Since last I wrote, it's been a week of craziness!
Day 19 (Thursday evening, Idomeneo): Idomeneo Sitzprobe. Pretty straightforward. The chorus ran staging in one half of the church while the principals worked through all the solo/small ensemble pieces with the orchestra, then we joined them to do the chorus numbers. Worked out a lot of kinks in the staging, and I thought we fit with the orchestra quite well.
Day 20 (Friday evening, Idomeneo): Idomeneo room run. First a music call - going over some entrances, reworking dynamics, getting the energy back that we'd lost over the staging process. Then into the full run. A few hiccups, but nothing unfixable. Getting more comfortable with the order of things and where we go when. One final run before we're in the space!
Day 21 (Saturday afternoon, Opera 360): I'd forgotten about this rehearsal until the evening before ... Sitzprobe for the gala concert. Kind of important! We had a short meeting first with the singers, where we got info on how precisely the space was set up, what the order would be, etc. Then we got into the orchestra rehearsal proper. I had to leave early, so I didn't hear all the pieces, but the pieces I did hear were sounding great, and our duet fit together really nicely. We did some really basic staging, just feeling out the emotional beats and when was best to move closer, or move apart, things like that.
Day 21 (Saturday evening, Suor): Wandleprobe! First thing was to transport all the set and props - not a ridiculous amount of stuff, but heavy risers. Got a nasty bruise on my calf, oops. Then we did the Suor Wandle, which went really well - everything was falling into place quite nicely, the entrances made sense, the distances were about the same, and it actually proved a little easier to not get off the stick from the back of the church, which I was quite pleased with. (Alas, because we're working in a church, and funnily enough they have a service on Sunday morning, we had to tear down the whole set before we left. Oh well, we got our exercise for the day...)
Day 22 (Sunday afternoon, Suor): Piano dress! This went swimmingly. The only things we're missing now are the orchestra in the space, and our costumes, both of which come on Monday.
Day 22 (Sunday evening, Idomeneo): Idomeneo Wandleprobe. Also went quite well, though we're still not in the space, and that will make things considerably different. Soon, though. Soon. Soon it will alllll come together.
Day 23 (Monday evening, Suor): Orchestra dress rehearsal! There were a lot of hiccups tonight. Tempos felt weird, we had trouble hearing the orchestra (I think the orchestra had trouble hearing us too), costumes arrived but weren't complete in some cases so we had to make do on short notice which caused some flusteredness. But we got through it and never had to stop, which counts for a LOT. And you know what they say - an iffy dress rehearsal means a good show, right?
Day 24 (Tuesday evening, Idomeneo): Orchestra dress rehearsal number two - also the first and only time we got to be in the space before opening night, which was a little nervewracking, but we did it. Marathon of a rehearsal, but that's fine. Time flies when you're on stage every other minute. First was a full cue-to-cue walkthrough, no music. The distances for our entrances and exits were WAY longer than we'd anticipated, but we adapted. We got a curtain for our 'backstage', which was great on some levels, and caused some more hiccups in others. After the walk-through, we did a bit of soundchecking with the orchestra, and then the dress rehearsal officially began. Again, some hiccups here and there, but nothing insurmountable, and we fixed things as we could. Lots of communicating through side-glances and subtle elbow movements. On the plus side, the music went remarkably well - we stayed together without many problems and even remembered most of our dynamics.
Tonight is the orchestra dress rehearsal for the gala concert. I have to do my hair this afternoon, and make sure I know which dress I'm wearing, and make sure I know what all my rhythms are in the recit parts of the duet, because that was where I tripped up last time... Then a day off, then Friday night is opening night for Suor, and the festival begins! I can't believe we're this far in, it feels like no time at all has passed.
Wednesday, August 16, 2017
Thursday, August 10, 2017
opera summer 2017, #6
Alright, catching up over the last couple days ...
Day 17 (Monday evening, Suor): we started by going over all the rough spots and solidifying them. The spot I needed to work on the most was the food props, making sure I gave them weight. I'm finding it tough, especially moving them quickly enough to use them all as I need to. I am going to practice with things at home that weigh about as much as the actual food in question would, then switch to a lighter container and try to keep the same feel. After working on those rough spots, we took a short break and then did the full run, which went well. Feeling like it's in a good place.
