My involvement with “afterlife: a ghost story” began when Kate Warner invited me to attend an informal reading of it in the Fall of 2009. I am happy that she invited me to join her on this production, and am excited to incorporate my own ideas with Steve Yockey’s specific stage directions. The challenge is how to realize the effects and soundscapes in the script, and my presence in rehearsals has helped me make choices alongside Kate’s and the actors’ work.
Without giving too much away, the ocean is a strong presence in the story, and its changing mood has to be conveyed over the course of the first act. I have assembled a palette of ocean sounds to select and have begun to make selections in rehearsal. Loudspeaker zones above and behind the audience, as well as onstage specials and the fixed main speakers will give me flexibility to move and isolate sounds in different parts of the space, giving depth and texture to an “oceanic vocabulary.”
The second act introduces other characters whose individual worlds I will help to convey with sound. Cristina Todesco’s scenic design has been invaluable to me I try to aurally represent the physical environments she has created.
Sound will be a constant voice in this production, so working with the actors has been helpful as I create sounds that both support them and serve a narrative function alongside them. At this point, I have established a framework of specific sounds and events, and will spend the next few days creating cues from the ideas I’ve developed in rehearsals. By the time we reach technical rehearsals later this week, I will have a selection of pre-built cues and individual sonic elements to mix in the theatre space.
I hope the New Rep audience enjoys our efforts, and that the production provokes much discussion!
David Remedios
afterlife: a ghost story Sound Desginer
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