Proofreading a Performance

I am directing a production of Yeomen of the Guard for Troupers Light Opera of CT that opens this weekend, and I find myself pondering a simile. As you probably know, a simile is a figure of speech that compares one thing to another using the words “like” or “as.” And I don’t mean it uses the word “like” for “said,” as so many people now do.

EXAMPLE: Gloria said, “He was like, ‘Okay,’ and I was like, ‘Woah,’ and my mom was like, ‘What?’ and my dad was like, ‘Wait!’ Y’know?”

No. Not that, she wrote, shaking it out of her head.

In this simile, my vocation, the writing process, is like my avocation, directing musical theatre.

COMPARING DRAFTS TO PRODUCTION PLANS

Writing a draft is the process of pulling ideas out of our brains (or thin air) and splattering them on pages, electronic boards or paper. It’s the time to explore possibilities and question everything that will play a major part in the narration or the explanation. Depending on whether writing fiction or nonfiction, the questions differ, but they come by the score. What is the conflict? Who are the protagonists and antagonists, and what is the best way to paint them as such? What is the relevancy of this information to others? What are the best words to explain a process or an event? Questions frame everything in writing.

Compare this to the planning phase of directing a play. Millions of questions shape both the technical production and the artistic vision. What am I looking for in each role? Does the role call for an actor who sings or a singer who acts? How will the setting (time/period and location) impact the direction? Do we need a dramaturg to research the historical accuracy? A choreographer for dance and movement? What does the set call for? How will we costume the characters? How do we accommodate the cast’s conflicts in the rehearsal schedule? The question list goes on! Answers to the questions inform everything about the production plan.

DEVELOPMENTAL and CONTENT EDITING ARE LIKE REHEARSALS

Developmental editing organizes the content of a piece of writing. It puts events in order, clarifies points of view, streamlines plotlines, cleans up dialogue, checks the pacing, looks for consistency of style and/or voice, and makes sure the theme is messaged clearly. Content editing is a lot like developmental editing, but content editing laser focuses on style elements such as fluidity, word choice, and sentence structure. Developmental and content editing spark life in any piece of writing’s message.

Rehearsals organize examination and exploration of the script, ensuring the actors understand and clearly communicate the play’s or musical’s message to the audience. Directors work with actors on the intention and subtext of each line (what is meant by what is said), the pacing and volume of line delivery so every word is heard and understood, the movements, the interactions and relationships among characters, and commitment to each character’s intentional goal and the theme of the play—and so much more. Rehearsing generates creative energy, the lifeblood of a theatre production.

COPYEDITING and the PENULTIMATE REHEARSAL WEEK

Copyediting is the second-to-last step before publishing writing. Copyediting is about finding the right words and phrases, cleaning up language, simplifying the syntax, and making sure the correct verb tenses are in place. Sometimes feedback on the story or construction enters in, but usually a copyeditor’s feedback is minor; however, it can mean the world to clarifying content.

The second-to-last week of rehearsals is like the copyediting phase. We don’t change any of the clever wording or brilliant musical lines of this Gilbert and Sullivan piece, but we find the best delivery of lines, restage scenes for better flow, and lock down character embodiment. We’re building consistency and teamwork; every actor knows they can depend on all fellow cast members, orchestra musicians, and technicians to deliver the rehearsed material with fidelity.

PROOFREADING CAN FEEL AS LONG AS TECH WEEK

Proofreading is the last step before publishing. It focuses on details, the final fixing of grammar, spelling, punctuation, spacing. Proofreading reviews the written material with a fine-toothed comb so the words sparkle on the page.

In this last week before we open, we proofread the performance to make it shine. Singers perfect musical lines, collaborating with the full orchestra and fellow ensemble members. The costume crew makes final adjustments to the stage attire. We add the props we’ve been faking for weeks. Final touches of paint are added as the crew secures the set in place. We work with the real platforms and stairs and benches and head blocks. (Don’t you just love a good execution scene in a musical comedy?) With every detail reviewed and finalized, we put the production on its feet and create theatre.

IT’S NOT LIKE, IT IS THE CREATIVE PROCESS

The creative process is the same for any medium, whether sculpture or sand art, poetry or puppetry, dance or drama, music, mime, or multi-media and more. We brainstorm, we challenge ourselves with questions, we organize and rework the material, and, finally, we polish. Doubt slips in, things crack, and through those cracks, we see the light to create our final product or production.

Yeomen of the Guard is going to be a great show—and funnier than many will expect—thanks to the hard work and enthusiasm of the talented cast, crew, production team, and orchestra.

Time to work out the curtain call, which is like a microcosm of the creative process. But that’s another story . . .

And thank you @Ria Ipa and @James Ring-Howell for the Phoebe and Colonel Fairfax pose. Check them out on the Troupers Light Opera page.