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As an audience member at the theatre you're absorbed by the story the actors are telling and the 90 minutes or so of a show seem to speed by. But while you're watching and taking in all the elements of the spectacle, have you ever wondered what's gone on in the many months leading up to opening night; who the puppet-masters in charge are; who else has been involved; and how those perfectly cast actors have been chosen?

Take Their Life: Romeo and Juliet reimagined is the end of year production for amateur theatre company, Canberra Dramatics. By the time opening night comes around, a whole 18 months will have passed since director Trevar Alan Chilver had the inspiration for the show.

Trevar first had the idea of re-working William Shakespeare's original play Romeo and Juliet a few years back, but it wasn't until there was a lack of local plays to work with, that he decided the time was right to bring his idea into existence. The original Romeo and Juliet never sat right with Trevar, or at least the ending didn't.

"I like to refer to this production as a bastardisation of Romeo and Juliet &8212; so I will apologise profusely to Shakespear if I ever meet him," Mr Chilver said good-naturedly.

The Take Their Life synopsis reads: With her new husband Romeo banished from the city for murdering her cousin, and her parents baying for his blood, Juliet is desperate to escape with Romeo...the question is, will their marriage be a happily ever after?

You can understand Trevar's cynical point of view about the whirlwind teenage romance, especially when he points out that, while it might have been one of the greatest love stories ever told, it did only last two days.

And so, the first dab of paint had been splashed on the production planning palette. With the help of his production manager, Samantha Barrett[sic], Trevar began the search for his creative team who would assist him in workshopping his script.

Last year, while Trevar and Samantha were auditioning hopefuls for another of their productions, they also put the call out for those who would be interested in being involved in the scriptwriting process for Take Their Life.

During auditions, in the improvisation section, Trevar looked for people who had that "spark of creativity to tell a story" as he chose his creative team to help him develop his script.

About three to four months before show night is when the key artistic people are sought, and about six weeks out from opening night, discussions about set, era, costumes, lighting and so forth take place.

Perhaps the most exciting part of the pre-production process for Trevar is finding his cast.

Auditions for the cast of 15 characters were held over two days, with a third day dedicated to callbacks.

"Every script and every director has a different need for the audition process," Samantha said.

However, auditionees for Trevar's productions need not fear the often nerve-wracking monologue delivery, with the director claiming to have "a bit of a reputation around Canberra for having the most fun auditions."

In the audition sessions for this production, Trevar asked hopefuls to be familiar with Skaespeare's story and be apt at expressing Middle English dialogue. Other qualities taken into consideration included directability, performance instinct, physical attributes, vocal qualities, availability, training and experience.

Once the cast has been selected, it's pretty much all systems go.

"In relation to other amateur theatre companies, we have a really tight turnaround from auditions to starting the show," Trevar said.

"We've found that it works better. We've auditioned a month out and then that person is suddenly not available by the time the shows starts."

With a rehearsal pattern of about either hours a week from August 31, by opening night on November 5, you can be sure that all the hard work the cast and crew have put into the production will culminate with the delivery of an innovative story and a spectacular show. Take Their Life: Romeo and Juliet reimagined is sure to delight audiences, especially the ones who now know the intense pre-production process that has gone on prior to the night the curtain lifts.

By Bron Vickers

Peter Stiles as ROMEO

Melissa Savage as JULIET

Jonathan Sharp as BENVOLIO

Hannah Dawson as ROSALINE

Michael Jordan as CAPULET

Rebecca Nicholson as LADY CAPULET

Tim Stiles as MONTAGUE

Jen Neish as LADY MONTAGUE

Robbie Matthews as FRIAR LAWRENCE

Diane Heather as NURSE

Daniel Farrelly as PARIS

Joshua Houle-Eichel as MERCUTIO

Tristan Flynn as TYBALT

Pat Toohey as BALTHASAR

Tickets are on sale now, so ring Tuggeranong Arts Centre on 02 6293 1443 and reserve your seat for this exciting production! More information is available on the Take Their Life page.

Auditions for cast roles in this production will be held on the 12th and 15th of August at Parkway. We would appreciate it if you could make a booking for these auditions, as they will take a slightly different format from our usual auditions, due to the unusual demands of this play. To request an audition pack, and to book your time, please contact the Production Manager, Samantha Jarrett at sjarrett@canberradramatics.org.au or on 0429 119 631.

This is a great opportunity for creatives to come and be part of the process of developing a script, and it will also give you an insight into the work we will be doing next year. The workshop will be held at Parkway in Kambah, from 3-6pm on Saturday 25 July. If you want to be involved, please contact the coordinator for this workshop, Trevar Alan Chilver using tchilver@canberradramatics.org.au or 0434 577 781.

Ancient and modern combine, in an evocative original score, created by Jazz student and metal bassist Alex Johnson and international didge maestro Ian Wood. Local artists Helena Hills and Chandra Crowther have given the show a look very far removed from pastel tunics and white pillars. And six of Canberra's gifted performers bring to life an archaic world of ritual, ecstasy, and the inexorable call of blood...

Agamemnon plays at Belconnen Theatre on 11 to 13 June and 17 to 20 June at 8pm, with tickets at $20/$15.

For the purists, though, there is a special treat: one very special performance at Carey's Cave, Wee Jasper 14 June at 5pm, with tickets at $40.

Bookings: 02 6251 2981

"But I want to be involved!" I hear you say...well, auditions for the production of Take Their Life, which is due to perform in November, will be held on 12 and 15 August. More information is available by emailing info@canberradramatics.org.au.

"But I don't act"...well that's ok too! We're currently seeking technical crew to fill most roles (including set design, lighting design, stage management etc) so please contact me and let me know what you're interested in!

Well that's all well and good, but what about now?

With Take Their Life in workshops, there's not a great deal more happening that you can get involved with right now. However, Canberra Dramatics accepts script proposals year round for consideration so if you're a script writer, please get in touch with us at info@canberradramatics.org.au about how to submit your script.

We're also very happy to hear from anyone who has an idea for a script or other dramatic activity they would be interested in working on with Canberra Dramatics.

How else can I be involved?

We're also looking for people interested in helping us with marketing activities and the pre- and post-show preparations. Also, this website is a great way to keep up with what we're doing and ways your can get involved.

Got a particular interest? Let us know! We're all about building a community of like-minded people who love theatre. If you want to be involved, we want you to be involved.

Bill Stephens, on ArtSound FM, praised the cast's performances, and heralded it as a "good example of the current state of play-writing in the region", and Canberra playwright Marya Glyn-Daniel described it as "witty and funny and full of many twists and turns in the intriguing plot".

Don't miss out! The Incident at Fugue Bay closes on Saturday!