When watching any play the movement of characters on stage may seem organic and natural to the moment but where the actors are on stage, when they move, and where they end up is actually very carefully choreographed. Blocking, or choreographing the movement on stage, is the next step in the rehearsal process. The script has been read through, each scene carefully analyzed, characters and character relationships have been discussed, the story is now clear in everyone’s heads, so now it is time to start “putting the show on its feet”.
Blocking, in the words of Director Robert Metcalfe, is “Another way to tell the story. Even if you don’t understand the language, by watching the blocking you should be able to understand the shifts in relationships between the characters. Even if there are only two people in chairs, their body language should tell you something.”Like the analysis that was done with the text on the first couple of days, now we are doing a different sort of analysis. When a play is very dialogue driven, it’s easy to get stuck into a sort of “talking heads” sort of blocking, but movement is what brings the play alive and solidifies the story. It is a slow and very detailed process but finding the right blocking is so important that it’s worth the time.
For this particular play, the process of blocking starts off with Michael and Matthew going through the scenes in a rough way, seeing if there are any movements that feel organic or natural to them. Then Bob tweaks, tailors, or suggests movement that will serve the moment and move the story forward; “painting broad strokes” as to the physical action of the play. Bob is also keeping in mind certain stage pictures that he wants to leave the audience with. It is a very collaborative process and fascinating to watch.
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