Tuesday 24th June
The next day Rhianna arrives, the epitome of style in her navy open-topped coupe. She is like a breath of fresh air, a broad smile with dark, enquiring eyes. She is warm and engaging and has that old-fashioned kind of elegance that speaks of another era.
She says she has only read the play once but she can see there are a lot of layers to it and that its interesting being about the process of film making.
I say it’s going to be about finding the moments when she is acting as Marilyn Monroe and when she is revealing herself as Norma Jean. It’s about the gear changes between the two as well as capturing the iconic voice and physical movement.
She says she was discussing with a friend how playing Marilyn is like the equivalent of playing Hamlet. It’s the one great iconic role that every woman would like to play but there are so many layers to uncovering her. Because everybody thinks they know who she was. But she is different to every body. What she doesn’t tell me until much later in the run is that she has already played her twice before.
I ask her if she knows about the fringe and she says she played a French wife in a new short play last year and went to see a lot of other shows.
She seems happy to take part on the basis of Fringe ans I tell her that she’ll need to give as good as she gets with Loie and hold her own.
She strikes me as being quite English in her manner and in her accent at moments, one would be forgiven for thinking she wasn’t American at all.
I’ve finished telling her all about the script and asking if she had any questions and as k her if she has any? Bryant has failed to materialise but then the door bell rings and in he comes brandishing a box of sugary and pink iced donuts!
I sense a hiatus in proceedings so decide to relay to Bryant what we had just been discussing to alleviate the need for starting over repeating questions so we get straight down to brass tacks.
I ask her to write down her measurements for me on my little notepad since we shall be shopping for the dress and shoes soon as possible now she has confirmed she is on board.
There is a rehearsal the same evening at APA Studios and Rhianna agrees to attend. When we get there Bryant is informed that we are not in the usual room he has had for a few days but a smaller ”Office” space today. When we open the red door a broom falls out and a pile of mops and cleaning equipment are there. It is a deep tapered room full of equipment and a quick calculation tells me it would take more trouble to clear it than walk away. It was like a gym with weights, metal poles, racks, bars, filing cabinets, chairs, desks, clutter. We closed the door on it and felt immediately better. Knowing this was going to be Rhianna’s first encounter with the company, what would she think if she turned up to her first rehearsal and was faced with the prospect of rehearsing in a walk in broom cupboard?
We went back to the front desk and the young girls on there and asked if there was anything else available? No, the studios are pretty busy tonight.
There was nothing for it but to go outside to the loading bay at the back of the building where there was a raised concrete platform about four metres by two and set up there. But I could see there wasn’t room for the actors and us with our trestle table and laptop but the lower area below which backed onto an access road from the car park with the roar of the freeway we had come off below that. It was going to be an interesting first rehearsal. The young girls from the front desk helped us carry out chairs and tables, probably more out of pity than anything. What on earth was Rhianna going to think?
“What, you’re reduced to rehearsing in the parking lot”? Someone asked. “Oh no”, I said, defiantly, “We are in the loading bay, if you don’t mind”!
Rhianna was a good sport and soon we were blocking and going through scene one. I had tried to get the actors off book on Sunday so they could concentrate on moves and reaction and I prompted where necessary. Of course Rhianna was going to be script in hand but it was evident that Randy really hadn’t retained his lines and was cursing himself with “Fuck” every time he stumbled or forgot a line. Loie, who claimed to now have scenes one and two off book started to falter and blame the distraction of the constant din of traffic on the freeway below.
Word must have got round because it wasn’t long before Kevin appeared on the scene with his camera to take shots of his artists having to rehearse outside his Studios because they were so busy. The sun was sinking, lending that golden glow and the photos came out looking like a location shoot for a low-budget American indie movie. That night was our first meeting with our Stage Manager, Ryan who Bryant had met on a previous job. An angular, geeky young choirboy who I can see in collar and ruff! He has an angel face and is as camp as anyone I had ever met. He has the habit of twisting his arms around his elbows in front of him like a pair of ungainly wings. With sparkling blue eyes, a beaming smile and a nasal voice so garbled and fast, he gives the impression of being stuck in fast forward mode. He said he could be on book to prompt the actors if I liked to relieve me of the role. I agreed, only his voice is so slight and quick that he couldn’t make Loie hear her lines as he shouted them out to her over the noise of the traffic in the open air. He circled words on the script the actors struggled with using one of his many pencils that he carried around in a case with him for the purpose. He is friendly, diligent, business like and obliging. Apart from the constant distraction of traffic it was lovely to be outside rehearsing in the evening warmth of a San Diego summer’s night. We stumbled through scene one a couple of times before dusk descended.
