A Day with Stute Theatre
By Charlie Ellen-Ayers
Fables At The Kitchen Table, Graduate Theatremaker Opportunity
Yesterday I had my first day observing Sarah and Soph work on ‘Fables At The Kitchen Table’. It was amazing to be back in a rehearsal room and I loved seeing how they worked with the script and their process.
Being a new graduate going into the industry now is definitely a weird time, so I am extremely grateful to be welcomed to this opportunity! For the past 18 months I’ve been studying at ALRA North drama school on their MA professional Acting course, I’ve had the most amazing time, but it’s also been difficult near the end. Our final show got moved onto zoom and we never got a proper goodbye to our time together, but it has also been a very inspiring time as lockdown allowed me a chance to explore other skills. I’ve been able to start learning the clarinet and had some free time to create duets with people over zoom! It’s also given me the chance to really think about the work I want to create in the future and start thinking of ideas for shows and future projects. I now know that I definitely want to create a show for younger children with integrated movement and music, so being able to shadow this rehearsal process has come at the perfect time!
Through rehearsals yesterday, I watched Sarah and Soph work through 2 large parts of the script and it was really great to be able to see how they worked in this new covid-safe world. Even though we were all distanced and in masks the magic and excitement in the piece still really came through and the story reads beautifully.
The characters come alive through ordinary props like a mop head or an umbrella and the world of the story is so enticing. What I took away from the day most was the idea of being free from the text, working through the script Soph and Sarah brought out new ideas and worked with what told the story best, not afraid to switch up bits of the text. It allowed a really positive working environment and freedom in the piece.
It’s already been such a great learning experience for me and already I’ve learnt many things that will influence my future work and ideas. I can’t wait to see this piece near the end of rehearsals and then it be shared with as many people as possible.
