In anticipation of Sarah Ruhl’s The Clean House, director Kelly Danielsspeaks on the production and rehearsal process of the second show in University Players’ 2016/2017 season. This is Kelly Daniels’ first time directing at the University of Windsor and she has expressed great joy in becoming a member of the Drama community here.
This play was chosen by the audience and there is no surprise as to why. This is a beautifully, hilarious play which showcases how one can find comedy in any tragedy. Daniel’s voiced that putting on The Clean Houseis imperative “because love, laughter, and forgiveness are always important. We could use a lot more of those things in our world.” When asked what drew Daniels into directing this play, she said, “I was hired on a 3 Year LTA appointment to teach and direct in the BFA Acting program. This was the production reserved for the ‘new hire.’ I had read this play once before and I had enjoyed it immensely. And now, several years later, here we are.” Although this play was not chosen by Daniels herself, she is very glad to direct this production.
“This is the first time in my career as a director that I did not cast the production. I had not yet been hired, so I wasn’t in any way a part of the selection or casting process. And now that I’ve met everyone, and we have spent a couple of weeks together, I must say that Diana Mady Kelly did a brilliant job of casting this play.”
As this is her first time directing without casting, I was curious as to Daniels’ expectations going into this play production; she said that:
“With each new play, I expect a new challenge in creating believable, complicated and compelling, characters who tell fascinating stories. My expectations are usually based in the possibilities/potential as to how we might be challenged or how we might succeed.”
There is a strong element of play within the work of The Clean Housecast and crew. However, that is not to say that this production doesn’t require hard work. As Daniel’s eluded to, there are many challenges presented within this play—a big one being the actors’ ages in comparison to the characters they are playing, as well as their race. Daniel’s explains:
“This play has exceptional challenges for this young cast. Four of the five characters are in their 50’s/60’s. Only one of the characters is close to the age of the student playing her. And then there are two characters whose ethnicity is different than the actors’, and accents are required as one character speaks English with a Brazilian Portuguese accent, and another with an Argentine Spanish accent. Thank goodness for the cast I have!”
The cast has been working diligently under Kelly Daniels’ direction. With age and race—two very important aspects to a character—seeming so out of reach, the cast and crew have gone to many lengths to go about this in the right ways: Daniels notes that “The discipline of the cast, the research, and bringing Brazil to us (we had a potluck with a wonderful group of students from Brazil, on exchange), have all contributed to our knowledge, character development, and the depth of our relationships, and ultimately how the play has evolved.”
A big concern from the actors is the ability to convey a mature life truthfully, and Daniels reflects on bestowing her wisdom to our young BFA actors:
“Well, I hope I can bring some wisdom at this stage of my life. I hope I can bring my experiences to the “table” in a relatable way to make what are still relatively foreign circumstances and situations to young people more accessible. I enjoy sharing what I can to help them understand those things and assist them in making their work as specific as possible.”
As both a director and professor, Kelly Daniels has her own approach to this rehearsal process within a learning environment. Daniels communicates on what it means to work with students and within a university playhouse:
“The obvious element is the experience of the actors and as such a director needs to be sensitive to the fact that actors are still learning. Directing becomes a mixture of teaching and directing. What I love about directing students is that there is a freedom to explore and play in ways that we don’t readily employ in a traditional rehearsal hall.”
With all of this hard work though, that is not to say that this cast and crew hasn’t been enjoying their time immensely throughout this process. Daniels gives us a peek into the fun this lively bunch can have in rehearsals:
“We’ve been having the best time in rehearsal. We start each rehearsal telling jokes. It’s not a typical thing we do in rehearsal on every production, but it is significant to this play. You’ll have to come see it to understand why! ”
University Players‘ production of Sarah Ruhl’s The Clean House will be running from October 21-30 at the Essex Hall Theatre in Windsor, Ontario. The cast, crew, and drama community at the university hope to see many happy faces leaving this production. Kelly Daniels speaks on what you can hope to get out of this riveting play:
“I hope the audience walks away wanting to enjoy more of what’s important in their lives. Life is precious, time is short. Make the most of it while you can…find as much love and joy in your life as you possibly can – that’s the stuff that counts, that’s the stuff that awesome memories are made of.”