Elena Yamamoto '09 Passionate vocals lend a sense of urgency to the musical number "Save the People,"

26 January, 2008: Day 8

On Friday: we ran all of Act I on stage for Tymberley so she could coordinate light sequences. Just because, we ran Act II also, and it went surprisingly well. Friday’s on-stage rehearsal marked Emily’s and Cara’s first on-stage rehearsal.

What went down today: On stage, we attempt to finish “We Beseech Thee,” but it’s not working. Erin, one of our pianists, explains that the cast struggles with this song during musical rehearsals, so combining the singing and the dancing ... well, it explodes.

When I originally choreographed the song, I intended an easy, room-for-creative-expression piece which would serve as a breather from all the aerobic singing-dancing exercise. However, I did not foresee musical and vocal issues. So, today, when we try to orchestrate our “train” sequence, it wrecks. We first try to synchronize the steps on the odd counts — 1, 3, 5, etcetera — but that fails, so we switch to even counts. Even counts work better, so we add the singing, but then the movements don’t correspond with the words, the cast can barely produce a unified chorus, and, frustrated with the cacophony, Paul, our other pianist, stops playing and conducts them back to vocal harmony. Now, we abandon the dance. Game over. Restart.

Rena initiates an on-stage pow-wow for venting frustrations, and Ed reminds them to H.A.L.T.: Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired— whenever one feels any combination of these feelings, it is time to take a breather. So we do. Trish provides chocolate chip cookies and Ed provides doughnuts for consolation.

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