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This is Paul's third blog entry for the 2000 production of The Tempest, in which he talks aboutrehearsing at Otley, and discovering the nastier side of Trinculo's character.

Rehearsing at Otley

We have just come back from Otley, where we spent the weekend rehearsing intensively. It was great to get out of London and have a change of scenery. But, what I felt was particularly valuable was the chance for the whole company to spend time together. If you think about The Tempest, you can see that all the scenes happen in isolation from each other, right through until the final scene. Each cast member works with a select group of people. So, until this weekend I hadn’t had a chance to get to know many people.

We’ve been going through the play very slowly. In fact, we’ve only just managed to get through the Act 5 now. That was very hard to do, as it's the only Act that involves everybody. I feel like we’re making slow, but steady progress.

Whilst we were in Otley, we had lots of different workshops that focused on specific areas of performance. We looked at movement, developing some of the ideas for the play – lots of leaping and maybe even a tango. We listened to the music for the masque and the tempest. We even made a recording of the music with the lines to use in rehearsal.

The most valuable part of our time away, for me, was an exercise that involved improvisation. We read through our scenes, and then went off to find a space outside to try out them out and improvise what happens in between. I felt that this allowed me to see how drunk Trinculo might have become by the beginning of the next scene. We were also able to explore what might have been said in between scenes.

I have also been thinking about another exercise that might be useful. We haven’t tried it yet, but I think I will suggest it to Lenka (Udovicki, director). All the people on the island are from the court of Naples. Obviously, what happens to them on the island affects them greatly. I would like to improvise the court before the shipwreck and the again after they all return home. I think that this would be very valuable in helping everyone to see exactly how their character changes whilst they are on the island.

Trinculo's Nasty Side

I have also been thinking a lot about the nastier side of Trinculo. (I’m still hoping that the comedy will come by itself, later.) I’m looking at his cruelty and cowardice, and thinking about his shifting relationship with Stephano. In the first scene Trinculo is petrified. Then he latches onto Stephano and then Claiban comes along and takes his place. Trinculo then becomes cruel to Caliban to try and regain his position. However, as much as he insults Caliban, it always seems to be the alcohol that gives him the nerve to behave in this manner. We have decided that I shall insult Caliban and the run to the opposite side of the stage every time he moves. Like all cowards, I think that Trinculo thinks through every possibility of what could happen to him in any situation. He would love to be like Stephano talking to the monster, but he keeps thinking that he may end up losing an arm in the process. There is a lot of tension in Trinculo. He wants someone to oppress, but at the same time he is driven by fear – of losing status, of having no audience, of dying, of coming to harm, of being made a fool of. I think this is spelt out in him from beginning. I have been thinking about how he tries to overcome this fear. I think that he does it by putting other people down, by cracking jokes, and by talking.

I feel that this has been quite a rewarding week. We have finally been through everything at least once and I feel as though I have a much better understanding of Trinculo.

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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