Here we go.
Bamboozled, I turned up early, early 8.30am (actually earlier cause I'm a lickarse) for day one of rehearsal for THE LARAMIE PROJECT and THE LARAMIE PROJECT: 10 YEARS LATER (To be hereby referred to as TLP and TLP:10.)
Tables and chairs were set, bagels and pastries were bought, coffee was on the boil and from 10am, one by one; the cast, crew and director, the brilliant Moises Kauffman began to arrive.
I was nervous, but held my own. I managed to come across with intention, purpose and warmth - yes, I had working questions for how I met these folks. Because, I thought if I didn't, I might embarrass myself...!
I met Leigh Fondakowski, the wonderful writer and lifetime member of Tectonic, some of the actors, Tiffany and Greg from the week before, some producers/partners, and Greg Pierotti, who helped me so influentially with my research paper last year at drama school. He is beautiful, with a warm smile and gave me a great big hug. I'm going to say it, as I'm a week in, he's my favourite, both as a person and how he approaches the work. Humble delight. But more later.
Moises, I didn't get to meet until two o'clock, the opportunity just did not arise. So I thought, I'll prepare something to say. Unfortunately, timing was my enemy and he caught me just as I was being rushed out to do an errand. 'Hi, I'm Moises' he said in his thick Venezuelan accent, smily eyes. 'Hi, I'm Kate, I'm your intern for the month!' I squeaked... slightly too long a pause 'I'm from New Zealand!'... Oh what a dork. Thankfully, he thought it was charming, and I didn't have to speak to him too much that day, so I regained my composure and got on with it.
Day one was brilliant. I am intern to TLP and TLP:10. They have a month to rehearse and then they tour the country. Here are some links to some of their stuff:
www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Laramie_Project, www.tectonictheaterproject.org/The_Laramie_Project.htm, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgkwl6Zi4VQ, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JY_5S8e7BhM&feature=fvw
So, my first morning. They started by doing a table reading of Part 2, TLP:10, which has not been performed yet. And everyone was quick to realize this was not a final edit, and what's more, there is only 2 weeks to rehearse each part. The anxiety was felt, but also the commitment to making it work and making it have a strong, though different purpose from the first part.
The first half of TLP:10 is chuggy, not quite landing, interesting, but it calls for a shift in rhythm. My initial impression was that it was formulaic... it followed a similar structure to TLP #1, and therefore, was almost predictable. The 2nd half however, has it's own arc, and really took me in, made me question my morals and stand points... and how I use these to make theatre.
Tectonic are careful not to put their own opinions on the people they highlight in these documentary works. No judging. The minute we hear the companies voice, the play loses integrity. It's not that they don't have strong opinions - they very much do - and it's not that these aren't important - they are. But by creating a world where the audience gets to choose the protagonist, hear all the stories and pick which they believe, they are opening up a forum for change. I believe anyway. I am reminded of a quote by Robin Soans, I used in my research paper: “The arts are more than mere entertainment... they should also be the vessel which houses the conscience of a nation; ask the difficult questions others would rather leave unasked… so it is left to artists to ask the relevant questions"
I think this is exactly right. This company believes (I think) it is not OK to let hate crimes go unaccounted for, that society has a responsibility to teach our children and each other that race hate, gay hate, any sort of hate of a group is not right. Not to be tolerated. This is something to which I agree wholeheartedly. It is interesting, because, being in Steamboat, I met a lot of republicans, and people who were racist, and/or homophobic . Now, these people are lovely, charming people to me. And they are not going to beat or murder someone because of these feelings. I don't feel like it is my responsibility to 'change' them. It is my responsibility to understand them, perhaps to educate them on my point of view. Perhaps to have them educate me. I am learning about judgement at the moment and how even the smallest slice of it can close me off to potential education. Moises talked on the first day about direct address, and it seems no real emotion is given in the narrator parts, just a factual, direct quality to, obviously, not spoon feed the audience.
