TECH SITZPROBE BINTAN TECH

It has been ten days since my last entry and the majority of those ten days have been long and arduous. We are still working in all the various elements of the show, and things are getting better and smoother every time. We have fallen into a routine of doing a fully-dressed run of ACT I in the afternoon, followed by notes. Then time to remove make-up, have dinner and do a fully-dressed run of ACT II in the evening, followed by notes. It's grueling, but the results are easy to see.

Now that we're running the show in make-up, my call time is usually around 1:30, which gives me one hour in the make-up chair and thirty minutes to get into costume/mask/mechanicals.
And speaking of full costume, I feel like I am now allowed, finally, to show you what I look like in full Scar-drag without fearing the wrath of Disney since there are pictures of fully-dressed Scar all over the internet.

I'm not sure why they had to paint the sneer on,
my face does that quite naturally.

Before we got to enjoy two glorious days off, we ended on a high note by having our Sitzprobe. This may be a strange and somewhat uncomfortable term for those of you who live in the normal world, but fear not. It's a German word that simply means to sit and sing, paying special attention the the sound. It's our first chance to hear what the orchestra sounds like, after rehearsing with a piano for months, and it's their first chance to hear us. It's always, always, for me, the most exciting day of rehearsal. Everyone gets very giddy and it's hard to keep the whole thing from turning into a Rave.

Me at microphone, partial orchestra right, ensemble standing, left.

Later this week, we will also be doing a Wandelprobe, which is a similar thing except that we walk the stage, as we would during the show, with microphones but no costumes, so that we can hear exactly what the music will sound like during performance.

And to add to the above photo, here is a visual representation of all of our home countries.

In order to take full advantage of the relaxation opportunities that two days off can offer, Lyall (Zazu) and I booked a beach cottage on the nearby Indonesian island of Bintan. Many Singaporeans vacation on Bintan as it is easily reached by ferry in less than an hour. Though the entertainment on the ferry, at 8:10 a.m. left a little something to be desired.Our simple but comfortable room at
Mayang Sari Beach Resort,
at Nirwana Gardens

The view from our deck

Our director, John, also took advantage of Bintan but he stayed at the spectacular Banyan Tree Resort. We went to visit for cocktails and dinner, but felt obligated to take advantage of the amenities...

Like the private, horizon-style plunge pool

Lyall & John paddle in the sunset

And the various snacks stocked in the kitchen
(Just what flavour are these "export quality" crisps?)

We arrived back in Singapore feeling very relaxed. A little too relaxed, perhaps. It wasn't easy getting back up to show energy on our first day back. And it was particularly difficult putting my flying harness on over my sun-burned waist-line.

Tonight, we will be running the whole show, with no notes or dinner break between acts, for the first time in many days. And on Tuesday, March 2nd, we get our very first audience for an invited dress rehearsal.

Onward...

FINESSING THE ROCK

The past few days have been an endless refrain of, 'Oh God, how much longer is this going to take?", sprinkled with the occasional, "Wow....that's beautiful", as well as the odd, rare, "Ah...it all makes sense now".

We started adding all the technical elements to the show on Friday. By the end of the following Thursday, we had worked through the entire show (Sunday off). That's six, ten-hour tech days. For anyone who is used to having two tech days and a couple of run thrus before a first audience, that may seem like luxury, but this show is full of so many different elements that have to be coordinated between so many different people and departments that even the most hyper-active wedding planner would be tearing their hair out. ACT I of course takes longer because we have six different children, 3 boys and 3 girls, who alternate playing the Young Simba & Young Nala. That means that any scene they're in has to be done at least three times to give each one of them the feel of the scene.

Also, we've started flying. And when you fly, you might as well fly with the best, Foy. Our resident Foy-boy is Cowboy Dave who is easy to spot in Singapore with his huge, fluffy, white beard, hair to match and ever-present blue jeans. Dave exudes exactly the kind of Zen-like country-boy calm that you want from someone who is in charge of harnesses and tiny cables that carry you 2 or 3 stories into the air. He's all about safety, repetition, technique and, above all, making sure that whomever is being flown feels comfortable.

I've wanted to fly in a show for years and while I admit that it's pretty exciting, I've gotta say that it wasn't the adrenaline rush I thought it would be. Perhaps because I have so little time to focus on the actual sensation as I am continually processing information from several different sources-
"Keep your head straight or your mask will get tangled in the wires"
"Listen for your music cues"
"Try to relax and just let your lines flow" (while you're walking backward along a one-foot wide platform that's three stories high)
"Try to look like you're falling off, without actually falling off"
"If your feet don't leave the platform at the same time, you'll spin in the air. That's not what we want."

I would love to show you pictures of me hanging in the middle of the empty stage but that is impossible. Picture taking, now that we're in the theatre, is strictly forbidden and I'm not interested in getting a 'Please Remove' order from Disney legal. However, to try to illuminate just how many elements can be involved, I will attempt to talk through a very small segment, (let's say about 12 minutes) of the show. This scene, well actually 1 and 1/2 scenes, gears us up to the climax of ACT I.

