A director's point of view on music directing

Michael Licata became a director after 25 years as an actor, which included Evita and Sweet Charity on Broadway.

He has directed nearly sixty productions, including The Most Happy Fella starring Sprio Malas, Fiddler on the Roof starring Eddie Mekka, and Gypsy starring Joyce DeWitt, and the tours of Stand by Your Man, and My Way. He is currently the associate artistic director for the West Virginia Public Theatre.

What do you expect from music directors you work with?
I expect them to know the music and the style very well. I expect them to know voices, for example to know if a particular role is within an actor’s vocal range. I also would like them to have a good knowledge of vocal technique and pedagogy, to be able to hear someone sing and say “no, they’re not gonna be able to do a show 8 times a week.”

I expect them to be organized, to know how long they need to teach the music.

They have to be very strong leaders, be passionate about the work and inspire the performers to do the best they possibly can. They also need to be understanding and compassionate of the different levels of skills that people have. If you’re doing a dancing show, understand that the dancers are not skilled singers.

If I say “I want to make a cut, or a change,” I need somebody to know how to do that, and to say yes to it.

What are mistakes you've seen music directors make?
Mistakes I've seen happened where when people weren’t prepared, and didn’t do their homework. They don’t know the music, who to assign parts to. They struggle.

And when they’re not leaders. Music directors have to be type A personalities, be able to take charge, and at the same time, understand that the needs of the director and the choreographer take preference over everything, especially in a musical.

What are some things you wish music directors did less of?
I don’t like to see them patronize performers. That comes back to being tolerant to people with less skills, but directors and choreographers do that too, it’s not isolated to music directors, we’re talking about individual personalities.

What are some things you wish music directors did more of?
They need to have the sensitivity to know when to make the orchestra soft, and when to make them loud; to not make the assumption that the sound man is gonna be able to do it.

The older music directors who have lived through not such sophisticated sound know how to do that, but the younger ones figure the sound man will do it, and they shouldn’t.

What other differences do you find between young music directors and experienced music directors?
You could work with a great young music director and a great older music director, there’s no black and white. But there is something to be said for experience. It’s really a matter of the more experience one has, the more comfortable they’ll be in a rehearsal situation.

Although I’m finding that the new young music directors are more adaptable to the more rock and popular styles, like American Idiot or Rent. Just the youth gives them a better understanding of the music itself.

What makes you want to work with a music director again?
If I like them all, it comes down to the style of the show. If I’m doing a classical piece, I’d want somebody who has a keen understanding of classical music.

If I’m doing a show like Hairspray, I want somebody who can transform a 18 piece band into a 7 piece band and make it sound great. 

How to prepare your score for your first pit rehearsal

Here are 4 important things to write in your piano-conductor score before your first pit rehearsal, so that your musicians don't end up playing a guessing game.

1. How many beats to count off at the top of a piece: Elements to factor into your decision are the speed of the piece, and the amount of time you have between the previous piece and the piece you're on. Consistency from piece to piece is best.
   
   
2. Change of patterns: Indicate any section where you switch your conducting from 1 to 2 or vice versa, particularly if that change is not written in the score. Plan any actual changes of meters carefully too.
   
   
3. Hand cues:  When a passage needs a hand cue for clarity, make sure to mark the notes you won't play.
   
   Plan ahead of time where you want the musicians to sit, so that you know which hand to cue with for each section.
   
   
4. Instrumental parts that need a cue: Cue a section when they first start playing, when they've had a long rest, and before an important solo.
   
   Not all cues are marked in the conductor's score. Make sure to listen through the show, and compare each part with your own to add any important cues you're missing in your score. 

The more prepared you are, the easier the rehearsal will be. 



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10 notes on music directing

Because books on music directing are rare, you have to look for advice and suggestions in other books.

Here are 10 notes directly quoted from the book Notes on Directing by Frank Hauser and Russell Reich. To apply to music directors, modifications are indicated in italic.

1. "Learn to love a musical you don't particularly like: You may be asked to music direct a musical that, for any number of reasons, you don't think is very good. In such cases it is better to focus and build on the musical's virtues than attempt to repair its inherent problems."
   
   
2. "Don't try to please everybody: With both the authority and the responsibility to music direct well, you will inevitably have to make some unpopular decisions. Accept the grumbling. Be strong and calm in the face of opposition. Realize that normal conversation includes a good portion of complaint."
   
   
3. "Assume that everyone is in a permanent state of catatonic terror: This will help you approach the impossible state of infinite patience and benevolence that actors and others expect from you."
   
   
4. "You perform most of the day: As a music director, you are there to explain things to people and to tell them what to do. Speak clearly. Speak briefly."
   
