January 2002 Beginning work and thoughts about rehearsal with film

I wrote the play and have many aspects of the film storyboarded. Over break I secured a space and a date MAY 2nd, 202 in Palmer 202!!! This week I am finding a stage manager and tentative crew. And next week I am casting so that I can begin filming. We won't be rehearsing a lot, but I want to cast it so that we can begin working as an ensemble and because I need to film the dream sequences.

We used film to help me workshop some of the sections of the play that stil needed work. As a writer this has been more beneficial than I could ever imagine. The play becomes so much different when it gets out of your head and real-live people are performing it. It was an exciting experience to catch some of these first moments on film. The holes and problems in the script immediately jump out because until you get a play up on its' feet it exsists only between your mind and the paper. That is not where plays live and thus I realzied a lot of things had to be changed.

I had my cast improvise and caught this on film. Then afeter reheasal I was able to rewatch and write down specific problems and possible answers. I was also able to focus on the nuances of the actors, in a way you cannot do when only working live. There are too many elements. I was able to focus on small things watch and write down my feedback, focus on something else and watch again. The beginning of a play is so full of possibilities and this film work has allowed me to keep all of those.