Weekend Recap

Rehearsal the last two nights has been, for various reason, quite sporadic.

People's schedules required changed of times, which in turn conflicted with other people's schedules. As a result, on Saturday we really only worked on a few problems spots.

We also worked on the song for the play. There is only one that is sun throughout, and woven into the fabric of the play. "The Christmas Child" it is called. I had never heard of it, and to be frank about it, I am not too impressed with it. It sounds like a song someone threw together in a hurry. At least the lyrics do.

That often seems the case when a single Christmas song is produced, mainly, for the benefit of a single production.

Nothing to worry about though. After a few days of hearing it by ear, I will be able to sing it, since reading music is not something I do.

As for today, it was a bit chaotic. The theatre had someone come in to do head shots of all the actors. (While I am the official photographer of the company, head shots are a whole other thing, and as of now, do not really have the equipment to do them. I think in the future I shall.

Then, to the total surprise of everyone assembled, including the director, the local paper showed up to take pictures.

This meant, of course that most of us had no costumes to wear for pictures, and the paper prefers to only shoot people in costume.

If it sounds like they didn't exactly get together on this one to help us out, you would be correct.

But we threw together some stop gap costumes for a few shots that hopefully will appear in print. We will know in a few weeks.

This took an hour and a half or so. After that, we really only ran portions of two scenes, since there was still someone missing.

Plus the heat was broken, and the bathrooms were locked.

Not one of the most comfortable rehearsals for a show I have been through. I always try to make the best out of any conditions, since I am dedicated to being an actor of merit. But nights like tonight really push my boundary, I have to admit.

It will all be much better when we finally take over our own space. (Which, if all things go well, is supposed to be a week before opening night...)

I am off book except for a few lines that still fight me here and there. My task it to iron them out, and then to come up with some more nuance for the characters I play.

Rehearsal again on Tuesday.

The ACTUAL First Full Run Though

Not almost. We did the whole thing today. Furthermore, I was 95% off book. I called for line I think twice, and muddled through one or to. And as silly as it was, I needed my book for the literal final page of the script in which I appear...obviously that will not take much to memorize.

But a good night for certain. It would have felt even better if the whole cast had been there.

Sadly, one of the main characters was absent today. And in fact has been absent for a great deal of the rehearsals so far, specifically in the last two weeks. This really isn't the sort of thing you want to see when you are less than a month away from your opening night.

That notwithstanding, scenes without the missing actor went well all and all. Progress is being made on every front. Most of my fellow cast members are also off book, or very near it. Props have been added to the mix. Technical difficulties are slowly being widdled away.

All we need now, (aside from the entire cast to be at a rehearsal, which I am not sure had happened yet since the read through), is for the new building to be ready for a performance. All indications are that it will be.

I am finding that of all the things I do in the show, the build up to the "Death of Tiny Tim" scene causes me the most apprehension. Not because it goes poorly. But because it is so intense, and so short. It is of course quite necessary, and I am committed to excellence for it as much as any other scene I am in, or any other play. But right now it still feels like I am waiting in line to get a vaccination; it is a greater good, but still hurts like hell for a split second. I am hoping that the intensity will remain even as the apprehension fades.

Also, one minor thing. Despite Topper's pipe being a hit with me and with others, the director noted that men would probably not have smoked in front of woman back then. And it is a point well taken. He probably would not have. The question that must be answered now is whether it would be better to ignore this convention, to have Topper simply keep it in his mouth without giving any indication of him smoking it, (which I do not actually do anyway), or to get rid of it completely. The jury is out, but you will hear it's verdict here first of course.

My next assignment for myself is to look more into the real Clarkson Stanfield. This is not a historical piece, but if I can find any quirks or characteristics of the man that I can make use of in my portrayal of him, all the better.

First "Full" Run-Through

We skipped the last scene or two because we were running late. But we got all of the major parts in.

I can say that I am off book for half of act 2 now. By the weekend it will be a done deal, and I will be off book, basically, for the entire show. Not bad. Could have been better.

I can say that most of my cast mates are also mostly off book. And despite a few confusing spots here and there in regards to blocking and the calling of lines, tonight was the smoothest the show has ever gone, I dare say. It can only get better form here.

