Three for Three

Sorry I did not post this yesterday when it happened, but I had many other things to attend to.

As the title to this post indicates, however, the third and final performance of the play was a success. I could not tell how many people were in the audience. (Probably about the same as Friday night.) Numbers aside, however, they were perhaps the most responsive of all three crowds. They laughed in one or two places that the previous audiences didn't. They also bestowed upon us more than one round of sustained laughter. As an actor, and as a director in particular, you cannot ask for much more than that.

This is the third years I have participated in this festival. It is only the 6th time is has taken place at all. I know that some of my colleagues have been concerned about the low attendance at these festivals. (It fluctuates somewhat each year.) While I did notice that the crowds this year were smaller than previous years, I cannot ignore the fact that all three audiences were in fact larger than predicted. While small by comparison, I have no complaints at all about the audiences.

That may be because, in my slightly biased opinion, my play got the most consistent laughter from the audience out of the three nights. True, I was not present for every moment of every performance. However from what I gathered from here and there, I feel emboldened enough to say that our play was at least one of the best received of the lot this year.

It did remain somewhat awkward for me to direct a piece I was also appearing in. I did not quite get to experience total stepping back from a piece one has guided into excellence that most director's get. And from an actor's standpoint, I could never quite be 100% dedicated to just the character building aspects for this show, as I am wont to do. Nevertheless, our peak was achieved and our stride was hit with some of the most exceptional timing out of anything I have been involved in at that theatre.

I will not go so far as to say it was because of my direction, but I am willing to say that my hard work, and that of my cast mates paid off in very rich dividends. In a very literal sense, I could not asked for much more out of this experience.