by Russell Reich
In addition to being of interest to aspiring directors, this book is intended to serve as a helpful stimulant to experienced practitioners open to considering new perspectives or ways of working. And it is for film-makers, theatregoers, and enthusiasts who want to peer more closely into the hidden process of creating a shared, live experience.
This book is intended to be used not simply as a “how to,” but as a tool. It can be read in at least three directions:
A linear approach from start to finish tracks roughly with the course of the rehearsal process, addressing a director’s concerns in the general order they are likely to arise.
A random, pointillist approach is also appropriate. For instance, while on the way to rehearsal or waiting for the actors to show up, one can open the book to wherever whimsy dictates and get a taste of what might just be needed for that day’s proceedings.
A crisscross line of attack emerges by following the occasional cross-references from note to note. These connections reveal conceptual relationships and highlight larger themes that may not be readily apparent across relatively broad expanses of the material.
In addition, the table of contents and index provide ready references whenever guidance is needed on a particular topic.
Beware: Actors aren’t machines, scripts aren’t technical drawings, and this book is no substitute for thinking and responding with fluidity in the moment. When humming properly, rehearsals and performances are ever-changing, real-life experiences. Rule-of-thumb prescriptions, therefore, cannot be applied indiscriminately.
Accordingly, the reader will likely find contradictions within these pages (compare, for example, the dual directives in appendix 3 to keep things simple and add variety). No doubt this will frustrate purists, but just as any director must choose his or her tools and tactics every moment of each rehearsal, the reader will have to discern when to apply a particular truth and when to be alert to its exceptions and contradictions.
This book alone will not make anyone a good artist, a good craftsman, or a true professional. Some things must still be learned and understood not through words, but through experience. The work with others, the inevitable failures, the rich discoveries and unanticipated rewards that arise from persistence, experimentation, commitment, and enthusiasm are still, as Frank hinted in his introduction, for you as a director to develop and earn on your own.
November 2002