Puppies Can be Distracting

We did another full run of the show. I invited faculty to sit in on rehearsal. I figured at this point in the rehearsal process, having it all blocked and the cast comfortable, I needed another set of eyes on it. My kiddos kind of freaked out a little when I informed them that I had invited them. I had to explain that they were only coming in order to critique me and help me with my process, not to critique them. Bart was the only one that showed up for todays. However, Amanda’s roommate Austin brought their new one month old chocolate lab puppy to rehearsal. The cast learned a lesson in distractions and how to stay focused even though other things are going on around them. Meeko is so incredibly cute and it felt really nice to have that little snuggle bug curled up on my lap during part of the rehearsal. Most of Bart’s notes had to do with the first Act, which was slightly surprising to me, since Act I is where the cast feels the most solid. Everything he said though made perfect sense to me. He talked about the different girls’ energy and how they should be matched on stage. Francesca’s comfortable flopping and stomping worked really well for Meredith. Emily as Frances on the other hand, was getting a little too comfortable in her environment when in reality she should be intimidated and uncomfortable, always trying to justify her presence and fit in with the other women. Amanda as Georgeanne worked really well, as I knew it would, but she could raise the level of her energy just a little higher. Lydia as Mindy is wonderful and is working so hard to understand her role and how she should approach it. She even came up to me after notes to apologize in case she came off as bitchy during notes since she asks so many questions to better understand what exactly I am looking for. Apparently she has had directors in the past who have criticized the way she goes about asking things. I reassured her that she was not bitchy and that asking questions is a good thing. It is better to understand fully, then stay confused and continue getting the same note. Rachel as Trisha is growing so much as an actor, I am so impressed with how well she takes direction and learns. The one thing we need to work on now is physicality. Rachel tends to get to relaxed and plop down places. Now we need to help her stay poised and graceful. Since I have assigned the window seat as Trisha’s psychological area, we need to work on her knowingly ‘being seen.’ Tyler as Tripp is exactly what I was looking for from the start, which is why it was so much easier to cast Tripp than I thought it would be. He is quick to learn from his mistakes and eager to please. He also works so well with Rachel that it makes me smile every time I see them together. From the people who have seen bits and pieces of it so far, they all have said that they cannot wait to see it. This makes me so happy that the stress level that I have over it seems almost non-existent to me now.