Piano Seranade

I arrived early as usual to stick down the cardboard set plan and surprised the theatre’s webmaster, John Roberts, practising on the piano. We compared piano-learning notes and we have discovered that we are both making slow progress having reached the level of our own incompetence. He serenaded me whilst I set up, which was a very pleasant way to start what turned out to be a productive rehearsal.

The breakfast props made another appearance to encourage a cosy, warm, good humoured opening scene between the Bohrs and we continued to work on developing that relationship. Jason Blackburn (Heisenberg) joined us later and the complete scenes were excellent - a real improvement. Keith, our prompt of the night, told me that it was much lighter and funnier than he had imagined from reading the script. This was welcome news and exactly what we’d been aiming at so I was delighted.

The night before I had had what can only be described as an anxious director’s dream: I was in the rehearsal room directing the cast of three when another character turned up to do his bit of the play. I couldn’t remember seeing him before, was certain I hadn’t auditioned him but he pointed out that his part was in a section of the play I had somehow overlooked. We had been working on the piece for months and nobody had told me. More actors arrived, this time in animal costumes - who were very rowdy and destructive – and the mysterious section was now several pages larger.

Fortunately the Copenhagen giraffes, horses and elephants will not be wreaking havoc except in my dreams. It’s really not that kind of play.