The third and final Mainstage Production of theatre KAPOW’s 17th season is just a week away! The Best We Could (a family tragedy) by Emily Feldman continues our theme of Conversation as we ride along with Lou and Ella, father and daughter, as they drive across the country to pick up Lou’s new dog. Guided by a narrator called Maps and interspersed with memories and phone calls from Ella’s mother, Peg, their journey reveals hard truths as their pasts slowly rise to the surface. Theatre KAPOW’s production of this debut play is it’s New Hampshire Premiere.
Actors Alex Picard (Peg) and Samantha Griffin (Maps), both making their tKAPOW Mainstage debuts, shared some insight into the rehearsal process and the play.
Q: Are there particular themes in the play that resonate deeply with you? What can you not get enough of exploring in the rehearsal room?
Alex Picard (AP): The idea that we are all just doing the best we can is something I think we can all find some resonance with. We’re pulled in so many directions – work, home, family and friends that it’s difficult even to find time to ourselves nevermind to take care of ourselves. That’s something I hear in my head every day. I’m doing the best I can. Sometimes we are. Sometimes we’re not. But in the end it’s all we can do.
Samantha Griffin (SG): Something especially exciting we get to explore in the room is the transfer of knowledge through time, and as this play is presented non-linearly, it’s really interesting to track when people find things out, and how that affects conversations when the audience still doesn’t have all the information.
Q: What role does movement and physical exploration play in the rehearsal room and in the production?
SG: theatre KAPOW in general always makes a point of playing with physicality and movement, even in pieces that aren’t scripted to include those elements. We always start rehearsal with a physical activity or game, and that helps inform us as actors that it’s okay to use movement and explore throughout the rehearsal.
AP: Movement and physical exploration has been critical in the development of the world of the play, characters, and how they physically relate to each other. I love working physically with character and finding the things that make Peg, Peg helps me to lean into her and her family more effectively as everyone in the cast is working similarly. We never leave the performance, though we do leave the scene and finding how we relate to the action as well as our need to move to the next place/person/moment is the bulk of our work.
Q: Has your experience working on this play or collaborating with theatre KAPOW offered anything distinctive compared to your previous work as an actor?
SG: I’m always struck by how collaborative the room is when working with tKAPOW. There are the designated roles of director, stage manager, and actor, but in a lot of ways we are all contributing to the overall picture of the piece. In this play especially, I think there are moments where each of us could say “that came from me”, and that’s really special. KAPOW’s model is pretty rare, especially in NH, and I think that’s part of what makes their work so unique.
AP: I’ve worked a lot in a lot of different places and one thing I see at KAPOW that I didn’t always see in other theatres or with other companies is the careful attention they pay to the emotional, physical, and mental wellness of their cast and crew. It’s deeply appreciated. I feel cared for on and off stage.
Q: Is there anything else you’d like to share about this play or process?
AP: I love how Emily Feldman built this world. It’s structurally very interesting and her use of repetition is very powerful. Her characters are flawed and human and try so hard. Sometimes they gain ground, but more often than not, they’re just working with everything they’ve got not to slide back instead.
SG: Life has both light and dark, and so does this play. I hope you can join us in finding the beauty and humanity in each.
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THE BEST WE COULD (A FAMILY TRAGEDY) BY EMILY FELDMAN performs at BNH Stage in Concord June 13-15th. Tickets are available online now!: https://ccanh.my.salesforce-sites.com/ticket/#/events/a0SUT000000HOqj2AG
