December 18, 2008

  • Everyday, It's a Gettin' Closer

    Twenty days until Woolf opens. Yikes! It's still pretty raw. Lou, our erstwhile director, has not yet begun to drink heavily, at least not at rehearsal (and for that I give him credit). Yet another reason I choose not to direct; while I have the anxiety of not being totally off book yet and am still unsure of some of the right notes, Lou has to watch not only me flounder, but my fellow flukes as well (how's that for a metaphoric pun eh?)
    The process has been fun and extremely interesting. I am of course morphing into George which is actually easier for my wife to take than was Petruchio or even Scrooge. The play may be brutal but George is actually a sweet guy when not crossed, threatened, or in any manner challenged. Lucky for us all Carolyn has been in a good mood lately.
    So, I spent some weeks complaining about the difficulty with lines...whining actually. Lou gave me a well deserved kick in the...teeth and reminded me that acting is work and doing it well is a talent. Imagine! It had not actually occurred to me recently that I got cast because perhaps I had some talent and the ability to work hard. Go figure. So I will buck up and stop acting like a little girl...or little boy for that matter (does that satisfy my readers who insist on gender neutrality?) I am pressing forward and I am resolved to be, if not letter perfect, damn close on Sunday.
    Actually we've had talk about the relative need to be "letter perfect." It is my opinion that actors should strive, in theater, to stay as close to the language of the author as is possible. We are not writers. The language is theirs, the story is theirs, we owe to authors the faithful representation of their words. The interpretation is, of course, all ours. I dislike paraphrasing; it debases the author's art. Few of us can adlib as well as Shakespeare or as Albee for that matter, could and can write. I don't agree that it is enough to get the flavor. We must present the meat, otherwise we're left with a thin broth (you see what I mean by lousy writing?)
    Okay, I'm outta here. I got lines left to do (God, does that ring a totally different bell...from the past, from the past.)