Standing Still
Writer’s Note
I created this work over the summer and since then have felt it more and more. I hope it benefits others who feel much the same.
Director’s Note
This was an interesting piece to direct, because everything else I’ve directed over Zoom has been fixed. We discovered early on that if the piece was written to be performed on a phone over Facetime, that gave us some leeway for more creative blocking. It was a challenge to choreograph a piece in a space that you cannot see, and I would like to especially thank Wyoming McGinn for being my right-hand in this, and stepping in when I was experiencing my own technological issues.
Stage Manager’s Note
This team was amazing with flexibility and communication, and the piece was quite short, so it was really the fine details that we got to pay attention to. It was interesting to rehearse because our actor performs a monologue as if we are her friend on Facetime listening to her speak. We got to experience the audience’s perspective firsthand, and this format makes this project feel very raw and immersive to watch. Most of the direction was aimed at making our actor feel comfortable and making this confession seem as real as possible. Another thing I really enjoyed about this piece was the blocking- there are so many cool things we tried out with the movement of a “Facetime call”: beginning in the middle of a conversation and facing away from the phone, speaking while doing an activity, as we often do when speaking with friends, then choosing when to change locations and when to be still again. Those decisions are what make this piece so cool to view!