Max and D’Arcy brought up the idea of having open rehearsals during the rehearsal process for Amadeus. My first response was “Yeah, sure, why not?” Seems like a harmless idea. So much of this process has been about mentorship and education, why not open our rehearsals? All these folks who’ve helped us along the way, it might be really wonderful for them to see how actors work, what language we use, how actors “memorize all those lines.” Plus, I love the idea of full transparency.
But then I started to think of the trust a cast builds up within itself; I started to think about how freeing it is to feel comfortable in a space with a group, to know that your choices won’t be judged, and I started to get cold feet. Speaking only for myself as an actor, there’s something that happens when outside eyes are brought into the room that alters my performance. I’m not saying for bad or good, but I am aware of a new and unfamiliar presence. And I worry that that lack of consistency in the room may be detrimental to thte cast. I think I’m starting to sound like a stodgy old bastard. It’s probably a great idea, it will more than likely generate more buzz and people will probably love to watch the process. I don’t know. Anyone want to weigh in on this one?
- Alex
I’ve worked on shows where rehearsals have been opened up, and I think your gut feel is quite accurate. That being said, I think the way to do it might be to set one or two times when the rehearsal hall is open to people; make sure the cast is aware and plan to work something “light” in that time (run some scenes that are feeling quite solid; look at something technical).
In my experience, it always ends up feeling a bit like show and tell — and ends up being neither 100% rehearsal nor 100% audience outreach. That said, audience members LOVE getting a peek at what goes on before opening night!
I agree with the already-commented comments and would like to add my two cents:
There is something really refreshing and wonderful about the first time a show goes before an audience’s eyes… the rehearsals happen amongst a relatively small group of people and actors (and directors) are not afraid to explore and to make mistakes. Then tech where new people and new elements are invited to the party. And then the final phase… getting “outsiders” there. Isn’t the reason we do live theater to get that laugh or gasp or whatever right there, in response to things we may have forgotten (or never realized) were laugh- or gasp-worthy? It’s something I certainly love about it all. I always think the first time in front of an audience is the beginning of the reward (for sometimes-challenging rehearsals, for slogging thru tech), and the final pencil stroke in completing the circle that is the show.
That’s just my thinkin’!
The one added benefit of having some selected open rehearsals would be during those times when certain scenes tend to get stale from continuous rehearsing. This perspective comes from a member of a band where you rehearse a song many times and get it down but then it starts to lose some life in it. Having just some people watch the process brings a whole new drive behind it.
Open dates for the rehearsal could potentially give rise to new ideas for an already well rehearsed scene. To much however would lead to a violation of that special bond that a cast feels during rehearsing which is vital to a successful production in my eyes. That’s how I see it