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The Cast of Twelfth Night @ Maddermarket Theatre

Maddermarket Theatre

by Sophie Rice Words And Pix Courtesy Of Norwich Players Theatre Company

16/05/24

The Cast of Twelfth Night @ Maddermarket Theatre

From Romeo and Juliet and Macbeth to Hamlet and The Tempest, they truly seems to be a play from Shakespeare for everyone to witness the beauty of theatre! Whether you want to cry, laugh or feel frustrated (or even inspired!), the power of Shakespeare is endless! Between the 21st and the 25th May, Norwich Players Theatre Company will be bringing their production of ‘Twelfth Night’ to the stage of the Maddermarket Theatre, allowing us all to be immersed in the beauty of Shakespeare!

A few weeks ago, I caught up with Richard Carey-Knight, who will be playing Sir Toby Belch and Andy Reeve, who will be playing Sir Andrew Aguecheek, to give us a behind the scenes ‘sneak peek’ into how rehearsals have been going so far, ahead of opening night next week!

· How have rehearsals been going?

(Richard) They’ve been going very well. The rehearsal period is longer than for previous performances I’ve been involved in at the Maddermarket. The additional time gives us much more opportunity to invent, to explore, and to get comfortable with our characters - and learn the lines of course.

(Andy) For me and my stage partners they’re getting better and better. This is my first ever Shakespeare, so in the early days getting my head around some of the dialogue was much more difficult than I expected; then rehearsing one of two, or both, fight scenes and all of a sudden my mind would shut down, and nothing I heard or said would make any sense! Now it’s very smooth and much more fun.

· What are you most looking forward to in ‘Twelfth Night’?

(Richard) There’s a line – sometimes marked, and sometimes not – at each of the entrances onto the stage, that indicate the point beyond which the audience can see you. Stepping over that line is one of the most terrifying things you can willingly undertake. That’s what I’m looking forward to in Twelfth Night; crossing that line.

(Andy) Winding up Malvolio!

· How did you approach your character?

(Richard) With my character, Sir Toby Belch, I had to first recognise that he is partly an archetype cut from the same cloth as Sir John Falstaff, and archetypes are tricky things for an actor. Belch is a drunk, a womaniser and a conman, but he’s also smart and brave. He is attracted to wit in others, and preys on vanity and foolishness. I have to find reasons for those things, not for the audience, at least initially, but for myself. I’m still working on Sir Toby, he’s tricky, partly because Shakespeare gives you so much to work with.

(Andy) As always, and first of all, through the text. Nearly everything about a character, including subtle clues about elements of their past, hopes for the future, is in the text. The only bits that aren’t are those bits of myself that I bring to the character which feel relevant and true. And then as rehearsals go on, certain things change and new things appear. Sir Andrew is popularly known as a bit of an idiot, but no one is that one-dimensional, least of all in a Shakespeare.

We know Sir Andrew Aguecheek is a knight of the realm, we hear he has an annual income of 3000 ducats, which today would be approximately half a million quid. To bring him into the contemporary - so to speak - I looked for positions where someone could earn a lot of money for doing relatively little, so I went with a YouTuber / Influencer type.
I then begin visualising the physicality of the character; how would he sit or stand while making YouTube videos? For how long would he do that and how would that affect his posture, his breathing, his voice? That’s when he starts appearing as a whole, and the great thing about rehearsals is we have time to play about. Of course I probably won’t get the hang of him until the final show!

· Do you relate to any elements of your character?

(Richard) I relate to more of Sir Toby’s elements than is healthy, though which parts exactly I’ll keep to myself. In general, at the beginning you look for the common elements that you and a character share and you stitch them together. That’s the departure point for most characters.

(Andy) Yes, but you’ll have to come watch the show to see and/or hear what they are!

· Do you have any pre- show rituals?

(Richard) I like to get to the theatre early. I do a circuit of the stage, just to say hello to the old girl, and I to give a rousing impression of Harry Belafonte singing The Banana Boat Song.