THE STAMPEDE/EULOGY
-Scar-wall drop flies in (with music underscore)
-Ensemble members create a brief shadow-puppet show on the Scar wall from back stage. (This means that they operate the puppets themselves as well as the lights that create the shadows.) The shadows show giraffes walking through the Savannah.
-Enter cheetah-lady from down stage right.
-Enter giraffe-boy from down stage left.
-Cheetah and giraffe pass at center stage. Cheetah turns, now in hunting mode and follows giraffe off right.
-Shadow puppets re-appear, this time showing Scar leading Young Simba on a walk.
-Shadows fade
-Enter real Scar & Young Simba down stage left(music out)
-During the ensuing small scene, crew scrambles, behind the Scar drop, to set "The Gorge" for the stampede scene. On word cue from Scar, Scar-wall flies out revealing The Gorge.
-Young Simba sits on ledge
-Scar exits down left, leg one, and races to leg two where he steps onto an elevator platform and is clipped into a safety harness. Elevator platform ascends, raising Scar unseen behind Gorge drop.
-Stampede begins. This is a 3-stage process involving a painted drop on a roller and puppets of two different sizes on rotating arms. (Think perspective) This also includes chemical smoke to simulate dust as well as music underscore, live off-stage vocals and sound effects.
-Down stage right, large elevated platform rolls on carrying Mufasa and Zazu. (They are looking down into the gorge)
-Enter female wildebeest dancers (wildebabes)
-Enter male wildebeest dancers (like the females, but bigger)
-Stage crew sneaks through dancing beasts and clips fly wire to Young Simba's flying harness.
-Simba flies up to large 'branch' that has been hinged in from stage right wing. He hangs there.
-Down stage truck rolls off right
-Enter Mufasa, fighting off stampeding beasts.
-Simba 'drops' into his arms. Mufasa releases Simba's fly line and tosses the boy off stage.
-Mufasa makes his way to the wall of the gorge and has his fly line attached by stage crew. He then 'climbs' the wall of the gorge.
-Scar appears above Mufasa, having previously been elevated up behind the wall of the gorge. Scar grabs Mufasa, lifts him, then tosses him down into the stampede.
-Mufasa falls, Scar disappears and is lowered back down.
-Re-enter Simba, looking for Mufasa
-Re-enter Scar, discovering Simba. Short scene. Everyone exits except dead Mufasa
-Rafiki enters
-Lionesses enter
-Gorge flies out. Platforms that wildebabes were dancing on dis-assemble and move offstage.
-Once stage is cleared, Pride Rock, a huge, automated, curving stair case, glides onto the stage, carrying Scar as he climbs to the top of it, ascending the throne.

And that's just one small scene...

You might think it's tedious reading it. Imagine doing it six times in a row. Or better yet, imagine starting to do it then stopping because fly lines didn't come in on time, or because Pride Rock didn't move fast enough, or because the singers couldn't hear the music, or because an actor didn't make it to the stage in time or any number of reasons to stop and try it again...and again....and again...


-

Work, work, ...WORRRK!

The last little while has been busy. Very busy. More like a blur really. A blur seen through the chin whiskers of the lion mask perched on my head.

Our first full run-thru with the entire company was thrilling, for all of us I think. Up to now, we've been rehearsing in separate spaces, principles in one place, ensemble in another, sometimes people spread all over the building, depending on the day. Finally, brought together, our excitement hummed in the space and our collective energy made the air crackle. I, of course, wept, as I often do when I hear all those powerful voices raised in song, invoking the heart-beat of Africa. I wept when Puleng sang Shadowland with so much anguished heart and raw passion that it's almost unbearable. I wept when Johnathan Andrew sang his first note of Endless Night, a note so small yet from someplace so deep in the soul that I stopped breathing. And then, finally, I wept after my intense death scene, out of pure physical and emotional exhaustion, and two hours of being a demonic tyrant.

The days that followed that first run-thru merged together like a snap-shot mosaic in my mind. Working a scene or a few lines, and running the show. Working again, running again. Stumbling home, soaked with sweat. Showering away the day. Stalking the streets for food and, hopefully, a few moments of peace & quiet. Surfing Chinese, Tamil or German T.V. Falling asleep. Falling asleep. Falling....blessedly...asleep.

Our final run-thru in the rehearsal space was another great day. The creative team were all very happy with the state of the show. Our director, John, gathered the principles together for what we thought would be another session of notes. Instead, he said, "I'm not going to give notes today because we spend so much time talking about what needs to be fixed or changed that you never get to hear about the stuff that's really good." He then proceeded to tell each of us what it is the we have, personally, that makes us unique and wonderful in our roles and encouraged us to allow our individual strengths to come through in our work. I'll not write here what he said to me because it was not his intent that his words be published on the internet (though if you ask me personally, I'll tell you). I will say that his words will be long remembered and replayed in my mind as a mantra on those tired days.

Last night, the company that works hard, played hard. Not only was it one of the principles' thirtieth birthday, but we also felt obligated to enjoy our last free evening as we are now moving into night rehearsals. Michael, the birthday boy, threw himself a party at the dance club in the hotel and it turned into a bit of a rave with most of the company turning up in their best glam. It's hard for us not to take over a venue when we travel as a group. There may have been a few tourists who were entertained by the antics on the dance floor and quite a few more who fled into the night, not brave enough to enter after glimpsing the high-octane revelry from the door.

