Costume Needs

Alex's requests for costume help:

Birds
Hummingbird
-red/ pink bandana around neck
-white tank
-green armwarmers
-green skirt (add ties)
-fishnets

Flamingo
-pink dress
-tie around waist
-stockings (striped)
-platformy shoes

Owl
-brown argyle sweatervest
-white dress shirt (short sleeves)
-brown or black pants (not sure)
-ties on arms or attatched to armwarmers

Peacock
-blue tank shirt
-blue armwarmers/ bracelets
-plaid pants (brown or blue), capris or cutoffs
-converse shoes (preferably green or blue)
-ties on apron thingy (detachable)

Trochilus
-white beater/ undershirt
-black hoodie
-orange or yellow bandana/ scarf for neck
-white or khaki pants
-tie on waist
-checkered vans slip on shoes

Tereus
-Orangey blazer (ties attatched)
-orange shirt
-black/ white pants
-tie on head

Thug Birds
-Vest- gray with cutoff sleeves
-ties on wrists

Procne
-short dress (ties attatched)
-funky leggings
-head scarf thing
-ties on arms (maybe)

Hawk
-gray vest with studs and stuff
-black shirt
-gray/black pants… safety pins and chains can be attatched
-ties on wrists, waist opt.

Emissary
-fishnet top
-white off the shoulder top
-armwarmers/ legwarmers (?)
-gray/ pink skirt
-ties on skirt

Chorus Leader
-black shirt
-gray work shirt
-black pants
-ties on work shirt
-bandana (maybe)

Captain
-distressed black shirt
-stud belt
-spike collar
-worn distressed jeans
-combat boots
-slashed, distressed ties
**(I think he might get a vest too)**

GODS
Heracles
-Jumpsuit (white)
-flashy glasses

Barbarian God (immigrant god)
-Blue silky shirt (mariachi style)
-khaki pants
-orange scarf
-black hat with dangly things -- sombrero

Iris
-white floaty skirt
-light colored top
-rainbow necklace (and bag- if time)
-lace gloves
-white boots (?)
-80’s glam glasses

Prometheus
-dark gray trench coat
-dark gray pants
-light pink/pastel shirt (or white… not sure)
-dark gray “pimp” hat
-gold bling (rings, chains, etc)
-dark shades

Poseidon
-dark blue blazer
-dark blue pants
-dark shirt
-funky glasses (EJ ref)
*details with sequins on pants/jacket

Humans
all about business
blazers, suit coats, suits
tones: blues, blacks
shirt can add accent

Kinesias and Meton -- cordoroy jacket with elbow patches
Soothsayer -- jacket wtih pockets inside to display DVDs and self-help books

thoughts ONE MONTH to go...

Today marked one month before opening night.

We've made some solid progress, especially in light of a tricky rehearsal schedule spanning a zillion activities and spring break. I've loved seeing the comedy start to come alive and your creativity jump out (sometimes literally!) Some moments are absolutely brilliant. And some are ... lurchy. It's time now to "connect the dots" and work through the rough edges. Make or break time is now!

A great show requires attention to details and solid rehearsals. So much of what we do performance-wise only happens after you put the script down, are sure of the text, and can really focus on the words, people and action around you on the stage! That's when what we do really clicks and becomes so addictive -- err, um -- so very rewarding.




Please commit yourselves to being here when you have scenes, and getting your lines down. We all know it's nearly impossible to rehearse when we're missing people. Somebody made the comment today that 15 minutes review at home would go a long ways towards getting rid of the last of those memory lapses. And it would move us closer to a book free Act II, which we need like now.

We've got a super-fun script, a fantastic cast, and the energy to make it happen.
Work hard, be playful, focus, have fun, and hang in there.
Opening night -- a month away -- will be worth it!

Alb

Last rehearsal before spring break

just about made me puddle on the Little Theatre floor. And since we want to keep that floor in good shape, I think you all understand the severity of tonight's situation.

Who knew trampolines on a stage could be so much fun?????? I can't wait for the rest of the cast to discover Matt's latest addition to the set! (thanks JenJen for finding the bouncy clouds!)

*********************

Here's the plan over break:
to update Matt's earlier post:
he'll be at Franklin Tuesday and Wednesday at 10:30 until whenever, and Thursday in the late afternoon / evening.

