guideposts, the scenes get fleshed out in cahoots with fellow actors. Most of the time, moments are created without being planned or discussed - a glance between two characters in reaction to a piece of staging or a line will add weight and dynamics to their relationship. Often these unplanned moments will become an intrinsic part of a performance - seemingly necessary to the non-verbal through line of the show.
For me, these moments are some of the most fulfilling parts of a performance. My current favorite is in "Dancing," just before we leave Mrs. Molloy's Hat Shop. As Dolly (Jenifer Lewis) begins to instruct me, I share a brief look with both Cornelius (Greg Allen) and Minnie (Tracee Beazer). My look of self-defeat, and their looks of encouragement, happen simultaneously with my first dance steps, so by the time I look at my feet, I've already begun to dance. These interactions are fleeting, but bring a vitality and truthfulness to the beginning of Barnaby's journey in the song.
These kinds of moments are so complex that they take a paragraph to describe. But their complexity endow a character with so much life that they can't help but feel real. Even as they become slightly expanded for a 2,200 seat house, they can feel big, but exact. Broad, but specific. Theatrical, but truthful. And with their complexity, they bring sense of satisfaction when performed, and the hope that in each performance, we will create one more moment to play.
Showing posts with label Tracee Beazer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tracee Beazer. Show all posts
Friday, March 27, 2009
Monday, February 23, 2009
Table Work & Learning Music
Blog entry by Mo Brady (Barnaby) 2/19/09
Hello from Hello, Dolly!
The 5th Avenue is back in the rehearsal studio, preparing for their next big production from the golden age of Broadway: Hello, Dolly! --and I am lucky enough to once again be along for the ride.
Although rehearsals for the principles began almost two weeks ago, today was our first day of rehearsal with the full cast. Until this point, the company had been layering in small groups of actors little by little.
For the first few days, just the principle cast was called for rehearsals. The schedule for these rehearsals consisted primarily of "table work" - where actors literally sit around tables with our director, David Armstrong, just to speak through the lines and to discuss the plot, situation, our characters and their motivations. This is a good time to discuss the historical context of the story, as well when major information in the plot is revealed. Basically, its a great opportunity to get everybody on the same page. Literally.
For me, table work is influenced primarily by the script - looking at the lines and thinking of how I can say them in the most realistic way. I always figure that if the director has done a good job, he has cast me because he sees a lot of myself in the role. So I try to encounter at the situations in the plot as I would encounter them myself. Of course, there are some technical things that go through my head, such as being aware of where the jokes are. Also, since I recently played another shy and goofy teenager in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, I am hyper aware of how the two characters can be different. But essentially, table work is about finding the truth in the text.
Then we began to learn music, learning harmonies and cut-offs, marking in our music the lyrics that Joel Fram, our wonderfully meticulous music director, wants us to emphasize. I'm a sucker for music direction, and I enjoy his passionate take on breath marks and ending consonants. He's the kind of music director that turns the work of being particular with your notes and your lyrics into a game. Its hard not to get excited when you see the way Joel conducts.
And as the throngs of dancing waiters began staging their leaps and turns, the principles began putting the scenes on their feet (or in my case, on my knees, a lot of the time. Again, it seems that shy and goofy teenagers crawl around on the floor a lot). Most of this work takes place simultaneously, in separate rehearsal studios. Today, I was joking around with Troy Wageman, a friend and fellow cast member, that even though we had both been called for four rehearsal days, we hadn't yet been in the same rehearsal room at the same time.
Finally, today was the first day that the female ensemble joined us. Seeing the legions of waiters and cooks and society ladies - almost forty cast members in total - was almost overwhelming, and definitely exciting. This day's rehearsal culminated in another read through of the script. This read through is quite the event: all of the actors sitting around with scripts on music stands, reading the lines and singing the songs together for the first time. I should say, everyone was sitting, except our fantastic Dolly Levi, played by Jenifer Lewis. She was strutting and marching all over the room, to the delight of the cast and our small audience alike.
Now that everybody is called for rehearsals, we can begin to stage the large production numbers, such as "Put On Your Sunday Clothes" and "Before The Parade Passes By." We only have seven more days in the rehearsal studios before we get to the stage. It'll be a busy week, full of blocking and staging - quite the task with over 40 bodies to choreograph. But having the full cast at rehearsal is motivation for all of us, and should propel us to complete the task by the end of next week.
Tracee Beazer (Minnie Fay), Suzanne Bouchard (Irene Malloy), Mo Brady (Barnaby) and Greg McCormick Allen (Cornelius) enjoy the read through.
photo credit Neil Badders (Ensemble)
Hello from Hello, Dolly!
