Write the names of all the characters in the play across the top of a sheet of graph paper. Draw lines to give each character a separate column down the page.
Along the left hand edge of the paper, write “Act I, Scene 1 — 1.” Draw a horizontal line under the heading, then put a check mark across the page under the name of every character who is on the stage.
Read the script and write a new number on a new line in the left-hand column every time a character enters or leaves the stage. Make a note of the page number and Act and Scene numbers.
Repeat Step 3 until you reach the end of the script. This is a list of “French scenes.”
Go through your list of French scenes and consolidate — if the same group of characters enter and exit frequently in three or four pages, you may want to consider that one French scene.
Identify groups of characters who appear together in many scenes. Your rehearsal schedule can call those actors, allowing you to smoothly rehearse each scene in which they appear, no matter where they appear in the script.
Review each French scene and identify those where key elements of theme, character, or plot are revealed.
Develop a rehearsal schedule. Write the scene numbers you assigned along the left edge of another sheet of graph paper and write all your rehearsal dates along the top of the sheet. Place a “B” on the dates in which blocking is worked, then checkmarks for the additional times a scene is worked.
Review your rehearsal schedule to make sure you have optimized the rehearsal flow for the actors, and ensure you have given enough attention to the scenes you have identified as being key.