By Stephanie Peters

Strewn ladders, electrical cords and lighting fixtures surrounded the unfinished stage. Sawdust not only covered the floor, but hung in the stuffy air. The only props in sight were plastic milk crates, wooden benches and blocks painted black.

Although the Curry Student Center’s Studio Theatre was in a state of disarray when “Stop Kiss” began rehearsing Saturday afternoon, the production was not.

For director Thomas Keating and a limited number of the cast and crew, it was the first rehearsal on the stage where “Stop Kiss” will open Tuesday, and the first rehearsal following a week’s hiatus for Spring Break. If Keating or his actors were worried, it didn’t show.

Keating said the cast was instructed on how to continue preparing over the break.

“The main instruction during the week off was they cannot come back having slipped anywhere backward,” he said. “I told them to think about their lines, run through the play, even if it meant doing it wherever they were on Spring Break.”

For the director, Saturday was about getting his main actresses, junior theatre majors Stacy Payne and Carly Assael, back together to renew the chemistry they had built during the first two weeks of rehearsal.

Payne and Assael, acquaintances from class before being cast in “Stop Kiss,” became fast friends in the early stages of the production and had little problem Saturday with “chemistry” either on or off-stage.

Off-stage, the actresses talked about their breaks – Assael went to France, while Payne got a sunburn in Florida. Payne frequently quoted “Napoleon Dynamite,” an everyday occurrence at “Stop Kiss” rehearsals. However, when it came time to rehearse a scene, Payne and Assael were all business.

After a two-hour run through of the more difficult scenes between the characters Callie (Payne) and Sara (Assael), Keating offered encouragement to his actresses and stage crew members.

“The more we add, the harder it is. So as long as you maintain what you have it’s going to be fine,” Keating said. “Know that I’m aware of what it’s like to be thrown into that [situation] so you can say ‘you know, could you leave us alone?’ or ‘Give me a break, I know what’s going on’ and I’m fine … I’m fine with that.”

Trading stages

Monday night’s rehearsal marked not only the beginning of what will be a long and hectic final week before “show time,” but also a number of important strides forward in the production of the play.

Although rehearsals were moved to the Studio Theatre stage Saturday, it wasn’t until Monday that the mauve-colored walls of Callie’s apartment — the main framework for the set — were placed, finally providing the main actors with a context for their blocking in each scene.

“The stage provides a frame of reference and helps you know the positioning. It’s always good to get out of [the acting classroom], it’s so sterile,” said Sean Morris, a senior theatre major cast in the role of Callie’s friend-with-benefits George.

However, the set is far from complete. The “apartment” is still without doors and the wall framework will need to be reinforced to withstand door slamming and the actors’ movements. The behind-the-scenes stage area will also need to be expanded to accommodate the actors’ entrances and Payne’s frantic, frequent costume changes.

The stage will quickly transform in the next few days – the stray plywood will be used in stage construction, lighting will be positioned and props will convert the bare stage into a replica of a New York City apartment. All will take place thanks largely in part to the supervision of “Stop Kiss” stage manager and sophomore theatre major Anne Marie Chouinard.

Managing to the nines

In only her second year at Northeastern, Chouinard has already been involved in eight NU Theatre Department productions, landing both acting and production roles.

Despite her prior experience stage managing this year’s Vagina Monologues, Chouinard’s role in “Stop Kiss” is her most demanding production position yet.

“This is the first time I’m stage managing for a show that is not student-directed and where there are specific tasks and responsibilities expected of me,” Chouinard said. “It’s a hard job – one that calls for organization, focus and motivation.”

She said a stage manager’s job is difficult to define. It can mean following with script in hand as the actors rehearse to catch missed lines and blocking, working with costume and prop designers and making sure each member of the cast and crew is aware of what’s happening in the production.

Essentially, Chouinard supervises the aspects of the production Keating cannot manage while working with the actors and teaching at the university.

“It’s kind of like a president and vice president situation. He handles the big stuff while I help and take care of the loose ends,” Chouinard said. “But one without the other, it would be an impossible task.”

Piece by piece

In the coming days Keating is focused on improving the scenes that feature the play’s supporting characters and finally piecing the entire production together, complete with costume changes, music and lighting.

“I’m going to make these scenes pop out more than they already are by focusing on pacing and rhythm. The play is written without an intermission, and if we let it sag in the middle or are not conscious of the rhythm we’re going to lose the audience,” Keating said. “But if I’m nervous about anything it’s adding the tech now. It just becomes an issue of trying to coordinate more people and elements; it’s just like piecing a big jigsaw puzzle together.”