Hi,
I’m Olivia Grant-Bryson and this term I am going to be directing ‘Shakers’ by John Godber.
Initially when I was told I would be directing this term, I was very worried about the dynamic of the group and how to balance friendship and directing however, after the first week with my group, and seeing the dynamic of other groups working on their pieces these worries have completely evaporated thanks to the lovely attitude of my group.
In the morning workshop I was able to pre-plan for what exactly I would be telling my group and sorting all the hand-outs I had to give them. This was really helpful for me as it both stopped me being nervous whilst giving structure to the session. The questions from my group were really thoughtful and helped me see what the audience might have questions about that hadn’t been clarified in my script but needed to be clarified in the performance in order to make it successful.
The initial reaction from the script was that of confusion because on paper the flow of the piece was very difficult to follow because the shapes and motifs that I wanted to create on-stage could not be portrayed on the page. Despite this my group were extremely supportive and also gave solid suggestions about how they could make the flow clearer, especially after we read through the script a couple of times, did some fun waitress stage business’ and thoroughly explained the overall concept to them.
They gave me the confidence I needed to direct well and find the suitable balance which keeps us all focused whilst also letting us have fun. I am extremely excited to be working with them in the upcoming weeks and have faith that this festival is going to be a brilliant success!!!
Olivia Grant-Bryson
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