May
11

Let It Run, Let it Stop

I’m taking another one of my breathers from talking about DNA to bring you a bit of meaningless joy. I like to shake it up from time to time, y’know?

So, I just wanted to share with you something that my friends created that had me in hysterics this afternoon before the show.

A bunch of my wonderful friends from the good old days of college plays and Barnstorm (a drama-camp that I used to be part of where I grew up in the Forest of Dean) got together, called themselves Night Island, and created a music video for their song Let it Run. There’s a certain amount of tongue in cheek, as you can most probably tell, but all in all they did it in the spirit of having a good laugh and keeping the yoof from off da streets. To fully appreciate Part Two of the hilarity to come, have a watch:

So, there you have it. Let it Run. Guaranteed to become the theme song for the London 2012 Olympics.

And then Part Two… and I’m giggling just thinking about it… the Mum’s and Dad’s of all concerned decide that they want a slice of the action. So, unbeknownst to anyone, they put together their own video to parody their children’s. I’m not quite sure how much you need to know them to fully appreciate just how funny this is but imagine, if you will, your own parents in their shoes and I guarantee you will share in my glee:

I wept with laughter. My ribs still ache. Thankyou Caroline, Dave, Roger, Anni, Sarah, Barbara, Pete and John for absolutely making my day!

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May
2

Scarborough Fair

The last few days we’ve been at the Stephen Joseph Theatre up in the chilly winds of Scarborough. After three weeks off and two at the Unicorn, it’s pretty strange to be back on the road. It feels almost like we’re back where we started, in Plymouth, sea-breeze and fish and chips to boot.

I have to say, much as it pains me to admit, that I’ve started to feel that little rising panic that begins when the end of a job comes in sight. Suddenly, I’ve found myself sending off letters and emails left, right and centre in the hope of securing something from June onwards. I’ve been reading lots of playtexts for various productions that I know will be casting soon and keeping my ear to the ground for any whisper of potential jobs beyond the here and now.

It’s a painful experience in a lot of ways. It’s a bit like looking around for your next girlfriend or boyfriend while you’re still very much in love with the one your with. And I am. I’m very much in love with this job, and it’s pretty damned hard to have to think beyond the end… but think beyond the end I must.

Tomorrow we’re heading to the Civic Theatre in Barnsley where we’ll be for two days, and then on. Hopefully these two/three night stays in each venue wont make this last month fly by too quickly. The last month! Oh my. Try not to think about it. Pink elephants. I just lost the Game. LA LA LA!

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Apr
25

Part Two

Well, it’s been an age since I last updated, but rest assured the tour is still going strong. We had a three week break after Manchester to rest our weary legs.

The Royal Exchange proved to be our most intimate setting yet. It was certainly a much more filmic rendition of the play. The staff were incredibly welcoming and the cast of Saturday Night and Sunday Morning, who were on the main stage during our stay, were great fun showing us the sights and sounds of Manc.

Now here we are at the Unicorn, halfway through our two week stay. We’ve had some pretty varied audiences. Last night was an experience to say the least. When the lights snapped to black and Alex Baronowski’s epic score kicked in the crowd, quite literally, went wild. Whoops, screams, the lot.

It was a sell out show, packed from floor to rafters with hordes of screeching teenagers. They were incredibly vocal in their response, which swung from whole-hearted support, laughter and gasps of horror to obscene heckling. It was a positively Elizabethan experience. Excatly the sort of thing that scholars say that theatre has lost over the years. It was a challenge, but one that I think we took to with aplomb. Moments were lost in the rabble, but plenty more shone through as moments of absolute genius.

Dennis and Anthony gave a post-show chat which we listend to over the tannoy from the safety of the dressing rooms. My particular favourite was a guy who asked “so, have you written anything else”, to which Dennis very humbly replied “yeah, a few. A play for young kids, a few others for adults and a musical”. Dennis is such a dude. He could of so easily thrown in a “yeah, my seven-time Olivier award winning musical just round the corner”. Although, even if he were the bragging sort (so far from the truth it’s unreal) I suppose it wouldn’t have meant much to this bunch. Particularly the lads at the back who, as Mishi informs me, were watching the Chelsea game on their iPhones. What fun.

