The Tempest - Files

This is not about Wraith - the Oblivion, though there's a Tempest as well. It's not about roleplaying, and yet it's about playing roles. It's about Shakespeare, who wrote a play called »the Tempest«. And it's about us, who play it.
This is my stage diary, following the company step by step from the first rehearsals to ... well, I hope there'll be a performance.
The play is about the sorcerer Prospero, who used to e a duke until his brother Antonio usurped the throne. Now Prospero lives on an all but deserted island, together with his teenage daughter, Miranda, Caliban, his slave, and Ariel, spirit of the air, who is a slave as well. By the means of a tempest, Prospero shipwrecks his brother and some others who did him ill, to take revenge - but in the end, learns how to forgive them.
There are 17 characters in the play. We're six actors, including me who will also direct. Now, well ... let the curtain rise!

Ariel, drawn by Zoe, who's Ariel in our play

Tuesday, August 4th, 1999. First rehearsal
Here we are: From Tim, who already splayed several Shakespeare characters, including Caliban, to Michael, who has never read nor seen any plays in Shakespearean language and claims to lack experience. Zoe insists on Ariel carrying a bright blue teddy bear. I let her keep it, she'll quit that idea later. We lack Christoph, who's King of Naples, his son Ferdinand and Trinculo the jester, and one textbook. The German translation by August Wilhelm von Schlegel is pure horror and needs tp be adapted. But then ... the first lines are spoken. The laughter dies. We're all afraid of drowning. Tim's Prospero oozes majesty. Sebastian and Antonio are all cynic, Michael has some trouble with Ferdinand's lines, as he vertured to replace Christoph for today, but is great fun as drunken Stephano, while I enact Trinculo quite silly but too sober. We're all at a loss against Andrea's Caliban. Tim tried to make me let him play the beast again, but I insisted on Andrea, and I was right! She's also Gonzalo, we need to work on his manner of speaking - once Andrea had taken to Caliban's drunken stammer, she would not let it go. We need to figure out the last scene, it requires ALL actors , and we're no amoebas to part ourselves. But in the end - we're great! I've never seen a better first try. We love the play. We love our characters. We love each other. Michael asks if he can keep Ferdinand, and I promise to talk to Christoph. Zoe asks for more text, Ariel has too few lines, Sebastian and Trinculo are cool, she wants to have one performance where she can be the two of them instead. I promise her she may (I'll be Ariel then), if she will manage to learn all their lines as well. It occurs to me later that I, then, will have to learn all of Ariel - but well, I'm directing! I have to know the whole play by heart anyway.

Wednesday, August 5th
Talked to Christoph about Ferdinand. He agreed to leave the prince to Michael, as well as leaving Trinculo to me (but then I'd have to play three characters during the last scene - it won't work). Alonso the king remains with Christoph ( who's doing a year of community service and has little time to come to Cologne). Zoe tried to learn Ariel's lines in a waiting room and nearly dropped dead when she realised their enormous quantity. She will surely not play Trinculo and Sebastian as well. I smiled when she told me. I was sure she'd find out. Still we disagree about Ariel's behaviour. I want him to be in motion all the time, as he is a wind, while Zoe wishes to stand still. Quite a contrast. We need to figure it out before we start acting. At the moment, we're only reading out. Zoe's also the one to do the costumes, but she wants everyone to think about their characters' dress themselves first. I talked ot Michael about Stephano, why he behaves the way he does. It'll work. Tim promised to bring me a video of the Tempest, starring Richard Burton (my favourite actor) as Caliban. Tried to lean Miranda's first lines. It's hopeless. I cannot get the grip of this wench. No one wanted to play her, and as the whole play was my idea, she's got stuck with me. Cannot leave her out off the play.

Thursday, August 6th
I looked up the webside of the Bremer Shakespeare Company, whose Tempest I saw in 1993 and who made me love Shakespeare (did I mention we share the same birthday, April 23rd?). I dared to send them an email asking for help, especially with the last scene. Hope they will respond. Tim has brought the video, claiming it was horrible, but I've not found the time to watch it, though.

Saturday, August 7th
I've got to agree - the video IS horrible. Prospero is pictured a friendly, Merlin-like sorcerer, Sebastian, bereft of all cynic lines, is left in a pink frock making him look like a gay piece of cream tart. Who designed the costumes deserves to have his skin ripped of and the remains of his ears pinned into his flesh. I told Zoe, as a warning. Burton's Caliban is well played, though. But Andrea needs not to hide. Burton was always brilliant when enacting a drunk. To Andrea, it's a real thread. I've got to confess, I like her even better. Ferdinand looked like David Hasselhoff wearing a corset. Miranda was all right. But it's hard to make anything wrong with her, I'm afraid. Still haven't learnt my lines.

to be continued …

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