ASL Interpreters Take a Bow

August 13th, 2009


ASL Interpreters Take a Bow, originally uploaded by rpmaxwell.

Last Saturday’s performance of The Comedy of Errors was interpreted in ASL just off-stage-left as part of CSC’s dedication to making the production accessible to all.

Pictured: the ASL team is applauded during the curtain call.

NEC Opera Greenshows

August 11th, 2009

Rigoletto Quartet

This year, for the first time, CSC has been presenting “greenshows”: brief programs of music and theatre before our main production on the Boston Common. This past weekend, we were joined by Timothy Steele of the New England Conservatory Opera Studies program, as well as NEC Opera students Samantha Weppelmann, Kimberly Soby, Mxolisi Duda, and Jean Bernard Cerin. Read the rest of this entry »

Through the Looking Glass

August 8th, 2009


Backstage on the Common, originally uploaded by rpmaxwell.

Onstage: twenty-seven actors dancing, singing, speaking Shakespeare’s words.

Backstage: one actor tapping out his own dance in downtime between scenes.

Rain, Rain, Go Away

August 7th, 2009

Here’s a bit of a photo essay about last Friday, which was to have been our first preview, but ended up being a rain out, a rehearsal, a line-through, and an early night for the cast.

First, there was a severe thunderstorm that drenched the area and chased the cast into the trailers:

Waiting Out the Rain

Anyone know any good camp songs? Read the rest of this entry »

Run, Don’t Walk…

August 7th, 2009

… to see The Comedy of Errors

Run, Don't Walk

Pictured: One of many audience members engaging in the nightly ritual of rushing to get a spot close to the stage when the house opens up before the show.

And once word of the Boston Globe’s review gets around, the rush is only going to get rushier!

Focusing Lights

July 27th, 2009

Focusing

Lighting Designer Scott PInkney and the rest of the lighting and electrics crew (Brittany, Mercedes, et al) getting the light plot focused and gelled.

Read the rest of this entry »

Leaving the Hall

July 27th, 2009

More Notes

Yesterday night, we had our last run-through and last note session in the rehearsal space and went over all the details and advice for moving rehearsals to the Common (bugspray and suntan lotion, and how!)

Read the rest of this entry »

Load-in

July 27th, 2009

Lighting Load-in

The truss went up, the trailers were delivered, and the lights were hung from the truss. Here is most of it in photo form.

Read the rest of this entry »

Old Stuff: The Site Visit

July 26th, 2009

Site Visit

Last month, in preparation for The Comedy of Errors, the production team for Commonwealth Shakespeare Company met at Parkman Bandstand and discussed the where’s, how’s, and what’s of this summer’s show.

The Plan

Staging Act 5, Scene 1

July 26th, 2009

Staging Act 5 Scene 1

(click the image to see theĀ full-sized panorama)

In Act 5 of The Comedy of Errors, Shakespeare dumps pretty much the entire cast on the stage all at once. We’ve done that, and added a few ensemble members for good measure.

I would say we’ve done this because the stage we’re using is much larger than the one on which Shakespeare worked, however, a quick jaunt over to Wikipedia reveals that the dimensions of his stage (43′ x 27′) and ours (42′ x 24′) are eerily similar…

So let’s fall back on the fact that our anticipated nightly audience (5000) is significantly larger than his (3000), and we want to maintain the cast-to-crowd ratio he established in the scene.