Week 13
It’s WYSIWYG time: What You See Is What You Get. We’ve had our last off-site rehearsal, a complete run-through. We’ve had the Tech – essential and painstaking for the technical crew, initially fascinating for the actors as they sit on real period furniture instead of church hall chairs, then intensely boring as they stand around for hours being Objects To Be Lit. And we’ve had the Dress, a full-on performance in an empty theatre. So, no matter how brilliant my last-minute ideas may be, it’s too late to include them. (Anyway, if they’re that brilliant, why didn’t I think of them earlier...?)
Everything is in place now, apart from one ingredient. The actors have climbed inside the skins of the characters Oscar created, and have taken on their personas. They’ve used all their technique and experience to make sure the story is told clearly and convincingly. Wardrobe has transported their appearance back to a different era, and our Designer and his team have completed the transformation with an Art Nouveau set. The Lighting Designer – usually so underrated (theatre cliché: if you notice the lighting, the designer’s got it wrong) - has woven the appropriate atmosphere into each scene.
The illusion is complete. But it’s like Sleeping Beauty: it still needs that magic kiss to bring it alive. The magic kiss of an Opening Night audience – and the adrenalin that comes with it.
I love opening nights – especially when, like tonight, we’ll be playing to a full house. All the hard work, all the experimentation, all the fine-tuning finally crystallised into a gift-wrapped offering. And the flutter of anticipation: will they like it? Will they hate it? Will they (worst of all) say ‘Yeah, that was all right, I suppose...’
Tonight, the verdict of the audience. Tomorrow, the verdict of the press. But that’s a different matter altogether...