Beautiful Day!

King Lear: Blocking Day 7

It was the fist real day of spring, though the calendar had indicated it several weeks ago. The Sun brought a warm blanket of golden light that bathed the entire Champlain Valley in its welcome glow. As I drove into town to pick up Dan, I was met with the lake’s surface awash in a sea of white light, reflecting the suns efforts from minutes before, millions of miles away. What a day for a revelation.

“You must bring joy to every role you play,” spoke our king, Donald Grody. Todd Lawson and I listened as the seasoned veteran gave us a little tidbit about the craft. “Even in a death scene, there must be joy or you will lose your audience.” I thought about this long and hard and wondered what he could mean. If our job is to reflect our emotions, from a character, to the audience, how could one be truthful by having joy in a death scene? Perhaps my character is masochistic.

As we began our run-through, I had an overwhelming sense of pride about the show. Not only because it is my first show back in the swing, but that it’s such a good show. Also, it is one of the classics, which portends all the history and legacy of our craft. I always get excited to think of all the actors that have performed this show and what they were thinking when they did so. I also like to think about where they may have come from or when they may have lived? How different were their lives than mine? Had they made some of the same realizations I have? Did they think of who may play their part in the future? Maybe they were thinking of me!

As we ran through several of the scenes I found myself having trouble staying focused and I was missing lines. Most likely, I was too busy worrying about everything but my character. It’s amazing how fast it leaves if you are out of context. I found myself a bit frustrated as we came to our dinner break.

After dinner I settled in a bit and began work with Dan on our behavior during Scene III in Act I. We have been crafting pertinent behavior for the show and are still trying to feel out what works and what distracts from the overall action. I again felt myself getting frustrated when we were asked to tone it down so that the other actors could give their lines. I wasn’t so much upset because of the directors choice but because I wasn’t melting into the scene. Too much in my head and not enough in the scene.

Paul Schnabel (Kent) and I were on the schedule for the final time slot of the evening. We got a chance to work our scenes together and iron out a few directorial choices. I found myself still a bit resistant to Mark’s direction as he made adjustments. I kept fighting to get out of my head and tried to break out of some of my preconceptions of the scene. Usually, I try to find a motivation or a cause that informs the behavior but I decided to go for results, so I intensified the volume and rushed the timing, on Mark’s suggestion. What I found was a whole new meaning to the scene and a completely new motivation behind my character’s actions. We finished with a strong run-through of the scene and Paul and I felt good about our handle on it. I realized that what I miss so much about the craft is the investigative work that goes in to a scene, and how you can continually find different ways to play it. I think I know what Donald was talking about when he said, “You have to bring joy to every scene.” I realized I was having a great time and that gave me permission to go anywhere, whether I thought it would work or not. I think this may be what separates those that do what they love and those that don’t; joy of craft. Love what you do and you can’t help but express that joy to everyone around you.

Discoveries.

King Lear: Blocking Day 2

Is it more valid for an actor to make a discovery or take a direction?

It is always exciting when you find new things while exploring a scene. I'm really enjoying the amount of freedom Mark is giving us in this exploration. Whether it is physicality, vocal intonations or movement, he has been approaching the rehearsal process with the attitude, "let's try it and see." This is not to say that he doesn't have clear ideas when it comes to blocking. I overheard him speaking with an actor about a specific action another character had been playing. He was concerned when the character had lost this action and felt it may affect his performance. Mark agreed, but told him, "let's let him find it on his own." I thought, "that's putting a lot of faith in the actor." But sure enough, by the end of rehearsal, the action was back.

We also began our fight choreography, which is being lead by Paul Ugalde (also playing Albany). It's interesting how he can choreography a physical scene, while taking into consideration the character motivation and keep us safe at the same time. As we worked a small stunt in Act I, Scene IV, Paul directed Paul Schnabel (Kent) and David Dilego (Oswald) through the blocking. I got to see first hand how one character's physicality can affect the outcome of a stunt. Oswald is tripped up by Kent, who threatens him with his staff while Oswald scrambles off stage. Because of the physicalizations David has taken on, we had to rework the stunt over and over until it was safe to run at full speed. You never think of the dangers in doing a small stunt like this, but should something go wrong, and David be hurt, the production would grind to a screeching halt. I can only imagine what kind of precision it will take to choreograph the dueling scenes later in the show. Paul's attention to detail and demand for safety has set us all at ease and let's us get back to what is most important, making discoveries.

I started trying to use physicality to inform my character, the King of France. He is a stately noble, with a penchant for disruption and an air of arrogance. The discovery of this has brought me to a place, physically, where my attitude and vocal delivery are affected. I had a brief conversation with Kent Cassella (Gloucester) about this exploration and he encouraged me to try acting all impulses that come up. I am still addicted to approval, especially from actors I respect, and I am hoping he will continue to give me feedback. The entire troupe's honesty, with each other, is so refreshing and I think this is part of what I've been missing about the theater.

So we are, as actors, expected to make choices through discovery, then make our discoveries anew, each night, in front of a live audience. The process of discovery is vital to establishing a scene, as well as a character, and has the capacity to hold the audiences' attention, allowing them to engage in the experience along with the actors. And so discovery is one of the greatest tools performers have in their arsenal. It is one of the most vital elements of human nature and is what pushes us to keep learning and growing as artists and people. Our ultimate goal was perhaps summed up best by Rilke,"...to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time."