Theatre on fire!

November 8th, rehearsal in the Bedlam shop space.

John brings a pile of bricks in a wheelbarrow and stacks them up in a rectangular formation with wood planks for the actors to assemble their puppet theatre. Some of the cast move the bricks around to decide which set up is best or the audience to view. They adjust according to how the Bedlam Theatre space will be, though they are not rehearsing in that space today.

Dario, Bob, and Telsche lay a canvas down under the brick pile and use a simple black bookshelf to support the stacks of bricks. Bob asks if there are any little votive candles they could use, and Telsche goes to find some. Bob also wants some old newspapers, and Deb goes around to the theatre to get some.

Bob and Dario talk about how to make a fire in the puppet show with the candles and newspaper. John is listening and says, “We don’t want to start the curtains on fire!” Bob and Dario think they can make the puppet theatre curtains out of newspaper and start them on fire with the candles to set the puppet show in flames. It should be able to put itself out after a few minutes.

Bob arranges little candles all around the bricks that stick out and puts cut pieces of newspaper down in front as the curtain. He asks if anyone can make paper hats or a paper boat out of the newspaper.

Jason, a set designer, makes paper hats that Sheila and Dario put on. Bob is thinking that Sheila and Dario will be the puppets in the puppet show. They will be life-size puppets. Bob says he wants them to play on the two levels of the puppet theatre they have created. John moves a brick around on the puppet theatre stage saying, “Hello…I’m a brick person,” and there are laughs all around.

Bob and John try to move the entire second and third floors of the puppet theatre, though none of the bricks and planks are stuck together. They almost topple it all over, candles lit and everything, but Telsche runs to help them hold it together while Dario watches nervously, whispering, “Oh my god!”

They think about how to quickly assemble the theatre on stage without sticking the bricks together, since they will all be falling down eventually in the fire.

Bob would like to portray a few poems and pieces of the book “How We Lived,” in the puppet show. He wants the actors to read through the poems and underline things they could say in the puppet show. He tells them to move their faces and arms like puppets as they play around with the puppet theatre. Bob suggests the show should have three characters. One would wear a mask and represent Barbra’s character. This character would not speak in the puppet show. It could be played by Telsche.

In one of the poems, there is a stanza about packing. Someone suggests they could say the line, “Chaos will always be in fashion,” from the poem and then pack the poem somehow.

Sheila has more ideas for the puppet show. She and Dario could act as a captain and his ship mate. Maybe one is the smart one and one is the stupid one, but really they are both pretty stupid. Maybe one is drunk?

Telsche practices the mask part as the text is spoken, beginning with Dario as Sheila is playing her violin. Then Telsche lights a match to light the candles on the theatre, Dario comes to help her set up the theatre, and Dario and Sheila become sailor puppets above the puppet theatre. Telsche wears the mask and sits on the main stage of the theatre, below them. Dario and Sheila try to ask Telsche if she has a ticket for the ship, but she does not understand them. Telsche moves the paper boat on the stage.

The idea is presented that the canvas beneath them could be used for shadow puppets. Bob plays with a big light

Sheila and Dario practice their high-pitched little puppet voices. Sheila says to Dario, “I was gonna have a cigarette, wanna have a cigarette break with me?” to which he replies in the same little puppet voice, “Sure!...Uh-oh! The boat’s on fire! At least we’re surrounded by water! Ahahahah!”

They all set up the theatre to practice burning it down. Nobody knows what to expect, but they light the paper curtains and boat on fire and push all the bricks, paper, and candles over and onto the canvas. The flames are self-contained, and the paper singes and stops after it has burned. The dust from the fallen bricks provides an eerie after-affect to the fire as it leaves a lingering mist.

They practice destroying the puppet theatre again. This time, Sheila and Dario continue to talk as the curtains start on fire, and then they finally realize the whole thing is on fire. They wait for the rubble to stop burning, and then Barbra continues, quietly reading the text about the horses that came in the night and burned the theatre to the ground.

After this, they do not have much time in the show to build the bricks back up into the café for the next scene. A couple people are down on the ground picking up the bricks and tossing them up to others who are standing at the top to start building it up again.

They finish up rehearsal quickly, as the space is being used by another group soon. Bob reminds them that they only have two days of tech in the theatre space where they can actually execute the fire. Before they leave, Deb asks if they can each submit a bio or the program by the end of tomorrow. She also give them each a list of props for them to check off whether they still need certain objects or not.

I can’t help but share the excitement of things coming together and the show is right around the corner!