As many of Durham’s students were enjoying the last week of their holiday’s before returning to the madness that is the Epiphany term, DULOG’s finest found themselves heading back to campus ready to embark on a week of rehearsals in preparation for Frank Loesser’s golden age musical and this year’s Gala show: Guys and Dolls. DULOG’s annual Gala musical is always a highlight in the Durham Student Theatre calendar, as we are lucky to enough to perform in Durham city’s professional, 500-seat theatre, the Gala. With a team of more than 70 students across cast, band, technical team and prod team, there is a lot that goes into a show of this scale!
Beginning rehearsals
Attempting to make it to the studio ready for a 10am start on Tuesday morning was certainly a considerable shock to the system following three weeks of rather slow morning routines, but nonetheless the whole cast arrived ready to face whatever was thrown at them over the course of the week. Following a physical (and possibly even mental) warm-up, the all-singing, all-dancing routines began to be learnt, whilst simultaneously many of us suddenly realised exactly what we had signed ourselves up to!
Despite spending considerably longer amounts of time perfecting routines than we may have initially anticipated, the end of each day saw the completion of intricate crap games, seamless (up to ten minutes to be specific!) dance sequences, and even some rather heated fight sequences, which proved to be a particularly effective way to channel the stress of remembering challenging choreography!
Getting to know the team
One would think after spending all day together cast members would enjoy some peaceful alone time in the evenings, recovering from the day and preparing for the next. However, evenings saw us getting together for a variety of social activities, including “family nights” (groups of 7 or 8 across the band, cast, technical team and production team, to support) spent getting to know fellow cast members.
As band and cast united for the sitzprobe on Saturday, the entire team began to envision the incredible show that would greet the Gala stage in only a week’s time. Reflecting on the week, despite trekking through the snow to rehearsals that left many muscles and brains aching, both cast and crew were left eagerly awaiting the moment when rehearsal room visions would find themselves on stage in front of a live audience at the Gala theatre.
DULOG presents: Guys and Dolls
You can see DULOGs production of Guys and Dolls at Gala Theatre, Durham DH1 1WA, from Tuesday 18 – Saturday 22 January
Tickets are available now from Gala Durham website
Prices: Standard £14.50/Concession £9.50/DST £8.50
Find out more
- Follow DULOG on Facebook
- Check out the Guys and Dolls Facebook Event
- For more information on theatre at Durham visit our website here