BAck to that day; the interesting thing is that 3 of the original cast from part one, are in both shows: Greg P, Mercedes Herrero and Kelli Simpkins, and the rest - some have worked with Moises before - but they're all new, so it was very interesting watching how they inputted into the work. When there are 4 writers in the room, and 6 fresh actors, you do see a little bit of, not power play, but sort of a struggle on maintaining what they've built in this initial draft (Which since has changed at least 5 times) versus the desire to let the actors play. Moises is very much about the actors finding the essence of the scene.
So the afternoon came, and they read part one, TLP, and we were all in tears in parts. It holds so much confusion - when I write that, I mean each person, most of them anyway, who were interviewed, who were in it, so desperate to understand why it happened, how it happened, to understand their own society - and it didn't matter their background or their view, just the sheer necessity to talk, to come to some understanding for themselves. I just think aside from the whole theme and the event, The scary, moving, opinion filled event, TLP really captures a community struggling with their identity as a whole.
When we came to talk about the two works, we talked about the audience's preconceptions and expectations when it comes to viewing the 2nd one. How they might want to view the town in a certain way, or how they want to be transported into Laramie again and be just as moved as in the first play. So, for me, and I wish I said this, the play went all around the world, a lot of people said 'Laramie is just like my town' and this forum, these questions bubbled around the world. It is not just about Laramie anymore, not just about America, for me, it is about seeing how the world has grown and shifted in 10 years through the wonderful vessel of Laramie, Wyoming - through a town that went through some recent suffering. It is not a mere sequel, and I think the minute anyone starts saying, 'I'm in/making the followup' etc (they haven't, I'm just sayin...) the purpose is not clear. The collective purpose is really getting there now, they are at the beginning of week 2, and they are finding their groove as an ensemble and also finding their responsibility to the people's stories they're telling (in a side note, what I wrote about 'Laramie is just like my town' I think the same applies to the characters. People see themselves or others in them, which is part of the beauty of verbatim. Natural. Anyway, I think the more authentic these actors can play each person, the more the audience will dream around them - decide the who I like, who are they like thing)
The wonderful thing that has emerged in TLP:10 is the language of memory. It is 10 years on, and nostalgia, sentimentality, bringing the past into the present and leaving the past behind us are creating a nice wave-like effect of drawing the listener/watcher in. And when it comes to the nitty, gritty - for me - I'm so far in, I'm enraptured.
I am left with the question after the first half - How does the individual vs the community react to a major event?
And it's interesting because, you can tell in the text, the town was weary the next time around, not as friendly, not as willing to share. And once I thought about it, I thought, of course! They have been immortalised in a play. People will probably judge them. Have their opinions on them. A lot of them want to move past what, for some, must be a bad memory. Very engaging.
I'm starting to merge into the rest of the week now... in fact I'm just going to copy a series of notes from my diary. Ha! Let's not make this long winded.
-Moises is not interested in Mimcry, he is interested in history and story (33 Variations and Gross Indecency highlight this)
-The actor characters, who were part of the interview process, help feed in to add dimension to performane
-Is it about personal story or is it about the event?
-Strong curiosity in the room, process of investigation
-Quite like Christian Penny, Moises wants to know what the actor is working with, wants to engage in their process
-How are narratives retold? Form - how do you dramatise something to make it more real. To visualise what the person talking visualised.
-Final hour of day and middle aged actors getting hysterical - glad it's not just me!
-How do we grab the audience? Land the place with them?
- TECTONIC THEATRE PROJ = Liberal Theorists
-Teasing the audience, got to keep them guessing what happened to the town
- "Over the next couple of days we are going to be exploring what this place does. I am still learning" - Moises Kaufman, day 2.
- Moment Work: I begin, Something Happens, I end. Start with one person. No limits. Similar to viewpoints. It is simple. I like it.
-ENCOMIUM - GLowing and enthusiastic praise: the young actress received encomiums from theater critics for her stunning debut
-Creating ritual through frustration - making magic through time constraints.
OK, I actually have to stop. I will write again about moment work and McGill work.
But initial thoughts you have.
Bisous.
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