Yes, the freedom of having books (usually) out of the hands. The emergence of nuance and the sudden ability to dedicate time and energies into details.

Details such as line readings, facial expressions, and, in the case of tonight, props.

Several props, (many provided by a local antique shop) were available for use today.

For Bob Cratchit I had what I call "fingerless gloves". And for Topper, the pipe.

I am glad the director let me go with that choice. It seems to suit him quite well, as I am playing the man, (Peter O'Toole and James Bond). That scene, in fact as I whole was quite fun to do this evening. (The party at Fred's in Christmas Present.)

My own personal energy was up, as it always is at this stage of development of a show. (Losing the book.) Already , as though a veil were lifted, new, deeper dimensions are emerging for each of my characters.

In other words, the truly fun part.

IN fact, I got what I consider very high praise for my version of the Undertaker today. The director said, something along the lines of, "it was like watching an actor I had never seen before". I assume that means I did not seem like myself, so removed from my own mannerisms did I get in the short but memorable scene. This is the highest of compliments. Oliver himself often said he took pleasure in being on stage for 5 or ten minutes before anyone recognized it was him. Now of course, everyone knew, and will know it's me up there, but the fact that I took on a persona that appeared to transform me into someone else means I am doing things right.

At least in that scene.

We shall run the whole show now, and each of the rehearsals. I think that we really have benefited from moving rehearsals to the chapel, as I mentioned. That consistent workspace, despite it's limitations, has done us good. I think I will look back on today as the day when everything started to fall together for the show.

I am getting more excited now.

The Official Info

This post is here to provide loyal blog readers who may want to see the show I am currently in with the official information.

The Full Circle Theater Company, (out of Shepherdstown, West Virginia) present, the Michael Paller adaptation of the Charles Dickens immortal classic, "A Christmas Carol".

This unique version will play at the Full Circle Theater, on South Princess Street in Shepherdstown, West Virginia at the following times.

Friday, December 5th at 8:00PM.
Saturday, December 6th at 8:00PM.
THE FIRST MATINEE IS ALREADY SOLD OUT.

Friday, December 12th at 8:00PM
Saturday, December 13th at 8:00PM
Sunday, December 14th at 2:30PM

This is a very intimate, almost black box venue, and so there is limited seating. (About 75 seats per show.) Order ahead, if you can.

More information can be found at the official website of the Full Circle Theater Company, to the left. Or simply click on the link within this post.

Homing Signal Aquired

Alright, so I am not certain that is actually a term. But I do know that the spirit behind it applied to today's rehearsal.

In other words, for the first time, I felt that much longed for synergy within a cast putting on a play. It is early yet, and the production has a long way to go. Yet between more and more scenes taking place off book, and a consistently spacious rehearsal space, (see previous post), that first sense of connectivity between the script and the individual performances of the actors was present for me today.

That intangible extra that I have oft written of here on the blog, (both in the practice and in the breach.) When you start to feel that things are at last unifying.

I have to say this was one of the more subtle dawnings of the aforementioned phenomena that I have experienced in my theatre career. Perhaps because I was not expecting today's rehearsal to be much different than the last few. I am not off book for act 2, and neither are most of the other actors. Not to mention the overall uncertainty about our new theatre space.

So suffice to say, it was good news, and a good feeling this afternoon.

I don't want to over analyze why it began to day, in fear of jinxing it. But suffice to say that what I have mentioned probably had something to do with it.

It turns out I am further off book for act 2 than I thought. I initially felt I was falling quite behind. But after running a few speeches by myself before we got started today, I found that a good portion of my act 2 lines are actually in my head already, somewhere. Knowing that many of them come from the source material helps of course, (I have read that many many times.) But the rhythm of the lines is starting to sink in. I now feel more confident than I did previously about my ability to be off book by mid next week.

From a more technical standpoint, two things that remained to be blocked, or in this case, choreographed, were taken care of today. At least the initial sketching of same.

The first was a game of blind man's buff which take place at Fred's house during the Christmas Present scenes. As Topper, I am to be blindfolded, spun about, and led to "tag" the object of Topper's affections...Mrs. Fred's sister. (as she is called in the script.) A lot of running around and frantic raucous fun has to be present in the scene, and so who runs where, and how I stumbled about the room had to be worked out rather carefully.

