R&D Project in Manchester - Day 5
Dramaturg Renata Allen shares her thoughts as we begin week 2 of our R&D project at Z-arts in Manchester, to explore adapting ‘Luna Loves Library Day’ by Joseph Coelho and Fiona Lumbers into a musical stage show.
The actors arrive! After hearing so many songs being invented and coming to life in week one, we now have scripts to hand out. Very exciting- as there really is so much material. Joseph has put together dialogues to take us from one scene to another. It’s not the full script and there’s more to write – but not far off. It’s astonishing how much got done last week. David was like an erupting volcano creating song after song. The story and structure have really come off the page now and it’s time to see what it all sounds like to the performers.
For the read-through David plays and sings the songs and Nicki, Becky and Rob read their parts. Phew! David has cast this perfectly. The performers are terrific. This music isn’t easy so David begins to teach everyone their parts. Their voices sound very complimentary. Nicky plays piano brilliantly – picking up the music and complex rhythms so quickly. Rob then adds guitar and David guides everyone so expertly. I am the dramturg and frankly I’ve had nothing to do today really – nothing except admire these super talented people.
By the end of the day the cast have learnt two songs – mastered the melodies, harmonies and various accompaniments and also started to invest the characters with life, suggesting the relationships we will explore further soon. But they have all the right instincts and clearly feel a connection with each other. We call Joseph and show him what we’ve done today. He seems happy and I know David is. This is a great start.
This R&D project is a commission by Z-arts, supported by Big Imaginations.