"Words don't make a story, actions make a story ..."

Rehearsals for “Honk! Jr.” have been going on for a few weeks.  So far it has been a very different experience than the last two shows I’ve done here at STC.  In the past I struggled with being too closed off, and afraid to try new things, and we were all hesitant to say something didn’t work, but in Honk everyone is realizing a problem can’t be fixed if no one adresses it. Beats are something I find we have worked more in this show, just breaking moments down and trying to get the emotions down rather than just doing a set movement.   

The readthrough was a good opportunity to get a better feel for the script, as we all moved freely while reading through.   This helped a lot when it came time to block, stage, and choreograph because we already had a light feeling of movement and who we were interacting with.  For example, Zander Reed and Grace Bernard form a nice relationship as the characters they play; they are always leaning in, listening, and paying attention to objectives and given circumstances.  Zander does a good job showing the PTSD that Greylag may experience, and you can tell certain words upset Greylag. I also think, of all the cast members, Grace always has the best input to a scene we are working on. She thinks into it and isn’t afraid to say something that could be improved. I think having actors so honest and willing to jump in helps all the other cast members to be more open.  

     There is hardly any time when people are just sitting around.  If we aren't in the primary scene being worked, we go work on other acting techniques;  In one case, we decided to work on the scene between Ugly and Penny, and swapped different people in to play the different characters.  This helped us see what we could do, and what we were doing that maybe wasn’t such a great choice for the scene.

 We have been able to run through the first act twice now.  I can already see it improving, not just the blocking but down to decisions and beats.  Asher Suski is doing an amazing job of this, every time he sings or says a line there are clear motives behind it and you can see him always assessing and listening to everything.  It is really easy to get lost in a scene when you forget the person you are working with isn’t actually a character.

 We tried running as much as we could off book, there were some scenes where lines were rough but for the most part everyone had their lines down.  It’s really nice to watch the choreography become less of a panic and more of a beautiful dance.  Warts and All has some of the best choreography in my opinion, the kick-line is becoming very clean and pretty to watch.  

 This musical has been an opportunity for everyone to do something that maybe wasn’t originally what they were cast for.  Such as Gwen Stewart as a ducking; she has a very soft, sweet voice that she gets to show in the Blizzard with a solo.  Same with Josh Gartin, he plays Barnacles the goose, but he also has a solo in the Blizzard.

 “Words don’t make a story, actions make a story and words are a natural product of the emotion.”  

I’m really excited to see it all come together.  I think this is going to be a show to remember.

          Parker McIntosh.