Disruptions

Recent events have made life difficult. The rehearsal schedule has been compromised by struggles with illness and surgical procedures. I know this has little to do with the actual performance project, but this forum is about the making of the show - not just the show itself. I had my wisdom teeth removed a week ago. This has been a major shock to the system and i have had to cancel the last two rehearsals. I really hate having to do that, especially at this critical period. I may have mentioned in earlier postings that it is common to a workshop process that (around the middle) it becomes easy to lose sight of the end product, to become depressed and disillusioned. I used to think this was just my projects, until Philippe Genty acknowledged it as a natural part of the process during a workshop last year, that i was fortunate enough to be a part of. It has occured to me that this is where we find ourselves currently. And ill health has not been the only disruption. David moved house recently, Dani has had teaching rounds and Kimmi has been working very hard also. This will not be the last period of disruption. Further madness lurks on yonder horizon.

Everyone continues to contribute, however. There is very little muck around time during rehearsals (when they happen), and we have no trouble picking up where we left off. The ideas are developing well, but i fear i shall have to kull some favourites as we start to get a sense of the show, as a holistic entity. Cassandra's dance sequence sits beautifully now. The chorus move like new-born gulls, their broken wings quiver and spasm - Dani builds the speech until it crashes like a wave to the rocks. When the ritualistic atmosphere disintegrates, Cassandra shrinks to the floor, huddles her knees and barks at visions swarming about her. I was a little troubled about this moment - Cassandra was written off as mad by her family and others. But the stage image is a representation of what manifests in Priam's imagination, not a realistic representation of character. Cassandra undergoes three very distinct transformations, tho remains somehow consistent throughout. Divine priestess - delusional hysteric - broken victim. It paves the way nicely for Priam's collapse, as the horrific weight of all his collective bodily possessions collapse in on him.

The following reprieve moves similarly to the original production, at the moment. The chorus close in and lift Priam/Hecuba, who then recounts the deaths of his sons in the darkness. I have yet to find the right music for this scene, but am hopeful that something by Lawrence English will suit the moment. It must be beautiful. A melancholic break from the brutal dementia of the previous scene. What follows is the "machine gun" scene. I shall talk more of this when it has been composed properly. Until then, adieu.