The best rehearsals are a joyful mix of fun and productivity. After all, if the audience know the cast are having fun on stage, it feeds into the enjoyment of the production as a while.
Here’s my top tips to rehearsals where you can make real progress practicing for the show, and have a great time all together.
How to prepare for rehearsal
Members of the creative team like Directors, Choreographers and Musical Directors have the most preparation to complete ahead of a rehearsal. This is time well spent because a well-run and organised rehearsal helps the cast to trust that they are in safe hands with you. It gives them confidence to do their best on stage.
Here’s some important elements to consider
- Start and end times
- Rehearsal venue
- Communicating key dates, times and information ahead of time
- Printing scripts
- Creating a detailed rehearsal schedule
- Resources like videos to help cast learn blocking and choreography once taught in the room
Cast members also have a responsibility to look over the material that they will cover in the rehearsal to ensure they understand what’s happening in the scene/song and are prepared to learn or practice.
What to wear to rehearsals
Most pantomime rehearsals involve a fair amount of moving around. Whether that’s taking part in choreography, or blocking slapstick routines and comedy falls.
Each Director or Choreographer might have their own preference but I always advise wearing something that’s easy to move in like track suit bottoms, and a t shirt. Avoid jewellery or clothing such as scarves that could get hooked on another cast member, or trapped in pieces of set.
Some training theatres will stipulate that actors wear black to reflect that they are simply playing a role, but this is not important to me as long as the actor is able to concentrate on their role.
Directors usually wear smart casual clothing that is comfortable. They will be working hard too and might need to be able to move about easily.
Choreographers usually wear gym gear or ath-leisure wear. Musical Directors? Anything they like as long as they can play their instrument of choice.
How to prepare your material for rehearsal
It is best to edit your material so that it is as close as possible to the final version when you rehearse a scene or song.
This means you’ll have worked through the material in your own time with a fine-tooth comb working out what is possible to achieve, and what is described in the script but may need to be pulled back in reality due to staging constraints.
If a scene or number requires actors to interact with scenery, props or costume, it’s best to have (at least) an approximation of what that will be like for the actors. The closer to the finished product you can provide, the more confident they will feel rehearsing.
Being able to clearly articulate your vision of what you’re trying to achieve will help the actors place trust in you, and deliver what you’re attempting.
Top tip – try explaining your vision to a friend or relatively ahead of the rehearsal. Sometimes it can seem all figured out inside your head but the moment you say it out loud you realise it’s potentially quite confusing.
Other things to watch out for
Rehearsals sometimes have to allow time for other activities to take place such as:
- Costume fittings
- Publicity photos
- Rehearsal photos
- Company announcements
So don’t forget to leave time for them, they can sometimes sneak up on you.
Summary
With the right planning and preparation there’s no reason why your rehearsals can’t be a resounding success.
Got any tips of your own? Get in touch and I may even add them to this article. It’s always good to share best practice.
