Yesterday we had to block the performance inside incase of severe weather. The performance had to be adjusted to the space as it is completely different to the outside space. It was a successful run through which highlighted anything that didn’t work inside which needed to be changed.

We then seen some more of the second years pre show work which was fantastic. They consisted of pirate games, songs, sound and movement workshops and even some life size parrots singing a Jackson 5 song! Which was all very exciting! Another of the pre show pieces was learning to become a fully fledged pirate! The great thing about all the pre show work is that it fully engages the audience members before the show has even started. It also makes the audience feel part of the performance especially of the children will have made pirate hats and masks before hand!

Costumes are now ready and yesterday we got to try them on for the first time! I completely brought the characters to life as we could then see how important the use of bright colours will lift the performance and grab the children’s attention.

During the afternoon we then took the performance back outside to incorporate the new set. We came across some issues to begin with but the performance was only slightly changed to accommodate the set. It also completely changed our pre show as we now had the apparatus to use, it brought the beginning of the show to life and our character development as children improved vastly. We then moved onto developing our projection during the songs, which is completely different to inside as outside alot of sound can be lost.

Finally we worked the female pirates and making the set become there ship. This meant that all movement has to be adapted to the space which was a challenge especially for some of the dance sections. However the set really gave a depth to the scenes and movement thus helping with narrative and character development.

Here’s a sneak peak at some costumes and the set during rehearsals…

Laura 🙂

Day 1 of final rehearsal week is over. We managed to do a whole run of the show in the space to identify which areas need work. The set has now arrived ready for us to incorporate it into performance and bring it to life.

Today we had the help of Gail our costume designer and she brought in the costumes ready to be tried on. Ruth came in to get us physically warm for a long day of rehearsals, she also helped us work on Mama Glow to ensure that the material we are using was incorporated effectively. We also had Francoise to get us vocally warm ready for rehearsals outside.

When blocking the performance outside today we became unbelievably aware of how much extra energy is needed when performing outside. It’s so hard to maintain stamina when you have to project your voice so the whole audience can hear you. We also had to adapt to the space today, using as much as possible.

We also got to see a piece of pre-show that the second years have created for our performance. It is a sensory experience for children aged 0-5. They used many different materials, including bubbles, to create a complete sensory experience exploring the themes of the show. It is so effective because it is completely engaging and reflect our show perfectly. And with our group being the test audience we were all big kids when it came to the bubbles! 🙂

Some photos from today…

Laura