Dotty makes the speech very contained, determinedly keeping control, observing all the gear changes in the speech. 'It's a balancing act isn't it?' says John, tucking his chewing gum round his molars. 'One rehearsal I might say to you, "OK tear you hair out a bit more, go for it" …another day I may say "Stop emoting", and we'll eventually find the balance which suits both of us. As long as you surrender to the text and let the words work for you.'… 'I tell you another thing,' says John, fiercely scratching his salt and pepper thatch of hair. 'Respect the monosyllables. Almost all the great lines in Shakespeare are monosyllabic, have you noticed? "I am the sea" -- Titus' great line. Simple human speech. Constance's "I am not mad", Hamlet's "To be or not to be" -- see what I mean?'… We decide to end by summarizing what we've learnt over the two sessions and then distilling that down into ten major points, and prioritizing them. The list will be particular to this group; a subjective choice, not necessarily definitive or exhaustive. John suggest a headline for our list: TO MAKE AN AUDIENCE LISTEN. I go round the group for contributions. 'Tell the story,' says Jennifer. 'Aim for the full stop,' says Tony 'Own the words,' says Ivan. 'Go for the antithesis,' says Dan. 'Play the argument,' says Sello. 'Surf the verse,' says Martin. 'Fresh-mint the images,' says Oscar. 'Ask the question,' says Gys. 'Decide who you are talking to,' says Charlton. 'Respect the monosyllables,' says Dotty. And Bruce Koch, who has been standing quietly at the back, adds: 'Learn your lines!'
Gregory Doran on verse work with John Barton, Woza Shakespeare!