A female security guard patrolled the car park and grounds around the studios. She passed by a couple of times then seemed to loiter behind us as she watched our rehearsal before summoning the nerve to speak. “I’m not too sure about this”. She stated.
We ignored her and carried on. “You know. I’m really not too sure about this. Have you got permission to be here?”
“Yes Kevin has cleared it”, replied Bryant defiantly!
I looked round with incredulity at her. “Why don’t you have a word with Kevin if it worries you?” I asked.
“I mean this kind of thing is better done inside maybe. You could be a threat out here”.
“The studios are full! There’s no room. That’s why we are out here”! Said Bryant.
“I mean it doesn’t look like you’re about to kill anyone”… she surmises, “but I’m not too sure.”
“Only the script” remarked Loie in perfect Sitwell mode.
“Kevin was just here taking photos, you could clear it with him” suggested Bryant.
“Well he’s not here anymore” She states.
“I guess you’re not doing any harm to no one.” “Maybe it’s okay. You carry on” she says and finally leaves one of the most dangerous group of thespians to run riot while rehearsing in the back loading bay of a car park this side of southern California.
We call it a night early around nine as it gets progressively dark.
Wed 25th June
The next morning I have had the pleasure of thoroughly researching where we might obtain authentic ‘conical’ or ‘bullet bras’ on the internet to try to get the authentic Monroe busty look for our actress. Bryant picks me up again in his two door red sports type car with a broken wing mirror and doors that don’t lock. We go shopping round the thrift shops of North Park and Hillcrest district.
I’d researched a vintage shop on Facebook and messaged them about a Marilyn Monroe white dress. They said they’d be happy to loan us the dress for a hire fee thinking it was for my actress to wear to the première of a film and they would be prepared to show publicity for the film in their window.
But of course I was after a more formal white day dress for her to wear during the run of my play for her 1953 meeting with Sitwell. This was before she became famous for The Seven Year Itch (1955) scene with the iconic ivory halterneck Travilla cocktail dress flying up from warm draughts from a subway grate.
The owner is a tall, imposing European with a thick dramatic accent and manicured moustache, dressed from head to toe in black, like a lead in one of those early German Expressionist films.
“You will find it almost impossible to source a vintage white dress from the 50’s that has survived. In all the years I have been dealing I see very few. You see, being white they always get stained and show the dirt so everyone threw them away. You will be very lucky indeed! Why do you want a shirt dress anyway? It’s Marilyn Monroe she was always provocative.” The shop is a real treasure trove of all types of periods of dresses, hats, shoes and accessories, including handbags lined up in glossy lines on shelves. But they are all too expensive to contemplate for Sitwell in the show. We ask if we might leave a few fliers for the show in the shop?
We found another great vintage shop with an excellent collection of clothes and bags all rather expensive on our modest budget. The owner was a smartly dressed man in his fifties with one of those strange spun hairdos and a ready smile that reminded me of a 1950’s black and white TV quiz show host. His wife was an off stage voice from the back of the store through the magical bead curtain and would not be making an appearance today. When I enquired about a white period 1950’s shirt dress there was the usual drawing of breath and how difficult that was going to be to find before a “you might well be in luck” and the voice called her husband who disappeared momentarily to emerge carrying forth a white-ish dress for Marilyn. It was the first period shirt style dress we had seen but they wanted around $80 for it. It actually looked a little large anyway.
We asked if we might put up a poster for the show? “We get hit on all the time here because the area is so popular but we just can’t otherwise we’d be swamped” He said. “But I don’t mind if you’d like to leave some fliers over by the door”. We thank him and depart.
