One of the little aphorisms I have said to myself over the years, just to keep myself going, is that “Faith can certainly move mountains, in so far as we employ our faith to move that mountain one rock at a time.” All art is magick. All creation falls into the mundane order of miracles we shape with our will, and build with our sinews. Inspiration and perspiration are closely interwoven.
With that in mind, picking up where we left off in our previous post, we will proceed to step three of our Doing Rites Right flow chart.
3. Have your planning meetings
This step is much as we covered in the first post in this series, but you will likely need to plan several meetings, covering specific areas. Don’t neglect any of the A,B,Cs we covered before: Artisit Vision, Budget, Casting, Dates, Effects and Fallout!
Come prepared with copies of the annotated script that you can share with your cast and crew; copies that they can scribble on and generally use to keep track of evolving landscape of your vision. Your meeting topic may include:
Stagecraft and Lighting – depending on whether you are using a theater, you may need a professional for this. Props – Don’t forget to give yourself time to make these before rehearsal, so your cast can work with them. Costumes – Depending on the theme, thrift stores can be a fantastic resource. Casting – As your production size increases, your cast size may too. You may need to plan for auditions, so be sure to give yourself some advance time to advertise.
The Rite of Mercury Set, 2010
Sets – These can be simple or complex. Anything you can do with theater cubes will make your life easier, but if you are like me, you will what to do something big. Give yourself a lot of time to figure out how to construct your vision. Start with a cardboard model. I built them out of pizza boxes with duct tape. Rehearsal Schedule – Plan the number of rehearsals based on the chart about, then add 2 for tech and dress rehearsal. It is best if you plan scene by scene, and give cast members the night off it they are not in the scenes being rehearsed that night. For our productions, music and choral rehearsals – This is a whole other aspect, and should be planned prior to the blocking rehearsals, so that the choir knows it’s parts before they start acting. For each of these you will need to plan who will be responsible for the task, what sort of time frame will be required, and what sort of budget you will need.
4. Readers-Theater/Rehearsal
With a more complex vision, you will require a more granular rehearsal. Each scene and poem will need to be broken down and run repeatedly.
You can still start with a readers-theater in an early rehearsal in order to familiarize the cast with the structure, and brainstorm ideas for interactions between the characters.
Given the spartan nature of the script notes, there will be a great many questions about what motivates these characters, and how you choose to answer these questions will shape your presentation. This process will go on throughout the rehearsal schedule.
As your performance date approaches, you may find yourself invoking a rule coined by Melissa during our runs: “Simplify, do not embellish.” Your vision may be rich and complex, and creating it is certainly part of the learning process, but it will not always translate to stage. At some point, you will have to let go of the vision a little bit in order to be ready for opening night. Don’t let this discourage you! It is part of the process.
Sol Crucified, The Rite of Sol, 2012
5. Presentation
Again, depending on scale, you may do a single performance, or many. By the time opening night rolls around, the work of the director should be done. Again, I strongly advise that once the show opens, there in no more tweaking. The cast will have an idea how the show should run, and changes at this point will simply cause confusion and undermine the performance.
Allow the magick to run it’s course.
6. Review and relax. At this stage in the game, we may be talking about theatrical reviews. Here I would urge you, don’t be too worried about it. As it turns out, criticism falls into two categories. Useful, and stupid. Seriously.
A useful critique from an eloquent and professional source will undoubtedly discuss areas where your presentation either succeeded of failed in the eyes of the critic. It will contain information on the impressions that the critic received during the staging, and some indication about whether they would recommend their readers attend. Even a negative review might be very helpful in shaping your future work.
A stupid review is usually provided by someone who is unpaid on the internet. It will contain expletives, insults, and no useful information. Disregard these. Don’t even read the whole thing. If it is a comment you have control over, delete it and move on.
And don’t forget to relax and enjoy your achievement! Laugh about the hard parts! Consider all you have learned! And above all:
Party in a construction site! The Rite of Saturn 2018, photo by David Parks
Having covered getting started last post, we are going progress to advice on scaling the Rites to a larger size. Not everyone is going to want to do this. Remember that The Rites of Eleusis started out as elaborate house parties, and an intimate setting is very enjoyable, and illuminating for performers and attendees.
