Taking it back to the very beginning, we had been introduced to Peter Pan by discussing about it when given the scripts first hand and everyone was wondering what character that they may have been chosen for. We had then watched the Disney movie interpretation of Peter Pan to give us an idea of what our production plot may turn out to be like. Since I have seen this version so many times, I already had a clear image on how it may have panned out. At first I wanted to be a Lost Boy since it was all about having fun and about a journey having to find a Mother with the Leader Peter Pan. But as time went on, I was advised to at least give it a shot at auditioning for Peter Pan since an audition was required as for one good practice for University and Drama School and two, was to determine who was suitable for a particular role.
In result of this, I decided to research an appropriate monologue and song as if I wanted a main role, in this case Peter Pan, I had to choose a song to show case my vocals and if they were good enough for the role. The monologue I had chosen was a short extract from a list of short monologues from Peter Pan as I thought that if I had chosen a monologue as Peter Pan himself it may have given the panel a better idea of what I may have looked like if I had gotten the role. In the end, after a week a so, the roles were revealed and in conclusion, I got the part of Peter Pan. I also knew some people who wanted to get specific other roles but were left disappointed with theirs, but others were happy. In the end, when it comes to acting, not everyone is going to get the role they auditioned for, it is just how the industry works. Then we got to work straight away on the script, firstly splitting in to different groups - Act 1, Lost Boys and Pirates. With the Act 1 group, where I was based, the stage and audience type were discussed. Originally, we all wanted the audience to be in front, but over the next couple of weeks, it was discovered that we were going to have a three way audience. Personally, although I have never performed on a three way audience stage before, it opened a door for whole new experience.
Rehearsal at the beginning was not as common at the start of the production which I wish was as this lead to many problems that were luckily avoided at the end. However, this was due to devising and other pieces of work that needed attending to such as essays. Although the choreography was great for a start and the ideas of what should be done on stage at a particular time was creative, the first scene took way too long in my opinion as it gave hardly any time to rehearse the last scenes which forced students to come in on days off as the rehearsal time was getting tighter. One scene that kept getting skipped for some reason was the Marooner's Rock scene, which we had on rehearsed a total of just six times with constant stopping was one scene where we had to keep making constant changes. However it did end up to be one of the funniest scenes throughout the whole play as the actors in the scene were great, especially Panashe and Jireh. And personally, with all the fighting scenes that Jamie and I had, I am so proud of since we both took the time to choose what to do and to make it our own with the help of Panashe to refine it.
Feeding off the rehearsal, the stage equipment did act as a hazard sometimes due to the fact that the only exit from the window was behind the musicians and they were placed next to a sheet where if touched too often could get damaged. This sheet had to be opened to show the flying scene that was filmed earlier by green screen which was an awesome new experience for me I have to say. In addition to the hazard of the stage, some times when the black out struck, it was very difficult to see where the corner of the stand was and a couple of people, including myself, hit the side of the stage. Along with the health and safety of the placement of objects, since the platform in the centre of the stage covered quite a large area, underneath would get quite dusty which would often spread around, I found it quite annoying when it was not cleaned often as many people, like myself, were performing in bare feet. Other than that, the props and the costumes took way too long to obtain. Only a week before did most of the cast get theirs where as mine, along with Brunilda, Chris, Tashan and Madeline, were done around the first few weeks due to the green screen which was clearly unfair on the others.
The songs given to me were a whole new experience and memory lane in one play. The songs were Young and Heart and Come Fly with Me by Frank Sinatra which were two fun songs to sing. For Good from Wicked, which I have seen was a challenge for me since it tested my harmonies but also allowed me to build a real connection with Madeline as the roles of Wendy and myself Peter Pan. I also then performed When You Believe from the Prince of Egypt and I'll be there by Jackson 5 which were both huge memories for me since I was child so they both felt amazing to sing.
There is one problem that concerned me. When it came to Jamie breaking his sword by accident, nothing was done to mend it and it took the students to think of an idea to fix it instead of having to buy a new one ourselves. However, another thing that annoyed me so much was messing about in rehearsal time a little too much and attendance. Although it was fun to have a laugh in rehearsal, some times were not the right time to do so and attendance? Well if we all aspire to be good in the field of our passions, we all do need to attend and to be on time since we all are working collectively as an ensemble. And one example of stupidy was the fact that organising the bows took way too long since no one knew who belonged with the groups set, should there be separate bows and so on.
Finally, the performances arrived. Peter Pan on a three was stage was awesome since we could surprise the audience for one, and another, it gave the actors many more ways to separate and to bring/take props for two. The live band was amazing, the lighting and stage smoke was a great mix and the whole production improved more gradually the next performance after the other. I had a great time taking on the role of Peter Pan and if you hear "COCADOOLADOO", that's me as Peter Pan.
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