   
5. "Don't work on new material when people are tired. Review what you have already done."
   
   
6. "End rehearsals on an upbeat note: Consider thanking each person individually for his or her commitment and contribution."
   
   
7. "Sincerely praise actors early and often: Rather than correcting your actors all the time, get into the habit of frequently telling them what they are doing right."
   
   
8. "Never, NEVER bully... either by shouting or sarcasm or, worst of all, imitation." 
   
   
9. "Give actors corrective notes in private. This will not only prevent damage caused by embarassing them in front of others, it will make them feel good to get individual attention."
   
   
10. "Include every single member of the cast in your note sessions. Surely you know that in the theatre, silence is invariably taken for disapproval."

Are you doing your job if you're not giving notes?

It's rare, but sometimes as a music director you do not have any notes to give after a run.

When you're the only person out of the creative team to not have anything to say, you can easily start wondering if you're doing your job right.

Things can always get better, so how could you not identify anything to be improved on?

Part of your job is to know what's best for your cast and how far they can go. Sometimes, not making remarks is the best way to provide your actors with confidence in their singing.

It is easy to think that when we are only giving positive comments, those do not count as notes. But notes are anything you hear, either good or to be improved on, that you pass on to your cast members.

As long as you usually speak up, you are doing your job just right even when for once you do not give any criticism. You just don't want to mess with a good thing!



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How to join the Music Directors Community

I am happy to make it official, I am writing a book on music directing! There are no books on the topic, so it's time music directors have their own resource.

I am currently interviewing music directors on their experience. If you are an experienced music director and have couple hours to talk about your job with me, please contact me at geraldineinabottle [at] gmail [dot] com.

You can find the interview I did of New York music director Dave Hahn on his awesome website Musician Wages.

I am also very excited to announce the launch yesterday of a new Twitter profile for music theater directors! You can find it @MusicTheatreMD, and by using #MusicTheatreMD when you write about music theatre.

Actors, directors and choreographers, I want to hear all of your thoughts on music directors too, so comment and tweet away!



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How to get young belters not to be scared

Young belters are often afraid to injure themselves while singing. When they try to belt and they feel "something," they immediately assume that it's bad.

Everyone has had experience working out and feeling their muscles work hard, and knowing that that's safe. And at other times we've actually felt a muscle tear or pull, and knew that that was not safe. The same way students know what is right or wrong when they work out, they need to know that they can trust themselves when they're belting as well.

Belters fear they'll get injured unknowingly, that they won't be able to tell if something is going wrong. Instead of preventing any injury, their fear usually prevents them from finding the right placement. They need to know that they are aware enough of their own body to tell which is which. 



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Are tempos to blame for lack of energy?

At the last couple dress rehearsals for a musical, some directors see the lack of energy on stage and decide that the tempos are to blame for it.

Let's look at the journey of the tempos during the process of a musical: the music director sets the tempos for songs during music rehearsals. Then come in dance rehearsals, where tempos are adjusted to work with the dancing. Then come run-throughs where tempos are changed again. Finally come the last few tech rehearsals, where music directors need to make sure that the tempos last decided on are kept by the musicians while they learn the music.

After having gone through so many tempo, it gets hard to remember which one is right, but it's just at that time when everyone needs the most consistency that some directors will  blame the lack of energy on tempos being too slow. The main reason for the lack of energy in the last few runs is usually the lack of an audience. The audience will bring applause, thus filling in the silence between the songs which will tighten up the transitions. It will also bring energy to the performers. But some directors will ask music directors to speed up all of the songs.

Music directors end up having to make everything faster, which is problematic for the following reasons:

1. It makes music directors doubt their own sense of what the right tempos are.
2. It confuses the musicians who are trying to learn the music and who end up not having a clear sense of the songs. 
3. The cast gets lost and starts panicking because tempos are different, and that worry pulls them out of their performance.

This confusion between low energy and slow tempo is a problem. Tempos may impact energy, but changing the tempos of every single song of a show are the cause for the lack of energy is not a realistic solution. 

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5 steps to plan music rehearsals

The process of putting on a musical is much smoother when the music director makes a schedule of music rehearsals ahead of time.

Not all theaters ask for it but if you don't take the matter into your own hands, you'll end up either struggling to teach everything in twice less the amount of time the music needs, or time will be wasted because music rehearsals will be longer than they need to be.

Here are the steps to create a schedule that works.

