The workshop

The workshop finished a few days ago, and I am exhausted, in part from talking too much, but also because my head has been filled with so many questions and new ideas.
It exceeded my expectations. The actors, Phil, Emma, and Helen, jumped in and pushed the story about, asked a lot of questions and came up with some great suggestions. It moved ahead more in those three days in the workshop than in two months locked in my room.
Some successes:
Despite some gaping holes in the story (which became apparent in preparing for the workshop) overall it worked. The actors understood the characters, and could add layers on top of what I had come up with.
I experimented with the iconic image. Did it belong in the story? Yes, it is a very powerful idea, especially considering the structure of three stories. Should it happen where it does, eg. was this the moment of recognition for the character? Yes, most certainly, though Paul's moment needs to be clearer.
Needs development:
I played with the idea of abstractions for each character, but its use was limited. Partly this was purely practical. We needed to be in that room, that place, hearing that sound, seeing him or her through this or that, or holding or touching or feeling that thing. We weren't.
Partly this was because the abstraction is also created in the shooting method, and the actors were uninterested in this, and shouldn't be.
And most importantly the abstraction needs to grow more from the character and the actors were only just finding and discovering this person.
I have a lot more to think about over the next week. I am on holiday until December 28th and then I will have some more to say.