Producer: Carving in Ice Theatre
Director: Gaye Poole
Starring: Richard Homan
Guest Stars: Missy Mooney, Nick Clothier, Mary Rinaldi, Mandy Faulkner, John Davies, Liam Hinton
Venue: The Meteor
At first I was intrigued. An Oak Tree’s website event description stated ‘What’s it like to see a show where one of the two actors changes every night…? Where this second actor has never seen the script.’ Hmm, I thought that sounded kind of cool and improv-y and fun.
The press release threw something else into the mix. Director Gaye Poole was quoted as saying ‘When you hear this you may be tempted to think that there will be improvisation; however this is not the case. The second actor in the performance is never asked to generate words of their own. Everything they say in the play (and everything Richard says in the play) has been carefully scripted.’ Ok, so there’s no improv. It is scripted but the second actor hasn’t read it? Would the second actors Missy Mooney, Nick Clothier, Mary Rinaldi, Mandy Faulkner, John Davies and Liam Hinton be required to stand on stage with a ream of A4 in hand? Interesting.
Then I found out via social media that the cast of An Oak Tree had been rehearsing. How do you rehearse a play if you’re not supposed to know the script? Was it less of a rehearsal situation, and more of a blocking situation? Blocking is a technical term for the actors getting to know the stage, set and where action is supposed to happen. It felt like someone was lying to me. I’d gone from intrigued to interested to WTF.
I had to see An Oak Tree to unravel this for myself. For the opening night performance, Richard Homan was joined by Missy Mooney. Adverse to reviews that simply regurgitate a plot, the magic of An Oak Tree is that the second actor and audience go in without preconceived ideas, and therefore, here are non-spoiler insights.
The first revelation was that rehearsal actors were listed in the programme. But the no-improv/script situation? What was the story there? How do you learn lines you don’t get to read?
The audience was informed that Homan and Mooney had met an hour prior to the performance where she was instructed to enjoy herself and given a reminder that every word was scripted.
Richard Homan was the Hypnotist. He was tasked with moving the story along and steering the second actor throughout. Homan has worked with director Gaye Poole since 2006, and their impressive list of productions is quite extraordinary. Homan was fascinating as he transitioned from comic to creepy to manipulative and broken. After seeing the show, I understood the need for rehearsal actors. There was a lot for Homan to manage in terms of props, sound effects, pacing and the second actor.
Mooney has been part of the Hamilton theatre scene since childhood, has a MA in Theatre Studies and is currently working towards a PhD in Documentary Theatre. She has been onstage or backstage for every notable theatre company in Hamilton and is known for her extraordinary work ethic. Mooney put her trust into Homan and responded authentically whilst at times having to process a lot of information. Together, without a moment of rehearsal, they presented a polished play that kept the audience engaged throughout.
Poole continues to choose thought-provoking works that will challenge her actors. The play was perfectly suited to the Black Box environment. It appeared that Poole had given Homan the confidence and ability to explore the role as the play unfolded.
For a Meisner technique trained actor, the part of second actor in An Oak Tree would be an absolute dream role. Sign me up. For an actor that wanted a unique challenge and to dabble in a bit of directing, the Hypnotist would be ideal.
An Oak Tree left me feeling unsettled but challenged as I pondered the power of suggestion, time, reality and manipulation. And at the end of the day, isn’t that what we desire from theatre – an opportunity to be completely removed from our own lives and to peek into that of others, even if it’s all just magically made up? An Oak Tree has five further performances with five second actors who deserve plenty of support as they take on a scripted role without knowing the script. How is that even done? You’ll need to go to find out.
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