1. Rate every song in order of difficulty: I have a ranking system of three points, 1 for easy and 3 for hard. If the first half of a song is solo, followed by a chorus section, I rank each section separately.
2. Estimate how long each song will take to be learned: Chorus songs average 1 to 2 hours to be learned, with a review of 20 to 45 min at a later date. Solo and duos may take as little as 20 min to be learned, particularly for songs that people already know, or as long as 1 hour or more for challenging songs.
3. Put the songs that have the same musical material together: if the first song has a reprise in the second act, put them next to each other in your schedule, add up the hours you originally planned for them, and readjust. So if you the total time came to be 2.5 hours, 2h will probably be enough since it's the same music material, and since you're teaching it all at once.
4. Organize your schedule by ensemble numbers, solo and duos: if you care about the order in which you teach the ensemble songs in, organize them by order of preference. Put the songs of each character together, to see if working on them in one rehearsal is a possibility or not.
5. Send the schedule to the manager and the creative team: now starts the conversation of what days will rehearsal needs to happen on. If the show calls for difficult choreography, you might have to teach those songs in a different order than the order you put them in your preference list, so that choreo rehearsals can start sooner on those songs. You know what your needs are, and then you adjust them accordingly so they work with other people's needs as well.

Here are some examples of schedules I created, one for "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown," and one for "Songs for a New World".

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Do you need a break?

Union rules concerning breaks are put in place to promote a creative environment for the rehearsal process. In today's rehearsals, these rules are strictly followed, while the reason they were created is often overlooked. Instead of actors and creative teams working together towards the same goals, actors start working towards the breaks, and creative teams feel they get in the way.

But breaks are not the opposite to rehearsal. They function hand in hand, like breathing in and out. Time off provides a chance for actors and the creative team to go from a fully focused rehearsal into a more relaxed state of mind in order to allow for the next session to be as focused.

Strictly following union guidelines won't allow for people to fully commit to rehearsal. They end up constantly checking their watch and planning what they'll do on their next break. Also, poorly timed breaks will not allow for the cast to rest properly. When a cast is far into a rehearsal process the actors are so involved emotionally and physically, that 10 min is not enough time to regain enough energy to continue.

Strict breaks also can interrupt the flow of rehearsal. It's important for a cast to see how far they've come during rehearsal and to run through the material they've just learned before the break. But when the break interrupts this work, the cast doesn't get to see the big picture of the material they've just worked on. When they get back from break ready for a fresh start, they must revisit the material they had hoped to put a check mark next to.

Common sense, empathy and tuning into the cast's needs should be as important in the decision to take a break as the union rules are. The real question we must ask is: what is best for the actor? The reason union rules are in place is to help answer that question and to avoid abuse in rehearsal, but they must be used in such a way to allow for good rehearsals.

Too strict breaks make people either not committed or overworked, neither of which allows for a fulfilling rehearsal (not for the actors, not for the creative team).

Breaks given at the right time for the right length of time are the key to successful rehearsals.

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Is it time for new audition songs?

I've come across books and websites with monologues written just for auditions, NOT taken from a show.

Because I'm on the music side of music theatre, I'm not sure how often those free standing monologues are used, but I certainly wonder why there isn't such a resource for songs (or why I haven't come across them if they do exist).

Imagine, if songs were written with audition as their sole purpose, a 16 bar or a 32 bar wouldn't be a cut. Each song would have an emotional arch and would show off the singer's voice by having a climax right where it needs to be.

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Are you paying attention to all the details?

Professionalism comes from attention to details. That's why in theatre, people rehearse for three weeks, spending many hours focusing on details: dynamics, diction, spacing, steps, etc.

And then comes in the band. And they get only two rehearsals, maybe three if they're lucky. Many theatres struggle money wise, and a quick (and bad) answer is to cut the hours of rehearsal for the musicians.

But after all that time making sure to get every detail perfectly right, why risk it all by not giving the musicians the time they need to pay as much attention to details?

The same way the rest of the world isn't able to see the details, to realize that all dancers' arms are at the same level or not, most theatre people can't tell if the musicians are phrasing that line exactly the same, or if the balance between instruments is exact, etc. And because many theatre people are in charge of theatres, the answer to financial tightness is to reduce the amount of rehearsals for the band because they'll always sound alright no matter what.

When I've mentioned in anticipation the need for extra rehearsals, I've had producers or directors tell me: "oh, those musicians are real pros, they learn really fast, you'll see."

Does it mean that the three-week rehearsal period for the actors is only there because the actors are NOT "real pros?" That they learn slowly? That's insulting.

Actors could get a show up and running in one week. They could fake their way through it, just like musicians are forced to do. But actors and musicians alike wouldn't get to the level they know they could be at if they had a proper amount of rehearsal.

How tight the musicians are impacts the entire show, and influences all the details that have been worked on by the actors. Musicians can be the  best at their instrument, they still can't guess what the right tempo is for each song without rehearsal. And if tempi aren't right, all those carefully crafted dance steps won't go very far.