I will not actually be blind...I will be able to see through the blindfold. Yet there is still much movement that needs to take place in a small space, and the scene requires more work.

The other scene to be choreographed today was the group dance engaged in by the guests at the Fezziwig party during Christmas Past. Given that I play the Ghost of Christmas Past, I, thank all that is holy, do not have to dance in the scene. Which is just as well. If any of you have followed this blog from the beginning, you know I can't learn dances to save my life.

After rehearsal, the director told me she was quite pleased with the qualities I am giving Bob Cratchit. Her highest compliment was that I was "making him human" in unique ways. This in fact has been one of my goals, not just with Cratchit, but with all of these characters. They are such a part of our collective subconscious that the temptation to phone them in is high. I am determined not to do so, and to hear the director say that I am making Cratchit both unique, and real, is quite satisfying.

Something else that is satisfying is the progress of the new theatre. Today was a major work day which started early in the morning. (I did not attend this particular day, given that getting up early enough to do so would have proven difficult for me this morning. Plus, I put in several hours the previous day.) I was not in the theatre today, but I was told that the last of the major extraneous walls finally came down today, and that, in the words of one of the Company's founders, "The place is starting to actually look like a performance space."

Again, a long way to go before we can call it ready, and little time in which to make it so. But I feel that having the building start to look like a theatre will lift everyone's spirits, and excite them to work extra hard to complete the remaining construction work. I personally can hardly wait to experience rehearsing in the building as was originally intended.

And then of course there is the set itself to build. But first things first.

Most Recent Part Two

Today was quite a long day at the theatre.

To begin with, I am proud to declare myself off book for act one. I was close before, and of course could still flub a line or two here and there between now and the opening of the show. (Hopefully not afterwords!) But today marked the second time I ran through act one without major problems. When that happens, I usually declare victory in the off book battle. Now that just leaves the process of getting there with act two, which I have only a few days to do....

Rehearsal was still rife with stops and starts today. We are all trying to get used to the "new" rehearsal space, and to remember what piece of random chapel furniture represents what eventual set piece. So once again there was halting progress today.

Yet it was progress nonetheless. I can now, in the time I have left, begin playing with the nuances of the scenes and the characters. Which I love to do.

One thing I am attempting to do in various ways is to have my base character, (Stanfield) foreshadow all of the roles he will play later on. I am trying to do this but given him certain stances, or gesticulations, or facial expressions in the first scene which will be utilized heavily by his characters later on. Some might notice. Most shall probably not notice. But those extra touches are what make the process so rewarding for me.

It requires more thought and work. But I shall loyally report to you as the weeks tick by, the details of progress, as always.

The director wants the play to be light, and even bordering on silly for the first few scenes or two. The Dickens party, and the first few scenes wherein that group begins to tell the tale. A notion of the characters settling in to telling this story at this party. But by the time the story shifts to Christmas Past, (enter yours truly), a dark atmosphere is the general goal. Being unchangeable it could be argued, as we did today, that they past is in fact in some ways more depressing and dark than is the future. So I shall play the Ghost with that in mind.

After rehearsal, the real fun began. Those of us who could stay, (sadly, not many), travelled the three blocks down to the new theatre, to begin construction work.

My main goal was to be able to help tear down some remaining walls. But it was not to be, as they were not ready to come down today. So I found myself using table saws and electric drill/screwdrivers for the first time (consistently) since my college theatre days. Back when every actor was essentially pulling double duty as a tech crew and a set builder.

I was uncertain about power tools in college most of the time until near the end of a project, when momentum sort of pushed me into being more tolerant of them. And after about a half an hour of drilling and lumber selection and measuring, (under very precise directions from someone who knew what i was supposed to do), it begun to come back to me. I was drilling and sawing up to my optimum proficiency, (about that of an average 13 year old girl) in no time.

By the end of this ordeal, (carrying in the back of my mind strong memories of doing this sort of stuff for which I had a lukewarm view), I had helped construct two monstrous risers on which to mount the seats of the house when all is said and done.

Sawdust and shrill noises, and having no clue what to do unless somebody tells me. I half expected my theatre professor to round a corner and ask me if I needed something to do...

Sunrise, sunset.

