Good Work, Part I

First of all, thanks to Lorraine, Amberlee, Todd, Noah, & Jessica for their hard work last night. The five 45 minute sessions gave each actor a chance to do some detail work on their characters and to have some one-on-one time with me so that I could clarify direction as needed.

Lorraine and I talked quite a bit, discussing motivations for her character. We worked through Turn Back, O Man and discussed why the focus of the song is what it is. In the annotated script, Stephen Schwartz suggests that there can be no serious sexual content or it misses the mark. He even suggests that the bits should be playfully silly rather than sensual in any way. While I agree with that in basis, and while I know WHY he suggests against it, I feel that there is an important sensual/sexual edge that HAS to be there. For instance the "...tragic empires rise..." plays pretty well as an overt phallic reference, one that is done more specifically in Schwartz' Pippin a few years later. We also talked through the already great timings on the "Pharisee & the Tax Gatherer" scene and the "Good Samaritan" scene.

Amberlee worked next, and we did some very detailed character work. I told her that I thought the "tomboy" approach for her character works well. We used her "Rich Man's Storehouse" scene to give her some different options. I had her to play the scene seated, as though she's having a conversation with someone sitting in the first row. After a couple of times, she got it and was able to carry that energy through standing up. She's got such incredible potential to be a REALLY funny actress if she gives herself permission to be uncontrollably silly. We also talked a bit about how we'll balance out the O Bless the Lord quandary where she has problems with the singing and dancing in tandem. I'll work with Arryck to figure out a good mix.

Next up was Todd, and we focused on the "Trial of the Pharisees" scene, leading up to Alas For You. My primary notes to Todd involved trusting his own vocal power and relying less on physicalities, like hand gestures. It worked remarkably well. I also encouraged him to explore the quieter end of the spectrum of his vocal range (and, no, that didn't mean that I told him to shut up). Right after the "Last Supper" scene, as he leads up to the Finale and the crucifixion, I had him forgo the traditional palms and eyes towards heaven approach to speaking to God, and had him deliver it straight forward, as though God were standing directly in front of him in the aisle. It was quiet, personal, and mind-blowingly great.

Noah was next, and we talked quite a bit about how he can work to keep more consistent control over his singing voice. His preferred focal point for his voice is about six inches in front of his lips, and he even physically stretches his neck forward to try to over-compensate and extend that volume. What I asked him to do, however, was to pull the focus back to the front of his mouth. The lips, nose, cheeks, and teeth can be used to tune the voice up and down. Most singers do it naturally, but you can't do it if your voice is focused outside of your mouth. That makes those natural filters less effective. I also encouraged him to embrace the rhythm of the song in his body, even if it means that he looks incredibly geeky and uncoordinated doing so.

Jessica was the last actor I worked with. I first insisted that she never apologize on stage (either physically or vocally) for a decision she makes for her character. What's great is when she does something really spontaneous and funny. What kills it is when she then excuses herself for it, either turning away, or straightening up. The goofy stuff she does is working really well, and my goal was to give her permission over the next two weeks to explore that.

Great sessions, one in all. Five more this coming Saturday.

Tonight is percussion. Brian Harwell will be coming to help with this piece. I gave out CDs last night to the five folks who showed up, and I'll give out the rest tonight.


- Sean