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In Michelle's third blog post she discusses the research she has carried out into her character, the complexities of the hunting scene, and the difficulties involved in dancing in a hooped skirt!

Rehearsals

This week was pretty much the same as the week before, going back to the beginning of the play and re-running the scenes. Some blocking didn’t work and as we’re a week on we know our characters much better and our relationships with people much better. With that knowledge, we’re finding the bits that do work and working on them, and then finding the bits that don’t work and asking why.

Research

I’ve been doing loads of research on Elizabeth I. The more I read about her and the more I find out about that time, I’m convinced that – well there’s no getting away from the fact that the audience, as soon as a princess walks on stage, are going to assume that its Elizabeth - whether you say she’s from France or wherever. So much of the play is her world – her entourage; her female friends; her loyalty to her lords; how inexperienced she was – she was the virgin queen; how inexperienced she was in her sexuality so she would use that to tease men or use her power to play with men – that’s completely what’s happening in that play.

The Princess of France

Because rehearsals have all been so episodic and ‘in the moment’, it’s quite hard to see the journey of my character. I won’t discover it in full until we have run the run the play. Her motivation at the start of the play is very much concerned with business - her Dad is sick and she just wants to get the job done. She comes on business and realises that these boys have forbidden women in the court so immediately she’s suspicious that that won’t happen. She then decides to tease the guys and ultimately to make them break their oath and then get back to her sick father. I think she wants them to break the oath as a test of their integrity because later on she thinks ‘if I’m going to fall in love with you I will need to test your integrity. If you are going to be a vow breaker, and you make oaths to me, then who’s to say that you’re not going to break that promise?!’ So later on it’s a test but initially it is teasing this ridiculous notion that you can’t have women in court to which she reacts – ‘well you knew that I was coming, you knew that my three mates were coming with me so what a stupid time to make that oath!’ There is also all this paper work to prove that this sum of money has been paid – it’s never resolved. Then they have to stay a bit longer than they anticipated. Then of course the guys are falling in love and all that business.

Some of the other characters are maybe easier to define as they all have a kind of individual route through the play and represent an archetype. With characters like Berowne and the Princess you can’t do that – we’re just really human – which is brilliant to play but its hard to create an arc. Its really hard to find because every moment that the Princess is on stage is completely different.

Falling in Love

I fall in love with the King of Navarre. The other three girls are so open about the fact that they love their guys. At the beginning I don’t think she believes in love - and reading about Elizabeth – you have suitors and its so much about money and dowries so you can’t afford to trust it. You’ll probably fall in love with the wrong person. In the next scene they go out hunting to pass the time. She thinks she sees the king, so of course it shows that he’s been on her mind. Then we find out that Berowne has been writing letters and then we all start getting letters. In those scenes, at the moment, we play it quite genuine and a little bit coy. However as she says at the end:

We receiv’d your letters full of love;
Your favours, the ambassadors of love;
And in our maiden council, rated them
At courtship, pleasant jest, and courtesy,
As bombast and as lining to the time.
But more devout than this in our respects
Have we not been; and therefore met your loves
In their own fashion, like a merriment.
(Act 5 Scene 2 769-776)

She is saying that we (the women) treated it like you (the men). It was just merriment – a little bit of fun. At the end, in the face of her dad’s death, when reality kicks in then she realises that they do mean it, although she also denies her feeling for Navarre and still plays the power games with him - but that her job because she is a princess.

Language

The play is about language and the weight you give to signs and signifiers. If you say a vow, what does it actually mean? If you say ‘love’ – what does it actually mean? The answers are different for Navarre and different of Rosaline and different for me and everyone else. It’s about how we make promises on the basis of one word, you can be sworn, or forsworn. By adding three letters in front of a word you flip the whole thing on its head. I don’t know what happens in the other scenes because we haven’t been privy to them yet, but certainly in our scenes it is about oaths and vows and promises. It is also about vanity and what it means to talk about your status but what engenders beauty. You can buy beauty from the forester – but what does it mean to be fair? You can praise anyone; you can say ‘I love you’ and praise somebody – but what does actually mean? Take all the words away and you’re left with nothing. That’s what happens at the end when her Dad’s dead – there are no words then – what can you say in the face of that? It’s hard.