So, where next? Well, we’re heading to the Stephen Joseph in Scarborough on Monday, then there’s Barnsley, Watford, Bristol, Bath, Eastborne, Crewe and Welwyn Garden City. And then… well, then there’s a big blank spot in my diary which stretches into the horizon. It’s fast approaching and it makes me sad. These guys have been my second-family since January, but here we are with just a month to go.

Let’s make it a good one.

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Mar
22

Lines

Somewhere long ago, in the depths of memory, was Croydon. Would you believe it’s only been a week?

So here we are, huddled up in Dressing Room Three at the Manchester Royal Exchange doing a speedy line-run with Ollie to refresh our memories. Oh yeah, DNA, that play wot we did. Remember that old thing?

I’ve only had a momentary glimse of the stage since we got here a little while ago. We’re in the Studio space, which is the smallest venue we’ll be playing on the tour. I’m sure it wont be too tricky, but apparently there are some sight-line issues that we need to resolve during the tech.

I’ve been thinking about sight-lines a lot recently. I managed to squeeze in a bit of theatre during the week break. One show in particular had some very dodgy sight-lines indeed. Great show, dont get me wrong, but from where I was sat there were some tricky angles. There’s only so much craning your neck and peering through the gaps you can do, before you realise the director has missed a trick.

Back in rehearsals for DNA, Anthony was constantly shifting seats, checking that the show worked from any angle. It’s always reassuring when you work with a director who does this; it helps create a three dimensional atmosphere in which to build the world around you. I hope that doesn’t sound too pretentious, but I believe it’s true. All too often a director will sit in the same spot in rehearsals, smack-bang centre and only ever get a two-dimensional view of the show. Perhaps that’s useful for a conventional proscenium-arch type production, but for something like this where each venue we visit is so much different from the last, I’m glad that we know it tells the same story from every angle.

In every venue we visit, Ollie’s the man who darts around the auditorium, checking any little view-point issues. As the biggest bloke in the cast, I’m often pulled along for the ride to sit in the the seat infront and check that nothing is too badly obscured by any six foot two oafs who may be in the audience.

Every now and then there is a problem and we try our best to solve it without too much hassle. Shift that bit upstage a little. Stand further apart for the beginning of scene such-and-such.

In television and film, the angles are key. We can all conjure to mind the classic image of the director, Spielburg, Tarentino, poised with a viewfinder to their eye, working out the shots. A good theatre director will always have this same ‘eye for angles’. Happily, Anthony and Ollie have both ‘got the eye’.

The line run is almost over. Strange to hear it again after what feels like so long. God only know what the three-week break which is looming ahead will be like.

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Mar
12

End of Part One

A week off. Part one of the tour is over and we get a lovely little break before we carry on. Next stop is the Manchester Royal Exchange, but for now let us take a well deserved break and rest our weary, travel-worn feet.

Salisbury was a godsend. We’ve spent a lot of time in very Northen industrial cities, which has been great of course, but it was nice to be somewhere with fresh air and green things called trees. George and I stayed in a self-contained flat above a country house about 30 minutes walk away from the theatre. I thought it would be a nightmare trekking that far each day, but actually being a bit further out was great for my head. You must not forget that I am a country boy at heart, so being tucked away down a country lane, next to a field of horses is my idea of a homecoming.

The Salisbury Playhouse was a treat as well. The second day was pretty packed; as well as two shows, we also started in the morning with a workshop for some local school-kids. Salisbury do these a lot apparently. They call them Theatre Days, where you can come and have a chat with the cast and creative team behind each play they put on. After Ollie, the Assistant Director had a chat about the play and how to direct a show, we put on little snippets from the play and the audience got to direct them as they liked. It was a very strange experience following the direction of a fifteen year old, but interesting to see what they would do given the mantle.

After the two shows, we were pretty pooped, but we figured it would be a good night for a drink and a chinwag, so we invited the cast and Mishi, our stage manager, back to the flat for a party. I know I sound like a stuck record, harking on about how great the company I’m keeping is, but it’s such a telling sign that after a whole day of spending every minute with the same bunch of people you still want to spend time with them at the end of the day.

