ABSTRACT
Rehearsal in action. Director Shoja Azari (left) steps Martin Bough through the scene before a take on Windows. https://s3-euw1-ap-pe-df-pch-content-public-p.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/9780203588949/9d94de66-12ca-43b6-a651-073518b2fe74/content/fig20_1_B.jpg" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"/> Don’t be afraid of rehearsal. Often it seems to make the performances worse. But ultimately, I believe if you d o it right, it can only deepen and strengthen the performances, and give the actors more confidence in the material. While there’s definitely something to be said for off-the-cuff, spontaneous work, it takes a special breed of actor, combined with the right kind of director, to pull this off. More often, you’re better served by doing some rehearsals ahead of time. But it’s important to structure them correctly, and focus on what’s achievable, given the time and budget constraints. Assuming you don’t have Stanley Kubrick’s money – he rehearsed and shot Eyes Wide Shut for over a year – you’ll have to make every minute count.
