Rabbit Resource Pack - Frantic Assembly

We need performers that
can place themselves
within a busy creative
process and not feel
separate or superior to
the demands of any
other component. We
need team players. Since
the company started it
has found collaboration
to be the most exciting
way to work and this has created an atmosphere where an interest
and understanding of the other practitioners’ input leads to a greater
understanding of the work as a whole.
When casting for the Cave family members we looked for
individually talented people. We looked for a brooding darkness
within Paul but equally a suppressed sensitivity that would hint at a
possible salvation. For Madeline we had to look for a performer who
could capture the qualities of someone who has not quite come to
terms with the transition from girl to woman and who can fluctuate
between the two. For Kate Cave we wanted a woman who exuded a
sexual charm with just a hint of psychosis.
Sometimes it is not simply a task of matching our performers to
what we have discovered about the characters from several readings.
Sometimes the people you meet can change what you thought you
were looking for. For the character Spin we were looking for someone
who could carry off the streetwise unwashed feel that he exudes from
the page. When Sam Crane auditioned he came across as polite,
handsome and possibly well to do. He threw himself into the
physical side and when it came to the readings we gave him a section
of text essentially written as a rap. We gave him the option of reading
it straight but when he offered to rap it we prepared ourselves for
what could be the longest five minutes of our lives. What followed
completely blew up away. Sam rapped brilliantly and subsequently
opened up the possibilities of what Spin could be! We realised Spin
could also be a mess of contradictions, of denials and aspirations, just
as much as any of the Cave family.
Similarly, for the part of Driver, we were initially looking for a big
bruiser performer as the script dictated but that search was proving
difficult. We thought again about the quality that the character of
Driver brings to the piece. We talked about an other worldly quality,
something distinct from the rest of the group, a quiet dignity and self
possession that keeps him composed when faced with the madness of
the Cave family. Importantly, under this composure lies a violent,
powerful potential that could easily overturn Paul’s world of
definition and order. This distinction suggested to us that Driver
would even move in his own way, exist at a different pace more in
tune to the outside world, far closer to ‘the real world.’ With these
thoughts in mind we turned to Karl Sullivan, a gentle giant we had
worked with on a show called Hymns. (Ok, he may not be a giant
but we are quite a small company!). Karl is a fantastic mover and the
idea of working with a performer who could express the world of
Driver to the audience physically and not just through the few words
he has became a very exciting prospect.
With Karl on board we now had a complete cast. Having cast the
show based on the abilities of the performers alone we then noticed
the startling similarity that existed between the performers playing
the Cave family! Paul and Kate Cave did not look like each other but
Madeline was definitely their daughter, taking various features from
each! The resemblance was unnerving but also a massive stroke of
luck. We took this as a good sign!
All of the performers have surprised and inspired us during
rehearsals. Their vast performance skills are bolstered by an incredible
speed at picking things up, things they may never have done before!
Susan Kyd (Kate) and David Sibley (Paul) may not have felt
immediately comfortable with the movement tasks but we have
found both to be absolute physical theatre naturals. Both are fully
committed to the moves, allowing them to inform their performance
without it taking over. They probably don’t know this but in
rehearsals they are all, with a grace that borders on the offensive,
achieving what it has taken us years to even appreciate existed.
Namely a fully rounded physical performance.
FROM PAGE TO STAGE
Stage Directions
We are notoriously slack with stage directions. Early in rehearsals a member of the cast
suggested we mark the kisses in a scene as we read through it. We suggested that we
shouldn’t worry about that now.
It was at this moment that we realised that we probably have an unusual relationship
with stage directions. By ignoring them at the beginning we try to get into the meat of
the text. What tends to happen then is the stage directions come back as welcome
suggestions, not just appearing as hurdles on day one of rehearsals.
Of course this is only possible thanks to the open mindedness of writers like Brendan
Cowell and Abi Morgan. We realise that some writers’ feelings about their stage
directions would probably make it impossible for us to get to grips with their work.
The ‘problem’ of the second half
Rabbit is certainly a play of two halfs. The first half is about a clash of cultures and
manners. In the second half the evening has been blown apart and the characters are
found in ever more extreme situations.
Dealing with the madness of the second half was always going to be a sizeable task. We
wanted to avoid a general sense of the surreal taking over and dwarfing the characters.
After a particularly good run in the rehearsal room we suddenly realised that the
madness of the second half had to be something that the characters had to create
themselves. This is not mad things happening to them. This is all a self-made situation.
They are all responsible. They are lying in their own mess.
This realisation raised the stakes considerably. It meant that each of the little scenes in
the second half had to really fizz with energy. The concept of the visual transition from
room to woods is not enough to carry the Act and it was time for the actors to claim it
back as their own.
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