After Salisbury came Croydon, which was somewhat of a culture shock. It was back home for most of us. Back to trains and tubes and concrete. I have to say, it was a shame that we were playing to such small audiences. Maybe Croydon doesn’t have a particularly theatre-savvy audience, maybe it’s just that anyone who lives that way has already booked for the Unicorn which will be coming up soon. Who knows? Whatever it was, it was certainly a humbing experience – expecially the matinee which had an audience of twelve.

It’s not all bad though, we had a cracking after show party on the Saturday night; a little toast to the half-way mark. I hope by mentioning all these little parties and nights out I dont start to paint a picture of a bunch of miscreant youths. We are a sterling bunch of beautiful young things, and thats no lie. I have to say that being an actor isnt all about talent – it’s also about being a nice individual – someone who people enjoy being in the company of. We picked up on this at the Theatre Day in Salisbury when someone asked a question about auditions. The director isnt always looking for the person who can act the best. Sometimes, they will pay just as much attention to whether or not you’re a nice person. It’s just the same with any job interview I suppose.

But enough babbling. Off I go to enjoy the sun. A week off. Wow. I’ll be gagging for a bit of DNA by Thursday no doubt.

Dennis Kelly’s DNA by Hull Truck will be at the Manchester Royal Exchange Studio from Tuesday 20th March– Saturday 24th March.

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Half Full or Half Empty?

 

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Mar
2

Noises Off

“They found the man”

Backstage. I tend not to write during the show, but I’ve got this big break after my scene and before my next scene change. The first scene in the woods went well. We’ve got the Telegraph in tonight and a surprise visit from Anthony, the director. Lovely to see him again. It must be strange as a director to put so much hard graft into creating a show and then smashing the proverbial champagne bottle on it’s hide and sending it off into the distance.

“How can they have caught someone who doesn’t exist”

There’s something magical about hearing the show over the tannoy. It’s a bit like listing to Mum and Dad having a whispered argument in the next room. Except that it’s punctuated by sporadic laughter. We’ve got a question and answer session after each performance here at the North Wall in Oxford. People keep asking how we keep a straight face in “the funny bits”. I dont think we give it much thought really. It’s part of the actor’s instinct I suppose.

“…You have to go in. Or we’ll take you up the grille”

It’s coming up to my scene change. So I better go get ready.

“I know what you’re gonna do next:
you’re gonna… you’re gonna…
do nothing…”

We’ve got some weird pillars backstage in this venue. I wont bore you with the logistics, but it does make dragging on the grass for the field-scenes a bit tricky. It’s a lovely space though. Feels a bit like the Swan in Stratford. Aparently it used to be a swimming pool. That’s the best thing about theatres. Dont get me wrong, I love those big old-fashioned theatres with the ornate candelabras and carved golden cherumbims and stuff. Matcham‘s babies. But equally, I’m a massive fan of theatres that spring up in unlikely places. Old swimming pools is a good one. Apparantly there’s a tiny theatre in Malvern that used to be a public loo. Nice.

“You’re not gonna stop me are you?”

I feel a bit naughty writing this while there’s a show going on next door. Like giggling in school assembly. It’s the little pleasures in life, eh? I once did a show where I read the entire-

“Do you ever want to rub your face against the earth?”

-sorry, what was I saying. I had to go and do my big muscle-man duties, opening the ‘flaps’. Dont ask. Anyway, I once did this show where I read the entire Harry Potter series from start to finish in semi-darkness in the wings. Oh, and I followed that with the Oddysey. And then Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Needless to say it was a long run, and I had plenty of time to kill. I love going to the theatre and imagining what’s going on backstage? I suppose tht’s why Noises Off always goes down so well. I really enjoyed Lindsay Posner’s version at the Old Vic. Celia Imrie is a godess.

“I was new. A new… A new… A new me”

I love that speech. Tom has got it down to a tee. If anyone out there is studying the play, try Adam’s speech out loud and you’ll find it’s bloody tricky. Beuatiful, but very complex. Tom does it wonderfully.

“Phil, he’s insane, he needs help…”

I wasn’t convinced about this audience at first. There was lots of shushing in the pre-set. Perhaps teachers trying to calm their students down. In my opinion, if we start the show and they’re still gossiping or fiddling with their phones, then we’re not doing our job right. The moment the show began, there was silence. Job done. There’s a tricky scene towards the end of the play where someone is almost suffocated with a plastic bag. Most nights, it gets a huge wave of laughter, but it works best when that laughter is followed by a deathly hush as the audience think “woah, did I seriously just laugh at that!?”. Well, that’s the intention anyway.