Doing the Rites on a large scale is certainly not a requirement, but it is possible if you want to do it, and following these steps, mostly painless.
As you recall I wrote about rehearsal time and planning, and I am going to start by including that information here, and then expand upon it.
[You may also note that while I copied this, I corrected it. Because for some reason I wrote all of this backward in the original post. I fixed it there, too.]
“Plan your rehearsal dates. I have a handy guide for amount of rehearsal time required. Each of the Rites runs a little more than an hour if not embellished.
Readers-Theater: One hours of rehearsal per 20 minutes of stage time. On-Book: One hour of rehearsal per 15 minutes of stage time. Memorized: One hour of rehearsal per 10 minutes of stage time. Embellished: One hour of rehearsal per 5 minutes of stage time.
Using the above rules, a “Readers-Theater” style presentation, three one hour rehearsals would be adequate. For an “On-Script” presentation, four one hour rehearsals is called for. For a memorized production, 6 rehearsals is optimal, with everyone off book for the final two. For an embellished production, which will probably run closer to two hours, you will need to plan as many as a dozen two hour rehearsals. Note that I am talking about actual rehearsal time. You can plan for 15 minutes at the beginning and end of meetings to discuss related matters like costumes, props, etc.”
Disregarding the information on shorter presentations, this handy guide is very useful for planning your rehearsal schedule, and it assumes that you have planned every embellishment in advance.
Set building for The Rite of Sol, 2012
Read that again: in order to employ this schedule, you will need to plan every embellishment in advance!
What this means is that, before you launch into one of the larger presentations of The Rites of Eleusis, you are going to have to spend some serious time doing research and planning. I cannot recommend more strongly that if you plan to stage a large production, you complete your annotations before you start your auditions. For the record, this is something Melissa Holm took point on throughout our productions, and excelled at. This inclusion of annotation, will result is some adaptation of our previous steps. They are very similar in essence, but differ in execution, just as a larger presentation will differ in scale.
Rehearsal for The Rite of Mars, 2014
1. Find your cohort
Imagine and approach who you would like to work with, but be ready to be flexible. Your cohort now becomes your dream team, and you might not be able to get all of them on-board, as a larger lead time and rehearsal schedule will shrink your available pool. That said, I make this step one because:
A. People who are skilled are busy, so asking early allows them to free their calendar.
B. If you can work your schedule around people with specific skills, it will inform your annotations and adaptations early in the process. We often started penciling rehearsal and performance dates 2 years in advance for our productions, and it worked rather well.
Pan and Cancer, The Rite of Luna, 2005 Photo by Raven Erling
2. Find your director (or plan your direction!)
Much as previously stated, you will need to select your director at this point, and refine your vision. This is where script annotation happens! Other than your specialty talent from the previous step, your really shouldn’t worry too much about casting until the annotation is 80% completed.
As the annotation takes time, you will find that if you cast before your annotations are complete, attrition will lead to recasting. Better to wait until you are within 6 to 8 months of your target performance date before really casting.
Unless you have an encyclopedic knowledge of mythology and symbolism, you should plan on doing a great deal of research at this stage. You should also read the Rite you are planning to stage repeatedly, and look for your own inspiration within the poetry.
Lastly, you are entirely free to substitute different poetry, or to edit the verses included in the original Rites. Allow yourself the latitude to make this artwork your own, and shape it into what you truly desire. Now, with this in mind, I am going to provide an example of an annotated Rite of Venus I accidentally found in 2006 when I forwarded the link to our cast without reading it. This is NOT the Rite of Venus presented by Aleister Crowley, but it is a Rite of Venus clearly adapted from his work, and one it may have been a great deal of fun to present.