Day 18 (Wednesday afternoon, coaching): this went extremely well. Romeo and I are really starting to click, and we got a lot working right. we focused on breathing together, actually hearing each other (not just hearing the music and counting), and the subtext of the music, and letting all that effect us. We're both nearly off-book and really responding well to each other. I'm seriously looking forward to putting this on its feet, and especially getting to do it with orchestra. (Also found out that this is a gowns and suits night. I'm always stoked to get to wear a gown. :D) After the coaching, I went to get pictures taken for the programs - one standard headshot, and one headshot in my Suor costume. First time I got to see and put on my costume!
Day 18 (Wednesday evening, Suor): Sitzprobe! This was neat. I don't think I've ever really done a proper Sitzprobe before - usually we've been short on time and so it's had to be a Wandleprobe. The point of the Sitz is to let the orchestra hear what we're supposed to sound like in a controlled environment, before we all start walking around and not looking at the conductor, etc etc. (Especially in this case, where the orchestra and conductor are both behind us.) It went well on the whole: a few bits were awkward and we had to re-do them, and the finale will be very interesting once we add the distance in (we're singing from the back of the church). It is also always interesting to me working with an orchestra instead of a piano - the conducting always feels like it's a little bit different. I really liked having the opportunity to feel it out without having to think about movement.
Tonight is the Idomeneo Sitzprobe, with an hour at the top of the evening to go over the chorus staging again. I'm glad we've got the hour - I feel like we probably need it. I know I do. Then tomorrow night we have a full run of Idomeneo, and Saturday night is the Suor Wandleprobe. First time in the space - it'll be interesting ...
Day 17 (Monday evening, Suor): we started by going over all the rough spots and solidifying them. The spot I needed to work on the most was the food props, making sure I gave them weight. I'm finding it tough, especially moving them quickly enough to use them all as I need to. I am going to practice with things at home that weigh about as much as the actual food in question would, then switch to a lighter container and try to keep the same feel. After working on those rough spots, we took a short break and then did the full run, which went well. Feeling like it's in a good place.
Day 18 (Wednesday afternoon, coaching): this went extremely well. Romeo and I are really starting to click, and we got a lot working right. we focused on breathing together, actually hearing each other (not just hearing the music and counting), and the subtext of the music, and letting all that effect us. We're both nearly off-book and really responding well to each other. I'm seriously looking forward to putting this on its feet, and especially getting to do it with orchestra. (Also found out that this is a gowns and suits night. I'm always stoked to get to wear a gown. :D) After the coaching, I went to get pictures taken for the programs - one standard headshot, and one headshot in my Suor costume. First time I got to see and put on my costume!
Day 18 (Wednesday evening, Suor): Sitzprobe! This was neat. I don't think I've ever really done a proper Sitzprobe before - usually we've been short on time and so it's had to be a Wandleprobe. The point of the Sitz is to let the orchestra hear what we're supposed to sound like in a controlled environment, before we all start walking around and not looking at the conductor, etc etc. (Especially in this case, where the orchestra and conductor are both behind us.) It went well on the whole: a few bits were awkward and we had to re-do them, and the finale will be very interesting once we add the distance in (we're singing from the back of the church). It is also always interesting to me working with an orchestra instead of a piano - the conducting always feels like it's a little bit different. I really liked having the opportunity to feel it out without having to think about movement.
Tonight is the Idomeneo Sitzprobe, with an hour at the top of the evening to go over the chorus staging again. I'm glad we've got the hour - I feel like we probably need it. I know I do. Then tomorrow night we have a full run of Idomeneo, and Saturday night is the Suor Wandleprobe. First time in the space - it'll be interesting ...
Monday, August 7, 2017
opera summer 2017, #5
Whoops, it's been nearly two weeks since I added to this. How time flies ... These past couple weeks have been less rehearsal-heavy for me, as a lot of the rehearsal time has been given to Gianni Schicchi (which I'm not in at all) and the Idomeneo principals.
Day 9 (Tuesday evening, Suor): first full run! went quite well for the first go. definitely need to work on the bits where we sing from the back. after the run was finished, we worked on one of those singing-from-the-back scenes.
Day 10 (Thursday evening, Suor): some reworking of staging since one of our singers had to take on a new role. then more working of the finale, again a spot where we sing from the back. hard to line up, man.