“Well, not no-one, someone must, but no-one I know knows”

Coming close to the end of the show now. This has been fun hasnt it. I say that, but it’s probably been pretty tedious for you . Listening to my meaningless stream of conciousness. Thanks for bearing with me.

“What do you want to sit up here for on this field?”

The week off is approaching. Two more venues after this, and then a whole week of nothing. What will I do with myself? Sleep probably.

“Nice up here.
You know, as I was coming up here there was this big wind of fluff”

That’s my cue to get back into my John Tate costume for the bow. Adieu.

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Mar
1

Woolsey

“Where to next?”
“Ipswich”
“The New Woolsey?”
“That’s the one”
“Oh, you’ll have a lovely time there. Enjoy”

It got a bit tedious, the umpteenth time I heard this. Everyone who has worked there seems to have a soft spot from this little 400 seat theatre, tucked away in the corner of Suffolk. Surely it cant be all that.

But sure enough, we were welcomed into the theatre like old bygone chums, introduced to everyone from the marketing officer to the catering assistants, made to feel right at home and then, get this, they only went and cooked us a hearty lunch between the matinee and the evening show.

Sarah Holmes, the chief exective, made sure we all got a drink at the bar that evening. “This is how all theatres should be run”, she proclaimed after I’d thanked her for the hospitality. What a lovely thought. The joy is in the detail: The comfortable green room, the board games, the books and magazines, the recommendations of the best pubs and parks to visit, the good coffee – I’m not sure who is responsible, it could just be marvellous team-work, but whoever it is they get a thumbs up from me.

Glorious moment on stage last night when the wristwatch I wear as John Tate flew off and hit the back of the stage. It’s a heavy-metal beast of a thing, so thank the Gods of Theatre it didn’t fly off into the audience and take someone’s eye out.

Two days at the New Woolsey has been tragically short. On the way to Oxford as we speak. Never been to Oxford before, as far as I can remember, so I’m hoping there’ll be chance to have a wander. Perhaps I’ll go climbing the rooftops with Roger the Kitchen Boy.

(Thats a cultural reference, not a euphemism)

"I've had a great time at THE NEW WOOLSEY"

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Mar
1

Going Up, Going Down

The Curve in Leicester is an ambitious space. It reminds me of the Manchester Royal Exchange if you’ve ever been. The theatre itself looks like a spaceship that has crash-landed in the middle of a huge atrium. It’s ambitious and architecturally beautiful, but in the spirit of constructive criticism (and as an actor choosing his words carefully, so as not to ruin any chance of working there again) it was a bit of a logistical nightmare.

There are a lot of quick costume changes is DNA –  especially for Tom who has a self-applied, Oscar-worthy quick change from playing Danny into the beaten, bruised and filth-ridden Adam. In most venues it’s just a matter of popping back to the dressing room but unfortunately the Curve dressing rooms are a bugger to get to. You have to buzz yourself out of the theatre, cross the public atrium, call a lift using a key-fob thingamajig, wait for the lift, ride up to the second floor, walk to the dressing room, do your costume-changey business, walk back to the lift, call the lift (using your key-fob thingamajig), wait, ride the lift back to the ground floor, cross the atrium, buzz yourself back in using the fob thingy and ouilla, you’re ready for your grand entrance.

Boycotting the journey, Tom stripped down to his kecks and performed his work of make-up magic with a wonky mirror and a bucket of water in the darkened passage on stage right. Poor Tom. His face grimed with filth.

The big redeeming feature of the Curve is the space itself, which was beautiful. Although we were only in the studio, it was easily one of the biggest venues so far. There was a great acoustic quality and somehow it managed to be both epic and intimate in the same instant. I’ve loved watching the show adapt to each space we visit; there is a glorious moment when you walk on stage for the first time, have a look around and say to yourself “ah, it’s going to be THAT kind of show”. Leicester was an epicly-intimate kind of show.

