James talked through a scene in our current production, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie. Part way through Jean and the girls visit Cramond, the singing-master’s picturesque island home. I’d been struck, when I saw the play the night before, that during this scene the stage seemed to expand and breathe; trees and water not visible, but their presence palpable. The actors’ physicality, the light summery costumes, the rich lighting, the pace of the dialogue in the scene all made their contribution to the languidly sunshiny feel of the scene. But my ear isn’t good enough to pick up the detail of the sound picture and how it enhanced that atmosphere. James deconstructed it for me: trees rustling and seagulls calling over head on one side of the stage; two sets of waves breaking on the other, giving a sense of movement; the sense of water lapping at the actors’ toes created by speakers under the stage. And above all this, the sweet voice of the music teacher Mr Lowther, singing his love.
However well I know what strings are being pulled and when and why and how, the magic of all these tremendously skilled people coming together to create a moment of theatre still takes my breath away.
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It’s a play with a great big heart, The Glee Club. Set in 1962, it’s about a band of hard-working, hard-drinking miners who go down a bomb on the working men’s club circuit, performing classics including Que Sera Sera and Hernando’s Hideaway. So I need to cast five talented singers and an accomplished pianist. But Richard Cameron’s play is also a funny and heartbreaking journey through these men’s lives at a time when the sixties are swinging in to change the world, so the performers will need to be terrific actors too.
Casting began back in July, when I sat down to re-read the text and create a casting breakdown. I made a list of roles, accompanied by some details of what might be required: the character’s age; whether any special skills such as singing are required; any accent the actor will need to use. Plus a few notes about what kind of person the character is – warm? Spiky? A gentleman; a bruiser? Is he a clown; a thinker; a bully?
The breakdown is posted to our website and to agents, and the submissions start to roll in. Usually the actor or agent sends a CV and a black and white photo – thankfully, it’s mostly done online these days, so I don’t have a tower of CVs blocking the door to my office or a bin full of brown envelopes.
Over the next few days I will work through the submissions from 250 talented, trained, experienced actors to handpick a shortlist who musical director Mary Keith and I will interview later in the month. Rehearsals will take place in the New Year, and The Glee Club will be the first play of my first season.
I’ve been accompanied in this endeavour by Maisie, the theatre dog. She’s sat patiently in the corner, snoring occasionally and rousing herself to say hello whenever someone pops their head round the door.
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