Guest Blogger: Naomi Melvin

Full disclosure, cast members were possibly reviewing choreography from our dance call before walking into our very first Footloose rehearsal. Our fabulous co-choreographer, Jeff Dimitriou, set the bar high prior to day one and we wanted to be ready. More importantly, there was so much recall from that audition day because it was an exuberant experience! And, the moves were accessible because they were married to impulse. The choreography Jeff gifts to us is full, extended and comes from the heart. Dancing it out on stage is totally visceral, but only when we honour the steps as intended. It is so interesting how the energy of a scene shifts drastically by simply 'being bigger'. There is no grand explanation, but the energy percolates when we give in to the story told through movement. Over lunch, Jeff and I took a corner of our rehearsal space and talked life, art and Footloose. If you did not know before, Jeff's artistry stems far beyond choreography - he is a painter as well. We began by talking about this side of his work. 

Recently I sat down with our director and co-choreographer, Lisa Stevens, to chat about our version of Footloose and her personal process in relation to building theatre. As I've said before, we are lucky. As someone who has intensively observed the rehearsal process (I love rehearsal), I have sat in awe of Lisa's direction. Specifically, I find her vocabulary lends itself beautifully to moving the work in a forward direction. Her style is streamlined along with plenty of room to play. And Lisa is so underneath each character and their relationships that, with her guidance, there's a stronger connection between the actor and his or her role. With her list of credits and accolades, Lisa has brought the know-how of the business to rehearsal, imparting on us indispensable tools essential to the artist's working life. As the cast filtered out for lunch, I joined Lisa behind the creative team's table and opened our discussion.

Theatre in Toronto is moving and shaking. This city has a consistent flow of productions year-round, but the summer is a particularly exciting time to celebrate home-grown work. On June 27, the 2016 Dora Mavor Moore Awards took place at the Harbourfront Centre. The ceremony recognizes Toronto-based creators in theatre, dance and opera spanning 48 categories. I had the honour of attending the awards on behalf of Randolph Academy and was reminded of how diverse, vibrant and hard-working our theatre community is. Many post-Dora commentators regarded Bruce Dow's outstanding job as host. His undeniable humour did not deter from socially charged commentary on the state of our community's compensation. Bruce also directed the audience's attention to the world stage, advising that artists must continue to unite globally in the wake of political events happening around the world. The breadth of work being created in this city is astounding. Repeatedly, I heard award recipients talk about persistence in this industry. Years and years of creative trial have led to works formally recognized. It is a profession worth its weight in blood, but worth every beautiful drop. I left the awards wanting to see more theatre, learn more about the veterans in the room and take a whole list of people out for coffee.

I walked into the Randolph Theatre this morning to see the whole cast and production team of Footloose gearing up for the day. In the audience, some cast members were reuniting after a week off while others were going over lines. By the stage, director/choreographer Lisa Stevens, co-choreographer Jeff Dimitriou and music director Mark Camillleri were chatting with our stage manager, Alice Ferreya. New faces entered the room, all contributors to the project. The buzz was extremely exciting. The best event to compare it to is the first day of school. Ironically, the space resembled our first day at Randolph almost two years ago. This theatre was the place where our group congregated for the very first time. And now, here we are!

Introducing our production of Footloose to you involved some mental math. As a refresher, the show was announced in January, auditions were held in April and rehearsals will soon start at the end of June. That's six months of project checkpoints, with the last stages of our Randolph training being a steady source of continuity. Perhaps distinct from other systems with an imminent end, our training is amping up as opposed to wrapping up. How so? I offer three ways: Integration Assignments, MTP SS and Panels.

Randolph Academy's Class of 2016 (Summer) is graduating in 81 days and I am but one member of this sizeable and extraordinary group. It is my absolute pleasure to share the work on our last production, Footloose, with you over the next few months. Hey, my name is Naomi!