The 5th Avenue is back in the rehearsal studio, preparing for their next big production from the golden age of Broadway: Hello, Dolly! --and I am lucky enough to once again be along for the ride.
Although rehearsals for the principles began almost two weeks ago, today was our first day of rehearsal with the full cast. Until this point, the company had been layering in small groups of actors little by little.
For the first few days, just the principle cast was called for rehearsals. The schedule for these rehearsals consisted primarily of "table work" - where actors literally sit around tables with our director, David Armstrong, just to speak through the lines and to discuss the plot, situation, our characters and their motivations. This is a good time to discuss the historical context of the story, as well when major information in the plot is revealed. Basically, its a great opportunity to get everybody on the same page. Literally.
For me, table work is influenced primarily by the script - looking at the lines and thinking of how I can say them in the most realistic way. I always figure that if the director has done a good job, he has cast me because he sees a lot of myself in the role. So I try to encounter at the situations in the plot as I would encounter them myself. Of course, there are some technical things that go through my head, such as being aware of where the jokes are. Also, since I recently played another shy and goofy teenager in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, I am hyper aware of how the two characters can be different. But essentially, table work is about finding the truth in the text.
Then we began to learn music, learning harmonies and cut-offs, marking in our music the lyrics that Joel Fram, our wonderfully meticulous music director, wants us to emphasize. I'm a sucker for music direction, and I enjoy his passionate take on breath marks and ending consonants. He's the kind of music director that turns the work of being particular with your notes and your lyrics into a game. Its hard not to get excited when you see the way Joel conducts.
And as the throngs of dancing waiters began staging their leaps and turns, the principles began putting the scenes on their feet (or in my case, on my knees, a lot of the time. Again, it seems that shy and goofy teenagers crawl around on the floor a lot). Most of this work takes place simultaneously, in separate rehearsal studios. Today, I was joking around with Troy Wageman, a friend and fellow cast member, that even though we had both been called for four rehearsal days, we hadn't yet been in the same rehearsal room at the same time.
Finally, today was the first day that the female ensemble joined us. Seeing the legions of waiters and cooks and society ladies - almost forty cast members in total - was almost overwhelming, and definitely exciting. This day's rehearsal culminated in another read through of the script. This read through is quite the event: all of the actors sitting around with scripts on music stands, reading the lines and singing the songs together for the first time. I should say, everyone was sitting, except our fantastic Dolly Levi, played by Jenifer Lewis. She was strutting and marching all over the room, to the delight of the cast and our small audience alike.
Now that everybody is called for rehearsals, we can begin to stage the large production numbers, such as "Put On Your Sunday Clothes" and "Before The Parade Passes By." We only have seven more days in the rehearsal studios before we get to the stage. It'll be a busy week, full of blocking and staging - quite the task with over 40 bodies to choreograph. But having the full cast at rehearsal is motivation for all of us, and should propel us to complete the task by the end of next week.
Tracee Beazer (Minnie Fay), Suzanne Bouchard (Irene Malloy), Mo Brady (Barnaby) and Greg McCormick Allen (Cornelius) enjoy the read through.
photo credit Neil Badders (Ensemble)
Mo Brady ...back to the backstage blog!
Mo was an avid backstage-blogger for Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and spent the time during Memphis: The Birth of Rock 'n' Roll as Assistant to the Director!
We're excited to have Mo back on stage for this upcoming production, starring stage & screen's Jenifer Lewis and Seattle's own Pat Cashman.
When asked about his favorite places to eat around the theatre, he replied:
"I love happy hour! Dragonfish and Palomino's especially. Give me $2 Miso Soup or $5 Pizza and I'm set. I'm Jimmy John's all the time now. Their Beach Club is great (no mayo, please). Plus, I'm a sucker for a black white and cookie from Speciality's."
Mo joined by some fellow cast members.
Left to Right, Maya RS Perkins (Ensemble), Mo Brady (Barnaby), Steven Reed (Associate Choreographer) and Tracee Beazer (Minnie Fay)
We're excited to have Mo back on stage for this upcoming production, starring stage & screen's Jenifer Lewis and Seattle's own Pat Cashman.
When asked about his favorite places to eat around the theatre, he replied:
"I love happy hour! Dragonfish and Palomino's especially. Give me $2 Miso Soup or $5 Pizza and I'm set. I'm Jimmy John's all the time now. Their Beach Club is great (no mayo, please). Plus, I'm a sucker for a black white and cookie from Speciality's."
Mo joined by some fellow cast members.
Left to Right, Maya RS Perkins (Ensemble), Mo Brady (Barnaby), Steven Reed (Associate Choreographer) and Tracee Beazer (Minnie Fay)
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