Frances, Sheila, The Inspector and learning those lines!

Hi my name is Frances and I play the part of Sheila Birling. I have acted with Blackwood Little
Theatre once before with the original cast of Godfather Death and after a fair old break, I have been welcomed back with open arms by the theatre and its members, to act with them again. I’m a
teacher by profession, originally coming from a performing arts background, my degree is in Drama
and I am also a classically trained singer. However as I no longer teach these subjects I felt it was
important to keep my skills and love of acting going, and Blackwood Little Theatre’s experienced
members and high standards has drawn me back to be a part of it once more.

Frances Jarman rehearsing 

It is a big commitment but once you are in rehearsals,  the energy and involvement that everyone has with their characters and with the process is obvious. I personally take the approach of concentrating on ‘how’ I deliver lines; its pace, tone and volume are things I experiment with during the rehearsal process as I want to get the emotion conveyed and even felt by the audience just right. Practising accents, mannerisms and movement then seem to flow a little easier as I feel I have better established the motivation behind my character. Lines are something that I learn without the use of script in the latter stages, as for one they are already fairly fluid and secondly, the rehearsal process has already helped with the repetition of lines and learning where my cues are.

I usually learn my lines by pacing up and down a corridor back and forth; a habit I’ve adopted since my school days in ‘A’ level Drama. Some habits die hard
but this one I don’t think is necessarily a bad one! The cast for ‘An Inspector Calls’ are professional,
experienced, fun, energetic and it is a pleasure to work with you all once more!