The 39 Steps - Part V

(The 39 Steps, directed by Sean Daniels, opens October 22 at Geva Theatre)

Wow!  I went to my first full run through today and was blown away.  It really felt as if I were watching a show, not just scenes.  This was also the first time I’d been present where the number of people facing the ‘stage’ (rehearsals are still in the rehearsal hall, not on the actual stage – that will only come later this week, less than a week before the first performance!) vastly outnumbered the four actors. The excitement was palpable. 

I don’t want to give any of the antics away, but I have to say that some of the scenes I hadn’t seen before, like the end of the train scene or the sideways floor chase (and if that makes no sense, it will if you see the show…), were absolutely wonderful.  And I finally saw how a big barrel stuck with odd bits of houses and trees worked, which I’d seen before but not understood - it’s for the shadow puppet sequence, and if you’re curious, since you won't see it from the audience, you can see it in this blog entry:

http://gevajournal.wordpress.com/2013/10/14/shadow-puppets-roc-geva39/.

It was clear that this rehearsal went very smoothly, with only a few forgotten lines. I cannot imagine how difficult it is to memorize so much text, but the biggest kudos have to go to Aaron (Clown #1), who is charged with something truly daunting: reciting a bunch of mathematical gibberish that is funny because it makes absolutely no sense! I was also impressed by how physical the acting is for each of the actors. Handcuffs hurt, so both Monica and John wear some bandaging to protect their wrists. Joel (Clown #2) and Aaron are both on their knees quite a bit, hence the use of knee pads.  Joel, in particular, has some pretty gymnastic moves to make switching between two characters in one of the final scenes.  All four actors are outstanding (John and Monica have some sensational facial expressions; Monica reminds me a bit of Julianne Moore or Cate Blanchett, and her facility with accents makes me think she would be a terrific Kate Hepburn in a revival of The Philadelphia Story), but the clown characters are definitely written to steal the show, and Aaron and Joel are more than up to the task.

Sean’s feedback at the end was extremely positive.  He remarked that it looked as if the actors “were having fun, whether they were or weren’t,” and that for the first time, they really seemed to know exactly what came next, which allowed for little improv moments without breaking the tempo.  The actors had “taken the air out” (the little pauses where previously the actors had been concentrating on “what comes next”…), and they kept up their energy and momentum for the entire show.  Sean’s exact words were that “the energy was consistently high, and all of the scenes felt like they were from the same show.”  He must be really pleased with what he and the entire team have created so far, and it will only get better when they move to the stage proper and have all of the real sets, props, and costumes.  Stay tuned, and if you haven't bought your tickets yet, here's the link:

http://www.gevatheatre.org/shows/the-39-steps/

Artisan Works - Nice Day for a White Wedding

Vertigo Room

My singing group, Concentus, was invited to sing at the wedding reception of one of our members, Julie, over the weekend. Curiously, she is the second of four members to get married in the space of 18 months; Pastor Johanna got married over the summer, then presided at Julie's wedding;  Kathy will be married this coming January, and Kate's wedding is planned for next fall!

While the setting of the wedding, Colgate Divinity Chapel, was very traditional, the ceremony was anything but.  Besides having a Flower Dog and Paw Bearer, they each sang songs to each other, and Rob even quoted from The Princess Bride. The reception was held at Artisan Works, which seemed fitting to the occasion.  She had booked the Vertigo Room (aptly named for its dizzying displays hung from the neck-craning ceiling).  We had a bit of time to explore the artworks, and Kara and I had a lovely chat with founder Louis Perticone, before getting down to business.

Concentus in the Vertigo Room

The Vertigo Room turned out to be a lovely space for a party, and decent acoustically for singing unmiked.  Julie joined us for our first song, Now I Walk in Beauty, then re-joined her husband as our director, Gwen, led us through a selection of love songs.  Even though we usually perform to a (mostly) silent audience, it didn't feel uncomfortable to be 'wallpaper' as the guests dined and chatted, and we could see Julie and Rob listening attentively.

the cupcake "cake"

cutting the "cake" - check out the dress!

This was the first time many of the Concentus singers had been inside Artisan Works, and I suspect the same was true for most of the guests.  If they didn't have time to wander around and wonder at the depth and breadth of the works displayed, I hope that it whetted their appetite to return and spend a little more time marveling at the collection.  And who knows, maybe even purchase a piece?  Personally, I have my eye on one of those large silver ornaments by Mark Groaning,  and I wish now that I had had the imagination to ignore Julie's gift registry and get the couple something unusual from Artisan Works...

