The Boards - Friday @ 8pm - 08/01 - PERFORMANCE

[suit-of-sables.livejournal.com]

Hopefully his actors would put in a good second performances and even more hopefully, they wouldn't completely lack an audience this time.  Second performance was occasionally a letdown, depending on certain factors, and the small size of the island was definitely one of those factors.

He wondered if he should have made it two performances each of the two weeks, but eh.  Nothing he could do now. 

[ocd coming up!]

Comments

Box Office

[suit-of-sables.livejournal.com]

Tickets! Get em here!

Re: Box Office

[decoder-rings.livejournal.com]

Hannibal hadn't been to the theatre in...ever. But, he was there today and buying tickets for something he hoped he understood.

Hopefully there wouldn't be subtitles.

In the Seats

[suit-of-sables.livejournal.com]

For the audience-types.

Re: In the Seats

[decoder-rings.livejournal.com]

He found a seat near the middle, in the aisle. Always good to have a quick escape if he needed popcorn.

Not that this place sold it, dammit, but still, aisles were good.

Re: In the Seats

[intraspective]

"Okay," Ino said, looking determined as she took a seat. "We're here and we're going to have a good time, right?"

Backstage

[suit-of-sables.livejournal.com]

For your actory-types.

Re: Backstage

[minnesota-teen.livejournal.com]

Amber was in costume, completely ready. She was, however, reclining in a chair, her gaze unfocused as she mentally went over her lines and particular scenes.

Re: Backstage

[gkar-lastkhari.livejournal.com]

G'Kar was there, pacing a little as he mentally worked through how he could make this performance a bit different than the last.

He didn't want to bore the audience with the same thing repeatedly, of course.

Re: Backstage

[inthereflexes.livejournal.com]

Jack was there, relaxing a bit. The first performance was not quite so bad, but he was still nervous, and was glad he muffed the lines only a little. Time to get into costume...and into character.

Re: Backstage

[not-a-mused.livejournal.com]

Cal made sure that he had himself a nice comfortable area set up backstage, since that was where he'd spend most of his time after being dead. Ahhh, early deaths.

Re: Backstage

[ktarian-wildman.livejournal.com]

Naomi was there and was ready for her performance. She wasn't as nervous as she had been on Tuesday.

Re: Backstage

[cheminthehead.livejournal.com]

Gladys was costumed and make-upped, standing in a corner as if she'd been switched off, waiting to go on stage.

Golems had no nerves, and so couldn't be nervous.

Re: Backstage

[rebelheartalien.livejournal.com]

Michael was there, running through a meditation.

The Play

[suit-of-sables.livejournal.com]

Synopsis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titus_Andronicus#Synopsis)
Text (http://xahlee.org/p/titus/titus.html)

[actors, do your thing; put up a performance (http://suit-of-sables.livejournal.com/3156.html) or we'll assume you were.... mediocre ^_^]

Re: The Play

[minnesota-teen.livejournal.com]

The first scene always took so much from Amber. Tamora was held captive, taken prisoner, crying and pleading for the life of her first born son that Titus demanded to take.

She dropped to her knees, hard, tears staining her cheeks, and she pleaded, her wrists in iron as she was held back. "Stay, Roman brethen! Gracious conqueror, Victorious Titus, rue the tears I shed. A mother's tears in passion for her son!" she cried, her voice tainted with grief as it carried out across the audience and stage.

"And if thy sons were ever dear to thee, O, think my son to be as dear to me! Sufficeth not that we are brought to Rome to beautify thy triumphs, and return captive to thee and to thy Roman yoke; but must my sons be slaughtered in the streets for valiant doings in their country's cause? O, if to fight for king and commonweal were piety in thine, it is in these." She shook her wrists, rattling the iron, sobbing. "Andronicus! Stain not thy tomb with blood! Wilt thou draw near the nature of the gods? Draw near them then in being merciful. Sweet mercy is nobility's true badge!"

She drew a deep breath. "Thrice-noble Titus, spare my first-born son."

And so the play went. Amber felt she did better this second time around. She was Tamora, Queen of the Goths. She was regal, she was a villian, she was a bitch who screamed murder and justice.

But she was also a lover and she knew seduction better than most. It was here with her scene with Aaron in the woods, that Amber felt more confident. She tempted, she teased, she kissed, and she touched with both hands and body. She seduced Aaron, feeling confident in her acting ability "... We may, each wreathed in the other's arms, our pastimes done, possess a golden slumber, whiles hounds and horns and sweet melodious birds be unto us as is a nurse's song of lullaby to bring her babe asleep."

Then later Tamora is Revenge. And she will have it. She spoke to Titus: "Know thou, sad man, I am not Tamora: She is thy enemy and I thy friend. I am Revenge, sent from th' infernal kingdom to ease the gnawing vulture of thy mind by working wreakful vengeance on thy foes. Come down and welcome me to this world's light! Confer with me of murder and of death; there's not a hollow cave or lurking-place, no vast obscurity or misty vale, where bloody murder or detested rape can couch for fear but I will find them out; and in their ears tell them my dreadful name- Revenge, which makes the foul offender quake!"

Her death, followed by the eating of Chiron and Demetrius as they were baked into a pie, was noted well as she was stabbed. And Amber stood tall, her eyes wild, surprised, but her demeanor cold as her gown stained red. Hands clutched her gown and she crumbled to the ground a scream stuck in her throat.

