We’re getting down to crunch time for the upcoming theatre production The Game’s Afoot, and while it’s not correct to say that the mood at rehearsals is tense, there’s a certain intensity to the proceedings as opening night looms ever closer.
Actors have to be off-book (no scripts on stage) but can still call for lines, and the March 28 rehearsal of Act Two is — rough. Two days later we try again, first with the cast sitting in a circle and just doing the lines, then a second time on stage. The difference two days have made is striking: lines come much more easily, and everyone breathes a sigh of relief.
On April 2 we have our first run-through of the entire play without scripts, and while no one would say we’re ready for opening night, the bones are all there. On more than one occasion, an actor searching for a line is helped out by someone on stage who, while staying in character, is able to nudge them along. It’s what (ideally) happens during a performance when someone “dries”, and shows how comfortable everyone is, with the script and with each other.
It also means we can work on various bits of stage business that are difficult to do when people still have scripts in their hands or are calling for lines, and the finished play starts to come together before our eyes. It’s very much a collaborative process, with cast members making suggestions about what might look good. Not everything gets adopted, but we consider every idea, to see what works and what doesn’t.
It’s wonderful to see the camaraderie that has sprung up. Margaret Moreira, playing the inspector, has always had difficulty with one speech, a lengthy passage from Shakespeare, but on March 30 she nails it, eliciting a round of applause from everyone. These spontaneous moments — of support, of laughter, of appreciation — remind me why we’re all here, devoting hundreds of hours each to the project.
Of course, not everything goes entirely as planned. We have found two chairs for the set, which have the right 1930s look but are upholstered in a frankly hideous shade of orange and have metal legs. No problem: they will be re-upholstered in gold, to fit in with the set, and the legs will be painted brown. One chair is finished when Mavourneen Varcoe-Ryan, clad in the beautiful golden gown she will be wearing in Act One, sits in it.
Well, it’s gold-on-gold, and Mavourneen disappears. This is a problem, as she sits in one of the chairs for several scenes, and will effectively vanish. I mull over the problem while the rehearsal continues, then go to stage manager Jessica Clement with a suggestion: we go with a black-and-gold colour scheme, and have one chair (the one Mavourneen sits in) upholstered in black with gold accents. The gold chair can thus have black accents, and they will complement each other. Problem solved.
That leaves us with the challenge of finding a sofa that will match the look of the chairs and the 1930s Art Deco vibe we are striving for. The solution is at once brutal and simple: we’ll build one. We also need four wooden chairs that will fit in, and I casually inform my husband after one rehearsal that I might — just might — have volunteered the chairs from our Art Deco dining-room set for the cause.
Costumes are an ongoing process, with Margaret — who is pulling double duty as our seamstress — busy altering, hemming, adorning, and otherwise working miracles. One item, however, is proving frustrating: a glamorous red gown we had hoped Nancy Duchaine could wear is just not cooperating. As with the sofa, the decision is to make one from scratch, which Margaret takes in stride, poring over images of 1930s gowns to find the perfect one.
After volunteering to work on the lights and sound, I am relieved to find that Lorne Rourke has valiantly stepped into the breech, and on March 30 we get our first taste of the many sound effects throughout the play. It’s still very rough — at one point a phone continues ringing long after the actor who has to answer it has picked it up — but gives us all an idea of the finished product.
At the end of the April 2 rehearsal we go over the schedule, and to say it’s brutal is an understatement. We have a breather until April 5, but after that we have five full-play rehearsals in seven nights, with no more calling for lines. The technical rehearsal is April 6, when all the light and sound effects will be worked out; it’s followed by two dress and tech rehearsals, with the final full dress rehearsal on Monday, April 10. Full dress is treated like a performance, and while the play starts at 7 p.m. the actors will have to be there no later than 5:30, to get into costume and have their hair and makeup done. It’s what will happen for all five actual performances, which is why Jessica always tells everyone at the beginning of the rehearsal process that once we get to this point, we will have no life. Or, as she puts it, “You belong to me.”
January, when she said this, seems like a very long time ago. Now the big night is almost here, and the moment we’ve all been working toward is in sight. On with the show!
The Game’s Afoot will be at the Ashcroft HUB for five performances from April 12 to 15. Tickets are $15 each and are available at the HUB office and online at http://bit.ly/40ETMJa; they will also be available at the door for each performance.
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