Gave myself a stiff talking-to this morning. The problem was that I felt we were rushing into full rehearsal mode too fast, that it was not possible to cast the play when I knew them so little. Well, the answer lay in my own hands: if I needed to get to know them better before casting, then that was what I would do. (The script is not ready in any case; it has been edited by me, but Aparna needs to check it, make sure I am not making some dreadful mistake with my Hindu gods, or any other apparent cultural faux pas. So we will have some general workshops for a week or so more, so that I can get to know them, and then see where that gets me. I immediately felt more cheerful. (Val, when she gets around to reading this, will recognise these troughs and peaks; only too common.)
I had also felt concerned that I was not really pulling my weight in ways beyond R4J, that the couple of hours a day I was putting in did not match the five hours Workaway suggests as a fair input, and more importantly did not allow SPA to make best use of my being here. I went to see Yogi in the morning, he sent me on to see either Dr Bhatta or Mr Bhatta (no, I am not confused; they are two separate gentlemen, in charge of the undergraduate program at the college… I think.) It was soon arranged that I would teach some classes there, focusing upon spoken English, starting tomorrow.
Shortly after, I had my first extremely positive “talking to young people” experience of the day when Anu sent Deepak, the young man who had played the hero in our six minute festival offering, to see me. I had been a little worried that he would not be able to be in the play, for he is a busy chap, and I had him in mind for… well let’s say a major role. He was all smiles and positivity, and though he would not be able to attend tonight’s audition (an additional one because of all the rain last Friday) he could come to subsequent rehearsals. I told him he did not need to audition, as I knew him very well already.
In the afternoon, I did a tour of the classrooms, to tell them about the production in general, and this afternoon’s audition in particular. I had done something similar the other day, but this time I was far more proactive, did most of the talking, and seemed to hold their attention. I was getting nods and other positive signals, and was pretty certain that the attendance this afternoon would be very healthy. Maybe even too healthy; in some ways having too many would be as big a problem as too few. There was certainly one very positive result, for when I told them that we were in urgent need of a rapper, to play the part of Mercutio, a boy was immediately pointed to; what was better, he seemed willing enough to be involved (or at least considered; I have no idea whether he can act.) But I urged Aashish, who was accompanying me and translating when necessary, to bring this little tour to a stop; apart from anything else, I was soaked and knackered, and there was still an audition to conduct.
As it happened, the sum total of new auditioners was seven, six girls and a boy, which just goes to show what I know. Fortunately, all of them, plus two of the ones who had been before and had showed up again, were excellent. They certainly started as I might have expected of people who had never stepped foot on a stage, as nervous, uncertain, a little wooden. Which made the transformation over the next hour, when all of them suddenly blossomed, all the more heart-warming; sometimes, nearly all of the time, I love my job.