The same people who say that the musicians are great and don't need much rehearsal time are the first people to complain and blame the music director when the tempo isn't perfect or when the balance isn't quite right.

Well, guess what people? Details don't happen on their own. Not for actors, not for musicians. No matter how pro they all are. If you don't give the band enough time to rehearse and you're wondering why they're not tight, the only person you can blame is yourself.

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What Theatre can learn from the Military- Part 2

In the first part of his interview, Michael Kieloch told us about the importance of a clear chain of command for people to understand and respect each others roles better. In this part of the interview, Michael answers questions about the special challenge a music director faces, on group dynamic, and on how to maintain authority.


Out of the three leaders of a musical, the music director is different in that he actually plays the show. In the end of the rehearsal process, the choreographer and the director watch the show and give their comments. 

It's at that time that the music director ends up being given comments, while not being able to give much of them because of being a part of the show and not getting to have that outside perspective. 
How may he retain his leadership position at that time?

It would be beneficial for the music director if the choreographer and the director would give him time to prepare their input and put their thoughts down on paper, while as music director you haven't had that opportunity. It's also important to leave a bit of a time for people to collect emotions after a run.

"It's tough to retain your leadership when you don't have the opportunity to have a perspective"

That's a tough situation to retain your leadership when you don't have the opportunity to have a perspective. Is there a possibility that you could record the performance and reviewing it afterward? You can't necessarily sit back and watch it while the others can, but if you record it then you can collect your thoughts.

Many people tend to test  their leaders at first, which ends up happening often in an industry where you work with new people every six weeks or so, or where you get to work with your musicians for just a couple of rehearsals before the shows. What is the best way to lead to gain trust and respect from your cast and musicians in the quickest way possible?

Unfortunately that's a real tough challenge because typically building that group dynamic, it takes time. A group goes through four stages to build: the forming, storming, norming and performing. Every group, whether it's a group of scouts on a camping trip, a military unit, or an orchestra, every group goes through it.

 "Building a group dynamic takes time"

At first, the people just get used to each other so people build their first impression of people, they decide how they want to sit in the group dynamic, get a feel for how things work, the group is not cohesive at first, they're not gonna rally around something immediately. At that first stage, that's when it's important to establish roles. After the first impression, that's when they're gonna get their behavior from for the rest of the experience.

"Testing is part of a natural group progression"

Second stage is when now everyone is part of the group, everyone knows each other, any sort of issues the group starts tackling them: personal issues, issues about performance, dealing with conflicts, etc.That's when testing happens. It's part of a natural group progression. People figure out what your leadership style is gonna be. The norming phase is when people work together, when the group is accomplishing its goals, the team is working together, cohesion and team spirits. Unfortunately, going through this process takes some time.

In military unit, the best leaders build the unit and build respect for themselves, etc. It's a long term effort. Sometimes though they do need to accomplish something quickly. Ultimately in the military, whether or not an individual has a chance to learn or become the new leader, they all respect their rank structure in the military, so regardless if you're in charge of a new group of people, if I have to go do something with them that day, everyone would fall back on our rank and position of authority. So unfortunately in your case, you don't have the rank and the authority behind the rank structure. In military if people don't follow the chain of command they get reprimanded, they may loose money.

"Establishing authority in a 
short amount of time is tough"

Establishing authority in a short amount of time without the benefit of a chain of command is tough, because people are going through the stages without the long term. Address each instance as they come along. You want to make a point, if you try to figure out an issue and people figure it out among themselves, you can say "I appreciate it, but I need to be involved in the process. Look we can sit here all day until you tell me, or you can fill me in and figure it out." Don't let it go.

Make them understand that you value their knowledge and their skills but they still need to run those things through you. Something as simple as some tools a commander has in the military, like he could formally reprimand someone in the unit and reduce their pay, or other unpleasant thing that people don't want to do , they have to do what is asked. If someone gives you a hard time, maybe you can say "fine, we'll sit here until you guys will tell me. We'll treat you like children until we can act like children."

"You don't have control over the individual

that you would have over time"

It's tough because you don't have control over the individual that you would have over time. It's harder if there is a contractor, unless you can resolve it with the contractor directly, it's difficult because it takes away another tool to motivate musicians "if you perform well, I'll re-hire you", you can't hang that over their head, so you have to find other things to motivate them. That's tough.

Any last thoughts?
Like I said, look at everything, it's important if you're gonna apply a military leadership model, handle it more formally, establish some formal lines of authority and work out things ahead of time, and agreements with people ahead of them, that they understand that there is a formal structure.