Lack of Narrative

I can’t wait to do it in front of the audience. They’re so receptive here. We are such a narrative based society and this play doesn’t really rely on narrative. Somehow we’re going to have to find some sort of arc – or maybe not – maybe that’s the joy of this play – its just random. We’re finding it hilarious – if others will– I have no idea! As an academic it’s a really fascinating text because of the language. In this play we use new and different verse forms as ammunition against each other – there’s this arsenal you have. Your weapon, and what you have at your disposal, is language. This text is all language.

Trusting the Text: Act 4 Scene 1

The hunt scene is bizarre. I think the way we’re doing the play is very sexual and sensuous and a little bit cheeky and naughty. I remember saying to Dominic [Dromgoole, the director] that it's like the TV show ‘The West Wing’ where you watch it and you have no idea what people are talking about, but having watched it for 45 minute you feel so much more intelligent! It’s a joy to hear these people. When you get to grips with the thought that’s all it is these quick thinkers together. But the hunting scene is hard to grasp because so much is going on. I have this philosophical debate about hunting then I go and stalk this deer - but of course her dad’s death is imminent so death is on her mind and the idea of her going to hunt haunts the fact that she’s going to be queen soon. When you’re queen you are going to have to do things that you don’t necessarily want to do but for the sake or glory of the country you have to commit to things you don’t believe in. Its fascinating but how do you perform it all? I still don’t know at the moment.

The interchange with the forester is interesting. We start with a little debate about what it means to be fair:

For: Hereby, upon the edge of yonder coppice;
A stand where you may make the fairest shoot.
Prin: I thank my beauty, I am fair that shoot,
And thereupon thou speak’st the fairest shoot.
For: Pardon me, madam, for I meant not so.
Prin: What, what? First praise me, and again say no?
O short-liv’d pride! Not fair? Alack for woe!

Then I give him money for telling the truth:

Prin: Where fair is not, praise cannot mend the brow.
Here, good my glass, take this for telling true:
Fair payment for foul words is more than due.
For: Nothing but fair is that which you inherit.
Prin: See, see! My beauty will be saved by merit.
O heresy in fair, fit for theses days!
A giving hand, though foul, shall have fair praise.

So he is saying ‘see then you are fair’ and I say my beauty will be saved by a merit and can be bought. Then I speak about mercy and killing:

But come, the bow: now mercury goes to kill,
And shooting well is then accounted ill.
Thus will I save my credit in the shoot:
Not wounding, pity would not let me do’t

I started to think that I should be moving around the stage at this point or at least doing something – should I stay getting dressed up in my hunting gear? but that’s just me as an actor being scared to just stand on stage and say the lines! Shakespeare knew what he was doing, so I just have to stay on stage, say it and trust it. I don’t think that at any point does Shakespeare internalise anything. Even if you’re grappling with yourself, it's always active, you’re always working something through but in this speech, I can’t think why anybody on stage would need to hear it. Maybe I am trying to educate them, or am I trying to entertain them – I just don’t know yet.

We’re using the Folio text. There are some things that have been cut. I think once we get more confident with it, it will get quicker. At the moment we’re being very careful with explaining every thought. We’re just going to have to trust it - if you think it - people will get it.

Costume

It’s amazing because it just informs absolutely everything we’ve got in rehearsals. We’re wearing these massive hooped cages that go underneath this bodice and huge dress. We’ve been striding around the stage but of course with this huge cage on you just can’t do half of it! We’re so used to personal space and getting quite close to people with flirting and all those things – and suddenly these cages give an extra metre either side of you. It means you have to negotiate relationships with the other actors and when you do deliberately try and get close –you must push the skirt out of the way. You have to find a way of using the skirts as they are such a huge feature.

Dancing

We had a go at doing the dances with the hooped skirts and they seem to be fine. The hunt dance is a little bit tricky because we’ve got bows and arrows and skirts to think about as well as the steps. I’m really worried that we’re going to take out an audience member's eye with these huge bows! I’m sure it will be fine in the end.

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.

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