(Andy) I’ve only acted on stage since autumn last year so I don’t think I have a ritual as much as I seem to have an involuntary response to what’s happening. Half-an-hour or so before curtain, the nerves are rising, things become tingly. I become quiet, very insular, focused, breathing is very important.

· What power do you believe theatre holds?

(Richard) From a stage you can inspire any emotion, subvert any idea, and expose (or tell), any lie. And you can do it with an immediacy and an intimacy that no other medium can provide. It’s why theatre endures, even in this multimedia age.

(Andy) Oh my goodness! Well, I’m lucky in that I’ve worked as stagecrew on big touring productions such as Grease, Dr Dolittle, RSC, Northern Ballet at the Theatre Royal up the road; I’ve been an audience member at numerous shows in different venues, and in this fantastic Elizabethan replica, I’m trodding the boards! All three each have their own strange mystique in relation to a show, but when a show is good, all three fizz at the same time; it’s as close to magic as many people will ever experience. No one knows how it happens or why it happens, it just does, and, just like with any art form that brings all kinds of different people together, it’s valuable because it is human, and it is live.

· What do you love most about the community at The Norwich Players Theatre Company/ Maddermarket Theatre?

(Richard) I sat in the read-through at the start of rehearsals, and looked around at the cast and thought ‘Here’s a room full of strangers – at least to me.’ But I knew that would change and it has. A community theatre can be such a powerful thing in people’s lives. I love that you can be wayward, and yet return. I love bumping into old friends from years ago and retelling old war stories. I love all the comfortable old ghosts standing by you when the lines dry up on stage and the lights seem especially bright. The Maddermarket is one of the places where the magic comes from.

(Richard) I’m not sure that he is important. But to paraphrase the author, John Green (who was actually talking about football), Shakespeare may be one of the most important of all the unimportant things we do. And if people want to find out why, come along to see Twelfth Night.

(Andy) Are you kidding? No, I totally get it. Right, here we go. The first time I read Twelfth Night was when I had to for this. No joke. I’m terrible. Shakespeare’s plays will always be important because they’re about the very essential elements, mechanics, qualities and problems that make us who we are and have done so ever since we began communicating with words, language, gestures. Languages may change, fashions come and go, but love, grief, joy, arrogance, pity, hope, humour, death are all things we will know and encounter.

· What advice would you give to any aspiring actors/ actresses?

(Richard) Learn how to learn your lines, and then learn them quickly. It’s a lesson I’ve taken some time to learn! Also, don’t listen to any low level civil servants in a local government office telling you don’t have a chance at the one thing you know you’d be good at because there’s no funding. Those people must be stopped!

(Andy) Wherever you are, find an audition to go to in the next 2-3 weeks or months (could be here, could be Sewell Barn Theatre, could be
anywhere). Just get started before it’s too late! I started aged 46 and I’m still 46…hahaha, that’s how ridiculous my journey is so far.

But it’s true, there is an acting bug and it can bite very hard! Read a play a week or a month. Observe people, on telly and out and about. Listen to people’s stories on the street, on the bus, in the shops. Find acting classes online and face-to-face. I’ve just started an acting course with The Actor’s Lounge, and it’s already interesting and valuable. There’s an incredible range of resources, lessons and insights on the iampro.com website, which was started by Charlie Brooks. I’ve only watched four or five masterclasses and lessons and all of them have been hugely beneficial, if you feel the time isn’t right to cross the threshold (it is nerve- wracking so that’s perfectly understandable) get involved another way by being backstage or something else: just get involved and join in the fun! Remember: you will look silly, but you’ll join all those wonderfully brilliant people throughout history who decided silly was easily worth it.

If you want to keep up to date with the work (and amazing productions!) of Maddermarket Theatre, then you can head to their website, at- maddermarket.co.uk, or check out their Instagram (@maddermarket_theatre)!