We have a debut blog from Louis this week...
When people think of the Beast, more often than not, their
first thought is of the rich voiced, well-spoken Beast we all know and love
from Disney. Which is pretty far removed from the interpretation of the RSC’s
script has provided us with, which comes with roaring, growling and threats of
cannibalism, all of which I’ve been getting to sink my teeth into (pun
intended) for our performance of Beauty and the Beast.
It has been an interesting task to say the least, balancing
humility and tenderness, whilst attempting to maintain a presence of
animalistic power and ferocity. A feat made especially difficult due to the
complexities of the script, in one scene my throat being shredded in a tirade
of furious roars and growling, only to be brought down to earth by Beauty and
having to change the tone of my delivery without losing the character. To add
to that, as if the frequency of the Beasts outburst of roars wasn’t enough, the
stilted inarticulate nature of his speech can make it incredibly difficult to
convey the emotion behind his words. Which I suppose in a way is also a
positive, as it is an issue the Beast has to deal with himself.
Despite a few hiccups along the way, learning to waltz comes
to mind, the Beast is an incredibly satisfying role to play. Getting to
exercise his villainous and fearsome abilities in his encounter with Jean-Louis
(Beauty’s father), to his shame and nervousness with his first dinner with
Beauty and for it then to change into warmth, tenderness and loyalty in the
latter portions of the play has been a really challenging but rewarding process.
The role has been made even more enjoyable to play by the fact that the rest of
the cast are incredibly talented and a pleasure to work with. The fact that I
only joined Yew Tree in January and to be able put on a production with them is
a testament to how welcoming and kind they have been. Especially with a play
like this one, where ridiculousness, humour and sometimes having to step
outside your comfort zone are all par for the course.
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