Sitting outside of the rehearsal room on the second floor of the PE Monroe auditorium there are some very strange sounds you could hear coming through the walls; squawks, squeals, growls as well as some child-like insults like “pea-brained feather-head”. Though these are unusual sounds to any passerby, these are frequent noises you would hear at a typical Livin’ de Life or “LDL” rehearsal.
If you walk into room 215 of the auditorium between the hours of 7 and 10pm you might want to
watch out, you might get run over! Prankin’ and caperin’ aren’t the only goings-on in this rehearsal room, there is a ton of running, jumping, chasing, hiding and scheming too. “For me a typical rehearsal is exhausting! I try to bring that hyper rabbit energy, but after classes all day I get worn out halfway through,” said Charity Simmons who is playing Brer Rabbit. In LDL each character is an animal and to get into character for this show, actors must fully embody their animal. Character work starts from the toes and goes all the way to the up to the ‘top hairs of your head’. Through the course of the show you will meet two rabbits, a fox, a bear, a mouse, a buzzard, a turtle and a goose. “It's really fun playing a rabbit! Usually when I think of a rabbit I think of it being really fast, and I am always hyper and running around so I definitely feel the energy!” said Simmons in regards to her character. “Being a turtle has forced me to slow down because I’m usually really fast, moving and talking. It’s helped me focus on the performance and it has really made me connect with my character,” said Kelsey Perry, who is playing Brer Terrypin.
In embodying the character each actor has to create a “character body”, or taking their normal self and adding a few animal-like traits. For example, Brer Fox’s nose leads him across the stage, just like a fox, smelling his way across a field. “It’s a little hard not to slip out of rabbit character and be Charity sometimes,” Simmons commented about her character body. Along with the character bodies, the actors use oversized and exaggerated gestures, not only because it is on stage, but also because the show is for younger audiences and the bigger movements help keep the attention trained on the actor that is speaking
. Also, animated facial expressions help keep the audiences tuned in on the speaker.If you are from the north or have a hard time understanding the southern drawl, you might have some difficulty with this show. Each character has its own dialect and specific way of speaking, but the one constant is the thick southern sound dripping from every word. Dropping the ending “g” on words like “heading” or “pranking” helps to give the show a super-southern feel. Also, usual words that begin in “th” are almost always said with a “d” instead. For example, “that rabbit over there caught a bad case of the Mopes” would actually be said like, “dat rabbit over dere caught a bad case of de Mopes”. Language is a major part of this play, so being specific in how things are said is very important.
It is very important that a cast works as one, especially for a show for younger audiences. It is important because the more like a well oiled machine you work, the easier the flow is and the easier it gets to keep an audience focused on what you’re doing. “The cast seems to work as a team very naturally and easily,” said Nico Zaunbrencher, Brer Fox. “Everyone is very encouraging towards each other,” said Amanda Cotto who is playing Miss Meadows, the mouse. “We are always laughing at each other's funny scenes and lines, we feed off of each others energy and it just gets better and better,” said Charity Simmons. With a cast of eight actors, and three hands-on technicians it is easy to bond and become a close-knit team, and that is exactly what has happened with this cast and crew.
Livin’ de Life opens on September 31st and runs through October 2nd. Do not miss out on this show that will keep you ‘whoopin’ and hollerin’” the whole way through!
View Lenor-Rhyne University Theatre's website for ticket prices and availability.
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