Is There No Respect Anymore?
Sweeney Todd rehearsals have been in full swing for a little over a week now. As you could probably gather from my past posts, rehearsal for whatever show I’m in is my favorite place to be. I get to see old friends and do something I love. Perks specific to this show include quoting Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! with Andy, sassing Erik (who really is awesome, for the record), hanging out with Michelle and Mary (my fellow Beadle’s Bitches) and having Eric Brandt as my stage husband. As it was pointed out to me, that’s a little creepy considering that he’s old enough to be my dad…but this show is really creepy, so it kind of works. Overall, I am having a lot of fun with this show and all of it’s creepy wonder and complicated music.
Now I will tell you something I’m NOT enjoying about this show. You see, about half of the cast is composed of high schoolers. This would be fine, and as a former WCT high schooler myself I certainly advocate it, but it’s only ok when you have high schoolers who know how to behave at rehearsal. Now to be fair, we do have some. The Edgar kids are generally alright, although this time around they seem to think that writing down their blocking is somehow beneath them. And there are some of my favorites from Wausau like Steve and Lucas. But rehearsal starts to seem less fun when Larry and Erik have to spend a large amount of time telling the kids to be quiet. Honestly, every time we stop singing (and sometimes while we still are) or end a scene apparently that is cue for everyone to stop paying attention. Prime example: last night we learned a very short minuet for a flashback-type part of the show. Then we were shown a certain step to use to circle the stage. We tried it once, and then everyone started talking again. The choreographers changed the step and showed it to us and we tried again. Eric and I, along with about 3 couples next to us did the new step. The rest of them hadn’t been paying any attention at all and just repeated what we were told not to do.
I am generally a patient person. I give people a million and one chances before I will finally say something. As an actress in this show, crowd control is not my job. But I feel like it is the hugest disrespect to Larry, Erik, and Jeff and Missy that these kids simply will not listen. If you are asked to be quiet once during a rehearsal, that should be the only time it happens all night. In a cast that actually cares, that should be the only time in a week or maybe even ever. But no, at least five or six times a night I hear “Everybody be quiet!” “When we end a song you should not be talking!” “Please don’t talk when other people are singing!” “Did you guys get that? No, you were talking!”. Anyone who knows me knows that if I think you’re talking too much, that’s bad. I talk more than anybody I know.
It just gets old, that’s all I’m saying.
politicalactorvist said:
Ugh. That sounds exactly like how it was for West Side Story… And that was pretty bad.
I know we’re both of the opinion that if you’re cast in an adult show, with a mostly adult cast, than you should be expected to act like an adult.
It’s too bad that no one else feels that way…
But I’m glad you’re having fun. Call me. I miss you.
July 31st, 2008 at 9:40 pm #
Lynn said:
I hear ya, Jill! I think that is one reason that some of the more ’seasoned’ members of WCT have stopped auditioning for shows that they could be cast in.
I wonder if these same high school students behave in the same manner when they are cast in their own high school productions?
September 18th, 2008 at 9:32 am #