Entry Seven - Covering A Lot More Ground

Today we were able to work on all the scenes that we’ve not worked on so far since the start of the New Year. This included the first appearance of Aslan – which leads into Peter’s fight with Maugrim – the first confrontation between Aslan and the White Witch, the scenes at the Beaver’s house, the Father Christmas scene, the aftermath of the great battle, the coronation scene, and the montage that covers the fifteen year span of the four children’s reign as Kings and Queens of Narnia. 

Whew! A lot was covered!

I should mention that we also practiced the fights again, and choreographed the fight between Aslan and the White Witch.

Now that we have a conclusion to the final battle we were able to work on the ending to that scene. Susan and Lucy arrive just after Aslan kills the Witch, they hug Peter – relieved to see that he survived – but then their attention turns to Edmund who is lying wounded slightly further off. When working on these scenes I can’t help but think about the ages of these characters, and that really brings a lot more heightened emotion into the scene. They may have been through life-altering experiences, but they are still children after all.

Aslan praises Peter for his efforts, and Peter states that Edmund was the real hero, as he broke the Witch’s wand, giving their army more of a chance at winning. Aslan then knights Edmund, before the children all head off for their coronation at Cair Paravel.

The coronation is a really nice sequence, as almost the entire ensemble is on stage, and the mood is celebratory which feels deserved after all the adversity that has been built up, and now overcome. Each of the children is crowned by a different Narnian character, whilst Aslan makes one last proclamation (his final appearance). There is then a brief celebration, before Lucy notices that Aslan has slipped away. Susan ponders if they will be able to cope without Aslan, but Mr and Mrs Beaver offer reassuring words. There then follows a montage-of-sorts in which the Narnians talk about the reign of the Pevensie children.

We then worked on the scenes that involve the Beavers, which we’ve not worked on since before Christmas. First of all we worked on the Father Christmas scene, which is short but very significant. Fergus, who is playing the White Witch’s Dwarf follower was also vying to play Father Christmas’ Elf, but the recent costume acquisitions lead to a slight change of plan. He was rather bemused to discover that he is now Father Christmas’ reindeer instead! We also now have Peter’s shield emblazoned with a lion insignia (painted by the very talented Emily Carding AKA The White Witch).

Then we worked on the two scenes that take place in the Beavers house, which contain a lot of exposition about the significance of the children’s arrival in Narnia (the prophecies about Cair Paravel). They also talk about Aslan’s return and that they will meet Aslan very soon. During this scene Edmund sneaks away, and the children learn about his betrayal – realising that he has joined the White Witch. This scene is very important as it establishes a lot of important storylines, and also it ends on a more urgent note as they realise that the White Witch will send her followers to the Beavers house, once Edmund reaches her.

Then finally we covered the following scene where Mr Beaver and the children frantically get ready to head out, whilst Mrs Beaver is slowly taking her time packing supplies. I really like this scene – especially in the BBC version – because it makes the Beavers believable as ordinary Narnian citizens (they’re not adventurers or fighters). There is something very identifiable about this scene. I also really like Mrs Beaver’s line about her sewing machine (there was no way that line was getting cut in our adaptation). This scene is very much Mrs Beaver’s time to shine, as she gets a lot of comedic opportunities throughout.

The show is one week away, and this rehearsal really eased my mind. Every scene has been rehearsed, the costumes are sorted, the fights are all choreographed and practised – now we’re ready to start running the show in full.

Quote of the day: "When Peter has a beaver in front of him, we all kneel down" Jake Francis (Unusual coronation ceremony)