The morning was spent working intensely on the first part of Act 2. It was noticeable the change in the tone of the piece between Act 1 where reform seems relatively easy to the detailed to debates that are required in Act 2 to restore the commonweal. In rehearsal what becomes apparent is the extent to which Parliament often becomes a row between the clergy on one side and John the Commonweal and the Pauper on the other. Tom McGovern’s Spirituality is not simply a corrupt cleric, as the role has developed he has become more and more dangerous and disturbing. It was also interesting to note the amount of variation that Paul Cunningham as Temporality and Michael Mackenzie as Merchant found in their roles; as the play focuses more and more on the corruption of the clergy Temporality and Merchant become allies to Divine Correction and Rex Humanitus. In particular, during the rehearsals this morning Temporality’s role in placing the focus on the clergy, with Merchant’s support, came to the fore.

It was also interesting to note how important Good Counsel’s role is in the first part of Act 2 in keeping the Parliament on track. Gerda Stevenson’s Good Counsel is consistently the voice of reason and in rehearsal there were a number of moments when having a woman playing the role really brought out its rational and calming status. When all the men were shouting at each other it was Good Counsel who brought them back on track with her wisdom and patience.

The afternoon was taken up with a fight call and further work on Act 2.