Putting
On The Show
It's showtime ... Copacabana is pure big time entertainment - a
musical extravaganza. But what and who does it take to put on such
a production?
First things
first - the words. Working on the script with the show's creator,
Barry Manilow, was his old friend and writing partner, Bruce Sussman.
They are about to celebrate 22 years together in the business. 'In
this business, partnerships are usually short-lived,' says Bruce.
Time was not
the only obstacle to getting this show on the road. 'Barry's based
in California and I'm in New York, and for us the best time is when
we sit down together. Barry and I tend to write impulsively, our
greatest creative ideas happen together when we're around a piano,'
he says. 'Barry was in Australia at one point and he rang me from
his hotel and played a tune down the phone to me,' he recalls, dismissing
the difficulties of such an arrangement.
'Even when we
think the script is finished, there are usually endless changes,
as with any show, even during the run itself. The scary part is
when all the scenery, equipment and lights are about to be set up
- then you have to give up all your power to people who know what
to do.'
Costume designer
Hugh Durrant had to design over 300 costumes, 200 pairs of shoes
and 100 wigs, as well as intricate jewellery. 'I was given the script
and songs, and spent some time researching clothing of the 1940s
and 50s, when the show takes place. It was then a case of sitting
down and making loads of rough sketches and then finalised drawings.
Once that was done, it all had to be approved, and then we sorted
out all the details.'
But turning
those drawings into the real thing proved difficult. 'It was then
a case of finding the right people to make the costumes, for there
aren't many shows in England that have those kind of showgirl outfits,
so finding the right person to make them was quite difficult. That
was half the battle of my work,' says Durrant.
The costumes
also have to go together with the stage design, and this is where
the design company, Imagination, came in. They were asked on September
10th to set initial ideas on paper. 'I can remember the date very
well,' recalls Jeremy Sturt, the design co-ordinator at Imagination.
'Two weeks after that I had a meeting in America with the production
team to go over the proposals.' Then the Imagination team worked
on those ideas, trying to work within a budget. 'Drawing up design
proposals that everyone was happy with took about four to six weeks,'
says Sturt.
Once the design
has been finalised, the process of making the show a living thing
follows; engineers and technicians are called in to take those plans
from the paper stage to reality. 'Once that was done we did a dry
run in the theatre, using all the equipment and the scenery changes,
and worked out the timing. This was to iron out any problems and
then the exact timings and directions were transfered to the computer.'
The next step
was the casting. Nicola Dawn won the part of Lola, and although
she's no newcomer to the stage, she is a beginner in a leading role.
For her it has all been a rollercoaster of events. 'I auditioned
for the part in January, then rehearsals started in February. They
were quite hectic - it was quite a tight schedule, doing a completely
new show in four weeks. The atmosphere was amazing in rehearsals,
there's nothing to beat that,' she smiles, playing down the hard
work involved. Then it was time for the final rehearsals and then
the real thing. |
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