Tomorrow is another work/rehearsal day. This time construction in the morning. Don't think I will make it very early this time. So maybe the one wall will be gone by the time I arrive.

If not, I have a hammer in my bag.

Most Recent Part One

Breaking this update into two parts, as there are two rehearsals to cover. First, this past Thursday.

An executive decision was made to move all remaining rehearsals until tech week, into the nearby chapel a few blocks away from the Full Circle building. Those loyal blog readers among you will recall that this is where most of my rehearsals for The Lion in Winter took place back in the early part of this year. It is also the same place where the performances for All in the Timing

This change was made so as to allow the contractors to get more work done in the new space, without disturbing the actors as we were trying to practice the play. And though I would personally prefer to be on a brand new stage earlier than a week before opening, (as would most of us), I think this was a wise decision on the part of our director. It will give us a space that has consistent dimensions, with more quiet, and much more space than we had amidst the construction left overs at the new place.

And so the chapel it is.

That being said...Thursday...

It was a piecemeal rehearsal for me. I am a bit behind my time in getting off book for the second act, which is what we ran then. So there is still a book in my hand, (and in most people's), plus much confusion remains as to where on the stage certain props and set pieces will be found in the final show. So it was stop and start for all of us.

The main challenge that hit home for me on that day was how little time I will have to go from the extreme darkness of the "Future Cratchits", upon losing Tiny Tim, to the brief but exuberant persona of Topper at Fred's house, in the "real" timeline. It represents quite a roller coaster.

This is of course my job, and I will do what I have to do to make the leap. But just because it is my job does not mean it is easy to do. Hitting a tiny sphere moving at 90 miles an hour with a large piece of wood is the job of a baseball player, but it's considered one of the most difficult things to do in all of sports. And while I would not say this leap from portraying despair, to portraying glee (in a few short minutes) is the most difficult thing possible for the actor, it has its complexities.

For one, I think, in the intimate theatre, that if my eyes tear up in the Cratchit scene, of even get a little red simply our of physiological reflex, they are not likely to clear up by the time I have to rush back out on stage as Topper. It would be clear to anyone, I would imagine, why that would be so if they noticed Topper's eyes at that point. (Plus a "normal" Cratchit only a few minutes after THAT.) Still, I do not want to be too worn down by the leap.

In the end, however, I would rather have Bob Cratchit's breakdown scene look sincere, even if it affects the remainder of the play somewhat, than to tone down or hold back in the mourning scene. I have sometime to achieve that balance, however.

Just another one of the unique challenges to this adaptation.

I would say this is the main thoughts that i took with me after Thursday's rehearsal. Beyond that it was a rather nondescript rehearsal, albeit it one that required some time to get off the ground.

For my thoughts on today's practice, check out the sequel to this entry, above. took place during Full Circle's debut just over one year ago. So we are quite familiar with the venue.

Halfway There

We ran Act One last night. With only a tiny handful of times when I had to call for a line, I feel confident in projecting that I am off book for the first half of the show.

The bad news is that I am not yet off for the second half, and I have about a week to do it.

It can be done, but for some reason, the first half has gone easier in regards to memorizing than has the second half. I am usually not this far behind. But, as any of you who might have listened to my radio show last night are aware, I have had all kinds of things that have kept me behind on assignments these last two weeks.

Yet, I was one of the first off book for Act One, so I imagine that I will be alright with Act Two. Maybe not totally off book in one week's time, but well on my way.

Nanowrimo is kicking my backside a little more this year than last year...so between catching up with that and studying lines for act 2, I probably will not be doing much else when I am free for the next week or so.

Originally, we were to run the whole show last night. But Act One took longer than expected, due to several considerations.

Firstly, a lot of the blocking was lost because mistakenly we blocked the first several scenes backwards at first. When we were unsure of the nature of the stage. Now that we know how it is being built, we realized all crosses and entrance/exits had to take place on the opposite sides of the stage than were at first set down.

In addition to that, one of the cast members, who has missed every single night that we have gone over these first few scenes, was once again unable to attend rehearsal. So the stage manager had to stand in for him, and that was a halting experience at best, which took more time.

Plus, some light construction work was going on at the same time in the building.

All conspired to slow progress a bit.

