In Iceland: Day Nine–Rehearsing at the Freezer, During an Actual Storm

(This post is by Kristin Kury, BMC class of 2016.)

What do you do when trapped in a West Iceland hostel in the middle of nowhere during a windstorm? Rehearse, of course! After a groggy morning, we got to work on Act Three, during which the characters of Lear face a storm of their very own.

Rehearsing in the black box at The Freezer 1
Rehearsing in the black box at The Freezer
Rehearsing in the black box at The Freezer 2
Rehearsing in the black box at The Freezer.

Taking advantage of the various spaces in our hostel, we broke into small groups to tackle the individual scenes. We got a lot of discussion done, and then started to put the scenes on their feet. Some brave few even ventured outside–talk about method acting!

Rehearsing the storm in the storm
Kent, Lear, and the Fool (Katie, Catharine, and Roz) rehearsing the storm…in an actual storm. This photo gives no real sense of the brutality of the wind they were dealing with!

After a full day of rehearsal and a hearty pasta dinner, we moved into the hostel’s black box theater, turned off the lights, lit some candles, and ran the storm scenes.

Rehearsing by candlelight 2
Rehearsing by candlelight at The Freezer, while a storm raged outside.

As Mark said, this was a unique opportunity, since we’d probably never get an opportunity to rehearse King Lear by candlelight in the middle of a genuine Icelandic storm again. Without being too on the nose, I think we saw the scene in a new light. In the dark, stakes were heightened, faces were creepier, and everything was just a little uneasy.