Scenes from The Rites of Eleusis as filmed by Lady Chandria, provided from her estate by Glenn Turner, voice-over by Vandimir McAirt, featuring Grady McMurtry, music by Jon Sewell, Viola by Sunnie Larsen from Aleister Crowley’s The Rite of Sol, a rock opera 2012
Becoming Godlings
Vandimir McAirt, one of the principal figures in the reemergence on The Rites of Eleusis in the San Francisco area in 1980, relayed a story about the ritualists, and how they used to refer to themselves as “Godlings”. A term they coined, which you might interpret as ‘humans learning the first steps in experiencing their own divinity’. As someone who has approached this material with my own sense of naivete and wonder, I think the term is appropriate. It seems to embrace the awakening of the titanic forces in the subconscious mind, and their eventual gestation and birth into consciousness, by stages, with all the humor and awkwardness that goes with it.
Seeing as this blog is about Doing Rites Right, rather than just tell you funny stories about how awesome it was for me to do the Rites, it is time to provide a little guidance for those who would like to embark on this wild adventure.
Probationer from The Rite of Sol, photo by Tim Smith 2012
My principal advice is: “Do it!” Start from “Yes”, and then work out the detail.
If you haven’t done so already, this is your invitation to become “Godlings”. This particular post is going to start with the assumption that you are just starting out, and want to know where to begin. In the coming days I will be providing more in-depth recommendations for larger productions. For now, let’s start simple. For your first time out, I recommend the following steps.
Army under the command of Aries, the Rite of Mars 2014 photo by David Parks
1. Find your cohort
If the Rites are something you want to do, and you want to do them with other people, you will need to find your team, or pantheon, if you will. Start by reaching out to friends and communities you are already familiar with, who may have an interest in the material. If you are working with a large or established group, be willing to approach leadership with your ideas, and see if they can offer support. Ask questions, talk about options, and find out who among that cohort has a talent they have been looking for an outlet to express.
Remember that the original Rites of Eleusis staged by Crowley had room for solo music and dance. While violin is beautiful, one might also express divine music with flute, or cello, or piano, or banjo. Along the same lines, there are many types of dance, but also martial arts, or gymnastics, or aerial work. Unless you choose to do so, you are not limited to the original format. See one of our previous posts, and, “drive it like you stole it.”
And if there is no burgeoning musician in your midst? Don’t let that stop you for a moment! Play some music on a stereo and add more dance!
Venus from The Rite of Venus 2007, photos by Sandra Swan
2. Select a director
This seems simple, but it cannot be overstated. Nothing will get any production lost in the weeds faster than failure to have someone making decisions. Often the choice will be obvious, but never let it go unsaid. Having one point of contact when problems inevitably arise is crucial to being successful. Your director will probably be part of building the cohort. Perhaps it is you! In either event, as you enlarge your cohort, talk with the team members about what they can do, and think about ways you can adapt a presentation to suit their skills. Not only will this improve the quality of your presentation, It will give people a chance to bring their genius to the Rites, which is always a win-win. The director will ultimately be the person with a vision, deciding which of these gifts to incorporate into The Rites, and their decision should be respected. (Never argue with the director! Talk politely after rehearsal.)
When contemplating the need for a director and who to select, remember: we may all be manifestations of the divine, but if mythology has taught us anything, it is that Gods squabble! They have a hierarchy. You will need one, too. Do not select a director who is conflict avoidant.
Mercury and Elemental from The Rite of Mercury, photo by Sandra Swan 2010
3. Have a planning meeting
Once you have the core of your team, and a director with at least the beginnings of a vision, get together and develop your plan. Set aside two hours, be someplace comfortable. Provide snacks.
The things you need to talk about (A through F):
A. Artistic Vision: This is where the director explains what the overall presentation is going to look like. Don’t get too bogged down in details. For a first production, 10 to 15 minutes should cover this section.
Paint with broad strokes to start with.
B. Budget: Do you have a budget for props, sets, rehearsal space or a theater? Do some planning ahead of time, and depending on your vision, have a rough idea what you will need to spend. Then add 15% for incidentals. Another 15 minutes.
