Open Rehearsal for Hansel and Gretel

Today we enter our final week of rehearsals before the curtain goes up on Hansel and Gretel's run at the Tobacco Factory. Today Elke arrived, the Company Stage Manager. Today the skeleton of the set has been moved into the theatre space where we are working for the first time. Today it seem things are coming together and we're feeling a little tingly with anticipation. And today, is an 'open rehearsal' ...hang on, what does that even mean?
Well, apparently, it's when the Tobacco Factory open their door's wide to welcome 30 or so unsuspecting individuals into the rehearsal room. Just an ordinary day in rehearsal amidst Carly's cussing, Unai's bad smells, and Mia's harassing jujitsu moves. For us, one of the biggest challenges has been to transfer Hansel and Gretel from its original end-on blocking to create new perspectives for an audience in the round. Its important to keep the action moving to hit as many sight-lines as possible but when you're carrying a double bass and singing, or manipulating small movements on a puppet, this suddenly seems a lot harder! So today we can play to people instead of empty chairs and that's when the real fun begins...








Posted by Fiona, assistant director on Hansel and Gretel at Tobacco Factory
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