Today was our first time of bringing "The Flint Street Nativity" onto the stage. We began today's rehearsals by sorting costumes and ensuring we have everything ready for tomorrow. My costume for Sarah Bennet was already sorted, but I have now sorted the costume for Jenny. Now I shall be wearing white lacy socks, pink ballet shoes, a white flowy dress, a blue head dress and a white blouse. The reason for the white blouse is to cover my shoulders as the dress has very thin straps. I shall also wear black shorts underneath the dress so when I sit down on the floor, I shall be covered. The only prop I still need is the "Jesus" doll (which the head will fall off of).
When in the hall, we decided to perform the adult section first (as this wasn't so good last rehearsal). The whole section went fairly smoothly, apart from the page leading up to my characters' breakdown. As everyone was focusing on getting there line's correct and in the right places, the tension didn't build enough to make my breakdown look realistic. Therefore we decided to try it again, but this time adding in whatever we wanted to say (that would make sense - for example "have you got a spare lyrics sheet?" or "does anyone want another mince pie?") at any point. This ensured that the scene got louder and busier and increased in tension, thus making a larger contrast when it goes silent and making my breakdown look realistic.
Afterwards, we ran the play from the beginning up until page 29, when we ran out of time. Overall, we were pleased with how this section went today as there was no need for prompts, and when there was issues with remembering cues, we covered each other well and got back on track. I found that the costumes really helped us get into character today as we fiddled with our outfits like children would.
What we have left to do is put the paintings on the wall, get any remaining props and costumes, work out the staging for the "apparatus" scenes and rehearse the play in full on the stage with lighting.
