Theater no exception to rules

By Lee Cataluna
Advertiser Columnist

Paul Cravath drills it into his actors: if anyone asks how rehearsals for a show are going, they are to answer, "Just fine."

Even if rehearsals are going great. Even if rehearsals are not going well at all.

"Just fine." That's it.

You never discuss the state of a show with someone outside the cast or crew. It's just not good for the production.

That's one of the rules of "Theatre Ethics," a list Cravath gives to all his students at Leeward Community College, where he has taught for more than 13 years.

"I used to think I was teaching theater," he says, "but so much of what we talk about is personal growth and development."

The basics of theater

The list is 18 items long. Many of the rules are specific to theater, like No. 7: "Always assume you're going to repeat a scene or segment until told otherwise," or No. 4: "Watch the entire rehearsal process even if you are not on stage, at least in the early rehearsals."

But others on the list are more general, more in the rules-for-life category.

• No. 2: "Arrive early. David Mamet says if you're not 15 minutes early, you're late."

• No. 12: "Bring full energy to each rehearsal; work through your barriers."

• No. 15: "Don't be self-righteous, more disciplined than thou. You are part of a team."

Much of what has to be mastered in theater comes down to individual responsibility paired with surrendering to the group. Know your lines, but be open to changes from the director. Support your fellow actors, but resist making yourself their "coach."

Tricky environment

Teaching discipline in a theater setting is tricky, Cravath says, because "this is art, not Army.

"I tell my students, you may never act again, but you will gain so much.

"Theater is a spiritual path. It's the way of selflessness."

The list has grown to be regarded as almost commandments set in stone by the hundreds of acting students who go from Cravath's classes to other theater projects. It has been shared and posted at theater projects around town.

As you read down the list of rules, chances are your eyes will stop on the last entry, No. 18: "Wear deodorant."

Is this something actors really need to be told to do?

Cravath laughs. No. 18 was inspired not by repeated negligence, but by one pungently memorable performer.

"One person so horribly violated that rule that the students requested that addition."

Individual responsibility paired with surrender to the group. That definitely means "wear deodorant."

Lee Cataluna's column runs Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays. She can be reached at 535-8172 or through e-mail at lcataluna@honoluluadvertiser.com.