So…. To begin….. What is this site for and about? It is forum where we can communicate with each other, where we can all share thoughts, ideas, questions, messages, documents, pictures, and research on this “Streetcar” that we’re all on….. (and after this, let us all agree - we never have to use quotes or formatting for this word to know what we’re talking about….)
If the play is a period piece and set in a very specific locale, you have to go back and absorb that time and that place…. Streetcar is incredibly rich in history - it’s a dramaturge’s dream…. Fortunately - we don’t have an “official” dramaturg, which means that we all get to do this work together….My experience as both an actor and a director has been that doing this kind of work - mining for information this way - helps it seep in through the pores of your being, and informs everything you do onstage - individually and as a group…. Imagination is the key to the work, so stoking the fires of the imagination with anything that turns your engine over is crucial….
My approach to working together on this site is going to be structured around the way a dramaturg works…. Basically - a dramaturg seeks out and presents pathways into the world of the play…. (not ironically, that’s pretty much what an actor does too…)
Here are some of the “things” a dramaturg does………. hopefully you will see something in this list that will make you want to go ---- look something up, lolol….
a dramaturg….
- can locate different drafts or versions of the play…
- researches the plays production history, and relevant criticism…..
- sometimes collates, cuts, tracks, edits, rewrites, constructs, arranges, rearranges, and/or generally re-shapes the play for that production….
- helps the designer(s) do the research on the period….
- sometimes helps the director with casting….
- often helps with marketing, development and public relations…..
- endlessly searches for music, songs, pictures, stories, literature, art, videos that pertain to the play or the period….
- gathers and arranges images, sounds, and ideas for rehearsal….
- explores and presents the world of the play….
- profiles the playwright and the playwright’s life, in order to gain insights into the production
- stay on course when all goes well….
- maintain the calm when all goes ill (as it will)
- loves the work, the play, the playwright, and the people….…..
The above all dovetails with what my intention has always been - which is - over the next few months - to ask you all to explore various assignments, missions and/or exercises relating to Streetcar, both individually and as a whole.... As I told you at our last meeting - when we start rehearsals in a few months I don't want to feel like we need to get reacquainted; I want all of us to already *be* in relationship and - in a way - in rehearsal, in process….. When I walk in the door again, my hope is that you’ll feel like you just saw me….. (complete with attendant eye-roll and deep sigh, lol)
The first of what will be many disclaimers: I need to ask your patience as I search for how to put this together, on both the technical end as well as the compositional end. I have some experience with websites, but this thing will evolve - trust me…. Keep going back to pages; you will see that I generally “tinker” as I go, re-working the site as we all interface, as ideas dawn and issues come up and questions are asked and answered…. I’d like you all to consider this as part of the “process” of working on this play, and treat it as your own project as well….