"Challenges in theater are difficult, 
but leadership usually is"

I think that will definitely help the group in the long run because it gives you tools  as a leader to properly lead a group and follow the structure, recognize who they need to respond to and who they don't. It's made for a  healthier group dynamic. Obviously a lot of challenges and unique scenarios in music and theatre, you have to find creative solutions for the benefit of the whole group. Difficult, but leadership usually is.

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What Theatre can learn from the Military, Part 1

I met Michael Kieloch in his apartment where I was renting the guest bedroom through airbnb.com. It was in his kitchen late at night that we got into an awesome conversation on leadership, business and theatre.

He is currently in the process of creating a company that will offer leadership seminars in the military style, inspired from his years in the Air Force Reserve. His ideas on how to apply military techniques to the civilian world make for a much needed fresh perspective on theatre.

What is the military style of leadership?
There is not one style, but there are a lot of particular leadership traits and programs that the military uses universally: emphasis on the interpersonal relationships between people, taking care of people who lead and taking care of your unit, accomplishing the mission successfully. The big difference between the focus for the military and civilian is that the priority for military is to accomplish the mission first, and then take care of people, which is the reverse in the civilian world.

"Most leaders don't always have all the knowledge that the collective people on the group have"

Let's talk about specific problems of the performing arts. I wrote an article about rehearsal backseat drivers. How should a leader handle one?
If a person tries to take charge, it's likely that they must feel like something is going wrong and they want to help, or they feel they know better, so what you can do is try to channel their energy in a positive way and re-channel that. Make it a point to talk to that person and find out what their ideas are, try to find out the ideas that the people in that group have. Most leaders don't always have all the knowledge that the collective people on the group are gonna have. Some people in the group might have more experience, have done something longer.

"The group member has to understand that once 

the ideas are shared, the leader decides"

The goal is to be engaging the individual by saying "I recognize you have a lot of experience and I really appreciate that you want to share your ideas, because you want the group to be successful, and I want the group to be successful. Now is the time to share with me your ideas," and listening to them, and then afterward making a firm decision as a leader, then saying "I can appreciate your experience and your ideas, now we will do things in this way" (whether it's following their ideas or not). The group member has to understand that once the ideas are shared the leader decides. Once you have their ideas, make it clear that the decision is final, and that they'll have to follow it. It's not an open call to interject. Otherwise it breaks the group dynamic.

In musical theatre, how can the choreographer and music director function as leaders when the director always has the final word in the end?
In military you have individuals who might be in charge of a specific unit in a larger unit. Some people in maintenance, someone for logistics, someone for supplies, all these different sections. You might have a commander for all the sections who may not have any experience in the specifics, or knows a little bit of everything. There is a challenge because you might make a decision and the commander above you might reverse that. If the leaders disagree, it's best not to do it in front of the entire group as much as possible.

"If two leaders disagree, it's best no to do it 

in front of the entire group"

If for example, the director disagrees with what the choreographer is doing, the best possible way to do it is to take the choreographer aside and speak about it privately, so it doesn't undermine the choreographer. It doesn't bring the emotions of feeling that you were embarrassed in front of the group. If someone reprimands you in front of your peers, someone is more likely to make a snark remark or handle it poorly because they don't like being embarrassed.

If you have a director who is in the habit of counter-managing or doing things in front of the whole group, creating arguments, it would be important to talk to them and say " I appreciate that you're in charge, that you see the bigger picture, but when you have issues, please step aside and talk about it in private."

Producers usually stay away from a show's rehearsal process until the last few rehearsals, and then make a few comments to the director. However, sometimes, producers will start acting as another director in rehearsals, or will be adamant of certain things having to happen their way for the show. 
How may a director remain in charge when the person who hired them to be in charge is the person frightening their leadership?

It's an issue that the military would call chain of command. In the military there is a clear chain, a clear line of who is in charge.  There is a clear organization, who reports to whom, etc. It's important in the same regard that everyone acknowledges that. Make the delineation between people's responsibilities clear.

"In the military there is a chain of command, 

a clear line of who is in charge."

This is another matter of handling that privately, it's one of those scenarios that if the producer has agreed that it's not within their scope, that it's not their job to be directly in charge of the cast, and they come in and say "I want this", it's ok for the musicians and actors to say "I know who you are, you are the producer, but in our chain of command, I'm only responsible to do what my direct boss tells me."

In the first day when everyone gets together, they should agree on the chain of command, who is in charge, from the top all the way down. This is how the organization goes. The producer and director need to come together before the rehearsal process starts to agree. 

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How Kristin Chenoweth and the Rockettes made my holiday inspiring

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas, Hanukkah, or whichever celebration you participated in!