In another store we find two packets of new retro white arm gloves along with a lot of clothes for women and accessories including handbags but no white dress for Marilyn or black handbag for Edith. We called in new fashion shops to enquire about a white dress but they were all off the shoulder slinky numbers, very sexy and far too short.
We then drive to Hilllcrest and find one of the largest and untidiest of thrift shops with clothes hung on long rows of rungs covering much of the entire floor. We are searching for wide seamed turn up tweed style trousers for Cukor too. Suddenly Bryant finds an almost identical 50’s style ivory shirt dress like the one in the vintage shop but with an embroidered front with small pink flowers showing behind the cut out petals on the chest and a pleated full knee-length skirt. It’s perfect, looks like a good size and best of all is $6. “Let’s get it and let Rhianna try it on to see if it fits. We’re never going to find anything better than that” I said. I couldn’t believe our luck! I searched for a pair of size 7 white semi stilettos in vain. Upstairs I find a pair of old-fashioned yellow damask silk style cushions that might be of use on the sofa to give Cukor a bit of business playing with them. Bryant also finds a belt and “suspenders” or braces for Cukor. As we are about to pay for the items at the till, Bryant spots a wonderful large oval black cabochon white metal ring in the desk cabinet, absolutely perfect for Sitwell and says we’ll take that too. Still no black 50’s handbag for Sitwell despite searching carefully through the row of ones hung high above our heads from the ceiling.
It is, however a major victory to have scored finding the Marilyn’s dress. Let’s just hope it fits.
We drive on further to the most beautifully set out thrift store where everything is displayed in colour co-ordinated sections. So if you want something white you know where to go. It turns out to be the same store where Loie brought me to buy her black velvet top and I found two pairs of white shoes that are perfect in style but in size 8 and 8.5. I negotiate to return a pair if they don’t fit and hope we may be able to pad them with insets. So we leave with two pairs of white stilettos. It is gone six and we are due to meet for rehearsal at APA Studios at 7pm but we are in dire need of food and refreshment. We return to the LGBT pizza place on the corner where I had an amazing pizza yesterday with Bryant. It suddenly dawns on me the irony of a straight man, sat in a gay restaurant, carrying a bag bearing two pairs of women’s white stilettos, wearing a 50’s style panama hat, talking to a gay man about how delighted he is that he has finally found a dress for Marilyn, one of the biggest gay icons in the world and costume for Edith while our bearded waiter touches me reassuringly each time he takes an order. I marvel at the comfort I take in feminine things being a fish out of water in such surroundings. It must rank amongst the very best pizza I’ve ever had and amazing handcrafted beer! We just about have time to chill out and enjoy a great meal before we must race back onto the freeway for the second night of rehearsal with the new cast.
When we reach the studio Loie and Rhianna are already going through Scene 2 together under the supervision of Ryan. We are in an end studio room with a thudding pop soundtrack coming through from the dancers next door. The actors soldier on but it is distracting and noisy and not easy to concentrate on an emotional scene.
I am eager to see if Marilyn’s dress fits so she tries it on and it looks almost perfect. There is an open cut out section showing her back which doesn’t feel quite right for the period but I am not going to worry about this as it looks great. The shoes however are quite a bit bigger than her feet and I can get my finger between her back ankle and the back of the shoes proving there is too much gap to do anything about. Both pairs will have to be returned.
Loie is instantly delighted with her new shades and promptly hands me the old ones back in their case in jubilation. “Oh, I do like these” she says. “I quite fancy them myself, actually!”
We are told that unfortunately the room we are in has been booked at 8pm for a tap dancing class and we must vacate. So we decide to set up the tressle table in the common space between studios in front of the dispensing machine and do a table reading. We are now able to hear a loud bass coming from the opposite room which sounds like the door is left open its so loud. Not so.
Then the ladies, chatting loudly to one another outside their room finally enter and start tap dancing and click around making a din as they enter the hard studio floor. They continue to tap dance and make a racket for an hour, which combined with the music thumping out from the opposite studio which makes for another surreally farcical rehearsal and Loie kindly offers to continue rehearsals at her place which is nearer for all of us and not nearly so damn noisy and distracting. It is to be our last night at the Studios and Bryant cancels all the future bookings he made here.
The Peacock and the Nightingale 