For most this was to be their first visit to a theatre and they were coming not as spectators but as performers. Professsional artists. With their own dressing rooms - where so many famous Romanian actors had prepared before them. Heavy curtains changing the acoustics. Brilliant lighting effects that created a new, magical atmosphere. Pete heading a large team had worked so hard to make it happen. Special effects creating smoke and yet another mood. The youngsters' acting role enhanced and facilitated by these additions.
To calm the nerves familiar exercises. Breathing. Stretching movements. Alone. Standing tall. And the inspirational exercise to end - all walking slowly in whatever direction, focusing on making brief eye contact with fellow artists as they passed each other, all to the now tear-jerking music of Amazing Grace. A final winding down and an exhortation to prepare mentally in the remaining minutes to give the best performance.
A carefully crafted preparation for the performance of a lifetime.
And that is what they gave. An awesome, energetic, joyful tour de force, that left the audience amazed at the professionalism of the performance per se and especially given the social composition of the group. Many were left speechless, many were in tears.
The Director of the Teatru Nationale for 8 years, former Minister of Culture, himself a great actor, said he had never witnessed so many people leaving the theatre in tears and in silence after a performance; as for Horai Andreescu, Conductor of the Bucharest Radio Orchestra, he said he could not believe the main actors were not professionals; Royston and Josef told the cast it was the best performance yet and that they had made the piece their own by improvising professionally to cover unexpected glitches. That they had worked together as one team.
And wasn't that the original objective of the whole project?
Viv
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