The 39 Steps - Part IV

(The 39 Steps, directed by Sean Daniels, opens October 22 at Geva Theatre)

I was recently fortunate to attended a presentation by Mark Cuddy (Artistic Director of Geva), Sean Daniels (Artist at Large), and three of the four cast members (Aaron Munoz was out of town) of The 39 Steps, where they spoke not just about this particular show, but also about Geva in general.  Before turning things over to Sean, Mark explained that one goal of the presentation was to enable the audience to get to know, and therefore root for the actors, as well as the show, just as one would root for specific players, in addition to a sports team (I love a good performing arts / sports analogy!).  He introduced the three actors: John Gregorio (who plays Richard Hannay), who is from Camden, NJ (this elicited no response from the audience, but having lived for 10+ years in northern Jersey, I am familiar with that city as being among, if not the poorest and most dangerous in the country - so hurrah, John, for making it out!); Monica West (who plays most of the female characters), who received thunderous applause for growing up in Honeoye Falls, of all places; and Joel van Liew (Clown #2), who hails from Buffalo (close enough!). So it’s sort of like having two local players on the team to cheer for.

Sean, John, Monica, and Joel

Sean and the actors spoke extemporaneously and interacted quite a bit with the audience.  He called the play not just a spoof, but a tribute to Hitchcock, and referred to it as “a vehicle for celebrating all things theatrical,” with “the excitement and danger of having four performers do the entire show.”  He and the cast are busily watching Hitchcock’s films, so they can insert little “Easter eggs” – references to those films throughout the play, for the audience to hunt for.  As he and Mark both explained, Geva shows aren’t traveling shows, they are actually built and rehearsed in Rochester, just for Rochester, and they begin and end here.  This means that we get to see these particular artists’ interpretation of the plays, not someone else’s conception of the show, and not Mark’s or Sean’s ‘copy’ of what they may have seen elsewhere.  In the case of The 39 Steps, we should see many more Hitchcock references than were in either the London or New York productions.  Sean is also playing with shadows, since they are such a central role in Hitchcock’s films.  Usually a theatre set is lit specifically to avoid shadows, so the actors and set can be seen from all angles.  I never thought of that, but will certainly pay attention from now on, and to the different effect the shadows will create in this show.

Sean also addressed how the actors plan for or react to audience laughter (or lack thereof), and explained the special role the preview audience plays as a sort of “focus group.”  Since it’s difficult to predict exactly what an audience will find funny (or what they will not, that in rehearsal seemed hilarious), the director pays particular attention to the preview audience’s reaction.  The actors adjust as necessary, giving the audience a bit more space for laughter, or setting up a joke better so it doesn’t fall flat.  One of the biggest traps in comedy, apparently, is “playing to last night’s audience” so the actors take care not to assume that every audience will respond exactly the same. 

When asked about the challenges the actors faced in preparing for this show, John said something that seems obvious in hindsight – that, as the only actor with a constant character, he is basically the “passenger” of the play. Hannay is the person things are happening to, and John’s challenge is not just to react to the other characters, but to react differently to different characters being played by the same actor (e.g., the three different “beautiful women” portrayed by Monica).  Monica’s answer complemented John’s, in that she has to differentiate those three different women (plus run around the stage in very high heels!).  Joel cited the physical and vocal challenge of portraying multiple characters, especially when he needs seemingly to be more than one person at the same time.

We could have listened to Sean, Mark, and the actors all afternoon, but unfortunately, it was time for lunch to be served, and we had to let them eat.  I know the audience's interest was piqued, and that they, like I, am eager to attend a performance, to see how it all comes together, and to be entertained, and yes, to root for John, Monica, Joel, and Aaron!

The 39 Steps - Part III

(The 39 Steps, directed by Sean Daniels, opens October 22 at Geva Theatre)

"Line!"

