setting up

In previous rehearsals the set has been discussed and attempted but it was told it looked sloppy and not thought through. So today I decided to give it another shot and sat down with the people not dancing Andrew a sketch of what we thought the set should look like and how it could cater to both The Tempest and Twelfth Night.  In previous lessons the idea of Prosperous entering from behind a curtain on the same level as the highest rosters was a concept brought up last week so we solved this problem through having a Rostand stand behind the curtain with steps to get up to it so that Prosperous can step through the curtain with ease straight onto the highest level without and sloppy climbing and this also adds to the magical aspect of the work as it looks like he's come out of nowhere.   I saw the opening storm dance today and when I saw it on its own with the music I was skeptical as it looked very ropy and I couldn't see the potential in it but later i saw it with a strobe light and under the sound of a storm and waves and it looked very dramatically effective. I can now see real potential and can't wait to see the finishes article. We did note that it needs to be more manic and needs more people to give it the strong and forceful impact it can achieve. Due to the play opening in a storm and a shipwreck we added the concept of sailors in to the opening and as the singing and drums kick in in the music a single sailor step tour on stage and when lightening cracks the others come out creating a frantic group of people pulling ropes and fighting a storm. As a class we talked about using white sheets on ropes to act as sails and create a visually stimulating image on stage, I love this idea and can't wait to give it a go and see if it works well with the piece.