The Assistant Stage Manager's Look In...

Assistant stage managing the production of Electra is a new and wonderful experience. I am gaining new skills such as blocking scenes, compiling rehearsal reports and prop lists and all the elements that are involved in the role of a Stage Manager. Being actively involved in the production team of a play is an exciting challenge that is highly rewardable for many reasons. I am witnessing how a play comes together from the very beginning and also how the foundations of a play are put in place. 

Siobhra problem solves in rehearsal.

I think that being involved in the production area of theatre is important and beneficial for an actor in training as it allows you to see the works of the theatre in a different light.  Since attending the first two weeks of rehearsal I understand the necessity of an ensemble that is close knit and works in unison. This allows the world of the play and also the relationship between each character to be created. I have found that I am establishing a new way of looking and approaching texts and scenes from only watching the actors in the process of rehearsals. Acting as assistant stage manager for the play and also working as dramaturge for this production has enabled me to experience the level of work and commitment that is required in putting on a show. The importance of historical context and research for a play has also become clearer to me as I feel that you could not put on a production such as Electra without having a deep insight into the nature of both Greek culture and theatre.

Whilst the first week of rehearsals was all about discovering the world of Electra and the actors using their physicality as well as the use of Viewpoints as created by theatre practitioners Anne Bogart and Tina Landau.  The second week involved blocking certain scenes from the play. The actors played with language and movements in the play and explored the text in order to find their motivations in the play. The relationships that each character has with each other began to be discovered and it was interesting to see the relationship between the chorus and Electra evolve and develop. The question of whether the chorus pitied Electra’s strife and whether they addressed her as individuals or as a collective group began to arise. Through working as an ensemble and also with the text the chorus began to find their individual voices and they began to come in to their own. They have begun to establish a deeper understanding of what they are in the play and their relationship to Electra and also who they are.

Electra and the Chorus contemplating and then springing into action.
Pictured: Annie Clery (Electra), Laura Webb,  Samira Barar, Georgina Ganly, and Jessica Watts (Chorus)
with Nicole Di Laochdha as Clytemnestra waiting in the background.

The world of the play and each character is slowly growing and being defined and it is inspiring to watch it all come together. Watching the actors develop their character and secure the world they are creating is an exciting new experience and before each rehearsal I am eagerly anticipating the new discoveries that will be made. 

Siobhra Ni Chianain