One night James muscled up another of his culinary treats: fish curry with a starter of salted lamb chops. That man can cook. He says he wouldn’t do one of those Masterchef type programmes, but I reckon he’d rock it if he did. There is talk of our very own version of DNA Come Dine With Me. I’ll let you know if that ever comes to fruition.

Next stop is the New Woolsey theatre in Ipswich. On we go chaps…

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Feb
24

Wings and Muppets

Two days in Nottingham have slipped by without comment and I apologise dearly. It’s pretty tough with these little two-night venues to squeeze out a blog, so here I am on the first night in our swanky new flat-share in Leicester looking back at the past few days:

The Lakeside Arts centre where we were performing was a wicked little gem of a space. I’ve performed at the Theatre Royal before and although I’ve never played it there’s also the Nottingham Playhouse, but I’d never heard of Lakeside before we were given tour schedule. Well worth a visit.

The biggest difference was that it was the first venue where we were able to use the wings. In most venues we’ve had to lurk behind the projection screen at the back of the stage whenever we’re not on, but suddenly we were able to watch silently from the wings. You have to be careful in the wings that you don’t disturb the actors on stage; the last thing you want when your in full flow is to see someone’s ugly mug offstage. So, very carefully, I was able to linger in the wings and have a peek at some of the scenes that I haven’t been able to see in action since rehearsals.

Needless to say, the show has grown a lot since we first opened in Plymouth. It’s certainly a lot slicker, and we’re finding it easier to guage how a particular audience will respond to certain moments. If they laugh hysterically at this line, you can be sure they’ll gasp at such and such. Peeking in from the wings I got a real sense of everyone having upped their game tremendously. Nice one team!

After every performance at Lakeside, we held a Question and Answer session with the audience. This was our most schools-heavy venue so there were lots of questions that sounded as if they could have come straight from a GCSE exam paper. Actually, I think we all found them surprisingly easy to answer which is reasurring. Maybe we’re not just a bunch of pretty faces after all.

In other news, we defintely managed to take our flourishing group dynamic with us from Hull. Sharing a Holiday Inn hotel room with George was a bundle of laughs. The computer system logged us in as Mr and Mrs Jennings, which we found hilarious so we found ourselves slipping into our muppet alter-egos, Bert and Ernie, for the entire duration. One night we all wandered into a karaeoke bar on a whim, and ended the night with a gloriously anarchic rendition of Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody. Typical actors. Pillocks really.

Such a shame to be in Nottingham for so little time. I could happily have stayed for much longer; if only for the lively student-town vibe and pleasant folk.

But enough reminising and back to the present. Lots to say already about Leicester and The Curve but I’ll save it for a few days time.

Just you wait…

Rhys Jennings and George Brockbanks

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Feb
20

Goodbye Hull

Something pretty darn lovely has happened this week in Hull. It’s got little to do with the actual show and more to do with the people involved, but I feel that it’s worth a mention.

Maybe it’s just that sense of relaxing into things that you get when you are in one place for longer than normal, but the eight of us in the cast have become much tighter as a whole this week. It’s been great up til now, dont get me wrong, but something about Hull has made us click.

There have been lots of games; word-games, ball-games and guessing games, and the tirade of in-jokes have just kept coming. It’s the same with any new bunch of people I suppose; stick together for a long enough period of time and after a while you all just fall into a nice rhythm.

So, as I haven’t done this yet, I figured this would be a great time to introduce you to my ecclectic band of brothers and sisters…

Lot number one is a fine specimin. Miss Emily Butterfield. A fiesty blonde wise-cracker, she hails from the wilds of Sc**thorpe and has a twinkle in her eye like no other. Emily is a pro. Fresh from panto at Salisbury Playhouse, she’s the best kind of jobbing actor there is, with fingers in all sorts of pies. Bit of this, bit of that. She’s never late, always does her homework and still has time for a cup of tea and a chinwag.

Daniel Francis-Swaby, Swaybz if you dont fancy the mouthfull, was a bit of a mystery to me at first. I remember checking out his CV before rehearsals even began and thinking “wow, dont mess with him, he’s gonna be built like a brick house and hard as nails.” But once he revealed an extensive knowledge of Disney films and the Harry Potter books bordering on downright nerdy and after he’d claimed for the umpteenth time that all he really wants in life is to be just like Batman, you realise that he’s just a playful child at heart. I love having him around, if only for the sheer enthusiasm of the boy!


