Ah, the first day of rehearsal. A room buzzing with nervous yet excited energy. The smell of freshly brewed coffee and maybe, if you’re lucky, some treats someone has brought in. Colourful mood boards and sleek sketches fill design presentations and offer a glimpse at the future final product. The cast comes together to bring the world of the play — or plays — to life for the first time. 

Or, in this case, the cast gathers on Zoom, thanks to a winter storm raging outside. 

Today we’re joining Theatre New Brunswick’s Young Company on their first day of tour rehearsal for S.T.O.P and Altar by Santiago Guzmán. This period of building and polishing the show will conclude with a public preview performance in Fredericton on February 4th (reserve your free ticket here!). Then, the Young Company will tour the province, packing the theatre magic into a van and bringing it directly to elementary, middle and high schools. 

One could assume that shifting gears to the digital realm would dampen spirits, but even as the storm rages outside, the warmth can be felt through the computer screen. Young Company Director Sharisse LeBrun even notes that being adaptable on the first day is a good foot to start on. After all, touring New Brunswick in the winter can be unpredictable. 

Along with Teagan Keith, the stage manager responsible for keeping the rehearsal room and the eventual tour on track, Sharisse leads the room through introductions. There’s Santiago Guzmán, who not only penned Altar and S.T.O.P. but is starring in the shows alongside Jillian Hanson and Lucas Gutiérrez-Robert.

When speaking about the high school show Altar, Santiago remarks that this rehearsal period is a chance to open up the play and allow other artists to make it their own. This story, which finds an exchange student relying on cultural touchstones to reconnect with his home and face his romantic ghosts, had a previous life as a one-person show. For the first time, the ghosts in Altar will be physically present, finding new spaces to haunt in a set designed by Zach Faie. 

Over Zoom, Zach begins his design presentation, sharing his screen so we can get a sense of the worlds these characters will eventually inhabit. There are glimpses of inspiration photos, samples of lunchbox designs, and finally, a sketch of the set. Because these shows will tour, practicality is key: what is backstage for Altar is the set for S.T.O.P. and vice versa. With both shows, Zach “invites any sort of inspiration” from the rest of the team, opening up his design for sets and props to collaborative efforts. What does Eugenio decorate his room with in Altar? What do each of the actors think their character’s lunchboxes may look like, based on what they used as children? 

When he discusses the set for the S.T.O.P., Zach explains that he’s, “trying to create a weathered-looking building and a contrast to the bright colours of the costumes, lunchboxes and candy that will explode onto the stage with the actors.” This play, for elementary and middle schools, takes place at the end of Bruno’s first day at a Canadian school and includes an imaginative game, themes of cultural exchange and friendship, and a healthy serving of magical candy. 

The other key design presentation — costumes — will take place the following day, in person, yet another example of adaptability in the rehearsal process. Sherry Kinnear, Theatre New Brunswick’s Head of Wardrobe, will join the team and talk through her thoughts regarding clothing and character, maybe even show them glimpses of their future costumes. 

The sound designer, Vitta Morales, will send over music and files as they’re completed, before flying in for a weekend of working in the room. All of these points of discussion and development are an opportunity for artists to influence each other, and for the entire team to move closer, together, towards a completed vision. 

Following Zach’s presentation, Sharisse moves on to crafting what is called a ‘contract of care.’ She remarks that creative safety is as vital as physical or mental safety and proposes an agreement for how they will treat each other as collaborators as they move through this process.

“You are consequential. Show up and expect others to show up for you,” Sharisse offers as a tenant for the room. By including this discussion on the first day, the director is establishing that these plays will be built in a space that operates with empathy, communication, and respect. 

After this discussion, it is time for what is probably the most exciting part of any first day: hearing the play aloud. Depending on the development process the plays have undergone, this may be people’s first time hearing the play altogether, it may be their first time hearing that cast read those parts, or it may be a chance to hear a new draft and see what has changed. 

With S.T.O.P., this reading is a chance for everyone to hear how the script has grown. Jillian and Lucas have already read these parts, in a workshop that was part of TNB’s Fall Festival of New Plays in September. This read-through is a chance for them to reacquaint themselves with these characters and continue building on what they’d discovered last time. However, during that workshop, Santiago was fully in playwright mode; his part was read by Monica Garrido so he could really listen to how the play worked. 

Today is the first time we hear this full cast read their parts together and it’s special. People burst into laughter while they’re muted, characterization starts to creep into the performer’s voices, and emotional beats land, even though they’re being delivered digitally. There is a sense that these characters have been lying dormant, eager to awaken when the right time came, and now it’s time to play. 

There is a different sense of wonder when the cast reads Altar. This reading is more of a dialogue between Santiago, whose character Eugenio holds much of the story, and Teagan, who reads stage directions that give us a sense of what the play’s action will look like. Occasionally, Jilly and Lucas join in, floating through the script as the spirits Eugenio conjures in his missions to move on and reconnect with Mexico. 

During both readings, we’re transported to a busy playground after dismissal and then to a quiet bedroom. We meet children trying to cross a linguistic divide through games and non-verbal communication and a teenager trying to conjure up lost connections. We fight zombies in video games, we watch as spicy candy alters the fabric of reality, we build an altar, and we connect across time and space. It doesn’t feel like we’re on Zoom at all. It feels like we’re in the same space; the writing has knit everyone together, even across a distance. 

Then, when the first read-through is done, there’s a quick break. Then, the great work begins. 

Watch for our next Report from the Rehearsal Room, where we’ll join the team of S.T.O.P. as they begin blocking the play.