Walk it Out…
I’ve been told many times that people can hear music in my words, and last night, I saw some dancing too.
Our protagonist, Jane, has a monologue that’s about a page and a half long. (Not the longest, but it is a lot to say and remember.)
Our director, Noel, gave our actress, Georgie, an innovative exercise to try. Each time she said a verb, she had to stomp her foot. Forgetting about intention, just being cognizant of the words. (Apparently, it’s an exercise that’s been done with actors learning some of Shakespeare’s soliloquies…)
Georgie, our little firecracker, was stomping her little heart out, but found herself tripping over the words. She went through it a few times, until she finally decided she was going to lunge for each verb… By this point, she’d already done the exercise at least twice, if not three times.
The repetition, and moving her body to feel the rhythm brought about an amazing epiphany. When Noel asked her how she felt, Georgie said that she felt the verbs–the action… and that there were times when she wanted to keep lunging, but there was no verb to lunge with.
That impulse to keep moving showed her that she was pushing harder than she needed to be pushing. She finally said, “I can let the words take care of me.”
Those were the words I’ve been waiting to hear!
–Sue
PS – Our Summer Kick-Off Party/Benefit is TONIGHT!!! There will be drinks, food, magic, comedy, a raffle, and a silent auction. It’s going to be a fun night and a great way to start our season. If you can’t be there, but would still like to support great theatre, consider making a donation.
Add comment July 15th, 2009