Day 11 (Saturday morning, Suor): run-through again! this is a special run-through - we've fixed up the new staging with the singer who is filling in the role I mentioned before - AND WE FINALLY HAVE OUR PRINCESS! the first part of rehearsal was the Zia Principessa and Suor Angelica doing their scenes, then we added the Abbess in for her scene with them, then we ran the ACTUAL whole thing for the very first time. (we were short one soloist, and everyone kinda blanked that we were short the soloist until we got to her scene, and so Suor Angelica helped an invisible and silent nurse ... we were all rather amused)
Day 12 (Sunday morning, Opera 360): coaching on the Romeo and Juliet duet I'm doing for the gala concert. went really well. a few spots of interesting tempo, and matching up rits is always a fun exercise, but we got through it without problems and I at least know what I need to work on. it's gonna be really good.
Day 12 (Sunday evening, Idomeneo): run of the chorus music, then into staging more of act 1. it's a slow process, there are a lot of us and we all have to look 'natural', so it's not a situation where we can get regimented specific staging. we also don't have a lot of space to work with, or levels, which narrows staging options further. supposed to be off-book for this rehearsal. getting there. the numbers we did that night I had 95% off-book - mostly just forgetting a word here and there. however, we entirely bombed the chorus soloists' quartet. good thing we would work on it the day after on our own ...
Day 13 (Monday afternoon, Idomeneo): quick coaching on the chorus solo/quartet bits. unfortunately we didn't have our tenor (I suspect he was working on the children's opera at the time), but we got some good work done anyway. we all feel more secure on the quartet section which really tripped us up in the staging rehearsal on the 30th. lots of starting on off-beats, and we're spread out across the stage at that point as well, which will throw anyone off.
Day 14 (Thursday evening, Idomeneo): back to staging - from mid-Act I to the end of the show. I learned very quickly that the Act I finale was not NEARLY as solid in my head as I thought it was: oops. on the flip side, one of the numbers I thought for sure I was going to be a memory disaster on went without a hitch! still struggling to remember staging which is very similar in most scenes, but it will come with time and repetition.
Day 15 (Saturday afternoon, Suor): haven't done Suor for a week! time to get back to it! this run-through was a bit awkward, as you'd expect for coming back to it after a week of not having it in rehearsal - a few tempo issues which need to be remembered (trust your eyes, never your ears), some awkward staging which we worked on again, but we got through the whole thing without crashing and burning, so I'm quite happy about that. also I had almost all my performance props at this rehearsal, which is super useful! I need to remember, though, that a bag of flour is heavy, regardless of the fact that the prop bag of flour is actually full of paper...
Day 16 (Sunday afternoon, Idomeneo): stumble-through! this was the true test of our memory: how much of the staging from a week ago or more do we remember? we got most of it. there were a handful of awkward "which number is this again" moments, but everything got ironed out. we also added the inter-scene dialogue to this run, which added a few snags, but again, all got worked out. one of my jobs today will be to go through the show's script and write in my blocking, then when I see my fellow chorus soloists on ... Thursday ... I will double-check it with them during the break. Thursday is a Sitzprobe (first rehearsal with orchestra, no staging, just concert-style), so we will have time to compare notes.
this week and next are the last weeks of rehearsal before we open all these various shows. tonight, I have a full run of Suor again (actually we'll probably run it twice plus working on rough bits): we're now well into the finessing and detail work. how do our gestures fit into our characters? are we actually communicating what we think we are? on the flip side: have we gotten complacent? are we doing the same thing every time because it's what worked before? are we actually IN the performance?
I still feel like I have a lot of work to do for Idomeneo. my character has evolved into a 'watcher' character, along with the other soloists' characters. we are mainly neutral, helping the story along, involved but not quite invested. it's an interesting line to play, but it's really easy to look too disinterested. I need to spend some time thinking about how i can communicate the distance my character has from the goings-on without seeming too aloof.
tomorrow i have the evening off, and i'll be having a handful of fellow singers over for a couple hours of fun planning for our little gaming group, before probably taking a bubble bath and relaxing before tech week officially starts:
then two days off...then performances start on Friday!
Day 9 (Tuesday evening, Suor): first full run! went quite well for the first go. definitely need to work on the bits where we sing from the back. after the run was finished, we worked on one of those singing-from-the-back scenes.
Day 10 (Thursday evening, Suor): some reworking of staging since one of our singers had to take on a new role. then more working of the finale, again a spot where we sing from the back. hard to line up, man.
