Interview with Ballet Coach, Lee Fisher

Posted by Sara Green (Marketing and Admin Assistant, Hoipolloi)

As most of the blog entries so far have been mainly my perspective on the process I decided that it was time to get someone else’s view. Lee Fisher, the ballet coach, worked with the actors in the rehearsal room to assist with the movement in the show. I had a quick chat with him to find out what he thought of the show, the process and of course the dancing.

Firstly I asked him how he came to be involved with The Doubtful Guest and whether he had seen Hoipolloi’s work before. He hadn’t. In fact the link was through Watford Palace Theatre and a shared contact. Hoipolloi was recommended to him and Shôn invited him to come along and do a taster session with the actors.

Lee trained at the Royal Ballet School and danced with Birmingham Royal Ballet for 17 years. He retired from dancing full-time in 2005 but still makes guest appearances across the globe. This kind of work is fairly new to him, but he says that it felt organic and natural to be part of the production and looking back he said how much he enjoyed working on it.

So why does a Hoipolloi need with a ballet coach? Well, Gorey was obsessed by ballet – during one period of his life he even attended every single performance of the New York City Ballet for 23 years!

And so Lee did a bit of everything! The day would begin with an authentic ballet warm-up. They shared terminology and techniques, particularly classical form of the arms, feet and body and used ballet as the starting point for many of the exercises. The actors would then use what they felt was right for them, making it their own.

Lee stressed how ballet was explored in an almost entirely collaborative way, but there were also some structured and choreographed pieces with which Lee took the lead. So there was a nice balance between Lee instructing and the actors using the techniques in their own improvisations.

In terms of the individual actors it was interesting to hear that they all had their own particular styles, one being quite Italian, one Russian and one very English in their movements. Lee found this fascinating as well as their adaptability, creativity and willingness to try new things. This is something I found when watching rehearsals.

I then asked him what he thought of the actual story and style it was written in, and whether ballet fits in with this. He literally loves the story of the doubtful guest and apparently was laughing all day throughout the rehearsals. He also thinks that it was an inspired decision to use ballet to add another layer to the production and when he was shown the book for the first time he could see exactly how ballet would fit in. The style of the book really appeals to Lee and when I spoke to him he couldn’t wait to see the finished product.

I was pleased to hear that Lee thoroughly enjoyed working with Hoipolloi and felt proud to be part of such an exciting process but I think that it was our privilege to work with this enthusiastic and talented dancer. After seeing the show last night (which was absolutely stunning by the way!) I was so impressed by the use of movement and dance and the ballet style was clearly detectable in the performance.

I saw Lee after the show and he was very happy with the result, and couldn’t believe how far the actors had come since he worked with them! Definitely a success all round.

And We're Off...

Posted by Sara Green (Marketing and Admin Assistant, Hoipolloi)

Last night The Doubtful Guest opened in Watford Palace Theatre! After such a long wait and months and months of intense work the show lived up to all expectations. The stunning lights, the gorgeous music and the amazing set were finally all put together and the story took off, the actors delivering a show that was darker, funnier and smoother than it has ever been before!

Everyone was really happy with the result, but the hard work is far from over for Hoipolloi. This week is going to be one of the busiest that we have ever had, even busier than a week in Edinburgh!

As The Doubtful Guest continues it’s tour in Watford, with press nights, photo-shoots, final run-throughs and generally people running round like headless chickens, the other half of the company are preparing to jet off round the world!

Early next week, Hugh Hughes, his best mate Aled and Simon Bedford (Hoipolloi’s Marketing & Touring Manager and regular contributor to this blog) are flying out to Bogata, Columbia. There they’ll be performing Story of a Rabbit at the XI Festival Iberoamericano de Teatro.

So, will it be a week of mayhem or a week of magic…? All the latest news from both Watford and Bogota will be appearing next week!

Driving a Doubtful Guest... to Watford

Posted by Simon Bedford (Marketing & Touring Manager, Hoipolloi)

There are many weird and wonderful things that I've had to do during my career in marketing. When I worked at Symphony Hall in Birmingham, I dressed up as the Phantom of the Opera to promote a silent film showing with organ accompaniment. One of my first tasks at West Yorkshire Playhouse was to spend an evening in a closed public toilets underneath Millenium Square blowing up helium balloons to be handed out at the Christmas lights switch-on.

So on Friday along came another fantastical task. This time to chauffer the Doubtful Guest from a rehearsal room in Highbury to Watford Palace Theatre. The guest joined me as a passenger in the front of the car and we merrily weaved our way through London traffic up to the M1 and onto the Watford gyratory system.

I have to admit that conversation was a little sparce. The guest does like to keep its feelings to itself and it politely smiled during my rants at poor lane discipline and lorries that overtake one another on dual carriageways.

And you'd also be surprised (and probably a little disappointed) at how little attention the strange creature attracts whilst sat in the car. During the whole hour we spent together, only the youthful passengers of one other car seemed to notice it. My apologies to them that the guest decided not to wave back - it can be incredibly stubbon sometimes!

So we've reached another milestone in the production process. Today the company move from their London rehearsal room and into tech week at Watford. I can't believe that the show opens on Thursday - having been two years in the planning, this week has came round scarily quick!

More updates soon on how its all going!

Just Kidding...

Posted by Sara Green (Marketing and Admin Assistant, Hoipolloi)

Of course we were joking about coincidentally bumping into the Doubtful Guest at the Barbican last Friday but we did have an extremely interesting afternoon taking photos of the creature in an around the estate.

I’ll give you one guess to work out the mug that was inside the massive furry costume for two hours? Of course it was me - I happen to be the right size to fit in it and so was a prime target to be roped in by Simon, Hoipolloi’s Marketing & Touring Manager.

It was actually a very enjoyable afternoon and, despite getting some funny looks from several Barbican residents and being questioned by a curious policeman, it all ran rather smoothly. We took photos everywhere - on the bridges, lying on benches, peeping round columns and even managed to get invited up to a resident’s balcony, whose name, remarkably, was Hugh. (Maybe it was Hugh Hughes in disguise…)

The costume looks pretty impressive and very striking; however it is extremely suffocating not to mention completely restricting. I found it hard to walk, to talk and even to see, making me sort of understand why the creature refuses to listen to the family’s pleas for it to move. Maybe it literally can’t. There’s an interesting thought!

But even though I moan about the uncomfortable costume etc, it was actually quite exciting. To be photographed on location by a talented photographer and be the centre of attention for several hours isn’t all that bad! It was also nice to experience life from the doubtful guest’s perspective. The way it stands, nose pointed outwards, arms by its side is really specific and standing still, staring for minutes at a time made me feel like I was the real creature and I did often drift off into a day dream. Easily done I can assure you.

I think that this was a great opportunity for an aspiring actor and I have some fantastic photos of my debut - although I definitely won’t be using them as headshots in the near future…

SPOTTED! The Doubtful Guest

Posted by Sara Green (Marketing and Admin Assistant, Hoipolloi)

When we were in the Barbican for rehearsals on Friday we were astonished to bump into someone curiously familiar as we walked around the estate.

The Doubtful Guest seemed to pop its head out everywhere - round the columns, on the benches, in the bushes, at the church door and sometimes in even stranger places. I even caught it peering despondently into the library.
And by some strange coincidence we happened to be with photographer Geraint Lewis who managed to take a few shots…