Rehearsal:
Goals: character and physical stuff, memory work (off book!)
Tuesday -- choral rehearsal @ 11, individuals following.
Thursday -- indivduals
Friday -- choral rehearsal @11

*********************
Band update --
the swatch disc is out -- pick up a copy if you'd like from Alb. Current hope/plan is for our band to meet with Matt on Thursday 23rd and Friday 24th to jam with the mix disc. The goal is to pull the sound together, and then play with the cast the next week. Ultimate goal -- cue to cue (jumping in the script from music cue to music cue) on possibly 30th and for sure 31st -- followed by a celebratory pizza fest.
Of course, band members are always welcome at rehearsal if you want to play along, see what we're up to, or hang out.

*********************
For everyone traveling over break:
Have fun, and come back ready to jump into production! We'll miss you! Travel safe.

Spring Break Rehearsals and BUILD

... yup. The rumors may be true. We've got 5 weeks to get the show together once spring break ends.

Set Construction
Matt will be at Franklin on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday over break. Check in with him: he may schedule dates and times as inspiration hits. He's asked me to post a sign-up sheet so he can plan for any larger groups of workers ("Now get to work, you lazy ... !")

Costumes
You've seen Alex's fantastic designes. Now we've got to help her make them. Sign-up in Alb's room if you can help out.

Rehearsal for humans, gods or birds who'd like to hash out character or lines
Since there are so many small group scenes [character + Ready], it'd be nice to have them locked up memory-wise before the big group reconvenes. That way we can spend rehearsal time after break syncing with a live band and focussing on making this thing fantastic.

Rephrase: since we'll need to spend time after break pulling the big scenes together, we need to lock down the individual scenes now.
I'll be at BHS every day over spring break... So far we have individual rehearsals planned for Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday. Drop by Alb's room to schedule your time / see when you've got rehearsal.

The Birds Soundtrack Comes Together -- and by Birds I don't mean Byrds

It's late. Matt and JenJen just left A100. I am so jazzed with our extremely productive music meeting tonight. We've pulled together sound ideas, put them down on paper, and basically orchestrated the script. We also burned a swatch mix-tape so that the chorus and musical birds can hear our ideas -- and create their own sound.
The influence is heavily Matt's, but as usual what I appreciate is that he also helps me to articulate what I'm thinking. We often find ourselves on the same wave lengths, even though we often start from pretty unique perspectives.
Working with Matt and Jen is a pretty rewarding experience.

So, what might this production sound like?

Our inspirations:
Henry Rollins spoken word
Blue Man Group
Amiri Baraka (phenom poet) as recorded on the United States of Poetry
Silly 80's pop icons
Scary war music: Saul Williams -- not so much his rap, but the darker, edgy sounds

Thanks, Matt, for introducing me to Saul Williams and yes... umm hmm... Blackalicious too.

Movie Night

Come to slapstick movie night at the Little Theatre!
When: Saturday
Time: 5:00 - ?? 10:00 or 11:00 ish
What to bring: treats. Lots of treats.
You can also bring: some friends
You might also want to: come dressed as your favorite Monty Python character.

Script Clarification

Wow. While I was gone yesterday I heard some crazy rumors flying around, so let's set the record straight.
We don't (and never did) plan to rewrite Act II. The script you have is for the most part a completed, done deal. We've talked about improv-ing or stretching some key moments and this is still the plan. Have patience, because it'll come out of our time together in rehearsal. The key to our improv efforts is to thoroughly understand the strength of the script we've got before we move to build on it.
I'm not sure where the rewrite rumor started, but I'll try to provide some details that might help you out.

When adapting (changing/blending) texts, you need to get permission from the original writers. We secured permission from everybody but the newest translation. Since I'd been speaking to him right along, I had every reason to believe he would be comfortable with our request, so we moved forward with the script. Had he changed his mind and not given us permission, we would have had to revise some of the choral odes to remove his text. We got some fantastic news from the playwright this week, who whole-heartedly endorsed our efforts to adapt his text and offered to help us fine-tune and work through the ending, which can be tricky to stage. It turns out good ol' district 181 media services blocked his emails. He had no idea we were still waiting for his reply until I contacted him again this week.

I hope this clarifies anything floating out there. As always, when questions come up, come bakc to the source and ask. The strength of our show rests on the positive, creative energy of our cast and crew!