Rehearsals for Shrek the Musical Jr. start to ramp up as we get closer to our first performances, which have gone from being months away to being in less than a week when we meet for the penultimate rehearsal on Saturday, Feb. 23. The set was under construction in the gym at the Ashcroft HUB as of Feb. 15, meaning the cast could start to rehearse there and get a sense of the space. Props started to appear, and actors were encouraged to start using them during rehearsals to get used to them.
Costumes also started to appear. Even though we’re going for a minimalist look, most of the cast members play at least two different characters, and some play three, meaning there are a lot of costume pieces to come up with (almost every one of which was created from scratch) and keep track of.
During the first on-set rehearsals there’s an almost picnic-like atmosphere in the gym. During most of the previous eight Winding Rivers Arts and Performance Society (WRAPS) theatre productions I’ve taken part in, cast members who aren’t on stage sit quietly on chairs in the gym. In the case of Shrek there are blankets and stuffies, lunchboxes and water bottles, scattered around the floor, and a constantly-moving throng of young people moving between them as they have their various entrances and exits throughout the play.
By the rehearsal of Feb. 22 almost all the props are completed, and so are most of the costumes. We decide to make that rehearsal a semi-dress one: no makeup, but actors are expected to appear in the costume pieces they have, so that they can get used to changing into and out of them and judge how much time they need.
The rehearsal on Feb. 23 is full dress: all actors in complete makeup and costumes. They also aren’t allowed to sit in the auditorium anymore: they have to remain backstage at all times, either in the green room in Room 104 (if they aren’t onstage for a while), or backstage near their entrance of the have a scene coming up.
Director Mavourneen Varcoe-Ryan and stage manager Jessica Clement explain this to everyone, and also stress the need for silence backstage. Everyone needs to know where their props are before they have an entrance, and make sure the props go back where they came from on exits. Mavourneen also stresses the need for cast member not to wave to people in the audience, or peek through the curtains before the performances, and tells everyone that even if they don’t feel like it, they have to smile while on stage. “It’s acting,” she explains. “Fake it till you make it.”
This is standard dress rehearsal stuff, but Shrek is not a standard WRAPS theatrical production. While other WRAPS plays have featured children and youths in the cast, they were never the majority. This time, however, the cast of 26 features just five adults; the other 21 characters are played by people under the age of 18 (there is also Leith McLean, aged 13, working lights and sound for us, and 11-year-old Katie Henderson as assistant stage manager).
To be able to offer these opportunities in theatre to local children and youth is awesome, and it’s gratifying to see several of them returning for production after production. However, most of our young cast are getting their first taste of live theatre, and there have been some challenges.
During the Feb. 23 rehearsal it’s clear that some of the cast members are fascinated by their suddenly-complete costumes; there is much fiddling with animal ears and tails. The three knights now have their long beards, and they are proving a distraction. Some residents of the Kingdom of Dulac are having issues with their kerchiefs, and there are a few cast members who don’t always remember to keep themselves turned toward the audience (a frequent exhortation of Mavourneen and I is “Speak/sing to the basketball hoop at the back of the gym”).
We’re both moving around the seating area during the rehearsal, so we can see the stage and actors as the audience members will, and scribbling notes during the rehearsal. Looking at my scrawled notes, I see items such as “Dulac clap”, “Gingy: breathe”, “Knights, stay hidden”, “Rats: faster exit”, and “Something in Fiona’s basket so not look empty?”
At the end of the rehearsal Mavourneen gives her notes to the cast. “Stop fiddling with your body parts,” is one of them, prompting a parent to smile and say “I don’t think that came out right.” Another note is about the knights and their beards, and after learning that the actors were worried about them being insecure and falling off, she turns to the rest of us.
“Can we make the beards more secure?” she asks. “Maybe staplegun them to their heads?” Musical director Theresa Takacs and I start to laugh. “I love the way she says that as if it’s a perfectly reasonable suggestion,” says Theresa. Jessica says that she’ll see what can be done, and also tells the knights that before the final dress rehearsal on Feb. 26 they will have homework: wear the beards for 10 minutes before the show starts and not fiddle with them.
There is some discussion about more makeup for the character of Donkey, played by Sarah Onstine. “Maybe we can give her a nose?” wonders Mavourneed, only to have Jessica reply “Donkeys don’t have noses, they have snouts. I Googled it.” The things we do in the name of theatre.
The final notes are given and the cast disperses. Two days of rest, then a final dress rehearsal, two school performances on Feb. 28, and opening night on March 1.
Shrek features a road trip, and the entire cast and crew has been on an epic road trip since December. With opening night just days away as I type, I’m glad I stayed on board for the journey. It’s been a wonderful, challenging, funny, and fun experience, and I’m glad to have had it in the company of so many great and gifted people. Now it’s that moment we’ve all been working toward: on with the show!
Shrek the Musical Jr. will be at the Ashcroft HUB for four public performances (Friday, March 1 at 6 p.m.; Saturday, March 2 at 1 and 6 p.m.; and Sunday, March 3 at 1 p.m.). Tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for students aged five to 18; no charge for children under five. Tickets are available at the HUB during office hours and online at www.eventbrite.ca.
editorial@accjournal.ca
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