University of South Dakota, October 2013

There is something magnetic about Arcadia. The beauty, the insight, and the complexity of the play was extremely appealing. Each reading of Arcadia drew me deeper into the lives of the characters, deeper into the various themes, and deeper into the ideas and images that this particular play creates. No matter how many times I read it, in the end it was always a puzzle, a mystery, and a love story.

It is a play built around science, math, Romanticism, Classicism, emotion, and what it means to be human. The characters in this play are three-dimensional, full of principles, and each are on their own quest for truth, knowledge, love, or all of the above. The science, the reason, and the theories are meant to glorify and challenge the characters, while at the same time entertaining and educating the audience. I need to be able to provide answers, thoughts, or suggestions so the audience can grasp some of the ideas, if not a majority of them. 
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Each show is different so a director should approach each show with a new set of eyes, however below are some examples of what I developed during the rehearsal process. These techniques have continued to foster my work as a director and on occasion I have adapted them to fit the production.

Meet and Greet

Something else that I did over the course of the rehearsal process was meet with various actors outside of the allotted rehearsal time. I made it very clear to them from the beginning that I was here to help them. As a director and educator it was my responsibility to talk, to work through items, and to both ask and answer questions whenever they wanted to. Every time I meet with an actor I saw improvement in rehearsal, I saw different choices being made, and other moments became clearer and more focused. This method works well for me because it does allow the actors to have a sense of the big picture and then find moments when clarity and subtly are key.​

Saturday's Rehearsal

Something else that I did over the course of the rehearsal process was meet with various actors outside of the allotted rehearsal time. I made it very clear to them from the beginning that I was here to help them. As a director and educator it was my responsibility to talk, to work through items, and to both ask and answer questions whenever they wanted to. Every time I meet with an actor I saw improvement in rehearsal, I saw different choices being made, and other moments became clearer and more focused. This method works well for me because it does allow the actors to have a sense of the big picture and then find moments when clarity and subtly are key.

Recordings

At various rehearsal points I would record the actors, both visually and audibly. I would post these online as a means for the actors to both hear and see what they were doing. This was helpful for the actors, especially those in the Regency period because they were able to physically see how they moved in space and take into account their movement and mannerisms. By listening to themselves via the sound recording they were able to take note of their dialect, diction and the rhythm at which they spoke. I am not sure how many of the actors used this device, those that did found it beneficial for their progress.

Goals

Due to a conversation that I had with an actor, I thought I would try something with the cast. That night at rehearsal, after warm-ups, I asked them each to pick a goal, something that they wanted to accomplish, explore, or try. After the rehearsal I asked for a show of hands if they accomplished that goal. I continued this approach and each time, more and more hands would go up regarding their success. I never asked what their goals were, I never wanted them to share it with others, and I never implied that I would be upset if they did not achieve their goal. By simply asking them to set a goal for themselves I began empowering them, challenging them, and internally making a choice about their craft and what they are bringing to the production. Each time I asked them to set a goal, new things occurred on stage and the play became more exciting and engaging. 

Photos taken by Raimondo Genna

If you would like to learn more about my process with Arcadia...