-We must keep all that was said during our discussion within the blackbox. Do not discuss anything that was said outside of the group or in front of other actors.
Listening
-You all did a great job listening today. You talked it out and helped each other make dicisions (Pibl) without pushing your ideas.
Tomorrow
-You need to start thinking about how you are going to come together as directors and lead the actors. You are now Ms. Houston, you need to be a leader and get these students pumped for one of the best shows Pennington will ever see. Tomorrow is going to set the mood for the rest of the production. The way you lead will set precedents for the rest of the show. Be firm, be excited, and get ready to be flexible.
we are professionals i think...anyway I'm pumped for this show it kills me I can't sit in with these rehearsals but i know their dynamite how did callbacks go?? are the final decisions all made?
ReplyDeleteTomorrow during class we can re-work the What to Expect sheet with your expectations. Lena and James - do you have anything to add to that that would not be on the usual sheet I give out on Day One? If so, post it.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure deciding your cast was not easy...but I'm sure, based on the kids you had audition, that the cast will be great. Also, don't forget that when you make up your schedule to add in times to rehearse the fight. BTW: James and Ali were ridiculously awesome at Lucy's party. Xander, sorry about your tooth.
Today was an experience.
ReplyDeleteAnd when I say that, I mean it was one of the best experiences I've ever had and one of the worst. I loved being there to watch the words that we wrote come to life for the first time. Some characters were just so right for their roles that picking them was just automatic. However, I hated watching some of the actors that I personally thought had really good auditions get cut, but I know it's what's best for the show and thus that's what's best for all of us. I'm ecstatic to work with our cast and to see how each part comes together. Let's do this.
I don't think i have anything to add to the sheet since this show is like all other Pennington shows expectation wise...right?
ReplyDeleteI thought we did a lot better discussing today than yesterday. We were more grown up and i was surprised at the willingness to compromise from everyone. I'm excited for the costume/makeup aspect of the show. I'm also really happy with the cast as of right now I think we took a lot risks (good ones) and stepped outside the box which was really refreshing rather than hiring all the usual suspects. Like there were some people i didn't even think knew what theater meant and then they do their stuff and you realize that they're like a dictionary on theater. WHOA! so yea good deal guys... Keep it up!
PS: if anyone is up for me testing makeup tricks out on them do report for duty cause glueing egg cartons to MY face might not be the best idea :)
PPS: sorry for the spelling errors/ missing words ( i hope yall still get it)
ReplyDeleteIt's been a long day :(
WARNING: Long blog post ahead...
ReplyDeleteI'm still torn on how callbacks and auditions were approached. I feel as though most of Mr. Bloom's advice in his chapter on Casting was thrown by the wayside (due mostly to time restraints and an inability to proceed through our auditions as one would a professional audition) and we kind of went "on gut" rather than being POSITIVE we knew who we wanted. Nothing wrong with that, and our circumstance required it. I think we have a wonderful cast and will be putting on a great show.
However, I can't help but feel that those we didn't call back because "we knew what they could do" (as we've called them in our discussions, the "Ali Crivellies" of Pennington) were unfairly penalized because we became attached to those who read our words for the first time. We saw those who WERE called back bring our parts to life and perhaps didn't give those who "we knew" that opportunity. I think, in the future for everyone, a director should call back EVERYONE they want for a role and have them read at the same time as the others so that there is no bias for or against.
EXAMPLE
I once auditioned for a show in which the director's son was called back for the same role as me, but he didn't come to the callbacks when I did, instead auditioning at home. While this brings up a whole other can of issues (casting family, etc.), I do think that I was unfairly looked at because of the different callback time.
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It's just something to keep in mind. Ideally, in the professional world, we would have more than just this one audition and would be able to (as Michael Bloom suggested) ask them to dress a certain way, or wear their hair differently, or tweak certain things about performances or ask them to read a different way, etc... I feel as though (in some, not most, cases) sometimes we got too caught up on look, which is something that can change. Also, in a professional setting we wouldn't have to worry about casting the youngest person as the youngest part, because we could have older people to choose from. Basically - drawing from only a high school pool is very difficult, because the pool is rather stagnant. Does that make sense? Does everyone see where I'm coming from?
In short, we learned something. It's good. I just can't help but feel bad for some people, especially those we cut, as I'm sure you all can relate.
I agree with Dillon, the most difficult thing was definitely cutting. I got a sick feeling afterwards. It's sad.
I'll try to be brief now and basically say I think we had fantastic discussions today involving all actors and choices we had to make. I can't wait to start the show. It's going to be fun.
-James
P.S. Xander - Brush your teeth. ;)
Incidentally, despite the ad at the bottom of this page's warning: "Do not feed the fish", I have sat here for the past 20 minutes feeding the fish.
ReplyDeleteQuite addicting.
-James
who has the final cast list because i only have a partial not including the CTC's and the video people so if someone is typing that up..great
ReplyDeleteIf I'm supposed to do that can someone please tell me and i'll type what i've got...
For me this was a day of great happiness and a day of great saddness. Lets focus on the happy first. Today was so great because we came together in a union of comprimise and agreement. Don and Stef were an exception, not the norm and we all had our own imput. I still think reliability was put on the back-burner a bit, but it was better then yesterday. We were also all polite most of the time and listened to each others imput quite a lot. I think that was a major thing about today, we all watned to hear each others opinion becuase we wanted the best possible people to play the characters we have invented. There were also some great comeback preformances (For me it was Hank and Erik) that really proved the worth of having Callbacks. I also think we have a large talent pool which is a bit of a curse, but mostly a blessing. Finally, on a personal note, my favourite double group is Nick and Eric as the anchors because those two work together so well that I thik they could make something great out of their air time. (NOTE: I have emialed everyone the News Bulliten scene. The chaps have the smae names if no one objects).