Now, the tedious work begins with technical rehearsals in the theatre. Days and days of slowly adding the many tech. elements of the show. Sound, lights, fog, elevators, stage traps, quick changes for dozens of people in tight quarters, massive automated moving set pieces, and, of course, the flying. I'm not sure if I'm excited or terrified by the prospect of my death scene which requires me to fall, backwards and flailing, from a platform suspended high above the stage.

FLUENCY...

I couldn't be happier that I am sharing a dressing room with my new friend Lyall (right). We share many common interests and habits, including a well matched sense of humour and other....erm...abilities. It seems fated that Michael (centre) wore this t-shirt.

Patrick says hello

GONG XI FA CAI

The company has been working,flat out and full steam ahead, for about a month now and it is clear that everyone is ready to blow off some steam. Chinese New Year provides us the opportunity to do just that.

New Year gift from the hotel

We learn from various sources that this is THE big holiday of the year and many people will be taking a four day weekend. If you work a 9-5 job, it is not uncommon to work a half-day on the eve of New Year, leaving the office in the afternoon, looking forward to your two holiday days off, followed by your regular weekend. As we walk home from rehearsal on Wednesday afternoon, shopping malls are closing, and will actually stay closed for days !! Unheard of in a land where an evening in a shopping mall is considered 'a night out'.

After a short nap and a shower, I meet up with a few people at the Tawandang Microbrewery to watch a traditional Thai puppet show. (For a true dose of culture shock, please visit a Thai microbrewery that makes German-style beer, staffed with Singaporean girls who greet you with the traditional prayer-hands and a "sawadee krap"). This puppet company, F.Y.I., recently took first prize at the International Festival of Puppet Arts in Prague.

After puppets and food, we meet up with a few more people and take a taxi to Chinatown which, at this time of year, is pretty much exactly like Times Square on New Year's Eve. Cast warming up in the hotel lounge
Clockwise from bottom left,
Danilo, Lyall, Dupreez, Thabani, Jerome, Michael and Lavina

Crazy. People everywhere. Traffic. Music. Horns blaring. It's mad and wonderful. We find our way to a bar called Stage Door, a tiny, musical-theatre-oriented gay bar, one of Singapore's many, vibrant, community-oriented 'family' bars. This is where the trouble starts. Unlike touristy places, the drinks here are cheap and powerful and continue to appear without me having to lift a finger. It isn't long before, like a herd of gazelles, I sense movement and we begin to migrate somewhere else.

After half an hour of stumbling through the colonial streets and alleys of Singapore, with several people swearing by the accuracy of the downloaded maps on their phones, we arrive at Lluvia, a friendly, neighborhood, gay karaoke bar, full of people singing loud, off-key, Mandarin pop tunes. Directly across the street is a large temple, Buddhist I think, where New Year's celebrations are in full swing as five dancing lions are doing their dancing lion thing. Keep in mind that it is one o'clock in the morning by this time, and the streets are still crawling with people, including many families with young children.

After a few drinks, and a little karoke judgment, the herd, with a hive-mind, begins to move again, this time to a major gay club called Tantric. It is here that we meet up with other members of the herd that we had previously lost in the chaos. The music is loud. The company is entertaining. The night is warm. The drinks are cheap. It all adds up to this old man staying out until 4 a.m. for the first time in years.....possibly in decades !

The next day, I tumble out of bed around eleven o'clock. Unheard of for me who usually wakes with the sun. Eventually, I make my way down to the pool, planning on doing nothing but lounging, reading and perhaps taking the occasional dip if and when the clouds part, allowing the sun to break through. It is very peaceful except for the occasional cacophony of drums and cymbals that signals yet another dancing lion, being offered oranges in order to ensure a prosperous new year.

I can't help but giggle as the majority of the company begins to emerge onto the pool deck in the early afternoon. They stumble out, one by one, or in small groups, like Bambi-eyed animals in a Disney cartoon, rubbing their eyes and blinking in the sunlight, still tender from their hibernation. Then the stories of the previous night's debauchery begin to emerge. Who got lost, who got found, who hasn't slept yet, who didn't make it to their room without blowing chunks....you know. It becomes clear that, as a group, we have all lived large and slept little.

Hung over ensemble

Before I know it, it is five-thirty in the afternoon. Time to shower, dress and think about the eternal search for dinner. A couple of us decide to make the trek to Dempsey Hill to try the legendary Samy's Curry, which has been in business for 50 years. The night is warm and calm. The trees are draped with long ropes of twinkling blue and white lights. The curry, served on a banana leaf, is potent and delicious. My fingers are permanently stained yellow from prying apart the pieces of my masala crab.

The real bonus to all of this bacchanalian revelry is the fact that tomorrow is ANOTHER day off! A rare, very rare, and much treasured gift.

Some random photos...

Self-amusing on the flat escalator at Carrefour, the giant French supermarket.

Scar and Zazu rehearse a scene. (I'm pretty)