I got spoiled with wonderful gifts, including the fantastic autobiography of Kristin Chenoweth, called A Little Bit Wicked.
I loved the book so much, I read it in two days. It's well written, funny, informative, good-hearted and genuine. I strongly recommend it to anyone who has an interest in Broadway, theatre, singing, tv, acting, and of course Kristin Chenoweth.

Just in case you already have years of reading to catch up on, here is her advice  for young actors, taken straight from her book.

1. "It's been said a thousand times, and it's true: if there's anything else you could be happy doing, you should do it. 
2. Run with the big dogs or stay on the porch with the puppies, but let your ambition be about who you want to be, not what you want to get.
3. Awards are on the outside. Rewards are on the inside. That means rewards don't have to be dusted. 
4. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. 
5. Never, never forget the fun factor." 

Besides reading this book, I also got the chance to see the Radio City Christmas Spectacular this morning (it was an unlisted 9am performance, and I am curious how that worked with the union).

I expected a lot of legs, and some Christmas music, but I got so much more than that:

• a 3D video where I felt like I was flying in the sky with Santa.
• not one, not two, but three camels (CAMELS!) nonchalantly walking by on stage.
• some aerial actions (which did bring to mind the recent Spiderman fall, and  made me wonder if any actor on Broadway doing aerial stuff is also thinking about it every time they do it).
• an ice rink 
• a cool number of the Rockettes dressed in military uniforms creating interesting visual effects (which made my military husband say that the Rockettes would be really good at marching, and made me wonder if the military would be good at being Rockettes)!

This was the kind of show that reminded me why I do what I do, and made me proud of being a part of the theatre world.

Last on my list of things that made me happy this Christmas is that my blog is now published for easy read on your mobile phone!

You've got nothing to do but type the web address on your phone and voila! Make sure to try it out!

Now, back to eating yummy leftovers (which include an amazing vanilla and berries Buche de Noel), and cozying it up by the fire!

I wish you just the same!

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What is the challenge of your show?

The sooner you realize which specific challenge there is for the show you're in, the sooner you can make peace with it and make the best of the process.

Here are some particular challenges to be on the lookout for:

• Scheduling: I worked on a show for which the creative team would meet after each rehearsal and spend a whole hour figuring out the schedule for the rest of the week, but meet again at the next rehearsal to re-work the schedule for the whole week, but meet again the next day, etc. you get the picture.
  
  Scheduling always needs to be readjusted in a regular process, but this went on for the entire process. Because scheduling was constantly changed, there might as well not have been a schedule to start with.

• Not enough rehearsal time: sometimes the schedule is actually so tightly set in stone, even before the choreographer and the music director are hired, that time planned for rehearsals is not adequate to the music that needs to be taught.
  
  This case leads to as crazy a situation as one where people have never gone through a song before tech week, or when they were only taught parts and moves once and never had the chance to rehearse it again.

• A difficult cast member: it's amazing how one single person can impact everyone's process, whether it's a diva, a whiner, or a rehearsal back seat driver, they will bring the energy down and the mood low. 

• No score: no words, no chords, no printed music, nothing. You get a recording and on your merry way you go, having to figure it all out for yourself what is expected of you.
  
  And don't think that the expectation will be lessened, they will be just the same, except it will take you much longer to get to the same result.
  
  And the rehearsal process will suffer from communication break-down when people want to start in a spot in the middle of the song but no one knows how to refer to it: "you know the spot where it goes lalala, and where the dancers have a turn, not the first turn, but the second turn, the full second turn, not the half one that's in between ..."

• Poorly written vocal parts: this is a problem that happens with new works, because they're still being worked on and parts are being filled in by the day.
  
  Ideally this would be a collaborative process between the composers and the music director and the cast, but after so many years working on a project, original creators tend to become (understandably) possessive of their work, and do not take well outside points of views.
  
  Major patience, kindness and empathy are the most important qualities to maintain then. 

• Working with overworked actors: a main problem of summer stock.Voices get tired, people get sick, emotions run high, drama ensues, when exhaustion sets in the rehearsal process becomes a mess.
  
  Actors can't do much about that issue except from taking care of themselves as much as possible. The best to hope then is for a schedule to be well ran, for scores to be handed in and for parts to be written well.  

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Who is in charge of the tempo here?

When it comes to musicals, some people think that the tempo of the cast recording is the ABSOLUTE tempo, the perfect tempo that no one should ever stir from.

Truth is, with every production and cast, the tempo has to be adjusted, and it's a great thing because that's the point of theatre: it's alive, it's real, it's ever-changing.

Tempo need to change to fit choreography, staging, voices, and the vision of the creative team.

