So the show closed at the POW on Sunday. I've never been a fan of this musical, mostly because of the subject matter and the dissonance of the score. I sat through it once so I could see John Doyle's staging and how he used the actors as his orchestra as well. In the end, while it was definitely a bold move, I didn't feel it illuminated the text in any way, and in having the all actors on stage all the time being busy caused major problems in focusing the action. I know that was the major complaint from the audience. If you didn't know the story you were lost from the get-go. To me, that's not effective.
My biggest thrill on this show was getting to watch the work of Ben Eakeley as the Beadle. He moved across the stage with a cat-like grace, proudly owning his height, oozing confidence. My co-workers also all noticed him, talked about his strut, and used words like cocky and sexy to describe him. I personally because fascinated by the way he handled the business of pouring a bottle of wine and recapping the bottle. He also has a lovely voice with a great range but conversation always kept coming back to how he moved.
Watching an actor move with such precision has become something I've treasured ever since I saw Frank Theatre's Macbeth: Crown of Blood in Brisbane. Crown of Blood had many stunning elements in it. It used a Malaysian actor as the sub-conscious of Macbeth, thus having the soliloquies split, with half in English and half in Malaysian; as well as two Croatian actors playing the first two witches, who also spoke in their native language. There was a live drummer on stage accentuating the action. But the best thing of all was watching the power of the Suzuki-trained actors playing the leads: no wasted motions, completely grounded at all times. Here was a production that knew the power of stillness.
Since then, I've attended one of their training sessions thank to Frank's John Nobbs (who I still hope can be brought to Toronto to do a workshop). I've read Jacques Lecoq's The Moving Body, as well as seeing productions from students of his school. I did a workshop called The Dance of Thought with Orisel Gaspar Rojas, the artistic director of Teatro Vivo de Cuba. And I just celebrated my 10th anniversary of swing dancing.
So I know that this idea of controlled movement and contrasting stillness is something I will continue to explore as a director. It was wonderful to watch Ben illustrate the power of these ideas. And through a series of amazing events, I got the opportunity to tell him so.
I've seen some more great theatre lately and I hope I'll be able to post about them soon.
My biggest thrill on this show was getting to watch the work of Ben Eakeley as the Beadle. He moved across the stage with a cat-like grace, proudly owning his height, oozing confidence. My co-workers also all noticed him, talked about his strut, and used words like cocky and sexy to describe him. I personally because fascinated by the way he handled the business of pouring a bottle of wine and recapping the bottle. He also has a lovely voice with a great range but conversation always kept coming back to how he moved.
Watching an actor move with such precision has become something I've treasured ever since I saw Frank Theatre's Macbeth: Crown of Blood in Brisbane. Crown of Blood had many stunning elements in it. It used a Malaysian actor as the sub-conscious of Macbeth, thus having the soliloquies split, with half in English and half in Malaysian; as well as two Croatian actors playing the first two witches, who also spoke in their native language. There was a live drummer on stage accentuating the action. But the best thing of all was watching the power of the Suzuki-trained actors playing the leads: no wasted motions, completely grounded at all times. Here was a production that knew the power of stillness.
Since then, I've attended one of their training sessions thank to Frank's John Nobbs (who I still hope can be brought to Toronto to do a workshop). I've read Jacques Lecoq's The Moving Body, as well as seeing productions from students of his school. I did a workshop called The Dance of Thought with Orisel Gaspar Rojas, the artistic director of Teatro Vivo de Cuba. And I just celebrated my 10th anniversary of swing dancing.
So I know that this idea of controlled movement and contrasting stillness is something I will continue to explore as a director. It was wonderful to watch Ben illustrate the power of these ideas. And through a series of amazing events, I got the opportunity to tell him so.
I've seen some more great theatre lately and I hope I'll be able to post about them soon.
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