I can however report that being without a book in my hands produced the usual effect of liberation and increased creativity with the characters I am playing. Squelched a bit by all of the hindrances mentioned above, but nonetheless a breath of fresh air, as it always is to get to that milestone in a production.

The director did as me, and the actress playing Mrs. Cratchit to not speak in Cockney. I in fact, to be fair, had not been full out Cockney. More like "mockney" as they call it. I have done full throttle Cockney before. In fact, the last time I was in a Christmas Carol, four years ago. But that sort of speech never quite felt write with the words Cratchit was speaking. Particularly the scene in "The Future", after Tiny Tim has died. The vocabulary of those sentiments was never truly Cockney to begin with. So I had watered it down a bit.

So despite the Cratchits being working-class folk, I am not at all bothered about being asked to get rid of the Cockney in favor of a different sort of British accent. The challenge now will be to come up with a voice that is appropriate, and yet distinct from the other 5 that I employ throughout the play. I have already been toying with a few ideas. I will try them tonight when we rehearse again.

Another plus about last night was that the trash from the last demolition had finally been hauled out, giving us a bit more room. We still have not been able to rehearse with the same amount of space in which we will perform, but it was somewhat less cramped.

A table we had planned to used however must be scrapped, as it takes up far too much of the stage.

I look forward to the weekend, when it is planned, the last of the extraneous walls will be demolished, given us all the room we need.

I am not sure what we do tonight. All I know is, I should get to studying lines after I do some of my writing work for today.

"Topp"ing off the Weekend.

Sunday night, weekly post. Deferring, as usual when I am in a play, to covering the rehearsal process.

Which continued this weekend despite some snags. Our work space seems to shrink each day, due to construction equipment, and leftover demolition detritus. But we muddle through somehow, and we get the job done. (The first chair-filled risers are in place and ready to go. Starting to take shape, despite a long way to go in a short time.)

We are still working on blocking. I think today we blocked the last of the scenes that remained to be blocked. Meaning that now we will be running the scenes more or less from start to finish, barring major changes which always happen to a show's blocking as time goes on.

Nevertheless, progress will begin to speedup from here on out each rehearsal night.

We worked on blocking various scenes in the last two days. But the one that has got me thinking most is that scene during Christmas Present, at Fred's house. The party scene where they talk about Scrooge. One "Topper" is present. In this production he is played by yours truly.

Topper is in the novel, and though he does in fact appear in some movie versions by name, as often as not he is skipped, or blends into the scene without much comment. Even in versions where he has a few lines, I find that he is often a through away character. I was determined not to let that happen to my version of him.

From the first moment I read the part during the read-through a few weeks ago, I gave Topper a sort of arrogant, rambling delivery...a mix of Peter O'Toole and James Bond I think. I do not agree with my cast mates who have declared him a total sleaze. That is not how I am playing him, nor is that how I wish him to come off. But I do wish him to be an assertive, laid back sort of personality. Like the type one might find in a lounge.Or perhaps what an early movie star would be like, had movies existed in 1843.

Nonetheless he must put the move son Fred's sister-in-law, and I wanted his interest to be obvious, but not creepy. Given that some of my cast mates have commented on him being a sleaze, I may have to alter my presentation somewhat. I will see how things progress without books in hands.

One thing is clear, however...I am not throwing away old Topper. In fact, I asked the director if he could have a pipe.

In an ensemble piece like this, it's vital that each character an actor plays have some sort of prop or costume piece. As I ran the Topper scene, a pipe just seemed to naturally present itself as his hand prop.

As for the other characters...more thought is required. At least one of them could wear glasses. That seems like a very easy thing to take on and off.

Speaking of costumes, we were measured today. A small and uninteresting, but nonetheless true fact.

As for lines, I am off book for the most part, for act one. Act Two is going to take some work over the next week. But better half done than none at all. Next time we run act one scenes, I should be set, with someone on book. One rehearsal after that I don;t think I will even require that much.

One final bit of trivia. Today I engaged in the coldest read in my life.

They were conducting auditions for the spring play in the building today. I literally had not yet said hello to anyone, or put down my bag, when the director handed me a script and asked me to help out by reading one of the parts. Which I did.

