This play is not about Alzheimer’s.

Read more about Unshelved and get your tickets here.

This play is not about Alzheimer’s.

Oh, I know that Alzheimer’s disease features prominently in the articles and other promotions about the play. I know that some of the talk-backs after the shows will include guest speakers from groups that work with Alzheimer’s patients and caregivers.

I know that the struggles and pain of dealing with Alzheimer’s disease is woven into the fabric of the play. I am not minimizing the importance of this. Alzheimer’s is a critical, central element of Unshelved.

Still, ultimately, the play is not about Alzheimer’s.

Unshelved is about family. It is about how we shape our own identity, and about how those we love shape who we become, whether we will or no. It is about how we separate from those we love, and how we bind ourselves to them.

Alzheimer’s is the problem, the crisis, the rip in the fabric of this family. Unshelved asks us: how present are we in the lives of those we love? How much have we hidden from those closest to us? How much have we hidden from ourselves?

Alzheimer’s disease is a critical element in Unshelved, but it is the human response to this challenge that engages us. It is about the living through the pain with our tears and laughter. It is about our lives, not about our disease.

You have to laugh

Read more about Unshelved and get your tickets here.

Unshelved is a drama that deals with painful, often tragic struggles within a family. It does so with depth, compassion, insight.

And laughter.

You might think that a play in which a devastating disease like Alzheimer’s plays a central role would be dark and troubling. Unshelved has those moments, without question.

What is surprising and delightful about this play, however, is how often it makes you laugh. Out loud.

The family in Unshelved is like my family, like your family. There is love, and there is caring. There is resentment and bitterness, at times. That’s what happens in the hard times.

And also, there is snark.

There are moments when jokes are made, good and bad. When the wrong thing is said at just the right time.

Because, we are human beings. That’s what we do. We laugh at each other. We laugh at ourselves. It’s what helps us make it through the day.

Or the long, dark night.

As we are working our way through rehearsals, we are discovering moments of depth, moments of connection, moments that stop your heart.

And we are also laughing out loud.

At one point in the play, Bill says, “You have to laugh.”

He’s right. You do have to laugh. Because life, even at its most challenging moments, can be surprising, absurd, ridiculous. Because being human is a rich and complicated experience. Because, sometimes, you have to smile. Snort. Laugh.

* Use discount code "Audrey10" when ordering to save $10 on your ticket!

Beginnings

When, exactly, does the theatrical production begin?

With the playwright’s final draft of the script? This is a blue print only; the show itself will be a completely different production with each cast and crew. Theater is a collaborative art. Still, the playwright is the genesis of the play, without a doubt.

Does the production begin with the first production meeting? The director and the designers gather to share the vision for the production. The artists who will collaborate to shape the visual and aural impact of the production share their ideas and insights about this play. This particular incarnation of the show begins to be realized with this first production meeting.

Or does the production begin with the first rehearsal? The actors gather with the director and production stage manager to share a close reading of the script- out loud—together—for the first time.

Any of these might be considered the beginning of the production.

Our first rehearsal for Unshelved was this week. Frigid temperatures and piles of snow did not deter our intrepid cast from meeting – for the first time.

A first rehearsal is something like a first date- but you already know that you are married. You’ve already committed. There is no turning back!

For the director, seeing the actors assembled and hearing them read together for the first time is exciting—but it can also provoke a bit of nervousness. Will the right relationships happen with these actors? As a guest director, I traveled to Chicago months before rehearsals were to begin for the auditions and casting. Time constraints meant that although I saw each of my actors several times, I didn’t have the opportunity to see these actors working together. I knew, I had every confidence, that this was my Audrey, this was my Bill, this was my Rye, this was my Eloise. Yet I hadn’t seen Debra working with Mike; I hadn’t seen Johnny working with Michelle.

Will this assembly work?

I am happy to report that this assembly will work, and work beautifully.

For more information on how you can engage with this production- at every "stage" of the process- click here.

*Use discount code "Audrey10" when ordering your ticket to save $10!

I'm positive

I've been working diligently at phrasing my direction in a positive manner.

This is much harder than one might think. What we notice first, almost always, is what is not working. The tremendous temptation is to say: "Don't ______"


Don't push.

Don't drop the end of the line.

Don't rush.

In directing-- in fact, in any guiding/teaching/parenting/whatever-- what NOT to do is not especially useful information. Even if the actor (student/child/whatever) wants to follow the suggestion, what they have is what to DON'T. I haven't given the actor what to DO.


While always reminding my actor that these are suggestions or guides, I try to give more positive information:

Relax. Allow yourself to search to find the right words.


Lift the end of your line.


Take your time; allow the action to unfold.


Here's a tip shared with me by another director: Use "and" instead of "but". As soon as we hear the word "but," we stop listening because we're anticipating criticism. We are fearful of being judged; we shut down. Hearing the word "and," on the other hand, we anticipate addition, building, growth.


This:


I like the way you focus on the exchange between Fred and Mary, but try to interrupt them sooner with your line.


Or this:


I like the way you focus on the exchange between Fred and Mary, and if you interrupt them sooner with your line, it will intensify that tension.


Which would you prefer to hear?