Saturday, September 05, 2009
When it's time
Berkeley Rep Blog: "Last night was the invited dress for American Idiot, or, as director Michael Mayer put it, 'the first tech rehearsal we'll make it through without stopping. We hope.' As implied, 'invited dress' was a dress rehearsal (all sets, lights, costumes, sound, in place) — with a very special extra factor: an audience."
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8 comments:
I always find it interesting to see what moments in theater are "defining" for different people. I've never spent much time on stage/involved in the artistic side of things but the first time a show is seen by an audience that has nothing to do with the show but viewing it still is an exciting moment for me. That being said, I've never heard of/experienced an "invited dress" before. I'm a little surprised that CMU doesn't do a similar thing for our main stage shows. I know that we the students and faculty are allowed to come and go from plays in tech at our leisure on some levels, but I'm betting that there are other parts of campus that might enjoy seeing what goes into actually getting a play up and running.
i also am not too familiar with the term "invited dress". Perhaps since I've only really worked at local theaters, its not so important. However, I'm sure in the more professional world, where a typical audience can be critical, it is helpful for the actors/crew/directors etc to have the first performance in front of an encouraging, excited audience. Even if the show isn't quite ready technically, its certain to be be a good performance simply because everyone there wants the show to succeed.
Invited dresses are fairly common, but usually seem to be limited to those that are "invited". Typically this is the theatre staff, other local theatre professionals, and a hand full of friends and family to help fill out the seats if needed. While inviting an audience is a great experience for actors and designers to see reactions to production elements before a paying audience sees the show, it is also an excellent opportunity for the Front of House staff to practice "audience integration" or how the show runs in the theatre from the opening of the lobby through the closing of the front doors at the end of the night. This gives the illusion of a seemless first preview. Also, invited dresses are a great opportunity for Company Management to comp in friends and family of actors so they don't complain later on about a lack of comps.
I think that this article makes a good point about how much an audience can change things. For us who work in theatre we forget that the whole process is in the end for an audiences enjoyment. We know that at some point they will show up and watch a show that our blood and tears went into, but I think that a lot of times we forget how much of a reward it is to have an audience. It shows that all the work we put into the show has finally come to fruition. Even if a show has a couple of snags and bumps at some point someone has to say that it is time for an audience to join the mix.
this article captures what theater is about for me. The joy of getting in front of an audience (no matter invited or not), and the realization of all of the work of the crew, cast, designers, etc. It mentions in this article that even the actors applaud- and that captures the moment for me. The theater is a family and that is why so many of us are here.
On another note, i'm glad to see a green day piece finally make it to the stage. since i heard american idiot years ago, the music held a story line for me. I hope it does well, and that eventually (maybe) their newest album makes it to the stage, as i felt it had an even greater storyline than american idiot.
For my money, invited dress rehearsals are a vital step in the process of opening a show. While yes, previews are supposed to be the audience reaction gauges, an invited dress where friends of the theater (admin staff, donors, family, volunteers, and others) who are already invested in the play can approach it with a new and critical eye. It is important that at least some of the invitees are encouraged to look at the piece as an off-the-street ticket buyer would to support the artistic and production staffs in making the show better. Lastly, especially in comedy, having an audience, friendly or not, will really change the pacing of the show and how the actors and crew operate.
I'm a firm believer in the concept of an invited dress. Its a halfway point between previews and rehearsals that affords the design and technical teams valuable information and feedback from a usually highly critical and informed audience, while still giving them ample time to make necessary changes. The notion of making changes after previews are up, especially for the technical department, is always a tricky one if those changes need to be big. Often, the guests at the invited dress, as was the case for American Idiot, are members of the industry, whose input can be more valuable and instructional than that of a regular theater going audience. I think for CMU, they might not serve a purpose, given our run schedule is so short for even the main-stages, however, for longer running productions, they are a valuable honing tool.
The author of the article makes the comment that he is "a big believer that lighting and sound shouldn't make or break a show" and this is compleltely wrong. Theater is about the culmination of vision and acting. If the lights aren't right or the sound is off the moment is ruined. Key lines are missed or the build up to that moment is destroyed. Lights and sound and other technical elements are a key to a sucessful performance. It seems like this article's author has a bias towards tech.
Focusing on the article though it is good to see how an audience responds to and an invited dress is a great way to test the waters. It allows the show to grow and the actors to respond to the audience, which is needed for any show.
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