Re: The Play

[gkar-lastkhari.livejournal.com]

G'Kar's performance throughout the play was much on par with his last, except he put more into the descent of Titus's madness than he had previously.

"He doth me wrong to feed me with delays. I'll dive into the burning lake below, And pull her out of Acheron by the heels. Marcus, we are but shrubs, no cedars we, No big-bon'd men fram'd of the Cyclops' size; But metal, Marcus, steel to the very back, Yet wrung with wrongs more than our backs can bear; And, sith there's no justice in earth nor hell, We will solicit heaven, and move the gods. To send down justice for to wreak our wrongs. Come, to this gear. You are a good archer, Marcus."

Talking to gods was never an especially a good sign for any person, particularly not with the sencerity and passion with which G'Kar spoke. There was clearly no doubt that Titus was indeed mad.

"'Ad Jovem' that's for you; here 'Ad Apollinem.' 'Ad Martem' that's for myself. Here, boy," Titus held out message-laden arrows, "'To Pallas'; here To Mercury.' 'To Saturn,' Caius- not to Saturnine: You were as good to shoot against the wind. To it, boy. Marcus, loose when I bid. Of my word, I have written to effect; There's not a god left unsolicited."

When the clown arrives with his pigeons, Titus is certain that he's received his word from the gods. And is certain that they will see fit to assist in his just revenge.

"News, news from heaven! Marcus, the post is come. Sirrah, what tidings? Have you any letters? Shall I have justice? What says Jupiter?" However, Titus is shocked to learn that the messenger, he is not. "Why, villain, art not thou the carrier? Why, didst thou not come from heaven?"

The clown, most expectantly, is shocked by Titus's reaction, but he is placated by sending a message to the Emperor instead. A message most foul.

Throughout the rest of the play, it becomes clear that Titus has gone quite mad with his need for revenge and vengeance, acting out purely for his own needs, the madness driving him beyond all reason. Perhaps it was merciful then, when the blade finally struck him down.

Re: The Play

[cheminthehead.livejournal.com]

Gladys' stark performance was much the same as her last, her calm and certain Marcus threading through the chaos and blood. Once more, her voice was deep enough to vibrate the air.

"With Voices And Applause Of Every Sort, Patricians And Plebeians, We Create Lord Saturninus Rome's Great Emperor; And Say 'Long Live Our Emperor Saturnine!'"

The moment of presenting Lavina was preceded by a long silence, as if Marcus had overcome her golem nature. Her eyes flared brightly, huge hands hovering protectively over Lavinia. "Titus, Prepare Thy Aged Eyes To Weep, Or If Not So, Thy Noble Heart To Break. I Bring Consuming Sorrow To Thine Age."

The axe was wielded with a heavy grip and her eyes dyed to banked flame.

Huge hands curled into huge fists as her eyes flared brightly once more. "Tear For Tear And Loving Kiss For Kiss, Thy Brother Marcus Tenders On Thy Lips. O, Were The Sum Of These That I Should Pay Countless And Infinite, Yet Would I Pay Them!"

Re: The Play

[inthereflexes.livejournal.com]

Jack was, let's face it, fairly mediocre. He did manage to hit his spots and hit his lines, a little woodenly at first, like on Tuesday. But this time was better. The angst flowed from him like the spittle dripping from his lips as he cried out "to rescue my two brothers from their death; for which attempt the judges have pronounc'd my everlasting doom of banishment."

His voice, clear, loud, authoritative: "Bring down the devil, for he must not die so sweet a death as hanging presently." His moves, cutting. Deliberate. Exact.

And over the corpse of his father, the semblance of real tears (faked with a small eyedrop bottle hidden up his sleeve, may have caused real tears to flow in the audience as he paid his respects to the corpse of Titus...and back to a thund'rous voice as he declared Aaron's fate.

His voice cracked on the final word, "pity."

Notes

[suit-of-sables.livejournal.com]

If you act, you get notes.

Amber

[suit-of-sables.livejournal.com]

"Amber," he said with a bright smile, "very nice. Careful not to go too far over the top--you didn't but I'm just saying, be careful. Also try not to knock your knees out. Do you think you have space under that dress for a pair of volley ball pads?"

G'kar

[suit-of-sables.livejournal.com]

"I like the madness," he said with a waggling finger, grinning all the while. "I like it. I like the way you played it tonight, letting them almost be glad when you finally go down, like putting an animal out of it's misery. See if you can refine it a little more right until the end. Leave them with a shock."

Gladys

[suit-of-sables.livejournal.com]

Geoffrey was grinning brightest of all for Gladys. Perhaps it was because she'd fed him during his worst times, or because she'd helped him... but mostly, it was because she wasn't human. She didn't have what he thought was an immediate connection to the text, but he could see it, hear it, that she was connecting with the text.

And that was why he did this.

"It's speaking to you, isn't it?" It was said quietly and only to her.

Jack

[suit-of-sables.livejournal.com]

"Nice job," he said, with a shrug.

"Though... try and get more into it. If you want to come by during the week to talk about the role, lemme know."

Beat.

"Also, careful with the Visine trick. I saw it up your sleeve."

Outside

[suit-of-sables.livejournal.com]

For telling the actors how awesome they are / actor-audience mingling.

Re: Outside

[minnesota-teen.livejournal.com]

Amber hadn't changed costume yet before she went outside to get some fresh air. She fanned herself and drank a bottled water.

It had gone well, she thought.

OOC

[suit-of-sables.livejournal.com]

"The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance."
--Aristotle