After a successful open dress run we were ready to open on Friday 14th June. Performing in front of an audience brings the show to a whole new level; adrenaline levels increase exponentially and performers either improve and become stronger and more confident, or things go wrong and nerves cause people to crumble. Luckily, as a team, we experienced the former and everyone raised the bar once again.

I found every time I performed I was able to use the nerves and adrenaline to play and explore the work further; of course I ensured that all of my cue lines were delivered consistently as to not throw other team members off, but in scenes I found that exploring different ways of delivering dialogue was not only exciting and fun for me, but also the team members in the scene with me. The spontaneity we found on stage allowed us to bounce off one another and find joy in sharing our work with the audience.

During the shows we were also given notes by the director and MD; one note I was given was about the timing on the entrance to my song. The first section of song was colla voce meaning the MD was following me, however once the main body of the song began that was no longer possible due to the addition of drums. We had discussed this possibility in the rehearsal room and all was well as I could clearly see the MD giving me the tempo, however once on the stage I had to rely on a monitor. This became a problem as due to the lights I couldn’t see the MD setting the tempo change on camera; after a rehearsal together we worked out a system where I could clearly see them setting the new tempo, and it was never an issue again.