Rehearsal 6, Thursday 2nd May 2002

It's a relief that today has come and I can stop, at least briefly, trying to learn the part that I'm going to try out tonight. I've spent the last two days wandering around town muttering to myself and gesticulating as I attempt to memorise the words and picture how best to deliver them - stopping occasionally when people give me funny looks, so that I can yell after them:

"I'm not mad, you know!"

That usually reassures them enough to hurry on their way.

Actually, I've been so indecisive and changed my mind so much, that I've ended up preparing two parts. I've kind of resolved to do a speech by the Mayor, but also have a bit by Khlestakov in reserve in case I change my mind or someone else beats me to the other one.

We start off today with a batch of standing in a circle while alternately shouting loudly and squeaking quietly, all the while pulling faces at each other. I think David must currently be reading 'Jeckyll and Hyde'. Then it's into the now obligatory manic charge about the room, this time interspersed with various attempts to slap parts of each other's anatomies. Why do I keep ending up with people who have a longer reach than me? By the end, I'm walking about, trying to spot someone with stumpy little arms so that I can follow them about until we partner up again. No such luck, though - I think the others have the same plan and have identified me as the stumpy-armed one.

Back to walking about. Now David wants us to start mumbling the first line of our prepared piece. It's just like walking about town again! But he wants us to keep getting louder, and as I wander about the room, I hear at least two other voices saying the same line as me. It's so funny, I have a difficult time keeping a straight face and an even more difficult one not talking in sync with them. After a few variations, we end up in two rows, whispering or shouting the line to someone opposite. It's only as the rows close up that I notice that no-one has paired with me, but Simon next to me has managed to get three people homing in on him - damn charismatic swine!

Eventually we all get sat down as an audience and, one by one, are brought out to do our bit. Having done it, we are then told to do it differently, so we do it again, and get interrupted half way and told to start again,… and so on until David tires of the sport and casts us aside ready for the next victim.

I'm quite happy to be called up before the other two doing the same part. The particular brand of torture he's on when it's my turn is to make me do it again without walking or moving my hands. I kind of manage this for most of it, until I get to the shouty bits. Soon it's time to sit down again, knowing that's my lot for the night. Still, it's a lot of fun watching the others even if, every time someone reads a speech, it makes me want to get up and have a go too…

Highlight of the night is probably Robbie performing a distinctly Scottish Bobchinsky, talking about a "Bonnie wee bairn!". And embarrassment of the night is probably my megaphone style phone going off in the middle of the final piece - sorry Sylvia…

Casting on Saturday - Oh my god, I'm a bag of nerves.

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