Arts Behind the Noises Off Curtain Raisa Hoffman & McCauley Braun You’ve heard about it, you’ve known about it, and hopefully you’ve seen it. The knee-slapping British comedy Noises Off by Michael Frayn that hit Thayer Academy’s CFA stage this past February was an experience like none other. From sardines to Arab sheiks to missing contact lenses and of course, the monstrous set piece—this play was surely one of the most challenging projects Thayer Academy’s drama program has ever embraced. Here’s a behind-the-scenes look to aid you in your understanding of how this whole production came together.
Never mind the nine principal characters (played by Peter Fitzpatrick, Harry Bacon, Kedian Keohan, Raisa Hoffman, PJ Leddy, Katie MacVarish, Dimitri Antoniou, Chippy Kennedy, and Emma Quigley), without a doubt, the infamous and unpredictable “sardines” clearly stole the spotlight. In order to keep track of which plate was needed at what moment, cast members labeled paper plates as sardines #1, sardines #2, sardines #3, and one labeled “sardizzles.” Heaven forbid we got them confused!
Raisa Hoffman photos
A round of applause to our tech crew for their lovely sound effects as the characters in Noises Off began to perform “Nothing On” at the start of Act Two. The tech crew made life significantly easier for us as we tackled this concept of a “play within a play.” Listening intently in the wings, they simulated the audience’s applause as the actors “bloodily staggered” or “blindly stumbled” through the show. More important than the characters, the text, or even the sardines, was the gargantuan, multi-level, rotating house that we called our set. This piece, which you could literally live in if you so chose, swallowed many hours of many Saturdays and Sundays to construct. Noises Off is one of the few shows where technical aspects and the set are more important than the actors. A huge thank you goes to Technical Director Brooks Donnelly. His intricate planning and unconditional devotion made this possible. THANKS!
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