Week 3 They ran ’til they stopped Rehearsals with Performer Lawrence Ashford
November 9th, 2011Lawrence Ashford (Lawrie) is a bit of a champ in our books. Not only did he stand on a podium for two hours in the middle of Perth Cultural Centre whilst strangers covered him with post-it notes saying “nice ass” and “cares like a mother would”, he was just named Perth’s best storyteller at the inaugural Barefaced Story Battle. In between tech runs and RTR interviews, Lawrie took a moment to share what Week 3 rehearsals have been like for They ran ’til they stopped which previews at PICA this Thursday.
Words: Lawrence Ashford, Performer Photos: Sarah Rowbottam
It is with a touch of sadness that we say goodbye to Week 3, and full time rehearsals. As excited as I am to get into the PICA performance space, I shall miss the fun days we spent in the Blue Room Theatre’s Kaos Room.
In fact, that room is aptly named, because at times rehearsals have bordered on unmitigated chaos. Working with Katt, Whitney and Arielle has been an absolute blast, and several times over the last few weeks we have found ourselves looking around, as the fits of laughter subside, and wondering if perhaps we are having too much fun. Fortunately Whitney has kept us on track, repeatedly reminding what page of the script we are up to, and how much more work is ahead of us.
Pictured: Arielle Gray, Whitney Richards and Lawrence Ashford
Pictured: Lawrence Ashford and Arielle Gray
Although, it has never really felt like ‘work’. Katt has maintained a fine line between chaos and control, and has encouraged us to play with almost every piece of text, which has lead to some exciting, and sometimes hilarious discoveries. We have also discovered a lot about each other. For instance, I had always known that Whitney was a talented performer, but it wasn’t until one of our first rehearsals when she burst into tears whilst working on a scene, that I realised she is in fact, a young Meryl Streep! She has been known as Meryl ever since (much to her displeasure). Arielle can also turn on the waterworks should the occasion call for it, and has been known as Natalie Portman since mid last week. If you see either Whitney or Arielle on the street, or at the theatre, please refer to them with their new names. Many thanks.
Working with this team, and with our hardworking production team, has been such a wonderful experience. I look forward to finally opening later this week, and only hope that the audience has as much fun watching this show, as we did making it.
My castmates and I are already plotting a possible sequel. Some titles that have been suggested so far are: “They started running again”, “They ran til they required a hip replacement”, and “I know where you ran last summer”.
10 – 19 November 2011
Lawrence studied a Bachelor of Arts at Curtin University, with a Major in Performance Studies, and a Minor in Creative Writing. He furthered his training whilst living abroad in London, taking short courses at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and the Theatre Royal Haymarket. Theatre credits include Unidentified Human Remains and the True Nature of Love (Hayman Theatre), Terrorism (Hayman Theatre/Be Active BSX-Theatre), and Jack and Jill (The Blue Room Theatre/Red Rabbit Collective). In 2011 Lawrence collaboratively developed and performed in new work: Flirt Fiction (Red Rabbit Collective), which toured to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe before returning to Perth for a three week run as part of The Blue Room Theatre’s Personal season. Lawrence is also an active participant in Barefaced Stories, a regular storytelling series in Perth, and in October 2011 took out the inaugural Barefaced Story Battle, beating a field of thirty four to be named Perth’s best storyteller.
