In these entries, the company settles into steady rehearsal days with the premiere just two weeks away. Kate writes of balancing authenticity with audience interest, of Yvonne’s breathtaking performance, and of how even small shifts – costumes, light, or snow outside the window – can change the whole mood of the process.
"Sometimes when I act opposite her I forget I’m a co-character and find myself thinking Bloody hell, she’s good."
DAY 11
Steady day; working through the scenes chronologically, finding the best solutions aesthetically, actor and director negotiating: what may feel right for the actor may be uninteresting for the audience. It’s always a challenge, keeping things interesting and authentic sametime.
Almost full crew in rehearsal today, Martin - technical manager/producer, Danny our stagehand, Stine, costume, Torkil, lighting. It’s all happened very fast, and premiere is in exactly two weeks.
I go to see Peeping Tom at Dansens Hus in the evening. Become acutely aware of the fact that the last four dance productions I’ve seen seem to have had more talking than dance in them, and wonder more and more what the definition of ‘dance’ is these days, also theatre? Perhaps that is not a thread one wants to pull at ... but I do like the intervocational blurred lines.
DAY 12
Continuing where we left off, scene 8 (of 25). Alan in good spirits, and his good spirits always lift any actor (or actress) struggling with self doubt. I play a scene where the character is very ill and on a morphine drip. I'm not a fan of ‘the method’ (ibid), but do marvel at how muscle memory can take over, when one simply casts the mind back to when one was in hospital hooked up to the drugs. It’s tiring. Yvonne carries the scene with an extraordinary monologue. I never cease to be amazed at Yvonne’s commitment to her craft, how she paces and goes back again and again to get right the tiniest moments. Sometimes when I act opposite her I forget I’m a co-character and find myself thinking Bloody hell, she’s good.
Stine brings in some costumes for us to try. That’s a new gear shift in the process, as costumes are battle dress in some ways. It’s not playtime any more. It’s play time.
It’s snowing now. Good to be inside, working in a team.
Diary #5:
An horrific shock
As rehearsals move onto the main stage, the US election looms over every word. Kate Pendry captures the tension, the fragile beauty of scenes in progress, and the shock of waking to Trump’s victory.