… Sue suggested she could wear the green dress in the front row.

OR

Bernarda could come on wearing it as she has whipped it from Adela’s room!!!

Again … Sue’s idea.

… Bernarda Alba’s casa is a health clinic for depressed fat single women – they get slim through trauma.

Just a thought as I become a Russian doll in my costume layering on my first entrance: On top, beggar woman, then Adela black drees, then Ameila dress, and then bottom layer; Adela green dress.

Phew! Some fabreeze in the props box please!

To watch the film Little Ashes (2009).
About the lives of Lorca and Salvador Dali.
Kim, Jude and I watched it together after dinner. To be honest, I did think what is this cheesy flic that Sue is making us sit through, with British actors showcasing their array of spanish accents. But with the excerpts of real documentary footage, it did give a good impression of the energy of the time (1920s-30s). The portrayal of Lorca was touching and a truthful performance too. So it was useful, thanks Sue!

Act 3, a scene with Martirio, Adela, Angustias and Bernarda.

Sue cues Kate and I: ‘Come on then, let’s have the terrible twins on stage’.

Apparently we were too energised when entering the scene. We were too ‘Brighton Beach’ and needed to be more ‘aqua marine’ (in a warm spanish night of a way). ???

After trying the scene again, Saska (Angustias/Magdalena/Servant/cello player 2!) with her director’s ‘hat’ pipes up: “Well I thought that was much more aqua marine’.

A joy to have a supportive cast!

P.S. I’m cello player one by the way, and Kate is now bell donger one, as I can’t sing and dong at the same time. I did try!

I often get the classical actor ‘on stage naked’ or ‘forgotten all of my lines’ nightmare, but never this early into a rehearsal process.

I awoke with a dead start at 6.30am. My dream had gone so forth:
I’m on stage as Amelia wearing a wedding dress and I feel my bra coming undone. The next ’shot’ is that I see my naked right boob peeking out, in full view of the audience. So I pop it back in.
Later I’m back stage, (which is also in the round, like our performance space), and suddenly absolute panic: I can’t find my green dress! None of the techies will help me. So I discover a rail of baby clothes, find the nearest item to green, (a white and green spotty cardigan), and tie it around my neck like a hankie. I then run on stage and spontaneously improvise: “Sorry I’m late, I lost my dress. Amelia was helping me to find it, but as we weren’t successful I had to borrow her dress”.

Analyse all of that then!?!

Director sets us homework:

To read someone’s (not sure whose) dissertation on The House of Bernarda Alba.

Jude, Kim and I took it in turns to read it aloud to each other, so there was no danger of falling asleep!
Interesting discussion on cultural inheritance and the concepts of casa and calle. What culturally happens in the heart of the house (casa) and what happens on the street or in the village square (calle).
A further insight into the mind set of the characters …

Interesting director’s note on my scene as Adela with Poncia:

“Nothing goes for nothing”.

Sue’s right, it’s all life and death stuff for these characters, especially Adela I think.

Meanwhile it’s all about sleep for me!
The drive home to Oxford after a 9am – 6pm day, on top of the first full week of immersion into The House of Bernarda Alba, has almost finished me off! In a positive way – of course!

A really positive day!

We ran Act 1 a couple of times and I’ve now got a good sense of where we are going with it. Exciting! Adela and Amelia are beginning to blossom in my mind as two contrasting characters. I’ve got a clearer vision of what I need to develop.

With such a tragedy of a play, it’s hard at times, to resist temptation of being silly. I began to take Amelia’s OCD to heart, truly itching to straighten the ‘milking stool’* on several occasions while beautifully upstaging the rest of the cast. I promise not to do it in performance …

Challenge of the day: not to pick up the tempo of any of my sisters

Interesting personal discovery: director thinks Adela is a much closer match to my own personality than Amelia. I think the opposite!

*our comedy low, three-legged rehearsal stool

Focused on Amelia’s scenes with Martirio (Kate).
Discussed the major challenge of doubling Amelia with Adela. Some interesting and fun ideas emerged from our chat.
They are actually polar opposites as sisters, so in some ways there can easily be a clear distinction. In theory at any rate!!

I’m going to play with the idea that Amelia is ‘Nun like’. (My mind wanders to Audrey Hepburn in A Nun’s Story ahhh …). Straight-laced, honourable, ‘held’, ‘tight’. Possibly OCD?? It was amusing to experiment with her moving the furniture back into place all the time.

I also need to work on lowering my voice. Like Olivier did in a production, by 6 notes apparently! I’ll be lucky if I can do it by 2! At this stage Sue suggested trying it for Amelia, whereas I initially thought it would be more suitable for Adela, as although older, she is the rebellious, passionate one. Food for thought anyhow …

I had a frustrating afternoon of clapping spanish rhythms. I can’t sing and clap a different rhythm at the same time. My mother’s voice is ringing in my head “No such thing as can’t”. But there really IS on this occasion!

‘Praise be God’. ‘Bless the Lord’
…

two of my Beggar woman lines I have now learnt by accident. Chanting them for real in Jude’s living room (my delightful digs – not just the living room, the whole house) – because after 40 minutes practice (and 3 hours last night) I can now play Maria Joseph’s lullaby on the cello and sing something different at the same time! The achievement of which I had doubted.

Helpful husband comment on the phone just now: I hope you have supplied Jude and Mike with ear-plugs.