James Alexandrou was the biggest surpise of all. Obviously, out of all of us, he’s the most recognisible name having spent so much time growing up on Eastenders, but he is one of the soundest, most down-to-earth guys I’ve ever worked with. He’s funny, generous and has the right balance of taking it all very seriously when he needs to, and yet laughing his socks of when the curtain goes down. He’s intelligent, cooks a mean steak and he’s as passionate about film-making as anyone you could meet. All in all, he’s a bit of a dude.

Tom Clegg reminds me of a hippie Jesus. He’s the one who always seems calm and alert. He’s got a lovely way with words, and possesses that enviable ability to say things like “yeah man” and “right on” without sounding like a walking cliché. He plays in a band called Please Make Love in the Garden, and loves his music in general. His warm up for the show consists of a spot of thai chi and some kick-ass tunes. Like Daniel, this is Tom’s professional stage debut, but I swear you wouldn’t know it.

Leah Brotherhead packs a mean punch. She’s only tiny (I once caught sight of us both in the mirror and we looked like the epitome of little and large) but she’s got a cracking voice on her. Leah has monologue after epic monologue in the play, but she delivers it all in her native Hull accent with such conviction that she grabs the audience by the balls and has them exactly where she wants them. She’s sassy and direct in the best possible way. Her mantra for the show is “ENERGY, PACE, ATTACK” and she sure as Hull lives up to it.

Elexi Walker, who plays Cathy, is a wonder. I’ve never known anyone quite like Elexi. She has this incredible way of just wandering up to people in the street and having them falling in love with her instantly. On the way home from rehearsals, she once struck up a conversation with a middle aged man on the tube and within five minutes he had given her a whole handful of buscuits simply because she’d mentioned she was feeling a little bit peckish. They departed one another like old friends. She speaks with amazing honesty, takes no crap, and has a lot of time for others. Respect to the girl.

And then there’s my mate George Brockbanks, who’s an absolute pleasure. I like George because he’s got this way of being so many things all at once. He looks like he could be your classic Mancunian chav, but then you catch him singing along to Cher in the dressing room. One minute he looks so vulnerable and insecure you just want to give him a big fat hug, and the next he’s the one reasuring you that “everything will be okay”. A genuinely lovely soul.

And that’s it. Well, there’s Mishi, our Hungarian stage manager who is a cracking bloke with the driest sense of humour you’ll ever know, but I suspect that somewhere along the line there’ll be a hilarious anecdotal blog-post just for him.

Anyway, today has been one of those relaxing days, a break between this venue and the next. Went to the cinema with some of the boys to see The Artist (the clean-sweep they had at last week’s BAFTAs suddenly makes so much sense) and now we’re making plans for an early night, ready for the car journey to Nottingham in the morning.

Goodbye Hull. You’ve been a blast.

Dennis Kelly’s DNA by Hull Truck will be at the Lakeside Arts Centre in Nottingham from Monday 20th February – Tuesday 21st February.
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Feb
15

Up Hull Way

Last night we opened to a packed house at the Hull Truck Studio. This is the smallest space we have played in so far, so we spent a fair bit of time re-blocking and re-jigging some of the scenes. We had a field day working out the transitions into the field scenes… Terrible joke. Sorry.

As it’s a Hull Truck show we will be here until Saturday, which gives us chance to settle in a bit, have a look around, feel the Hull groove. Discovered the best kept secret of the North: chip spice. If ever you are in Hull, whack some of that on your chips and you’ll be laughing.

We had a bit of a meet and greet session with the Hull Truck team before yesterday’s show. It’s a big ol’ family and it brought home how much work has gone on to get the show where it is. Andrew Smaje, the producer, bought us all a drink in the bar afterwards and gave us some great feedback.

Everyone’s very friendly up here in Hull. Even the lady behind the counter in Tesco’s was a giggling wreck of chatty northern loveliness.

Lyn Gardner’s review was printed in the Guardian this morning. Four stars and lots of lovely mentions - “quotables” as the press officer calls it. Gave us a reasurring boost for our week at the Truck. Lyn is the only critic I ever care to please, and her insight into the show was both spot on and true to form. Have a read if you like.

