Week 10 - 4th to 8th April

This week was our first full run of the play without stopping, at this stage in the rehearsal process our main goal is to keep running the show and focusing on small detailed moments that need additional work. Doing a full run allows us to see how transitions flow in between the scenes and how the pacing is generally. Our first main note was general pacing, the pace of the show was slow and some scenes were much longer and slowly than they should be. By the pacing being off elements of the story are lost and then energy is lost. Most of the notes we got on our act 1 run we got on this run, which means problems aren't being solved and more energy needs to be put in when taking on board notes. Another note that was given before but not taken on by the ensemble was that when focus is dropped at the back of the stage it drops energy on stage and when people watch the action from the back it adds life to story on stage.

There was great playfulness between Sam and I, and our engagement with the story provided that lightness that is needed in between emotionally intense moments. We are each run now finding new small exchanges, but they aren't repetitive so it keeps the aura that we have just met and Lockwood doesn't know who everyone in the story is. Lockwood almost plays the role of the audience as he just as new to the story as the audience, by making this decision I have the decision to direct some of the storytelling lines to the audience to make all family connections clear. It allows me also to open up to all sides of the theatre, since having a few rehearsals in the theatre back in the rehearsal room I have been considering how to play to all three sides so when in the tech and dress I am comfortable with vocally and physically with the space. In this run there was also a lack of listening and responding, people were just waiting to get their lines out and not playing with the other person in the scene as they were so focused on getting their right. There were also large pauses between lines which slowed down the pace more as there were beats in between lines where there didn't need to be. I have struggled with this when diverting back to my narration and have playing with pauses after a scene has ended before moving back to my narration. However, at points it makes the story quite disconnected, as I am there sitting waiting for something, and the lines are Nelly's reaction to what has happened. This is also links back to the discovery I made last week about how Nelly is reliving her life talking to Lockwood and it's the first time in a long while she has probably told this story.

Props are still an issue among the ensemble, here are the things that were missed:

• Blowing of snow in opening when Lockwood meets Hareton

• Chair movement in Act 2 Scene 4 (spacing needs to figured out)

• Give Heathcliff a plate of food Act 1 Scene 6

To solve this prop problem, I have made cue cards for each scene with each prop needed for that scene written on it and the prop's cue line. This allows me to see the play in a more structured way and it just enhances my knowledge of story and everything that is required for the story to progress.

This week we also had our intimacy coordinator come in and choreograph all the moments in the play. I don't have any sections that need to be choreographed, however I am in scenes were sections need to be choreographed. I was able to see how all the theory elements we went through in week 8 come into play and how they fit into a rehearsal. A closed rehearsal space was established so windows were blocked out to provide privacy whilst rehearsing to ensure all actors felt comfortable, and only the people required in the scene were to be in the rehearsal room. I wasn't brought into the room until it had been choreographed, as they only needed me to see how to choreography fitted in with the scene and lines. Having everything choreographed will now fill in the gaps in the play that slow down the pacing, so for our runs next week we can see if it will improve our pacing and how it fits into the story.