Pippin: ACTORS Theatre, Ames - Rehearsals up to 5/12

*first point to make: I am behind on my blogging, so this one covers from the beginning of rehearsals through this past Sunday
**I was cast as a Chorus member, but was also brought on as the Assistant Choreographer/Dance Captain, due to my heavy dance experience
     The first two weeks were devoted to working on the music for the majority of the show, focusing on the ensemble-heavy songs as well as learning choreography for some of the songs (just War is a Science and No Time at All). Within these two weeks, I sat down with the director and the choreographer to discuss ideas for choreography for the majority of the numbers, so I could know where we were going with this show and what they wanted for starters; they also gave me two areas where I got creative freedom, which made me both excited and nervous (meant I would have to do some research).
     In terms of the rehearsals, the music rehearsals started  off slow for me, as I was still recovering from a nasty illness from Fiddler on the Roof that weakened my voice. The music also surprised me - it was much more difficult that I expected; in addition, there are no good resources for me to learn my music the way I do best (by listening to recordings), for the recordings we used from the original show have differences compared to the script, creating an unexpected challenge.
     As for choreography, we spent rehearsals learning very simple movements for a couple numbers. I understand that some members of the cast are not trained in dance at all, but I am already starting to feel a little nervous for opening night; I worry that the simple movements we have learned so far won’t keep the audience as engaged as they could be. I may try to speak with the choreographer and see if we can spruce up the dances a bit – I have a lot of fun ideas.

The third week, many of us (myself included) were gone, for it was not only finals week for the ISU students, but all of us were involved in the One-Act festival. Though we were unable to be there, the cast continued on with rehearsals, teaching new dance numbers in our absence; however, I wasn’t informed of the new material until it came time to run it again; I was hoping the choreographer would inform us before then and teach the new movements to us.

     Throughout this process, I have noticed some problems occurring. First off, I am sensing a lack of creative communication between the director, choreographer, and the designers. I am beginning to understand firsthand why that communication is so vital - without it, little progress can be made. In addition, thanks to my directing experience in classes, I have truly grown to appreciate Brad's style of directing, especially his process and preparedness. Another issue that has me worried is the constant shifting of the cast; we lost about half of the original cast within the first few weeks, due to either schedule conflicts (which I understand), or the adult nature of the show. I think it would have been a good idea to let auditioners know beforehand about the adult nature of the show, in order to prevent these problems. Even with some slight problems, it is still early on in the process – I bet it will all work out.