Who do you play in The Threepenny Opera?
Macheath – a psychopathic, charismatic gangster, at times unpredictable and dangerous. He is sexually voracious and totally amoral!
How was it a different challenge to do a play by Brecht?
The main challenge for me, was in discovering the different and often contrasting styles the text seems to require, and finding the right pitch and level of performance for each moment. As an episodic piece, there isn’t always a through line or well mapped out journey for the characters, so a traditional Stanislavskian and psychological approach doesn’t seem to be appropriate. Once you accept these contradictions and let go of the need to justify them, it allows you to simply commit to each moment and switch between the styles of playing that each moment demands. For instance, it becomes quite natural to play a dark scene, and then interrupt the action by addressing the audience, or picking up the banjo and singing as an ensemble. That’s quite Brechtian, I think. But Brecht's been dead for nearly fifty years. What would he be doing now?
Can you describe a bit of the rehearsal process?
It was a great challenge and great fun. The rehearsal period was quite free: we were encouraged to interpret the text in our own way and bring ideas into the rehearsal space. Through exploring and experimenting, failing and making mistakes we started to identify the themes and essence of the play and the characters. It felt quite organic – being led by our instincts and encouraged to play.
What was one of the more challenging aspects of this production for you?
Learning to play the banjo.
Learning the music, which is Weill’s original score, took a long time for me, as well as all the technical aspects – moving the doors etc. during rehearsals there were so many things to take in and digest, all at the same time.
Are you a trained musician?
No, I’ve not had any formal music or singing training, but Brecht didn’t want to use singers who couldn’t act, but actors who could sing, so I feel that’s okay. I used to play drums in a band, and can play a bit of guitar.
What about the actor’s relationship with the audience? Can you tell us a bit about how that might be special?
There is a very direct connection with the audience, which was clearly set up from the beginning. We play to the audience in order that they can see what the character is doing – to show them. But the energy and mood of the audience seems to dictate the tone of the show each night, and hopefully creates a unique experience every time.
Why is there a workshop running alongside the show?
The aim of the workshop is to introduce some of the central themes in a practical way. Hopefully, by using rehearsal exercises we are giving an insight into how the piece was constructed, our approach to the text, and how the themes of the play might be explored – they are all relevant to the world around us today.
What do you think the show is saying?
I think the show is more about asking difficult questions of the audience. Hopefully it provokes them to examine their own reactions to poverty, corruption and people’s place in society rather than having a prescriptive message.