Students, Parents/Guardians, Supporters of Mamma Mia -
As we approach the halfway point of our rehearsal process to prepare for what is going to be an amazingly fun production of an exciting musical theatre classic (is it too early to say that?), it is with some concern that I am writing to you all today.
As of this point in the process, work has been going well: Songs are sounding good, movement has been coming along, there has been some exciting stuff in getting to know these characters, and I look forward to tomorrow's technical build to get a lot of physical things completed that will push our work forward even more. The problem is how often we have had to go back over already established work, to review, restage, and revisit work we had already done due to absences in the cast.
This show has had the highest rate of absenteeism per person than any show I can remember. We have had not a single rehearsal in the entire month of September that has had the full complement of people called, most days missing 3-5 (or more?!) people who were called and did not have a previous conflict listed. At the outset of this process we asked for folks to take a critical look at their schedules, to compile a list of days they knew they'd planned to be out, so that we could either build a schedule to meet everyone's collective needs, or to adjust our planning to allow students and their families to do what needed to be done. With a team of over 40 actors, management, and creative staff, we count on every member of our team (and by extension, their families) to provide us with the information asked for in order to best both support them and still put together the quality show and learning experience the Wilson community has expected of us for, without exaggeration, decades.
This isn't athletics, where a substitute can be called in off the bench to fill in. If an expected member of the team isn't there, we cannot do that piece of the show. We are at a point where, rather than calling people in specifically for certain scenes and respecting the value of individuals' time in our scheduling, we have been forced to call everyone everyday, as we don't know who will be gone, and we must keep the work moving forward to make our opening night. We want to be able to limit our calls, for us and for you and your families.
This requires commitment to the conflicts communicated and the work dates posted. We have to know that the people who are called will be present, so that we can coordinate this highly complex process. That said, emergencies happen: Students contract communicable diseases, people get injured, even (believe it or not, this has happened) family members pass away. These are understandable, if regrettable and sad, things. These are understood...life has a way of messing up even the best laid plans. These are not the absences to which I'm referring...
I am here to ask the members of the Mamma Mia team, and their families, to renew the commitment they made when they read and signed the audition form at the start of the process: that except in the most emergency of situations, a student is expected at rehearsal when called, unless they've a previously communicated conflict. Please don't schedule appointments during rehearsal. Please don't spring surprise outings (another thing that has happened already) on students. If you're a little under the weather, please insure you're at rehearsal, even if all you're doing is taking notes...this helps.
In order to facilitate this, I'm reopening the conflict-reporting window. If there are dates/appointments that have not been communicated to the directing team at this point, please send them no later than 800pm Sunday, September 30th. Please email those directly to me at mjamie@pps.net. From that point on, any student not at rehearsal as scheduled will not be staged in a particular number or scene (though, of course, they will remain in their established roles and scenes). This is purely from a time-remaining standpoint in terms of actor safety (yes, it's that important in terms of potential injuries), and show quality. We haven't the time remaining to reteach and review for students who miss rehearsal with little or no warning and maintain the quality and safety standards expected of a Wilson production.
Students: You have been doing wonderful work and deserve the very best outcomes we can make happen. That means being present, for yourself and for the mind-blowing young people around you. Parents: Your young artists are truly amazing people, having a great time, and on the verge of a true life-long memory. It is, as always, a true blessing for me to be able to be at this place and this time with these wonderful people helping to forge those memories. Thank you for sharing them with us, and thank you, in advance, for your commitment in helping us make this the very best show and experience it can be.
I look forward to an amazing run in, and a wonderful performance run,
j. miller
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