Rent- 7/1/16- Act 2 Complete Run- Feedback and Opinion

7/1/16- Act 2 Complete Run- Feedback and Opinion
We did our first complete run through of Act 2 and got feedback on our performance as a group and individuals. Overall the run went well, with the majority of lines and songs remembered correctly. Seasons of Love, the first song in act 2 needs some work to move in unison, all actors needing to turn in unison after the solos and clicking and swaying that starts on the second verse needs to be in time. This feedback is important as it makes the opening of act 2 look sloppy, so it needs to be addressed.
My own solo part in Seasons of love also needs a small amount of work to hit the right key, that shouldn't be too hard and I will work on over the coming rehearsals.
Happy New Year B also needs a bit of work on blocking which I agree with as we look clumped and should in my opinion be spread out more and have different 'roles' to fit at the party e.g. Mimi and Maureen could be pouring drinks, Joann offering snacks etc. because currently it looks plain and the space is not being used effectively.
After Angles funeral we were suggested to, one at a time, go up to Collins and hug him/her to show our condolences, showing heartfelt connection between key characters. Also at the funeral it Rachel suggested that Roger and Mimi should notice each other and react awkwardly, we eventually decided that Mimi should walk past Roger, make eye contact and then she walks over to Benny/Betty and they put their arm around her and Roger will subtly react to this, showing he still cares about Mimi and he is jealous and angry at Benny/Betty.
We also played with the idea after feedback of moving into the space before and dispersing after the funeral slowly, this worked as it gave the scene a somber feeling, which is needed for Angles funeral.
Another aspect that needs work is the argument during Good Bye Love as it is lacking energy at the moment and doesn't feel like an argument at the moment, we will again work on this in up coming rehearsals as we need to work on the vibe. It need to be faster paced and characters really have to get mad at each other.
Me and Rachel also discussed the idea that Roger needs a shift in emotion during Angles funeral and during Good Bye Love as he is leaving everything behind and traveling to Santa Fe to find himself and we decided he should be holding a rucksack and look reticent, apprehensive and perhaps reluctant to leave. This would show a change in Roger from his normal attitude to one of sadness that he is leaving his love ones behind.
Another song that needs some work on movement is What You Own, the singing is almost perfect but at the moment me and Luke (playing Mark) just stand in place and sing. The song is quite a lively one so this doesn't really fit, we decided that each of us should sing to the audience on either side of the stage. We will now move around, singing to our side of the audience which also works as our characters are meant to be on other sides of the country to each other and the divide between the two sides of the stage shows the divide in both distance and emotion until they reunite at the end of the song.
We also made a slight change to Your Eyes, the song I sing at the end of the play. I decided I should stand for this song looking down on Mimi as she dies to allow the audience to see my face better as before I was crouched beside her. This also works as it shows Roger trying to detach from the situation (which he is referenced to do throughout the musical) but he moves closer and closer to her as the song goes on, being drawn to her. I think this will give this scene loads of emotion, which it needs as it is an emotional song and scene.