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Rehearsal Notes: 1
Celia is a big presence at the beginning of the play where the strength of her attachment to Rosalind is immediately clear. Celia disapproves of her father and is embarrassed by his actions – she tries to compensate for his cruelty to Rosalind’s father. Tonia feels that despite this Celia is a ‘daddy’s girl’, she is a princess who lives in a world of privilege. Her father’s position means that Celia is accustomed to a life of leisure and luxury. From the start of rehearsal Tonia has been struck by the seeming youth of the cousins, they are best friends who are exploring ideas and are in the process of developing from children to adults. Celia wants Rosalind to think and feel the same as she does.
Early on in the rehearsal period the decision was taken that Celia and Rosalind would wear the same costume for the court scenes. This is to emphasis their closeness, their identification with each other at court (which in this production is a harsh and hostile environment). The scenes with Rosalind and Celia will be like moments of freshness in the oppressiveness of the court – Tonia would like Celia to appear quite delicate/fragile in the world of her father – this will provide a contrast with her life in the forest.
Tonia feels that Touchstone is like a mother figure to Celia; as the fool, she can relate to him in a way which is different to how she relates to the rest of the court. (The court consists entirely of men). Rosalind and Celia enjoy each others wit and the games they play together; they may have learnt these from Touchstone. However, despite their friendship, Touchstone is not their social equal as he is just a clown, a court servant. He cannot be a friend in an equal sense. This emphasises again for Tonia the isolation of Celia and Rosalind at court – all they have is each other.
These comments are the actor's thoughts or ideas about the part as s/he goes through the rehearsal process – they are simply his/her own interpretations and frequently change as the rehearsal process progresses.
