Merely Players actors rehearse “Into the Woods.” (Courtesy)
Merely Players actors rehearse “Into the Woods.” (Courtesy)
Mona Wood-Patterson
Mona Wood-Patterson

Throughout my career as a theater director, I’ve often had people ask me, “What exactly is it that you do?”

Some people assume that everything you see onstage – the scenic design, acting choices, props – “comes with” the script. Others suggest that I watch a movie version repeatedly and teach the actors to copy it. Actually, the job is both a lot more fun and a lot more work than that.

For a show like ‘Into the Woods,” which I’m currently directing for Merely Players, the work starts months before anyone sings a note. Long before Cinderella flees the palace or Little Red Riding Hood skips across the stage, the director has already imagined, planned and – alongside a creative team – drawn a map for every moment that the audience will eventually experience.

Merely Players actors rehearse “Into the Woods.” (Courtesy)
Merely Players actors rehearse “Into the Woods.” (Courtesy)

Pre-production is where a director laces up her hiking boots. The first steps are research and vision. A director must understand not only what happens in the story, but why – emotionally, musically and thematically. “Into the Woods” intertwines familiar fairy tales, then complicates them. What did the authors have in mind when they wrote it this way? Is this production whimsical, dark or both? Is the forest magical or threatening? How do we balance humor with heartbreak? What do we want to say in our production?

Collaborating with designers and others on the creative team is where we make sure that everyone is on the same path. Early meetings involve ideas, sketches and sometimes wildly imaginative conversations that slowly narrow into concrete choices. How can our tiny stage transform to hold a show this big? How do costumes help us instantly recognize fairy-tale characters while still allowing singers to move and breathe? How do we do all of this on a budget?

Merely Players actors rehearse “Into the Woods.” (Courtesy)
Merely Players actors rehearse “Into the Woods.” (Courtesy)

After casting, which is huge task in itself, I must create a rehearsal schedule that respects people’s time while making sure the various elements get the attention need for vocal work, choreography, acting, scene changes and puppetry. It’s a giant puzzle, knowing there are only a set number of hours before we open. While it gets refined along the way, the rehearsal schedule is the compass that keeps us headed where we need to go.

Only after all of this does the rehearsal room truly come alive. By then, the director’s job adds on the layers of guiding, shaping and responding as they help skilled actors discover truthful moments within a structure that’s already been thoughtfully built. Multitasking is the name of the game here.

So when “Into the Woods” opens, what you’re seeing is not just a few weeks of rehearsals, but months of careful planning, collaboration, problem-solving and love. By opening night, the director has already walked the trail many times, clearing the path so the audience can simply enjoy the journey. The hiking boots may come off when the show opens, but their marks remain – in every choice and every step that invites you into the woods and safely back out again.

Mona Wood-Patterson is the artistic director for Merely Players. “Into the Woods” runs April 24 to May 10. Tickets are sold out, but there is a wait list at www.merelyplayers.org.