"The tempo should be faster because that's how it is on the recording" is not a valid argument.

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Are you a rehearsal backseat driver?

Are you a rehearsal backseat driver? Here are the symptoms!

• Constantly interrupt the person in charge to give your input on what should be done at that instant, because you think that the way you go about the process is better than the way the leader's way is. 
• When the director stops acknowledging your comments, you talk to all your coworkers and cast members hoping to get them on your side, thus creating a lot of unnecessary noise and drama. 
• When the leader disagrees with you, you go to the person above them immediately to try to convince them that you are right and that the leader is wrong.

If you suffer from any of these symptoms, know that you have to give your trust to the person in charge of rehearsal, and follow their lead for rehearsal, because they have a long-term plan in mind. It's like when you're the passenger of a car. You would never do the same things at the same time the driver does them, but the result is the same: you're at your destination, alive.

Same for rehearsal, don't be a back-seat driver, trying to control and challenge every step of rehearsal. Trust that your director will get to things you would have done first, and that the result will be as strong.

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Do you do your homework?

My little sister is still in middle school, and was telling me all about her homework. I was about to show off by telling her that I didn't have homework, but then I realized that I indeed do have homework.

Except that part of my homework is to figure out by myself what my homework is.

Here are the five most common homework for freelancers, besides the obvious practicing.

1. Scheduling: this is one of those things that should be straight forward but that becomes incredibly complicated when you go from place to place and from gig to gig, and you add things into your load when you're not able to write it down immediately (when walking to your car, driving your car, carrying a million scores, etc).
   
   Another kind of scheduling homework happens if you work in theatre. Things run more smoothly when I give the stage manager a schedule of how much time I need for each song and with which cast member.
   
   To do so takes me a good two to three hours, because it involves looking up the cast to know how much of the show they already know, looking at the music in depth to locate trouble spots, and make the information as clear as possible (title of the song, number of the song, time needed for first rehearsal, time needed for review, who needs to come in when) so that the stage manager can make his magic and incorporate your ideal schedule into the bigger rehearsal scheme of the rehearsal process. If you want more details on how to do this, there it is.
   
   
2. Find and gather music: If you are ever in charge of putting together a recital or a cabaret show, you know that the difficulty lies in the fact that you have to look at what seems like a billion pieces before deciding on the few that will make it.
   
   Comes a point where most of it is picked, but you may not have the right arrangement, or the right key, or not all of the parts. This is just at that particular instant that people usually think that they are done putting the music together, when indeed the next step of actually finding the right key, arrangement and parts matters the most.
   
   Otherwise, the rehearsal process will start and nobody will have a clear picture of what's going on, and who is meant to do what when, and in which key, which arrangement you have in mind. Don't confuse your troops now!
   
   
3. Copy, tape and label music: Unfortunately this is such a daily homework for musicians! Copying and taping music is a never-ending, tedious and time consuming thing to do, but the consequences of not doing so are much too great to postpone doing it: being the one everyone is waiting on to start rehearsing because you can't find the piece, reading from a printed score which closes itself at every bar, sheets of untaped copied music falling on the floor just when the hardest technical spot is coming, etc.
   
   
4. Reply to emails: Easier said than done when you start rehearsals at 9am, teach all afternoon, and go to evening rehearsals during the week, rehearse all days doing the weekend and play shows at nights!
   
   Meanwhile it seems as if the rest of the world is sitting behind a desk where they get to email and make phone calls all day long, and don't seem to understand that when you say you can't call, it is literally that you can not be playing your instrument, hold a phone and talk all at the same time.
   
   But anyways, while I do understand how hard replying to people can be, you won't be considered professional if you don't and worst, you might actually loose gigs if you don't reply within 24-48 hours. One word: IPhone (or Droid or Blackberry). Get one. And yes, do reply to the offers you can NOT make as well, and do include recommendations of fellow musicians along.
   
   
5. Type handout: again, this is one of those boring annoying chores that doesn't seem crucial at first glance. So what if I don't type the cuts in this show for the musicians, I can just tell them what the cuts are! Well yes, but it will have taken you 10 min for every single musician to have gotten it (and by that I mean, they will all have gotten it right away, except for that one who will remain confuse fno matter how many times you explain it), when a simple handout would have done the trick in 2.
   
   If you have students and they need directions to the hall for their semester's recital, they will be late or be a no-show if you decided to briefly tell the parents where it was instead of having printed a clear map with an address on it. Simple things do make things simpler!

 So, get on to your homework now! The sooner you'll do it the sooner you'll be done with it!

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What is your kind of power?

Conductors, directors and teachers are in positions of leadership, and have to use their power to get things done. The question is: what kind of power?

