Our first week of rehearsal has gone swimmingly, but contrary to most shows, we didn’t just dive into the reading of the script and the creation process. The first day we had our dramaturgical presentation, and began to watch a documentary entitled Heart of Darkness, which is a Nightline report on the conflict in the Congo. Because the circumstances of the show are so far removed from our everyday reality, I think it was particularly important for us to begin with the emotions and reactions to first hand accounts of the conflict. The cast not only was able to take a lot away from the beginning parts of this documentary in a dramaturgical sense, but it also engendered discussions about character creation, and the many layers that will go into that process. After such an information packed first day, the next natural thing was to start the first reading of the play, but because of the dramaturgical session at the beginning of the process it became a more informed reading of the text. The actors were able to make connections with their characters' back stories and begin an investigation of the physicality of their characters, using the people they saw in the documentary as a base. Once this dialogue began all kinds of possibilities opened up to the actors and in the next week we will hopefully be able to take their thoughts and put them into their bodies. I am really excited to engage in this next step with my director because I'll truly get the opportunity to watch her work at really sculpting the skeleton of the show, and of course I'll make sure to report back and let you all know how things are going in the rehearsal room!!
Thanks and Love!
Chrich
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