Fight makes right in Alley Theatre’s ‘Three Musketeers’
As far as swashbuckling stories go, Alexandre Dumas’ “The Three Musketeers” is as sharp as the swords at the heart of its story. Following three flashy and fantastical fighting heroes, the 17th-century-set tale has seen multiple adaptations — from the stage to film and even video games.
But regardless of the many versions, sword-wielding combat remains an essential element to its appeal, and that’s especially true in the version being mounted at the Alley Theatre that runs through June 30.
Recently at the theater , actors vaunted across a detailed twostory set with two grand staircases, practicing lines — and sword fights. These look complicated; even when performed slowly, it can be difficult for a viewer to keep up.
At one point, a 10-person fracas involves the staircase, leaps across the stage and precise swinging and blocking. It is certainly impressive, especially when the play’s fight director, H. Russ Brown, explains that the cast members weren’t all experienced when rehearsals began.
“Even though we had actors of varying abilities, we have been able to keep the preconceived concepts for fighting that we came in with,” he said.
Brown is talking about the bouts that he, along with his assistants, Troy Beckman and Justin Gibbons, have designed. And he has some experience to back it up: In addition to being the head of theater/artistic director at College of the Mainland in Texas City, he runs a stage-combat company, Armed 2 Da Teeth!
“Of course,” Brown said, “it’s altered along the way because we’ve made discoveries in the scene work or learned more about a character’s fighting style.”
Safety first
He says that it is important to make every fight scene nearly perfect and safe for the stage — after all, it is live and has to repeated every night, unlike the movies, which have so much CGI assistance.
“You really have to worry about safety because one slightly false move throws off the next move,” said actress Julia Krohn, who plays Milady, the straightedge antagonist of the Musketeers, as well as the Old Woman and Sophie Delacroix. She uses different weapons throughout the play, including a hidden dagger.
“It was harder when we first started, like learning a line,” said actor Shawn Hamilton, who plays D’Artagnan’s father as well as Rochefort and Stanley, “but now when we do it, it’s like playing back a tape. Now, it’s more about the speed and keeping it safe.”
During planning of the 15 combat sequences — nine of which are sword fights — Brown says it became important to focus on how the battles fit into the greater story of the play.
“One of the things I’ve truly appreciated about this process has been how much our director (Mark Shanahan) and the Alley realized how integral the fights were to the storytelling process,” he says.
Hamilton says the character dictates how the fight is structured and that it has to be something the audience will enjoy. “It’s like a dance,” he said. “It’s not about fighting, it’s about movement and extensions and making it beautiful.”
When fighting is like dancing
He also says adding comedy makes the action flow, something Shanahan has emphasized. “There’s a great comic rhythm that Mark has put into the show, and it’s about putting that comedy into the fights, too. It helps tell the story.”
But the time and effort that go into those fight sequences is exhausting. “I wasn’t loving it the first week; it was like a first week at fat camp,” Hamilton said, joking about the weight he lost while working on the production.
While discussing the challenges of remembering all the choreography, especially in the first weeks, Hamilton acts out different sword-fighting moves and parries. “And you’re able to do the moves when it’s at half speed or slowed down, but once it’s full speed, you’re like, ‘Save my life, I’m just trying to do it as best as I can!’ and it becomes a full workout.”
Krohn concurs, underscoring the heft of the weaponry. “They’re not that heavy, but when you’re moving your arm and blocking, you’re like, ‘This is a workout!’ ”
Though Hamilton had performed
stage combat and swordplay earlier in his career, other actors, including Krohn, are having a first-time experience with “The Three Musketeers.” She admits she was scared at first, but after nearly four weeks of rehearsals, she has become much more comfortable.
“What I hoped is that, like dance, the combat would become second nature, and I was obviously always aware that it comes with different fight partners in the play,” she says.
Choosing the movements — in other words, designing a fight sequence — is something Brown explains as a process of layering.
“When you have multiple opponents and are making sure everybody can move across the stage safely, you want to utilize the space and carefully plan and track where each fighter is going,” he said.
There are specific moments in the fights that are focused on — including a few comedic lines in that 10-person sword fight — and the choreography is designed to showcase those moments to the audience, with grand movements and sweeping gestures.
Because what Brown wants is for the audience to leave the theater on a swashbuckling high.
“I want people to just be swept away on a high adventure and maybe tap into their own inner child that used to play in the backyard (sword fighting) with sticks,” he said. “I want them to have that sense of thrilling fun and maybe feel a little lighter because of it.”