ReplyDeleteNow for the sad news. Firslty, I mostly agree with James about failing to call people back. It might have been good to have called them back, BUT at the time we couldn't call Nick and Sasha back due to their lack of preperation concerning the Dean. However, people like Wu should have of come back just to impress us. It was nice to hear our scenes for the first time, but it is true that that biased our views a bit. However, that wasn't always the case, as we came to the closing I still hadn't found parts for Gianna, Erik, or Leah and I thought they were all excellent actors at callbacks. I also felt that cutting was not the most painful, but rather putting great actors in smaller roles then they probably deserved. I mean most of the actors who were cut weren't brilliant, but we are going to have to look at Gianna every day for the next few weeks and we will remeber that she should have had a better part then she got, it's going to sting. However, I guess with all the joys of acting comes pian as well.
In conclusion, I feel we are playing God a bit and we are goning to have to be careful about what we do or else this world we have created will fall apart. As it stands right now though, I think it has the potential to be something truly great.
I felt like people respect each other today more than yesterday. We stopped and listened to people while they talked about their opinion. I think that discussions are great, people may have great thoughts each of us might not think of, but we need to respect the play writer for each scene because they write the scene based on their "vision" and they know what exactly each character is like from their scene.
ReplyDeleteIt is a fantastic experience for me because this is the first time I actually go through the process and I am really excited for the read through tomorrow.
Today we definitely did a great gob at listening to each other besides the few heated arguments. casting is hands down one of the hardest but most rewarding things i have done in this process. i found it exciting yet hart wrenching, because there are people being cut that deserve a part but they just dont fit any characters.
ReplyDeleteI feel as though compromises made today were extremely helpful, and in no way weaken any performance.
on james not of appearances and age. as you all know i was big into age appropriate roles. This can be countered by the change of appearance, but i dont see this as enough. in a ideal situation not in a high school this would work. the issue is that a audience member isto going to be bale to suspend there every day knowledge fo our cast, causing the story to have a spin that we can not predict. this is why i feel that we needed to cast closest to character trates as possible because when story telling you have to take into account the audiences perspective.
a audiences perspective is much easier explained when talking about sound design. when using music in a production the designer must be careful about song choice. firstly because many songs have different meanings to different people. You DONT want a song reminding a audience member of the best summer of there lives while in the production that same song is trying to be used to describe the death of a friend.
sorry for this incoherent rant.
Personally, I was very happy the way things went today and i felt there was some good compromising done today, while at the same time I feel that there was a bit too much unnecessary talking and I felt like some people needed to stay more on task at times. Also i felt during call backs a lot of became frustrated because some of the sides were too long and also because people were being asked to do things over again and it seemed like time was being wasted and people I feel like needed to stay a bit more focused. Overall, though, we made some great compromises and I'm really happy with the actors for my part at least. However, it did suck not giving people who I thought were mad talented bigger roles, but unforunately that is just how the cookie crumbles sometimes and those people who we thought were awesome and didn't give big roles are young and I'm sure in the future and through this blog and our praise for them, their had work will pay off for them sometime during their time with Pennington Drama.
ReplyDeleteSadat
Well 1st off, Mr Moore, you definitely spelt "decisions" wrong. As for today, I think everyone did a much better job at listening to one another, and I was thoroughly surprised by the willingness of everyone to compromise. Also I received word that after I left additional roles were casted (ie. zombies.) and thats all fine, I just hope that that won't come back to haunt us later. Because with more people I fell like theres a greater possibility someone could flake out on us.
ReplyDeleteAs I read the comments, I also noticed that many people felt bad for having to make cuts. While those decision can be difficult, there comes a point were I think that you just have to curb/turn off your emotions & feelings about others and make the decision that is best for you. I have to do that alot with my work and all, and it can be tough, at times, to show no feelings towards someone, but i guarantee there will be others times later in life that you will have to tell people "no" or they "aren't good enough"
Also Mr Moore & Mr. D, are Coleman and I allowed to hold option techs on Thursday and/or Friday?
Just to remind all of you... Theatre is a tough business. It is a business when more times than others, people are told they don't fit the role and are usually not even given any feedback as to why. Pennington Drama isn't real life theatre - as you all know, we strive to do our best to make everyone happy and wanted and comfortable. But, you know what, that isn't real theatre. For the most part, a theatre "person" is lucky to find work, lucky to be chosen. So, us teaching people that second chances are possible is part of the learning process. If things are presented correctly - there are no small parts, then people will feel a part of this. If it's presented that everyone who auditioned was talented and has potential, then they will come back next year. You all are right: Cutting people is the worst feeling. But, now it's time to turn your attention to what the show can be. I think your list looks great. It's great to see some new faces and the returning actors will add a lot of spark and professionalism, no matter what their roles are. (And if they don't, then you know you chose correctly) In terms of call backs...the people who were up in the air with the Dean were not called back. That's the breaks -- the whole way the situation played out is unfair -- especially to the kids who actually followed the rule and went out for their sport. Enough said, you all know my opinion on this. You also all know they could play any part in this show, so I wouldn't spend time regretting anything. You chose the people you thought were best and your cast looks exceptionally good. I feel very optimistic about this and I'm proud of you.
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