Times Observer photo by Brian Ferry Warren Players swing actors Mayan Cook (left) and Jess Long follow along in rehearsal, learning all the roles for the upcoming performances of Jeeves at Sea.

Eight local actors are preparing for on-stage roles in an upcoming show.

But there are only six parts.

There is no plan to rotate any of the performers. There are no further competitions scheduled to see who will get the parts.

Jessica Long and Mayan Cook are rehearsing for parts in Warren Players show Jeeves at Sea that they hope they don’t have to play.

To help prepare against the possibility of a cast member being quarantined or isolated (or injured or sick with something other than COVID) at a key time, the organization took several steps.

Producers selected a performance with a small cast and no intimate scenes — Jeeves at Sea.

And, for the first time in at least 16 years, the show will include swings.

Cook and Long are in the program as “Swing Actors.”

A swing is like the more familiar understudy, according to Production Manager and Stage Manager Adri Hunt.

But, instead of learning and preparing for one role, a swing has to be ready to fill in just about anywhere.

“Swings are what’s used in Broadway when you have a group of people who may have to cover for other people,” Hunt said. “An understudy would focus on just one person.”

For a long-running show, the understudy is a key position, ensuring that leading roles are filled from a position of strength.

The swings for Jeeves have the same responsibilities, but, at the same time, they have to be prepared to not see any stage time. The show is only on for four days.

“I auditioned and they asked,” Long said.

“They asked nicely,” Cook said.

“One of the reasons we decided to use swings was because of COVID,” Hunt said. “We were blessed to have a number of super-talented people audition for the show. We had always intended to use swings.”

Long and Cook have already been called on.

That’s kind of how things go in the COVID era.

“We’ve filled in for multiple characters,” Cook said. “Crumpet (Michael Stenberg) was out for the first week.”

It’s not just about being there when the other cast member can’t.

When Cook or Long rehearse in someone’s place, they pass along the details about blocking – the choreography of the actor’s movements – and the interactions with the other cast members and directors.

The swings attend and participate in all of the rehearsals.

That’s three hours a night, four nights per week, for about 12 weeks.

The swings have to know the show, but the hard part is not the lines.

The characters have different nuances, personalities, and affectations.

“It’s learning how to be them,” Cook said.

There is some good news. Most of the characters have British accents. “Mayan and Jess are very good at British accents,” Hunt said.

Count Otto Von Dietrichstein is the exception. “I had to step in for the count two nights,” Long said. His lines are written phonetically to help actors read them properly.

Yes, the swings are ready to step in for the male roles. “In high school, I played the king in the Princess and the Frog,” Long said. “Wouldn’t be the first time.”

All of that with the hope that their on-stage services are not needed.

Not being on stage? “That’s fine with me,” Cook said. “Warren Players is one big family. Nobody’s cutthroat.”

“I’d hate to see anything happen to anyone,” Long said. “We are a family. You’d hate to see any member of your family get hurt or miss out on anything they worked this hard on.”

Besides, being on stage is only one aspect of the theater experience, and both Long and Cook have experience in front of audiences and behind the scenes.

“We’ve had an opportunity to help create the story and the world that’s on stage,” Long said.

“It’s nice being here and seeing how everything progresses,” Cook said. “We get to create this together. We all get to play.”

“It’s a great show,” she said. “I’ve had fun backstage. You’re still part of the Jeeves family.”

“I’ve had the opportunity to look at every character,” she said. “It’s been fun.”

“Being part of a theater production whether on stage or off, you get caught up in the adrenaline rush,” Hunt said. “Sometimes, being on stage is more stressful than being off.”

Cook and Long don’t hope, nor expect, to be on stage. But, they are taking their work seriously.

“It’s still a lot of stress,” Cook said. “It could be the night of the show.”

They might be on stage. They’ll be ready.

They’re also ready for other roles.

“They are helping me with production,” Hunt said. “We literally couldn’t do this show without them.”

Cook said she is prepared to be an usher on the nights of the show. She might be helping sell tickets or “hawking the newspaper.”

Long created the newspaper and its content for the event. “There’s a prop paper,” she said. “I worked in as many jokes (from the show) as I could.”

Making sure that “the show must go on” has been a focus for the organization over the past two years.

“That’s something Warren Players has taken very seriously,” Hunt said. “We are one of the longest-running amateur community theater groups.”

They couldn’t take a year off.

The swings will help guarantee that someone who is deeply familiar with the show and the roles within it is on stage, filling those roles, when the performances are held at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 24, Friday, Feb. 25, and Saturday, Feb. 26, and at 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 27.

“You remember every show differently,” Long said. She is not concerned that she will remember Jeeves at Sea as the show in which she prepared to play every role and never got on stage.

She said she has already established the memories of this show. “The laughter – we’ve had so much fun laughing.”