Another long weekend of rehearsals. (Friday afternoon, Sunday afternoon, Monday night) So worth it...each cast member had a little breakthrough in zoning into their character. I can now start to see the different personalities in each character.
I was very tired Friday afternoon. Working hard then rushing to rehearsal. So I came prepared with my healthy snack, my Coke Zero, and my skinny Gingerbread Latte!
Here's a view of the rehearsal from where I sit at the piano:
Jason came to see me to try and bribe me with new tempos...slower tempos...
...so I played his numbers even faster. hehe ;)
Sunday was a great rehearsal. Intense work completed...and some good laughs. In the two following pictures, Jason is trying to explain to us how he feels building an opera is like building a porn movie. (so hilarious)
Vanessa did great with her numbers...even when struggling with sickness!
Monday night's rehearsal was VERY productive! And as you can see in this picture...Sylvie and Vanessa were extremely focused! (NOT)
Highlight of the night? René's uncensored honest comments...this one caught on video. Please be advised that language used in the video may be offensive to some...but if you're reading this because you know me...then it shouldn't be offensive at all!
Well...Monday night was our first run-through! Some of us were more excited than others for the night ahead of us. Here is Julien's deep thoughts before we began:
I came prepared for the night...Venti Eggnog Latte for me!
Even my choice in footwear that night clearly shows that I knew I had to come prepared for a long night...so comfort was key. (even if some cast members were vocal in their disappointment in my choice)
We had the orchestra / choir director join us for support tonight, and to see where our tempos were for every number. Meet the one...the only...Monique Richard:
Here's a picture of Monique looking at her score. She's got the BIG one!
The run-through wasn't bad. The singers know their music, they've been coached in how to play out their characters, however most of them played it safe that night. One must become a Diva...and that's hard to do...I know...it's taken me years to get there! ;) Everything is BIGGER on stage...and the youngins' need to let themselves go. Advice of the day, from our artistic director René, "Grabbez vous les schnolls!!!"
Some were happy with the results...and some not so happy...lol
The rehearsal went over by a whole hour that night, however important feedback was needed both artistically and musically at the end of the run-through. They were in good hands with all of the experts present that night!
The cast was very receptive:
Here is a picture of James and I listening to feedback while following our scores. (And I CLEARLY have better looking tabs on my score than James does)
We have 5 more rehearsals before breaking for the holiday season. We need to fine-tune all numbers as well as dialogues. January will be an INTENSE month, introducing the choir in the mix as well as the full orchestra! Hard work building a show like this...but what an experience!
SIDE NOTE: The next night, I was so happy to go out for drinks with my friend, Dion Mazerolle, with whom I went to university with. He was in town (currently lives in Montreal) as he was performing in an opera at the Capitol Theatre. Interestingly enough...Dion was in "Les Bavards" over 15 years ago, and was the original Sarmiento! What a coincidence that he pops up the day after the first run-through!
We finish off the week with two numbers. Up first, Vanessa's solo!
Vanessa is double jointed, and was having a hard time staying grounded. "Bend your knees!", cried René to which Vanessa jokingly started to move her pelvis. Monette's advice of the day..."Whatever works darlin', whatever works!"
Jason arrives for the last part...and is lookin' pretty smokin'! He said he got dressed up just for me, but then I heard him say the same thing to Lisa...and Monette...and René...
One of the numbers requires Jason to show his undying love and affection for Inès (Sylvie)! Hard to do when your real life girlfriend is watching! (Vanessa) Here are the two lovebirds getting some coaching from Monette:
René was trying to encourage the singers to take more liberties. René's wise words of the day..."It's not Bach...it's OUFenbach!"
And of course...my boots of the day!
Stay tuned for Monday night's update of our first run-through. And wish us luck!!!
We typically have rehearsals on Monday nights from 630 PM - 930 PM and Friday afternoons from 130 PM - 430 PM. There are also intense weekends scheduled, and we won't even talk about the January schedule yet. Last weekend was our first intense weekend rehearsal. Here is a break down!
Friday, November 12th, 2010:
The first night where Jason and James are together for their Duo! James aka Sarmiento was the last singer to come on board, so it was great working their number out!
Saturday, November 13th, 2010:
Aaah...the funny Julien and Calvin come together for their funny number. This is how hard they were working:
Everybody says I come to rehearsals with the funkiest shoes. So to pay hommage to my footwear, I will be posting pictures of my feet on the piano pedals for each rehearsal! Here are the shoes I wore on Saturday afternoon:
Note to self: Do not wear those shoes to rehearsals again!
Sunday, November 14, 2010:
The night starts off with the quartet between the 4 main characters. This will be a great number, and hopefully Jason will survive his verbal diarrhea in this one without his puffer! (seriously...he took it out that night)
Here's a small video clip I sneaked while René was giving direction to Jason:
Off James went, so that we could finish the night with the trio between Jason ("Roland"), Sylvie ("Inès") and Vanessa (Béatrix)!
And of course...here are my shoes for the rehearsal:
Monday, November 15, 2010:
The whole cast comes together to go through the two final numbers of the second act! Great rehearsal that night, and was so nice to see everybody's smiling faces, realizing that we've now run through (as a draft) each number in both acts ONCE!
Ok...brace yourself for these boots. Over the top, but I LOVE THEM!!!!
Meet the cast of the opera production for 2010-2011!
Jason Guerette, "Roland":
Sylvie Boulianne, "Inès":
James Fogarty, "Sarmiento":
Vanessa Chiasson, "Béatrix":
Julien Bouchard, "Cristobal":
Calvin Haley, "Torribio":
(Left to Right) Marie-Julie Bourque, Mélyssa Boudreau, Michelle Soucy, Noélie Kaboré, "Torbisco, Catalinon, Barrocal, Bernadillo":
Every year, l'Université de Moncton presents an opera production. This year, the university will be presenting the comedic opera "LES BAVARDS" by Offenbach.
This is my second year of being asked to be the rehearsal accompanist. Here I am at one of our rehearsals:
My main task? To be present at every rehearsal while different singers go through their numbers at different times, while the artistic director helps them understand their characters, and shapes the story of the opera. Voici the one and only, René Poirier, aka "Mon Oncle"...our fearless creative genius:
Since an opera is a marriage between music / singing and acting, we of course need a musical director! Voici la diva, Lisa Roy (to the right with beige coat), with her colleague and voice coach assistant, Monette Gould (to the left in red sweater):
Two more great resources for this opera are our Stage / Artistic Director assistant, Bernice Losier (right), and our Light Technician, Louise Lemieux (left):
The main reason I've decided to try and dedicate time to blogging about this project, is because when speaking with others about being part of the opera, they often ask, "How long are rehearsals? 2-3 weeks?" The time, the work efforts, the people involved, the dedication to building a show like this are bigger than what most people can imagine. The singers have been in rehearsals since September 2010, and the opera will be performed on January 28, 29 and 30th at the Capitol Theatre in Moncton, NB. 5 intense months for 3 shows. Welcome to our journey through the eyes of the accompanist!
