Sorry, Wrong Number

A friend of mine, Tara Nelson, is in IB Theatre Arts and has to put on her Individual Theatre Project in February 2011. She has decided to direct a play, "Sorry, Wrong Number" and she has asked me to be in it. I am going to play Mrs. Stevenson, the main character. The piece was originally written as a radio play, so there is very little movement.

The plot centres around Mrs. Stevenson, an rich, neurotic and bed-ridden invalidat home alone for the evening, and her sole connection with the outside world is her telephone. She overhears plans for a murder of an unknown woman on the telephone over a wrong number. Through her various attempts to retrace the call and catch the men she eventually realises that she is the intended victim, but the realisation comes too late.

Barbara Stanwyck in the 1948 film version of "Sorry, Wrong Number"

I really like the play - I'm a big fan of the noir tradition in theatre and I find it interesting how cleverly tension is developed solely through dialogue. However, this means that a lot of responsibility falls on my shoulders, as my dialogue is about 80% of the play. Basically this means that it is my job to build tension, and almost entirely through voice and facial expression. Scary thought. However, despite the fact that I have a lot of responsibility, the preparation has been a lot about group work. Tara has been using various theatre excercises to help us understand and develop our characters. The cast is quite small so the excercises really force us to develop trust and work together. This has helped me build on the skills I developed in "The Crucible" last year.

I am quite nervous about learning all the lines - there are A LOT of them - but I am also really excited to be involved in theatre again. I am basing my character a little around Mrs. Bennet from the BBC adaptation of "Pride and Prejudice" as both characters have problems (real or imaginary) with 'nerves'. Mrs. Stevenson is also imperious, self-centered and impatient, which are all traits I find quite easy to sympathise with. She is a much easier character to "get to know" than Elizabeth Proctor, as she is less reserved and her flaws are much more obvious.