Ragnarok: Rehearsal Week 1

Hello, I'm Drew, the Assistant Director for Ragnarok

I'll be your blog host for the next little while...

We're nearing completion on week one of rehearsals at the John Mills Theatre: a beautifully aged, well decked out, wondrous building to work in.

Day One: Intro

Chats, meets and greets, get-to-know-you games, conversations and comparing notes... moving into initial physical sweats from not having exercised for a while and mental sweats at the prospect of the task ahead... and then we read, the whole thing, start to finish, everyone in. Glorious. Oh, and we decided, together HOW TO SAY IT PROPER... working our way through all the Norse terms, agreeing on how to say them

Day Two: Workshops

Movement director Polly introductions into the physical world of the show, director Hal introductions to puppets and the art of making inanimate objects alive... and designer Sam showed us the model box.

Day Three: Deep End

Deep into full character chats, with Charlie the writer, timescales, things we are excited/worried about and the Family Tree. Lunch done and accompanied by live DJ by sound man Ben, we did a whole run. Of the Whole Show. On Day Three [!]... Giving everyone a chance to play, see the shape of it all, improvise things useful, improvise things not; get to proper grips with the complexities of our epic show.

Day Four: Polly's Day

Back with bang Polly took us through a rollercoast ride of physical explorations, lifts and balances and feats we thought not possible... sporting motions, tribal dancing notions and starting choreography.

Day Five: Back to Basics

Today we will be starting to piece the show together from the start and visiting the hallowed Hush House - our venue...a productive day it shall be

This week has been an incredible experience, feeling that good-tiredness feeling, and a fire in my belly for what awaits us...

Drew