Lego Alfred Hitchcock *

At the third rehearsal I attended, that was the word I heard most frequently. Since Sean was still on his way home from opening another show in London (because I guess having one show running and another in production here in Rochester isn't quite enough to keep him busy!), the actors decided to use the time to run through their lines in Act I.  There were definitely some missed and muffed lines - sometimes the actors drew complete blanks, in which case they'd ask for help from someone reading along in the script and call, "line!" (or sometimes pleadingly, "line?").  Many times when they made mistakes they were actually paraphrasing the script (e.g., "frankly" instead of "actually" or "the thing is" instead of "the point is"), which you would think wouldn't matter so much, but it has the potential to confuse another actor's cue, and it is important to be consistently correct.  I couldn't help wondering, though, after an actor made the same mistake several times, if he hadn't already 'learned' it incorrectly, and it would be difficult to change.  Like when I make a wrong turn going somewhere downtown, and after that the wrong way becomes familiar, and then I don't know if it's because it's wrong or right!  At one point the person making a correction even cautioned the actor about "getting married to the wrong lines."

Lego Hitchcock closeup of the nose

It was fun watching the actors review certain scenes they were having particular difficulty memorizing, and there was one passage that an actor had such a block against remembering that by the sixth time through, even I knew the line!  I know when I see the actual performance, I am going to be holding my breath at that moment, even though I'm sure that by then it won't be an issue.

When Sean arrived, the actors reran Act I on their feet, and it was fantastic to watch certain scenes evolve, in just a few minutes, with the addition of some pratfalls and other bits of humor.  One of the "clowns," in particular, is very adept at physical humor, and I was close enough to overhear him and the other "clown" working out, sotto voce, how to coordinate the details and timing of the lamppost scene to make it funnier.  In a play as popular and in the public eye as this, it's incredible that there is still such latitude for creativity and originality.  So even if you have seen the play in London, New York, or elsewhere, this will still be fresh and fun, and it will have the distinct stamp of this director, cast, and crew.

And frankly/actually, the thing is / the point is, that's what live theatre is all about - seeing something new, even if it's old.  Otherwise, you could just...watch the movie!


*since no photos of the actors are allowed, I've included artwork from The Art of the Brick Exhibit by Nathan Sawaya at the Discovery Times Square Museum.  Definitely worth a visit if you're in NYC.

Landmark Society of Western New York's Inside Downtown Tour

Ok, I’ll admit that I’m a sucker for a house or garden tour!  To me, it’s an opportunity not just to support a good cause (in this case, the Landmark Society), but also to see a different part of town, and to satisfy a curiosity of where other people live and how they decorate. 

Rooftop view of Frontier Field from Buckingham Commons

My husband and I visited 6 of the 8 buildings on the October tour on ‘the other side of the river’ – a part of downtown we normally would never have occasion to venture to.  There seemed to be lots of foot traffic on the tour on Sunday afternoon, mostly by suburbanites like us.  Some of the properties were actually people’s homes (I can’t imagine opening my house to hundreds of complete strangers walking through and gawking), while others were vacant or staged, for rental or purchase.  The residences that were available seemed expensive for their remote location – none was in walking distance of a grocery or restaurants, but all were in close proximity to the Open Door Mission. It was difficult, walking from building to building, to ignore the economic and cultural divide of Rochester.  I remember a similar feeling looking at apartments in the West 40s and Tribeca in Manhattan back in the early 1980s, and not being pioneer enough to take that risk, so I have to admire the pluck of the people willing to bet on the renaissance of downtown Rochester.

Many of the buildings are converted manufacturing and commercial spaces, so the apartments are loft-style, with wonderfully high ceilings and lots of light from windows that provide unusual views (even the ‘best view,’ of Frontier Field, includes highways and railroad tracks, unfortunately).  We started at the Daily Record Building, where we admired the Rothschilds’ 4600-square-foot muli-level penthouse loft, but agreed that it would be difficult to live there, with all the steps up and down between the different open space levels.

The most interesting building, outside and in, was the Academy Building, which was constructed on the site of the first school building in Rochester, and was originally home to a school and administrative offices.  I loved all of the circular staircases in the apartments (again, not age-in-place friendly!), and I finally found my ideal layout – an apartment with an internal bedroom with no windows, separated from the living area by sliding doors!

Quietest bedroom in Rochester!

An extra bonus of the house tour was the chance to see Rochester’s 175^th Special Photo Exhibition – Downtown:  The Way It Was.  The photographs, hung at street level on the sides of various buildings, reminded the passerby of what the city was like in its heyday.  We can only hope that between the city planners and intrepid individuals and businesses moving back downtown, that the city of Rochester can once again be a place to be.

Restored glass tiles by elevators at 44 Exchange Blvd.