1. Coercive power: this type of power comes from a person who gives punishments, and can withhold rewards or other desirable things (think military boot camp). Although effective, this is more of a negative form of power as people who experience it become resentful of it over time. In the arts, this one is best avoided except in extreme case such as scaring an actor to fire him if he's still on book at dress rehearsal.
2. Expert power: related to someone's highly precised skills, this power applies only in that person's skills area, in an environment where people need those skills. Solo instrumentalists hold this one in the public's eye, and often times as well to an orchestra. Soloists have to be careful not to expect to have more leverage from this power with conductors, because they are more on an even-playing field with them.
3. Referent power: this is the most "personal" kind of power because it is directly linked to how people respond to that particular person. Movie stars and athletes have referent power, which is why advertisers use them to promote their products. Anyone on the stage gets that one from the audience, but it's better to underestimate that one than to assume it, except at your own risk of looking like you have a "big head." Oh, and teenage boys who play the guitar have this one too!
4. Legitimate power: legitimate power comes from the position someone holds: the big boss of a company, anyone in a uniform. Conductors, teachers, directors, casting agent, theatre owner, etc.
5. Reward power: this power is held by people who can afford to give rewards, whether financial, extra vacations, more responsibilities, etc. Producers sometimes use that one, theatre camps that give out bonuses, and whomever is in a position to give something away and makes it known.

It is important to be aware of all the different types of power to make sure that we are using the right kind.
It is helpful for actors to be aware of the different kinds to choose the appropriate one for different characters.
And it is also very important to know when it is appropriate to use our power (position of leadership), and when it is NOT (when we're not in charge).

What kind of power do YOU use? Which power do you respond to best?

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What perfect feels like

Should I apologize for not writing a post in the past three weeks? You tell me!!

I passed my last doctoral orals and am now officially Dr. Geraldine! And I got married on Saturday to the most wonderful man in the world! Oh, and I moved to a new area, found an apartment and bought a new car!

So blame me if you'd like, but I would not change a thing if I could redo it all!

Now, on to the main content of this post! I opened and closed "Songs for a New World" with the New Theatre of Chesapeake, and the interesting thing of that process was that it was absolutely perfect. Let me repeat those words. It was absolutely perfect. Putting on a show can be a stressful and frustrating process at times, but here are all the moments were I thought things would go wrong and they didn't.

1. Extra day off: The director and I had agreed on the schedule when I realized that I needed a day off to go see my then-boyfriend (now husband)'s boot camp graduation. She understood the importance of the event and was flexible with the rehearsal schedule so that I only had to miss a few hours. I made a recording for them to use for those hours.
2. Living in the middle of nowhere: two out-of-town actors and I were put in a hotel far from anything without a car. Instead of the theatre deciding that we could just ask for rides when we really needed them, they rented us a car for the entire length of our stay. Independence and freedom!
3. Working with a beginner: one of our cast members was new to the theatre process, and my experience with other people in that situation is that they are either defensive, or overly apologetic about anything they do that is not perfect, which actually slows down the process and makes it less fun. Our cast member on the contrary was very flexible and kept her insecurities to herself, which allowed us to make great progress easily.
4. Working with a well-known singer: one of our cast members had grown up as a well-known singer in the area, and he could easily have had an attitude of I'm-too-good-for-this, or I-know-everything-better-than-you. Instead, he was very down to earth and embraced the whole process. No divas in the cast and crew made our rehearsal period consistently fun and friendly.
5. Call time: for our first rehearsal with the band and the cast, the musicians were hired for 6 o'clock but their call time was indicated for 5 on the schedule. I approached the stage manager about it and her response was: "oh, I worked with orchestras a lot, I know how musicians work, so they can come when they want as long as they're ready to play at 6!" I'm still amazed!
6. Tempi: there was this one particular song that took me quite a few tries before I could be consistent with its tempo. The director never tried to adjust the tempo during the song, which would have created confusion among the band and the cast, and frustration for me. She always kept calm and never doubted that it was gonna be fine in the end. She gave me feedback after each run of how the tempo felt, which was really the most helpful thing she could have done.
7. Piano gone wrong: when we got to our performance space we realized that the piano was not only out of tune, but it also had some dead strings! I've went to actual piano solo recitals were the non-musicians in charge decide that the pianos don't need the work that the musicians are begging for done, so my expectation was that no one in charge at the theatre would understand that our piano needed work. But they did! We got a fantastic piano tuner in just a few hours into tech rehearsal, and the piano was fixed instantly!

There is something magical when all the elements of a show fall into place in such an easy way.
What made a process particularly easy, fun and rewarding for you?

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