Context:
The Hamlet Company began working together in April 2004 and
the actors already knew each other well as many of them had
been performing together in Macbeth. The first day of rehearsals
is often quite nerve-racking for actors and they may be nervous
about doing a read-through of the play. This was a very different
experience. The director dispensed with the first read-through
of the play as he was keen to start working physically and
get the play on its feet.
Having read through just a scene the actors would discuss
anything that was unclear and then explore the scene physically.
Certain questions might help them: where has their character
just come from? Why is the character in the scene? What does
s/he want to achieve? What does s/he feel towards the other
people in the scene?
Michael Boyd, the director, worked through the entire play
in this way, and then went back to the beginning and began
working through it again. It was very detailed work, and yet
the atmosphere in the rehearsal room stayed light and playful
throughout. The rehearsal approach was very open with actors
encouraged to feel free to come to any rehearsal whether or
not they were needed. |
