Behind The Scenes With Dan

The lovely Dan de Cruz has written a guest blog for us! Dan will be playing Borachio in "Much Ado About Nothing" and here's how the first week of rehearsals went for him.

Week One

(On Read-Throughs and Restaurants)

The first day of a new job is always one full of eager anticipation and nervous excitement.  Who will I be working with?  What vision does the creative team have for the show?  What should I wear?  How early should I arrive to seem professional but not too keen?  Will I be able to make through one line without falling over my words like a fool?

Fortunately all of that was neatly avoided by a meet up in the pub the night before.  A small drink and some nibbles put us all at ease and we all set about getting to know each other and wash away the day’s travels.  A few hours and many laughs later we all tentatively tracked our way to our new homes for the season.

Having been part of the infamous Raineo & Juliet of 2012, I was looking forward to some summer sun this time around.  Monday was not to be that day. (Neither was Tues).

It was thus that we arrived slightly damp but already acquainted on our first day at the Stafford Gatehouse.  Straight away I was reminded why I love working here: the guys here make you feel like part of the family.  We sat around in a circle (I always secretly hope someone cracks out their best breakdance moves in the middle) and introduced ourselves again.  This ritual has always elicited feelings of fear in many; remembering your own name becomes a feat of superhuman ability, let alone the name of the character you are playing.

Most of the fear comes from wanting to “do well” during the read-through, but I find it the best time to get to know your fellow cast mates.  There’s periods of time when one isn’t reading out loud and you can spend that time trying to catch other people’s eyes and put them off.  I was later informed that this wasn’t really the point of the read through.  I’m pretty sure Beth, our Company Stage Manager, appreciated the various faces I pulled at her, though.

After that we got to see the fantastic design of this year’s show.  However, I’m not allowed to talk too much about it all! (Rest assured, reader, I will attempt to slip as much through the net as I am allowed)

Then we got down to the serious business of rehearsing.  It involved a lot of standing up, sitting down, saying words, singing words and playing instruments.  I’m fairly sure everyone is good at it and next week will be the proof of that.

More importantly, this week we began our mission of attempting to eat at every restaurant in Stafford.  This is where the majority of the real work gets done.  Over a pizza, burger, omelette and a few drinks (that was my meal for the first visit) you get to find out the real people behind the characters.

So here is what I’ve discovered about our cast: Philip is a cryptic crossword master, Sherry is actually from Yorkshire despite not sounding like it (and is tutoring us all), Eddie religiously documents what is on his dictaphone , Cat is wary of morning stretches, Tom has an amazing jawline (warning: mancrush) and work ethic, Charlie can sing RIDICULOUSLY high, Kate enjoys a good pair of shorts, Jon is nothing like the psychotically scary guy he plays, Jake’s real name is not Jake, Genevieve very nearly forgot her mother’s birthday (but redeemed herself with a cast rendition of Happy Birthday), David has serious piano skillz, James has already played three different guitar looking instruments and characters, and that even Phyl’s trousers have extraordinary comic timing.

And as for me, Dan, I have been pressganged by Emma (our Press Officer) into given the privilege of keeping you up to date with what’s going on behind the scenes. So keep an eye out for next week when I shall probably avoid doing just that again.