| Booking information | Beauty and the Beast by Springfield Follies. At: Kesgrave Community Centre. Saturday 29th January and Friday/Saturday 4th/5th February 2005. Evening and matinee performances. Tickets: adults £5, children £3.50, family ticket £15. Box office: 01473 723222. |
CLICK ON THE LINK AT THE TOP RIGHT OF THIS PAGE TO SEE PICTURES OF THE DRESS REHEARSALS FOR BEAUTY AND THE BEAST >> A lot of people who maybe haven't done it say people in am dram are frustrated actors who take it all too seriously but aren't actually that good. All I can say is that the people at Springfield Follies want to put on the best show possible but they have got things in perspective! It’s been fun as well as hard work. I joined the group in September 2004 just before they held auditions for Beauty and the Beast. A friend of a friend was already a member so she invited me along. My strategy was to go for every part in an attempt to get at least one – I assumed a not very important one. In the end I got the part of Beauty! I can tell you now that's not based on looks! I did feel a bit mean as I didn't really know anyone and quite a few people had gone for that part.
But the casting was done and it was time to get down to the nitty gritty of rehearsals every Monday night. It's surprising how busy life becomes with just one night of the week accounted for! We spent a long time going through the first scene in the early days – this is a fairground scene with lots of dancers and actions. I could sing Penny Arcade in my sleep the number of times I've heard it despite actually not having to sing it!!
By November we were supposed to have cast our scripts aside and have learnt our lines. My boyfriend had a very fun holiday with me going through all my lines for a whole week! Over the next few rehearsals we got some very amusing versions of the lines from all of us as we struggled to remember exactly what we're meant to be saying and when! Carolyn the director has written the play herself so she knows the lines! You can't get away with making it up!
The only really major crisis the show suffered was around this time. The girl who was playing the Beast had to pull out and we were left without a major principal. Fortunately Pete, a new member like me, stepped into the role and the show could go on.
After Christmas it was costume time. On my first fitting I realised it would have to be a crash-course diet to fit into my costume! (Needless to say the costume has been altered and I still haven't started the diet!) I had the task of finding another costume for the second half, a dress for Beauty to wear in the castle. I trawled the charity shops of Ipswich and came up with a fantastic dress for £6. That's definitely a big tip for costume finding – try the charity shops first. I also had to try on several wedding dresses for the end scene – my boyfriend was horrified when I told him!
By the time we came to the dress rehearsal on Saturday 22nd January the show wasn't looking too bad. People had really come on with their parts. Brian had perfected his pained and pining look as he longs for Beauty! Pete was roaring away as the Beast, 118 and 119 were treated to a great hoola dance by Mike and Ruban in their coconut bras, and the dancers were all going in the right direction! It was great seeing everyone dressed up as well. To me the Beast is so fluffy in his outfit it's quite hard to find him scary! But that's only close up – he looks very mean on stage! The hardest thing about panto and being in an amateur production is that you don’t rehearse on the actual stage very much. We're performing at the community centre in Kesgrave which is a great stage, but I still don't really know my way around it, and we haven't perfected the lighting or sound, although the stage crew are working really hard to get it right. My songs are also troubling me. I haven't sung a solo for years and years and years! Mind you I hadn't been on stage for six years so a whole load of past hobbies are coming to life again!
As the first performance draws ever closer I'm, trying to ignore the eagles that are in my tummy (they're a hybrid of butterflies!) The one phrase that's been getting me through all this is "it’ll be alright on the night"! If not I’m hoping it'll be one man and his dog in the audience! But with all the publicity that Nigel and Steve have been doing I fear there'll be quite a few people coming to see it! | 
