Developing a directorial vision for our presentation of The Great God Pan is a creative and
collaborative process. The opportunities to dialogue with the actors, the
consultant, musician and discussant are invaluable—variously in the study group
or rehearsal hall, in private consultation and even in my fantasies and dreams. Each collaborator brings a unique
perspective, and it’s my job to metabolize their contributions such that a
coherent directorial interpretation emerges. Solitude and reflection are key to
my personal style and process. I strategically take time out to exercise on an
elliptical exercise machine I keep in a spare bedroom at home. (Imagine cross country skiing, without the
snow or cold.) The rhythms and quiet are
well suited to my creative process of thinking and metabolizing. And yes, I just got off the elliptical…
After meeting with the musician, Tom Teasley, this morning, I
have a much clearer vision of how music and sound will fit into the presentation. Three instruments will, together, form a ‘basic
group’ of sound and music sources. The
instruments we selected include are a flute, a frame drum and a hang drum. A
few other ‘environmental sounds’ will be created by additional instruments and
we hope the actors might be involved in the performing of some of those effects.
Here are links to hear the instruments, as used by Tom in
performance of poetry and storytelling. The first is a remarkable ‘Tale of Two
Wolves’, featuring the frame drum and the flute:
Next is a beautiful rendition of a Traditional Apache
Prayer, accompanied by Tom playing only the Native American flute:
And here is a rendition of ‘Haikus for the Seasons’,
accompanied by Tom playing the hang drum.
These three distinctive sounds—the frame drum, hang drum and
flute—are well suited to our play. The next step is for Tom to use his own
creative process to explore their potential with the script in mind, and in
rehearsal with the actors. We will
eventually make artistic choices together with the actors about what works
where, based on our shared sensibilities.
It is an exciting process. Music and sound are indescribable
contributions to the transcendent experience of the lived theatrical moment.
These three instruments are well matched to the concept of
the ‘drama triangle’. As a reminder, the
drama triangle is a term coined to signify the victim/perpetrator/rescuer
dynamics that routinely emerge in human interactions. From my perspective the
flute is linked to victim position. The frame drum is linked to the perpetrator
position. (Listen to the Tale of Two Wolves
to hear this duality.) The hang drum is linked to the rescuer position. The
person bearing witness (therapists, audience, therapy group members) can also
be thought of as a variation on the rescuer role. Representing the
victim/perpetrator/rescuer dynamics of the play musically is our goal. I think we have made a good start and I look
forward to bringing the music into our rehearsal process.
Bob Schulte
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