How do you movement direct a show 200 miles away from the rehearsal room? By Richard James-Neale

With the restrictions on travel and strict social distancing measures in place, I really didn’t know how this was going to happen. How could this possibly work?

With Sophia determined to push ahead with the rehearsal process as planned, we knew the only way we would be able to make it happen would be via video link and video recordings. However,this is not a business meeting; this is a rehearsal process. To some extent I could see how Sophia and Bryn as Performer and Director might be able to struggle on through, running sections of text and discussing character points, but the very nature of my job as Movement Director relies on ‘doing’ rather than ‘talking’. How would we be able to communicate and physically explore this piece without being in the same room?

There really was no choice but to jump in with both feet and make it up as we went along. After working with Sophia and Bryn via various video links over the past week I am really proud of what we have been able to achieve under unprecedented circumstances. Whilst the images were sometimes blurry and the sound sometimes intermittent, it has most definitely been a worthwhile exercise and has produced an exciting piece of work ready for a live audience.

Reflecting on adapting to working in this new way, I have certainly learned several things about my process. It became really apparent that clarity was king. When you are in the same room as the actor, often notes about physicality can be given through your own body language. Sometimes you don’t really need words at all when exploring some moments of movement because you are present in the space and there is an unspoken communication that is rich and alive. Being stuck behind a screen with a delay in the feed can very easily lead to a creative disconnect, especially given that Sophia has essentially been rehearsing in isolation. And so,it was language that because the primary tool to convey notes and ideas. Instead of using all the words it was important to choose only the best words. As theatre makers, we all love to talk, but under these conditions Bryn and I had to be sure we didn’t inundate Sophia with a tidal wave of convoluted waffle leaving her feeling alone without a precise direction to move in or clear note to play.

It’s been a positive learning experience. I am not sure that anyone would ever choose to work in this way. Nothing can ever replicate the hands on, creative energy you get from a room full of inspiring professionals, so I cannot see remote rehearsals being the way forward in our brave new theatrical world. However, in these crazy times,when ‘the show must go on’ and the options are to sink or swim, I am delighted to say that I think we all kept our heads above the water.

I just hope that now we get to share it with as many people as possible.

Photo by Lucas Smith Photography 2018