Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. The cliffs of snow are rumbling and shifting, and one big sneeze could cause the entire avalanche. Yes, that is a rather dreary thought, but I can't help it. Othello has been quite difficult to cast. It needs actors of great skill, but I can't pay them properly, so I have to rely on the project fitting in with people's schedules. This is fine in theory, but Shakespeare is a bit of a pain in the butt because he doesn't write nice neat scenes that allow small group rehearsals. The way he moves the action, you need everyone around all the time. Now try getting 8 people who have jobs, families and other creative commitments into a room at the same time ANY time and I will give you a standing ovation. That being said, I am game to try it.
My bigger problem is if, over time, people's commitments change. This has already just happened. One of my performers has had to pull out of the project due to competing commitments. It was very mature of him to admit the conflict, and I thank him for letting me know at this early stage, but it makes me nervous. I have had two shows that I have had to recast early in the process. The most recent one (Glengarry Glen Ross) went fine. The cast settled and the show was great. The first one (Three Steps Forward...) was not so lucky. Recasting caused a lot of instability in the group and exacerbated what would have been quite normal creative trial and error process.
I am hoping I can trust in the experience and professionalism of my cast this time. I am also more experienced with this type of thing, so the burden will be on me to make sure the situation stabilizes. On the positive side, most of the the participants know me well and have worked with me before on really great projects. Anyway, fingers crossed.
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