Transitions

“On Thursday’s rehearsal we worked on building the transitions between the different vignettes. Connecting the different scenes without making the play feel disjointed as a whole seemed like a daunting task, and I definitely had my doubts about our plan. After figuring out the first two, though, I understood where Kivan was coming from and how these would work. Instead of just bringing on the next set pieces, the transitions embody the community of Almost; though each transition is different, the atmosphere of the town is maintained between each individual scene.”  - Lena Menefee-Cook

“This week we worked on transitions. We discussed and tried many different ways to get all (or most) of the characters on stage to give the feeling of a hustling small town. I enjoyed working our characters and their stories into the transitions. Even if crossing the stage silently, we can show a lot about our characters and the town.” - Ben Teske

“Working on transitions helped build the community of Almost. It helped us realize the relationships between everyone in Almost, and not just those in a scene together.” - Anna Suski

“Not only is it important to be be actively engaged in scene, but while out of scene, too. We worked four transitions this Thursday. The first one, which had already been roughly planned out and shown to the rest of the cast a few rehearsals earlier, came to life as I watched from the sidelines, having not been in attendance at that previous rehearsal. I learned here, or a least I now believe, that it’s just as important to sit back, take it all in and process the images on stage as it is to get up and do it. I watched Kivan make only slight changes, but with considerate enhancements to the transition. This may have been the way two people acknowledged one another, or how one took another’s hand, or if recognition of a face created this facial expression or a different one, but once it was done right, you could almost hear the magical “click” as the pieces slid into place. I was given the privilege of watching these “clicks” start popping up more and more as small adjustments were made. It may seem weird, but I was almost sad to stop watching, and start physically engaging in the scene. I’ve learned both ways, though, are very important for the growth of a scene, transition, or play as a whole. I’m glad I got to see both sides of it on Thursday.” - Jayna Wanamaker