A few words about Saturday 1st November ...

Well. Firstly, great to see some photos up of us in action! And my God aren't we gorgeous!

And secondly, I think we would all agree that Saturday was really productive. It gave us a chance, not only to be thrown right in at the deep end and to hone our directing skills, but also the opportunity to learn from the various approaches to directing we all have. Despite most of us all choosing the same two scenes (Danusia - you are truly unique!) it was really interesting to witness the way in which each scene turned out completely differently. I guess it just goes to show, regardless of how much or how little directing experience we all have, we all already have a very individual style.

I was scribbling like mad trying to write down all of the tips I learnt from other people, whether it be power ball, or hot seating, or working with the actors more intimately (there's so much more too that doesn't spring to mind immediately). It was all really useful stuff, so thanks.

Saturday also brought me back to basics a bit. Its really easy (and necessary) to get caught up with text analysis, and objectives, and counter objectives and obstacles and this, and that, when you're preparing for rehearsals with your text. But actually, when it boils down to it, directing is about your time with the actors and what you get done. I planned my rehearsal for Saturday, but when it came to it, a lot of my planning went out of the window, and I guess I was running on adrenalin and what came to my head at the time - and I found that really refreshing. It made me realise how important it is to work with, not only all the preparation you've done, but to work with your instinct in rehearsals. That is after all what tells you what looks right, or doesn't feel right on stage.

Without sounding too text-book, that's what I discovered on Saturday....Amen.

Luce xxx