C. Casting: Here you go through your cast list and assign the roles. Talk about your vision, whether you expect the cast to be off-book, or if they can work with scripts in their hands. Talk about costuming expectations, and who might already have costume elements, but keep it short. For a first production, it is best to be on-book. Allow 15 minutes.
D. Dates: This is the big one, the central purpose of your meeting. Talk to your principals about the dates you would like for your presentation. Find the block-out dates for cast who may be traveling, or already have plans.
If your presentation will be in a private home or theater, you will need to check availability can confirm the dates after the meeting, so maybe have several to choose from. Also, this is a good time to decide if this will be a public, or private event.
Additionally, plan your rehearsal dates. I have a handy guide for amount of rehearsal time required. Each of the Rites runs a little more than an hour if not embellished.
Readers-Theater: One hours of rehearsal per 20 minutes of stage time.
On-Book: One hour of rehearsal per 15 minutes of stage time.
Memorized: One hour of rehearsal per 10 minutes of stage time.
Embellished: One hour of rehearsal per 5 minutes of stage time.
Using the above rules, a “Readers-Theater” style presentation, three one hour rehearsals would be adequate. For an “On-Script” presentation, four one hour rehearsals is called for. For a memorized production, 6 rehearsals is optimal, with everyone off book for the final two. For an embellished production, which will probably run closer to two hours, you will need to plan as many as a dozen two hour rehearsals.
Note that I am talking about actual rehearsal time. You can plan for 15 minutes at the beginning and end of meetings to discuss related matters like costumes, props, etc. This section of your meeting will be the bulk of your time, and will likely take 45 minutes to an hour.
E. Effects: Talk about what you envision for lighting, music, or other practical effects, and who will be pulling these items together. Emphasize safety, especially with fire. And plan to rehearse your effects, as testing your vision during the performance can lead to disaster. For a first production this will likely take 15 minutes to half an hour.
F. Fallout: This is a ritual. There are large forces that will be invoked. They will impact the way that you, your cast, and crew will view reality for the remainder of their incarnation.
Plan for time to decompress. Schedule a few minutes at the end of rehearsal to ground. Talk about a self-care plan. Discuss the best strategies that your cast members have for coping with stress. Make certain that everyone understands that they need to show up for rehearsal well fed, rested and ready. This is another 15 minutes and is a nice subject to close your meeting on.
It is a lot to discuss, but planning ahead will make the next steps run smoothly!
Probationers with the Big Book, The Rite of Mercury photo by Sandra Swan 2010
4. Readers-Theater
Whether you do so publicly or not, I recommend doing a dramatic read through of The Rite you have chosen to perform with the cast. This will make certain everyone is acquainted with the flow of the material, and allow them to build some chemistry together.
This can be an early rehearsal, or this may be your first public performance.
Virgo from The Rite of Mercury, photo by Sandra Swan 2010
5. Presentation
Once you have everything in order, and you are ready to present, you need to be aware of a simple fact: Nothing goes as planned. Creation is an act of will, and the manifestation of will implies force. There are going to be challenges, changes, road-blocks, tears, distractions, unruly cast members, flaky theaters, traffic, and at least one person will drop out. This is normal. Roll with it.
To the director I say: Mastery over others is power, mastery over yourself is strength. Which is another way of saying, don’t despair, don’t lose control, just adjust. Don’t take anything personally.
Fairy and Faun, The Rite of Luna, Photo by Raven Erling 2005
6. Review and Relax!
There is nothing like post ritual bliss. The Rite is like a marriage ritual, and you should enjoy your honeymoon. Plan some time afterward to look at what you accomplished, celebrate your victories, and learn from your mistakes. And do not neglect the cast party.
Trust me on that last one. If you fail to plan a cast party to ground out your team, they will likely show up at your house, order a pizza, and plan their own. It might get weird. Those invoked of Gods, even for a short period of time, will often develop an appetite for mischief, especially toward those fellow performers that have been invoked of their compliments, or their nemeses.
For those who have celebrated these Rites themselves, what did we miss? Comment below with your suggestions!
