Rehearsal 4

So many things happened today!!! This post is not going to really be chronicled like the others, simply because I am exhausted and today was a little haphazard in what stood out to me.

Today I wore my costume pants, and I have to say that they make a world of difference in how I move as a character. The first thing I noticed about my pants is that they have enough fabric to be a skirt. When I walk I kind of feel like I have a skirt caught between my legs and it's both amusing and something to get used to. I can't wait to see what the whole outfit feels like.

We played a game were we translated conversations into Elizabethan English. I have a feeling this is one of those things that will come with practice. 

One of the games we played in the morning was a lot like the games we played in BAPA street class yesterday. Six of us would go up and be presented with a card and whatever card we were was how much status we had in the scene.
I got the King. It was pretty funny because I actually had to take control of the scene and "be in charge." That's not generally something that AnneDrew does. However, I think I managed to stumble through the scene reasonably well and it was pretty funny.

We also did this really really really hard exercise where all of the veterans pretended to be different kinds of patrons and we had to interact with them in character.
Most of the people I felt I had decent/not too awkward interactions with. Except for one thing.
I know a rope trick that I thought I'd try out on two of the vets who were just leaning against the counter of a food shop. So I go up and start interacting and trying the trick and just as I finish the trick I realize that I have no "out" of the scene (an "out" is an ending where I can get myself out of an interaction). So I carry on all the while thinking "How the heck do I get out of this?"
Thank God, Amil the Rat Catcher saved me and I was quite shaken up and very grateful to have gotten out of that.
Note to self- come up with an OUT for the rope trick.
Other than that magnificent failure- I think my interactions were decent. I don't think they were phenomenal or anything, but I feel like I had a pretty good grasp on "walking around talking to people." I also discovered that AnneDrew is probably more likely to have a genuine conversation with people that pull out outrageous shtick. I sort of knew that already, but it was very natural to just talk to people, and not as natural to be BIG. Not that I won't try to be BIG, but I'm going to be intentional about the BIG things that I do. Maybe I'll come up with something. We'll see.

We also went through the parade route and saw the Queen's Show. Go see the Queen's Show. It's pretty funny. I liked it a lot. Mostly the puppet show part. Then again, I always did love a good puppet show.

Other than doing the two games mentioned above, we really didn't do too much other character work. There was a lot of walking around and pointing out the doors that we use to get backstage. We also were shown our greenroom where we can take a break/get dressed.

Also found out that I will have times where I get to go and do my own thing for sometime during the day. That will be fun because I'll be able to get used to working my own character as well as working with the Captain. Hopefully next week we'll get to do some more work together so that I have a good idea of what that will be like.
I kind of like the idea of having time when I'm walking around on my own, learning my own thing. I think I'm going to value the time being able to work with someone, because that's very natural to me, but I want to stretch myself and I don't think that there is a more positive and accepting place to try stuff out (see above rope trick fail).

After a lot of people left and I was waiting for my carpool people, I was able to talk to one of the guys who also plays a sailor. I love talking to veterans because it gives me a chance to ask them questions about what to do with certain types of patrons I may come across. It was pointed out to me that I probably will be interacting with some feminists and possibly some trans-gender people. I had not thought too much about these possibilities before and it's something worth at least thinking through before the gates open. I want to be respectful while still keeping my character. So AnneDrew is more of a "survival" type character. Or a victim of circumstance.

I can't wait for next week and Dress Rehearsal. I have a feeling there's a lot that will come once I have my full costume.