Although traditionally the stage manager has little to no creative input in the development of the piece, my company have allowed myself and our producer Verity to become a form of dramaturg! As we are always on the outside of the devising process looking in, it is much easier for us to notice if ideas aren’t quite working, or need something new. In the last few rehearsals we have been looking at our Music and Science scene, in which we combine the science of memory loss with the art of music. Encephalitis sufferers may not be able to remember anything short term, but, as the disease does not typically affect this side of the brain, they can remember art subjects, such as music. Our central male character, although suffering from memory loss as quick as 7seconds, can still remember how to play the piano with his wife, and thus we want this scene to explore how that effects the way in which the couple communicate and deal with the illness: ‘The person you knew, or who was you, may have changed and the person they have become, or you have become, may present with a number of problems’ (Encephalitis Society, 2015). As the focus of the scene was the man remembering how to play the piano, I found that the choreography needed to be centred around his hands; Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett suggest in The Frantic Assembly Book of Devising that ‘what is important is the process behind the genesis of the choreography, not the choreography itself’ (Graham and Hoggett, 2014, 122). Thus I asked the actor and choreographer to explore the idea of the man trying to listen to and understand the science behind his illness, but whilst he is being pulled towards the piano by his hands. Having explored this concept for choreography, myself and the producer then created a video that would compliment this idea, with images of the man scribbling out the scientific words in a notepad and instead writing music.
Works Cited
Encephalitis Society (2015) Recovery and Rehabilitation. [online] Available from: http://www.encephalitis.info/information/recovery-and-rehab/ [Accessed 26 March 2015]
Graham, S. and Hoggett, S. (2014) Frantic Assembly Book of Devising. Oxon: Routledge.
Crowe, P. (2015) [image] Available at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/61839232@N02/17277714474/in/album-72157653093111156/
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