From Executive Director Wayne Goodman's welcome message to tour-goers:  "This tour embodies preservation.  You will see firsthand how adaptive use can transform buildings, neighborhoods and entire communities.  Once-vacant buildings are now dynamic resources that house small businesses and homes, create jobs, contribute to our local tax base and solidify investment in a given area....Creative use, adaptation, is essential to not only save our heritage, but to also encourage further investment in our community."








For more information on the Landmark Society:  www.landmarksociety.org

For more information on the photo exhibition:  http://bigpicturerochester.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=56&Itemid=1

This is something I wrote for Concentus' blog.  It was sanitized a bit to make it less 'harsh' - my original sports analogy involved Lance Armstrong relying on his team and banned substances...

Ensemble Music is a Team Sport

As a member of a chorus, it occurred to me that a choral group (or an orchestra or band) is very similar to a sports team. Our "coach" is called a conductor, or director, and has to study the "play book," or score, and get us to perform it to our best ability. She drills us during “practices” (rehearsals), singling vocal parts out to repeat passages until we perfect them (thankfully, ours does not single out individuals, or punish us with push-ups).

Just as in sports, where there are a few stars but many more supporting positions (Joe Flacco didn’t win the 2013 Super Bowl on his own – he had a team of talented receivers and an offensive line to protect him), in ensemble music there are sometimes soloists, but most of the singers are part of the team, singing their line in the score, working to blend with the group so that individual voices do not stand out. In choral music, especially, it’s important not just to hit your own notes, but to listen to the other parts, and make sure that you’re in tune and time with each other. In long passages with sustained phrasing it’s critical that the singers work together, explicitly or implicitly, to make sure we’re not all gasping for air at the same moment.

The Demands of Musicianship

Being a musician also requires physical ability, in addition to the talent to play an instrument or sing. The breath control needed to sing or play a wind instrument well is considerable; the arm muscles needed to play strings or percussion are not insignificant. Singers must also usually stand for their performances, which can be very tiring (and I’ve actually seen some singers collapse from the fatigue).

Music can also be as competitive as team sports. Although musical groups don't usually face off against each other (then again, the premise of TV’s Glee is the burgeoning industry of high school and college choral and a cappella group competitions), there is certainly competition between groups to be the most renowned in a particular genre, or to attract the best members or conductors (think Metropolitan Opera vs. La Scala). And there is competition for audience. Just as in sports, where people have their favorite teams, and root for them and get season tickets to the home games, musical groups woo audiences with season subscriptions and member benefits, and rivalry between fans can be very vocal (again, think Metropolitan Opera vs. the declining New York City Opera).

It’s sad that when our school systems find their budgets constrained, the first things they look to de-fund are the performing arts, and the very last are sports. The performing arts teach not just technique but also team-building, and unlike sports, there’s much less risk of injury!

http://www.concentus.org/blog/e/ensemble-music-is-a-team-sport

"The 39 Steps" - Part II

(The 39 Steps, directed by Sean Daniels, opens October 22 at Geva Theatre)

I caught the tail end of the third rehearsal, and it appeared they were just finishing up their first full run-through; they were working on the final scenes of the show.  It was wonderful watching these professionals doing their jobs - not just reacting to Sean’s direction, but contributing their ideas, many of which got incorporated.  And when they didn’t, Sean wasn’t dictatorially dismissive, but explained his reasoning (no “because I said so”s here!).

The actors still had scripts in hand, of course, but they did a marvelous job of envisioning the stage and sets.  The scenery is in the process of being built elsewhere in the building, but in a show as tight as this, its construction is not independent of the rehearsals.  The actors made at least a couple of requests for modifications in order to make their performance work better.

It’s also amazing how something as subtle as a turn can make a difference in the humor.  In one case, Sean simply asked an actor to do a 180 away from the audience instead of toward it – basically the same movement but in reverse, and it was incredible how just that small change conveyed the action better and appeared funnier.  In another, Sean asked the actress to twirl, and it was hysterical just watching her practice how many times in order to end up facing the correct direction.  Of course, in a performance, she’ll probably get it right, and the twirl itself is adorable, but maybe she won’t, and that could be funny as well. 

And timing is a large part of the humor of the show – not just the intrinsic humor of the script – but, as Sean put it, “the actors will just make it to their marks in the nick of time.”  Unlike a drama, where you aren’t supposed to see the effort the actors are making to portray their characters or to get from an exit to an entrance on the opposite side of the stage, here we should, and we will, and there’s no way the audience won’t laugh!