The novel again...and a sandy score

I'm reading and re-reading sections of the novel again.  I'm flagging the sections that have been adapted/translated into songs...It's really amazing how much it enriches my understanding of the characters and their ...urgency?  is that the word?  The stakes are very high for everyone all the time!  Kate saw a production of Les Mis for the first time last weekend and after her first flurry of notes, her main comment was that the production lacked urgency, that it seemed that JVJ was just moving from one spot to another because he had blocking.  That is definitely an element that needs to be built in, and IF we have actors who are clear about what they want and are in the process of solving a particular problem each moment they are on stage...then that urgency, that immediacy will be present.  This goes back to my discussion with Bill about each individual actor needing to be clear on what they are doing EVERY SINGLE MOMENT.  The DOING and EVERY MOMENT are the key ideas.  It's a process that unfolds on stage...there is a desire or a want, backed up by the characters backstory (created by the actor), and on stage is where we see the actor working out the action of getting what he wants. What does he want? How is he going to get it?  What stands in his way?  How much does he want it?  Where has he just come from?  Where is he going?  What just happened to him?This specificity is what creates the a vibrant piece of story telling. 

I am going through the script, score and novel and finding language to describe each character's wants.  I'm also digging for specific factual info so that actors can create backstories with as much detail as possible--especially the ensemble.  The ensemble is a character, too--sometimes with one giant voice , sometimes with several individual voices.  It doesn't mean that each member has to act the same of have the same want, in fact, having different details will make the scenes, songs and ensemble work that much more interesting. 

Did I mention that we are on vacation?  and that I'm doing a lot of this work on the beach?  I really do have sand in my script. 

To the Beach!