Three, Two, One Jump!

Two tribes go to war

Vicky Elliott, cast member of Jump!, sheds some light on what's going on behind-the-scenes.

So, the first day of rehearsals for Jump! by Lisa McGee was last Monday. I’m very lucky to be in the cast, this I know. The first day of rehearsals for any show at Live is always quite a pleasant affair. There’s a bit of a meet and greet in the morning at the very sociable hour of 11am at which tea and coffee are normally provided, sometimes even a range of pastries and biscuits (I noticed today no pastries or biscuits were forthcoming, which is fine, cos there’s a recession on and what-not and much like I imagine the spirit of the blitz to have been, I’m prepared to muck in and do my bit by foregoing the first day sweet-treats. Or perhaps it was a gentle hint for the cast to eat less sugar based snacks in the AM and shape up. I digress.)

Following the initial brew and ‘actory’ show off session in the foyer we proceed upstairs to the luxury, post-refurb rehearsal space and sit round in a cilvilised semi-circle and read the play. The play: a sort of Tarantino on Tyneside stroke of genius by writer Lisa McGee, of course the play was originally written and based in Northern Ireland, but the relocation works a pure belter, not only cos we have a great deal in common with our Celtic cousins, humour and general social dissatisfaction alike, but because it’s fundamentally a bloody good story, which works anywhere and everywhere, including New York where the play was last produced.

The first read-through went very well I thought. I was very good obviously, but I suddenly became aware that everyone in the cast is hideously talented; to the point where I became both nervous and very, very excited in equal measures. The play and everyone in it are pure cushty belters.

On the evening of the first day, Live chivalrously provided a ‘social’ event to throw together the opposing creative teams of our very own Jump! cast and the RSC who are currently doing a residency with Live. The social was to comprise a quiz based on our marvelous Bard and the multiple themes of Tyneside (to give us all a look in). The Jump! cast were three sheets to the wind; having been for a session of scran and cider at nearby glorious watering hole The Waterline. Upon arrival, there seemed to be no room at the inn, once the RSC had downed German towels in the Undercroft. We were, unashamedly, shoehorned into the neighbouring theatre bar, a space normally reserved for writers. Our only option was joining forces against our common enemy so we formed a super team; it was Jump! against the world. As the quiz wore on, it became a quiz of the obvious, as the sweet tang of success dripped from our triumphant and talented gums, we knew that even as they minced out, pink bobble hat and pashmena in hand, we had defeated them in a University Challenge style bout of wit and intellect. It bodes well for us as a theatrical company.

And on the subject of the jibes regarding our oversized team, we may have been eleven strong, in a quiz where the restriction was a max of six, but we were golfing with a serious handicap considering we were packing two foreigners (northern Irish writer Lisa and cast member Bronagh – pronounced bro-na –exotic isn’t it?) a smoggy and a makem. I think we did marvelously in the face of huge adversity.

Kudos must be paid to Jim Kitson who seems to know a bit about everything. Without him we would be nothing.

In a bit,

Vicky Elliott ov 'the toon'