Dickens of a dozen
Final scenes of A Tale of Two Cities
When the touring production of A Tale of Two Cities hit town, it picked up a dozen willing amateur performers to provide a chorus and help drive the story.
One of the Edinburgh Dozen was Æ reader Suzanne Senior, who provided our readers with a bit of an insight into the whole process.
A tail of two Kitties – photo Suzanne Senior
A week has now passed since the last Edinburgh performance and Suzanne takes time to reflect on the whole experience.
Exhausting and emotional
It has been a bit of a rollercoaster – from three intensive rehearsals to a dress, followed by seven shows, including two matinees. Exhausting and emotional, but intensely rewarding.
It has also been a great privilege to work with the wonderful Touring Consortium Company and meet such dedicated professionals, including the actors, backstage crew, other members of the Edinburgh ensemble and, of course, our dedicated trainer, Neale Birch, who did a such a great job in marshalling us into revolutionary action! I am now seriously considering a career change!
I promised All Edinburgh Theatre.com that I would reveal the story of the two kitties, so here goes: they are a good luck charm which was created by the first of the #TwoCitiesTwelves in Northampton, to be passed on to each of the other Twelves at each of the different venues.
Experience
I feel I’ve learnt a lot about acting, both from the rehearsals and from watching and speaking to members of the main cast. It has been quite an education, and I will take what I have learnt into any future productions I’m involved in.
It has been a fantastic experience and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who would be interested in taking part. The Touring Consortium Company are committed to using community ensembles in all their touring productions, so there are plenty of opportunities to get involved.
Until the next time….
© Suzanne Senior 2016
Many thanks to Suzanne for taking the time to write this blog – it is fascinating to read what happens when professional and amateur theatre scenes come together.
Listings and resources
Suzanne’s previous blogs can be found here:
First blog, before the first rehearsal: Two Cities Twelve.
Second blog: Getting fitted for costumes and meeting the professional actors: Girding the Dozen.
Third Blog: Life on stage for the : Vive la Douzaine!.
Martin Gray’s review of the show: ★★★☆☆ What the Dickens?.
Touring Consortium website: http://touringconsortium.co.uk
Theatre Cloud resource site: http://theatrecloud.com/a-tale-of-two-cities
ENDS
