Interdisciplinary course produces drama in German

How do you stage manage a play in a language you don’t speak? This was the challenge I faced with Woyzeck: The Choreography of a Murder, a play that was performed at the Phoenix Theatre in the original German last month.

I was nervous at first, but my classmates made my job rewarding and easier to do. Although I’d been an assistant stage manager before, this was my first time in the key organizing role as the stage manager, so in some ways, this was new to me as to the German students.

Dr. Elena Pnevmonidou’s experimental class, Performing German Drama, an interdisciplinary theatre and Germanics effort, was the perfect place for a theatre major like me to get more experience.

The script presented many challenges, both in language and subject matter. Woyzeck is based on the true story of a German soldier who is driven mad and murders his lover in a jealous rage. The arrangement of the play presented unique difficulties. There are many settings and short scenes in different locations, which required careful planning for scene transitions and set changes. I had a lot to learn and much work to do.

A stage manager’s job depends on clear communication to effectively coordinate the different production groups in charge of props, costumes, set, lighting, sound and more. When putting on a production, it’s a difficult task to create the right atmosphere for the stage. Changing a single part of the set means the actor has to learn new stage blocking, the transition between scenes has to be redesigned, and I have to create a new stage diagram for that scene. After weeks of rehearsals, it was up to me to integrate the lighting and sound cues into the performance and finalize the prompt script for our public performances.

Since everything on stage was in German, I needed to listen particularly carefully to ensure that I understood what worked and what didn’t. The English translation of the script helped those of us who didn't know German but needed to know what was happening to do their part of the play.

Each classmate brought his or her particular skills to this production. A music student designed the sound. The more advanced German students coached the actors on language and pronunciation. Despite the long hours, meetings and rehearsals, the class worked because the students put their hearts into it. A typical day was a long one, sending out slews of emails, solving problems one at a time as they emerge. There is nothing like the craziness of putting on a show. Spending hours together every day, working to make the show a success, the class has naturally grown close.

Stage managing Woyzeck has been a unique experience. My initial discomfort with staging a show in a language I didn't understand has been replaced by a sense of accomplishment and a new respect for taking on something outside my comfort zone. I witnessed the actors gradually coming out of their shells until they spoke and gestured with confidence and energy. The play travelled so far from what I originally thought it would be like. We sold out both performances and received a great reception from the audience, both German-speaking and otherwise. My cast and crew were terrific and it was wonderful working with them. We had a lot of fun together. This was a great experience that I won’t soon forget.

Sinead Hughes is a fourth-year theatre major.