Day 11 (Saturday morning, Suor): run-through again! this is a special run-through - we've fixed up the new staging with the singer who is filling in the role I mentioned before - AND WE FINALLY HAVE OUR PRINCESS! the first part of rehearsal was the Zia Principessa and Suor Angelica doing their scenes, then we added the Abbess in for her scene with them, then we ran the ACTUAL whole thing for the very first time. (we were short one soloist, and everyone kinda blanked that we were short the soloist until we got to her scene, and so Suor Angelica helped an invisible and silent nurse ... we were all rather amused)
Day 12 (Sunday morning, Opera 360): coaching on the Romeo and Juliet duet I'm doing for the gala concert. went really well. a few spots of interesting tempo, and matching up rits is always a fun exercise, but we got through it without problems and I at least know what I need to work on. it's gonna be really good.
Day 12 (Sunday evening, Idomeneo): run of the chorus music, then into staging more of act 1. it's a slow process, there are a lot of us and we all have to look 'natural', so it's not a situation where we can get regimented specific staging. we also don't have a lot of space to work with, or levels, which narrows staging options further. supposed to be off-book for this rehearsal. getting there. the numbers we did that night I had 95% off-book - mostly just forgetting a word here and there. however, we entirely bombed the chorus soloists' quartet. good thing we would work on it the day after on our own ...
Day 13 (Monday afternoon, Idomeneo): quick coaching on the chorus solo/quartet bits. unfortunately we didn't have our tenor (I suspect he was working on the children's opera at the time), but we got some good work done anyway. we all feel more secure on the quartet section which really tripped us up in the staging rehearsal on the 30th. lots of starting on off-beats, and we're spread out across the stage at that point as well, which will throw anyone off.
Day 14 (Thursday evening, Idomeneo): back to staging - from mid-Act I to the end of the show. I learned very quickly that the Act I finale was not NEARLY as solid in my head as I thought it was: oops. on the flip side, one of the numbers I thought for sure I was going to be a memory disaster on went without a hitch! still struggling to remember staging which is very similar in most scenes, but it will come with time and repetition.
Day 15 (Saturday afternoon, Suor): haven't done Suor for a week! time to get back to it! this run-through was a bit awkward, as you'd expect for coming back to it after a week of not having it in rehearsal - a few tempo issues which need to be remembered (trust your eyes, never your ears), some awkward staging which we worked on again, but we got through the whole thing without crashing and burning, so I'm quite happy about that. also I had almost all my performance props at this rehearsal, which is super useful! I need to remember, though, that a bag of flour is heavy, regardless of the fact that the prop bag of flour is actually full of paper...
Day 16 (Sunday afternoon, Idomeneo): stumble-through! this was the true test of our memory: how much of the staging from a week ago or more do we remember? we got most of it. there were a handful of awkward "which number is this again" moments, but everything got ironed out. we also added the inter-scene dialogue to this run, which added a few snags, but again, all got worked out. one of my jobs today will be to go through the show's script and write in my blocking, then when I see my fellow chorus soloists on ... Thursday ... I will double-check it with them during the break. Thursday is a Sitzprobe (first rehearsal with orchestra, no staging, just concert-style), so we will have time to compare notes.
this week and next are the last weeks of rehearsal before we open all these various shows. tonight, I have a full run of Suor again (actually we'll probably run it twice plus working on rough bits): we're now well into the finessing and detail work. how do our gestures fit into our characters? are we actually communicating what we think we are? on the flip side: have we gotten complacent? are we doing the same thing every time because it's what worked before? are we actually IN the performance?
I still feel like I have a lot of work to do for Idomeneo. my character has evolved into a 'watcher' character, along with the other soloists' characters. we are mainly neutral, helping the story along, involved but not quite invested. it's an interesting line to play, but it's really easy to look too disinterested. I need to spend some time thinking about how i can communicate the distance my character has from the goings-on without seeming too aloof.
tomorrow i have the evening off, and i'll be having a handful of fellow singers over for a couple hours of fun planning for our little gaming group, before probably taking a bubble bath and relaxing before tech week officially starts:
- Wednesday afternoon: another coaching for the Romeo & Juliet duet, plus a photo call for the program (need pictures of all of us in our costumes, plus regular headshots)
- Wednesday night: Suor Sitzprobe (with orchestra, without staging)
- Thursday night: Idomeneo Sitzprobe
- Friday night: room run for Idomeneo (full run-through, not in the space yet, I don't think we have orchestra?)
- Saturday night: Suor Wandleprobe (with orchestra, with staging - possibly in the space?)
- Sunday afternoon: there's a Suor call, must be for touch-ups...
- Sunday evening: Idomeneo Wandleprobe (I think we finally get into the space!)
- Monday evening: Suor orchestra dress rehearsal
- Tuesday evening: Idomeneo orchestra dress rehearsal
then two days off...then performances start on Friday!
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