First Run-Through of OPUS

I haven't been sitting in on nearly as many rehearsals as I usually do. I'm not sure why - maybe it's because I know all the actors, or maybe its because I trust Jason's directing so much, or maybe because I've been a little busier than usual, or maybe I'm just learning to let go a little.

Whatever the reason, my staying away for the most part until seeing a run through last Saturday resulted in a wonderful treat for me - I got to see the play almost the way an audience member would.

I hadn't read the play in a while, so the first thing that hit me was how funny the play is. I had forgotten all the humor. And the actors' sense of play was palpable.  They were relaxed and having fun with each other.

The wonderful thing about using humor in a drama is that it lulls in to this relaxed place so that when things start to get more serious, they hit you that much harder. I found myself deeply caring about all these characters, and the play took my breath away at times with some of the revelations and hairpin turns that I had completely forgotten.

The ease of the performances, the seamlessness of the transitions from scene to scene, the wonderful music, all made for ninety minutes of wonderful theatre that just flew by. I could hardly believe the play was over, even though I knew I was watching the last scene.

The amazing thing was that my critical eye was almost completely turned off, and I was just enjoying a piece of theatre in a way I hadn't in quite some time.  And this was only their second run-through, with 10 days of rehearsal to go, and the addition of lights and sets and sound to enrich the experience.

We move into the theatre this week, and the actors now have to work to hold onto all the wonderful discoveries they made in rehearsal while we start to add all the technical elements. The job of the design and technical staff is to integrate some fairly complex technical elements (especially the sound cues) into the performances in a way that distracts as little as possible from the acting work the actors are still doing.

But I think that there's something about how the actors have had to learn to work as an ensemble in rehearsal that will allow this next step in the production process to go especially smoothly. I have even greater confidence than usual in all the members of the team, and I'm very excited that this is the show that kicks off our 10^th season in FlynnSpace.

October 1st, 2009