Reprieve

Tonight at rehearsal, for a brief time, it appeared as though half of my tiny role might be cut from our production of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. Though I had never noticed it in my script, there is an author's mote which indicates that a 5 or so page section of the script was added in later professional productions, but wasn't part of the original staging. Companies are given the option to perform either version.

It just so happens that at least half of my total stage time takes place during that section of the script. The suggestion was made to save time and hold the audience's attention longer. But by the end of rehearsal it was decided that those lines of mine would not be eliminated. So my role in the play remains intact.

Today we went over Act One twice. As I mentioned before, that is my least active part of the play. Most of my lines are in Act Two, and Act Three provides me with the longest sustained (though silent) stage time. So there wasn't much for me to go over today. I grab Ophelia and sigh, (a moment I hope feels better the more often I do it, because right now I feel like I really suck at it). Later I walk across the stage reading. (Difficult to screw up.) And at the very end of the act I deliver a few lines as I meet up with the leads for the first time. I will say that the second time we ran through it tonight, I didn't need my book for the few lines I had.

I am in fact about 90% off book now. I have a few similar lines to differentiate, one slight speech, and some mixed up words here and there to correct, and I will be off book. No reason why that can't happen within a few days. Then I can start to maybe work on the first few lines of the monologue Hamlet has in Act Four of the original play, so I can mouth them silently. (As I talked about previously.) If I decide to take that route, I've got plenty of time, given that it isn't a requirement. It may even be something I can't so, but we will see.

Not everyone was available for rehearsal today, and the one possible new actor we had to play one of the players is unable to join the cast. So it is getting quite tight in regards to finding enough actors for that scene. I am going to ask around tomorrow to see if I know anybody.

Next rehearsal is Friday evening when we run Act Two. I look forward to that particularly, given that I have more to do.