It’s the second rehearsal and Shawn Barr is very fidgety.
His body is telling me he wants to get started.
He’s not wearing his orange jumpsuit. He has on black stretchy pants and a white shirt with a collar. It’s an interesting look. I’m going to watch everything he does closely because the best way to learn is by copying. They call it example. You don’t have to do any research, you just pay attention.
Once the last kid arrives, Shawn Barr starts by having us take seats, and then the Woman with the Clipboard lowers the lights. We look onto the back wall of the stage, which is white and so it’s like a screen, and the movie The Wizard of Oz comes on right at the part where the house falls out of the sky into Oz.
There is no sound, which is too bad, because I love the movie, and right away I forget that I’m at rehearsal. I wish I’d brought a sweater so that I could roll it up into a pillow and get really comfortable.
Shawn Barr says, “We are watching without the sound because I want you to pay close attention to the movement of the actors.”
I think I could watch and listen at the same time, but I guess he knows what he’s doing.
After we see all the Munchkin parts of the movie, Shawn Barr says, “I hope you were inspired by what you just witnessed.”
I can’t help it and I blurt out, “We were! And we could watch even more if that would help.”
A few of the kids give me dirty looks, but Quincy and Larry sort of laugh. I wasn’t trying to be funny.
The next thing to happen is that Shawn Barr says, “We are not going to copy every step that was done in the film version. We will make it our own. However, we are motivated by the magic that came before us.”
That sounds good to me.
“Performers, I’d like you to now each pick a rehearsal partner. This is someone to work with on the choreography.”
It’s like we’re all on a field trip. There are a lot of Munchkins, and someone could get lost without anyone else knowing. Sammy Sugerman was left in the bathroom when my grade went on the tour of the Dryer’s Ice Cream factory two years ago. These things happen if you aren’t looking out for each other. But Sammy said she got a second cone while she waited in the office for the people in charge to call the school, so I wish I’d gotten lost with her.
Shawn Barr says, “Don’t be shy. Find a partner.”
Maybe the right thing to do would be to pick my little brother. We live in the same house. We drive here in the same car. We have plenty of time to go over things together.
But forget that. This rehearsal partner situation is a chance to get to know someone new.
I’m happy to see that Randy feels the same way, because he walks to a group of boys sitting by the piano.
I head straight to Olive.
Except I’m not the only one who wants to be her partner. Larry and Quincy are both trying for the honor. They are in the middle of some kind of argument when I show up at Olive’s side.
I tap her on the shoulder and offer to be her partner. I say, “I’m Julia Marks. I’m actually two years older than most people think because I’m . . . not tall. I don’t use the S word. I just want you to know that, because I’m more interesting than I look.”
Larry and Quincy stop arguing, only it’s too late.
Olive smiles as she says, “Julia, that would be terrific.” She puts her arm around my shoulder.
We are the same size.
I say, “Perfect.”
Larry and Quincy stare at me not in a good way. But Olive ignores them. The two men have no choice now but to partner up.
They don’t look very happy about it.
A few minutes later, everyone has found someone and Shawn Barr is ready for us to stop talking. He claps his hands one time in a single whack. It’s loud and we get silent.
Shawn Barr says, “We’ll start with mirror exercises.”
I look around, but I don’t see any mirrors. There was one leaning against the wall yesterday, but it’s gone.
He continues, “This doesn’t mean standing in front of a mirror. It means that you will face your rehearsal partner and take turns following each other’s movement.”
I don’t know what he’s talking about, but then the helper puts down her clipboard and goes to Shawn Barr. She’s taller than he is and she looks nervous. Shawn Barr lifts his arms slowly into the air. The woman follows. He then lowers his arms and she does the same.
I get it now. We are being shadows.
I think that would be a better way to explain it, and I’m right, because he then says, “This is also called shadow work. We will later work to uncover our inner shadows. But that’s more complicated.”
I have no idea what an inner shadow is, but for now I’m happy to have Olive for the outer stuff. We all spread out onstage and face our partners. We take turns switching off every few minutes from being the leader to the follower.
I don’t like to brag, but I really think that Olive and I do this better than any of the other nineteen pairs.
The reason we’re good at it is because Olive pays attention to the little things, plus she’s not afraid to try big things. She points her fingers and so I do that too. Plus she can tell me with her eyes what’s coming and that makes our mirror work look more impressive.
Olive lifts one leg and then another leg and at the same time she has her arms moving. It’s pretty complicated, so I can’t think of anything but what’s happening right in front of me. It’s like we’re swimming in the air. Some of the boys just flap their arms up and down. It’s nothing like what we are doing.
After we do the mirror work for a long time, Shawn Barr claps his hands together and we stop.
“Now I want you all to mirror me,” he says.
So maybe this was all a trick, because right away we start to learn the first steps of a dance we will do in the play.
But here is the good part: It’s easier to follow him as he moves, because we have been really concentrating and using our bodies as instruments in our outer shadow work.
Next Shawn Barr heads to the piano that is sitting off to the side of the stage. He takes a seat and starts to play the first song we will learn.
The Woman without the Clipboard now stands in front of us and does the steps that Shawn Barr just taught us. I guess she’s still nervous, because it’s not as easy to follow her.
Plus I’m distracted now by the music.
I really wish that Mrs. Sookram could hear this! I thought she was good, but Shawn Barr can make a piano sing. I’ve never heard anybody play like this who wasn’t on television.
It’s crazy how fast the time goes. It seems like we just got here and now Shawn Barr is saying the two hours are over and he will see us tomorrow.
I realize I’m exhausted, but he looks full of energy.
This is funny, because we’re the young people and he’s the old guy. As I start for the door I can’t wait for tomorrow and more rehearsing.
Shawn Barr’s last instruction to us is: “Until I see you next, look at the world and turn off the sound. Focus on just one of your senses and find new ways to see.”
It’s an interesting idea, but for now I think I’ll keep the sound on when I watch my favorite TV shows.