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Thursday, September 14, 2006

On Rehearsals...

Wow ... including the 'readings' and now the 'blocking' - that's about 14 rehearsals down. As I sit here at approximately 2.53 am, I find myself feeling like time has just zoomed past.

The blog has been a little stagnant lately - for the people who are visiting the blog daily - I apologize for myself - being a blogger myself, I understand how it can be bit of a 'downer' to visit a blog regularly only to find that there are no updates.

Personally, my excuse is, looking at the past post-production blogs (thehomecomingdiaries.blogspot.com and endgamediaries.blogspot.com), there are some really interesting posts there. I find myself trying to come up with interesting stuff for you to read - but I've figured, 'What the heck' - might as well just write whatever lah - after all, that's what a blog is good for right?

Gavin mentioned to me the other day, when he was 'chiding' us actors for not blogging enough - that my perspective as a new-comer to theatre may prove useful to some people who are considering getting into theatre but have no idea what that entails exactly. As cool and fun a play looks, the process to get there is not all 'fun & games' and although to me, this seems to be logical - apparently there are people out there who don't really think so.

I digress.

Ok lah - so I shall begin my two-bits on what rehearsals have been like to moi - a new-comer.

For those of you not 'in the know', Mary George (who plays 'Maria' who probably has the most stage time) is my lecturer. Well, perhaps it would be more apt to say she used to be my lecturer since I have just recently graduated (*phew*). The reason I bring this up is because my character, "Cockatoo" gets quite/very/relatively intimate with her. Cockatoo even calls her a 'whore' and is very blunt when commenting on how good or bad a 'lay' Maria is.

Needless to say, its been awkward namely because - and let me state this for the record - she is one of my favourite lecturers! It's true!

Anyway, because we've only done 'readings' and 'blocking' so far, things haven't really heated up yet. But 'blocking' will be coming to an end soon - so things are gonna get mighty interesting lah (stay tuned for the ongoing saga of the ex-student/ex-lecturer sex scandal ... )

Moving along ... the process of finding Cockatoo (or the process of Cockatoo finding me...) has been a freakin' riot. He's a real cool character lah. The first time I read 'him' during the audition with Gavin, I thought to myself ... "Kewl..."

If you visit my blog, you'd realise that, lately I have become a fan of things like Neil Gaiman's SANDMAN (I've always been a fan of Neil Gaiman) and if you are familiar with James O'Barr's "THE CROW", you'd realise that my blog's motif is pretty much THE CROW. And the reason I like Cockatoo so much, is that he is like a character lifted right out of a CROW comic. The line between Good & Bad is not so clearly drawn. A person who commits heinous acts is not judged immediately. Neither is he justified. He just 'is'.

Cockatoo is beyond insane. He's so insane that he knows exactly how insane he is. He knows when he's doing something that seems morally wrong but enjoys himself immensely doing it because he doesn't care. At least, thats how it seems.

On the other hand, his loyalty to El Coco is unparalled. He believes in the REVOLUTION, he believes that El Coco has a vision and he truly believes in that vision as well. And Cockatoo understands that a revolution is not a pretty thing. People get hurt. Sometimes the innocent. Casualties are imminent. Cockatoo is willing to do all this. He understands that the end may not even justify the means. But it has to be done. And Cockatoo can do it.

I don't know about you, but if I were a leader of whatever, I'd want someone like Cockatoo by my side.

I'm even trying to grow a goatee or something - to look more like the character. I'm a Chinese dude trying to grow a goatee - a big 'no-no' in my books. I scare myself every morning. I'm also letting my hair grow instead of leaving it short as I usually do.

Everyday I read the script, everyday I think about him, the closer Cockatoo is to me. I find myself actually 'being' him when I'm out driving or walking around or lying in bed. Eyes wide and wild, mouth breaking into a huge maniacal grin for no reason every now and then ...

And here's the scary bit - "I like it... muahhahahahahahahhahahaha"

Hey - gimme a break - this is a horror play.

I'm out.

4 Comments:

Blogger u-en said...

So. Mary is your fave lecturer. You need to qualify this statement by telling us WHY.

6:10 PM  
Blogger michaelcsm said...

ah - the reasons are very legitimate / good, clean and wholesome ... ie all the boring stuff lah.

her lectures are interesting. she lets us do the thinking and lets us come up with our 'own' answers rather than just dictate a standard answer ... stuff like that.

and oh yeah - when my Father called the college to ask about how i was doing - she told him lots of good stuff about me!

2:26 AM  
Blogger suelynn said...

commonjack: She did what?? You're serious?? Too cool? Heh. Then again, why should I be surprise. You are after all one of her favourites too, if you didn't know that already. Heh. She sorta implied it la, when we were in 1st yr and went to kacau her a lot when our exams were drawing near, remember? Good times dude, good times ;)

10:15 PM  
Blogger suelynn said...

oh and please tell her i said hi when you see her. thanx!

10:47 PM  

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