University Players’ production of Caryl Churchill’s Love and Information began its fourth week of rehearsals on March 4th and the cast and crew were still exploring their scenes and making new discoveries. At this point, they had been assigned the scenes that they would be performing, although their interpretations of their characters could still change. The rehearsal we attended was their first rehearsal in Essex Hall with its almost completed set, designed by Joshua Quinlan.
As the rehearsal begins, director Marc Bondy encourages the cast to explore the space with their “show shoes on.” The cast runs and climbs about with excitement like kids on a jungle gym, even giving each other piggy backs. Their response is understandable since they have previously been rehearsing on a taped floor, now made 3D with the help of University Player’s carpentry and paint shop.
Featuring a large raked square in the centre and two triangular ramps, the stage is filled with gridded lines painted in bold contrast. The shapes created are striking and sharp, contrasting the actors’ fluid movements on stage. The set itself is minimalistic: there are no large furniture pieces and it’s not a traditional room with walls. Rather, the set aims to be a blank canvas for the artists, while creating a visual environment that can help tell the stories and themes of the show through the actors’ interactions with it. For example, in one scene, performer Rachel Offer walks along the grid lines as fellow cast member Jacqueline Karabatsos moves more freely in the space, their blocking representing their characters’ contrasting states of mind. However, Bondy doesn’t want the actors to be ruled by the grid. While it has its uses in some scenes, in others it is important that the actors don’t get too preoccupied with staying inside the lines.
Much of the rehearsal is dedicated to familiarizing the cast with the new space. As they go through the play’s sections, there is discussion about transitions, blocking, and pacing. Bondy is very clear about his intentions with smooth transitional paths, although he is also mindful of the actors’ ideas too, asking them how they feel about his choices. He re-blocks scenes and transitions so that they are more smoothly connected and the show feels seamless. For example, as one actor exits the stage, they litter; their trash is then picked up by the characters in the following scene. Bondy wants the actors to think of their ending moments in each vignette, and he wants every scene to end in motion as the lights fade out.
Some technical things must also be considered during the rehearsal. The large curtains that need to be opened and closed by actors and the moveable ramps that can hinder entrances all have to be re-thought at certain points. There is also a scene in which the actors look out into the audience at a television screen, and the logistics must be determined so that the actors are all “looking” at the same thing.
Since the set is minimalistic, much of the environment has to come from lights and sound—without it, the actors look to be just sitting on a black box in the middle of the stage. With the addition of these important technical and design elements the scene can be transported to an airport, or a subway car, or wherever they want to set it. Many of the scenes are just dialogue with no indication of any setting, which can leave much to interpretation. With a little theatre magic, the space can be transformed into anywhere in the world.