Oh and you have to see this: Joe Kelly, illustrator extroadinaire (and Leah’s brother to boot!), has immortalised us all in a picture he has drawn for the show. Very impressive stuff. What a talented bugger he is.

Dennis Kelly’s DNA will be at the Hull Truck Studio from Tuesday 14th February – Saturday 18th February.
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The DNA Gang - © Joe Kelly

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Feb
12

Rehearsal Memories

The next stop on the tour is Hull Truck where we open on Tuesday, so instead of travelling all the way back to London and back up North again, I figured I’d go straight there.

I thought it would be a nice break – a chance to properly explore and have a wander. In truth, it’s all very quiet without the others. That’s the thing with touring – it becomes a bit like a family, and like a family it feels very strange when everyone goes home. Like the aftermath of a big family Christmas.

I’ve just been asked on Twitter by @bouncetheatre -  a community theatre project who create inclusive theatre for all ages and who brought a group of teenagers to see DNA the other week – what the most useful rehearsal activity was for this show. It’s got me thinking…

I was very quiet on the blogging front through rehearsals, and deliberately so. Rehearsing for a play needs a lot of focus, even for a relatively small part like the one I have in DNA. Apart from getting to know the other actors, you have to quickly get to grips with all the other characters. Opinions are formed and ideas are chopped and changed, tried and tested. One day you are dead set on your character being a bit of a hard-boy and the next day you realise that, in fact, it works better if he’s just very insecure. I’ve had a nightmare in the past blogging all through rehearsals because once you write something down it’s so hard to change your mind.

Anyway, I’m babbling. The point I’m trying to make is that it’s about now, when most of the decisions you make about your character are pretty much solidified, that you can begin to look back at the rehearsal process and understand how you got there.

On about Day Four, Anthony threw us a challange. He wanted us to improvise the events surrounding the “Adam Incident”. It is, after all, the event that triggers the whole play. Although Richard and Cathy describe the event blow by blow in scene three, Anthony felt it was important for us all to have a collective memory to draw on.

The problem was that this was Day Four and improvisation is a scary business at the best of times, let alone within days of meeting the people you’ll be working with. Luckily no-one chickened out and for about half an hour, maybe more (you usually lose track of time when improvising), we acted out what happened, based on the account that is given. Ollie, our assistant director, made a list of the events and he kept us on track by every so often shouting a line from the play at us – “get him to nick some vodka”, “fistful of leaves” etc. Obviously no-one was actually harmed in the making of our improvisation, that’s the golden rule of improv, but we all committed to the excercise from start to finish. And what a harrowing finish it was. I can still hear Daniel, who plays Brian, screaming Adam’s name, echoing in my memory.

I think if I had to choose, that improvisation would be the most useful single experience of the whole rehearsal period. It was daunting, having to get up and just do it, but I often have flashbacks of it – especially just before I enter for the first scene in the woods.

I know a director who calls this sort of work “FUEL FOR THE IMAGINATION”, and I think that’s a good way of putting it. Each actor has their own way of working, and some actors will say that this sort of exercise doesn’t really help them. But, as me and James (who plays Phil) were saying in a conversation about Daniel Day-Lewis the other day, “each to their own”.

Dennis Kelly’s DNA will be at the Hull Truck Studio from Tuesday 14th February – Saturday 18th February.
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DON'T SHOOT THE MESSENGERS - Richard and Cathy in rehearsal

 

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  • WHO AM I?


    Rhys Jennings
    24yo Actor.

    Read more about me here.

    I graduated from RWCMD in 2009, won a Carleton Hobbs Bursary Award and worked on the BBC Radio Drama Company for 5 months.

    At the start of 2011 I finished the number one tour and West End Transfer of The Rivals, directed by Sir Peter Hall.

    In January 2012 I will begin touring with Hull Truck theatre in their national tour of DNA by Dennis Kelly.

    The Actor Begins is my way of recording the ups and downs of starting out in one of the toughest industries in the country. Welcome on board the journey. I do appreciate the company.

    For the more sophisticated and professional among you please see My Website for all the hard, solid facts. Stay here for the more informal, chatty and hopefully diverting rambles.

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