It is October. It is performance month .... are any of the cast tempted to approach Fran or Sophie with a Private Godfrey-like
"I say do you think I might be excused Captain Mainwaring only my sister Dolly has baked a rather nice Victoria sponge and insisted I get back in time for tea" ......... No? Me neither, they are all raring to go, chomping at the bit like a stableful of thoroughbreds, all sleek, shiney, rippling, quivering, snorting (by the way these are not Laban techniques), hooves a-clattering and scraping at the soiled straw; soiled straw?? Ah yes, nerves, they're just around the corner but, for me, welcomed with open arms. First, those performance nerves help focus the mind sharpen up the wit, second, once you get to the stage are there many better feelings than standing in the wings listening to the audience chatter while you mentally hammer home that opening line in your head over and over and over, cos surely if you can get that right it'll all be good, cock it up and you'll be weighed down by its miserable sense of self importance; its wounded pride dogging you round the stage for the next few vile hours of your detested life. First bloody line - always has an overinflated ego the bugger. Then some shift in the light or the music and on we go .... body tight, quivering and lustful, such erotic terror!
Least that's what my old Nan used to say about it.
We rehearsed at the Memorial Hall in Frant this morning, a gorgeous setting adjacent to the green and a wonderfully sunny day, all quite at odds with the horror that was taking place within the hall; Cornwall tearing the vile jellies from Gloucester's head, a degenerate Regan urging his every gouge, it looked very good actually and I fancy the audience won't be proud of their enjoyment of it! The King and his girls, Cordelia (good), Goneril (bad) and Regan (badder) were off to the High Rocks afterward for a photo shoot so we'll try and get some of those onto the blog in the next few days if possible (copyrights and all that precious stuff!). Tomorrow - Sunday, a day of rest, bloody Directors, these coalitions are all the same - we've a full run of Acts 1 to 3 which will be a useful gauge of how well we're absorbing these lines and moves. I feel very smug as I've a few days gap in rehearsals after that run. Mind you, the number of rehearsals till curtain up can be counted on the fingers of two hands now; and that's enough to make you soil some more straw!
Adieu for now Sirrahs
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