I knew basically nothing about this play, other than the fact they were going to produce it next year. Seemed interesting, to say the least.

I lept in head first, knowing nothing, and read the part of "Heisenberg" (The guy who came up with the Uncertainty Principle. How is that for irony???) The play is "Copenhagen".

To be honest, given the instantaneous nature of the request, and the small amount of info I had, I think I read pretty damn well.

It Ain't All Candy Canes

If you know the story of "A Christmas Carol", (and I am willing to assume that you do), you know that despite over a century and a half of re-tellings, newer versions, adaptations, movies, stage renditions, and overall sublimation into the consciousness of holiday season jollity, the story is, in the end, rife with both political and tragic, sometimes scary moments.

Given that I am portraying, among other things, Bob Cratchit in this version, one of those moments is the portrayal of a poverty stricken father who has losses his chronically ill youngest child.

It is not a light moment, by any means, and I do not for a moment take it lightly. Respect for the story, and for theatre itself would not allow me to do so. Because of that commitment, I think perhaps the scene from Christmas Future, wherein Cratchit mourns said loss, might be one of my more difficult moments to perfect.

Last night we went over the blocking for it, and I had not performed the scene since the initial read through a few weeks ago. Because I do not believe in holding one's intensity in reserve until later rehearsals, I did my best to go all out for it. I think it is effective, but has a ways to go.

I do feel that intensity when I do the scene. The key to it, as is the key to so many scenes wherein someone breaks down, is to strive to invoke a man who wants to maintain composure, as opposed to invoking the break down itself. Doing the latter, i feel, tends to lead to less realistic moments.

Not to mention the fact that I see Cratchit as the ultimate, humble servant of God and Christ. Accepting what the Lord has given him, not questioning how little he has. Being a symbol and source of joy, even despite his poverty. In the very depths of his want, h is able to raise a glass to his horrible employer, Scrooge, and even encouraging his family to find pity for the man.

By the time we see him mourning his son, (albeit it in an unreal, shadow future), I see him as finally getting to the point where, at least for the moment, he has no reserve with which o handle the situation. The loss of Tim is a final rock bottom moment for a man who has essentially refused to accept rock bottom moments.

Whether or not Cratchit eventually heals and returns to his happier ways is beyond the scope of our telling of the story. The vision ends at the break down moment. Yet for my part, I feel he probably does recover eventually, even from this. That is the nature of what Bob Cratchit is. So there is hope, if that matters, from this actor's perspective on the character. The main purpose, however, is to invoke that lowest moment in the man's history. Even if that history does not truly exist once Scrooge changes the future.

Some people feel the most vulnerable during sexual scenes. Some feel so when they are singing. I feel at the moment, among my most vulnerable in portraying such a horrible moment in this good man's life. My challenge will be not so much to give a good performance in that moment, (though I intend to of course), but to play through that feeling of vulnerability while I perform it. When I achieve that higher level of comfort, and feel a bit less vulnerable, the performance will follow.

Big Old Saturday

Quite a long day at the theatre on Saturday.

As for actual rehearsing, it went well enough. I went through the blocking for my scenes as the Ghost of Christmas Past. The director suggested, and I concurred, that the character be a very gentle, nearly effeminate entity. A stark contrast to the bombast of Christmas Present, or the foreboding mystique of Christmas Yet to Come.

To that end, I am working on an accent that is gentle, but with the appropriate authority. Plus an accent of course. I think I have nearly perfected it. I have used the idea of an elderly British school teacher as a base, and have been working from there. It seems to fit in well. I am comfortable with it.

I will have to learn to pretend to play a violin, while an actual musician plays one from somewhere. What would that be called, violin-syncing?

I am also about 85% off book for act one. A good solid place to be.

The next four hours or so after the rather average rehearsal, was spent demolishing. Literally. Those who could spare the time tour down walls and old lights, and such, to begin the process of converting the venue into a theatre. Quite a bit of exhausting work, no doubt. Though it all happened faster than I thought it would...two whole pillars were stripped of drywall and wood paneling, some overhang walls totally demolished, and ceiling tiles and lights all gone...within as I said four hours or so. At that rate, if we have a few more work days, the space could be totally ready. This excites me. I have never been part of actually building a theatre before. As in literally helping to build it.

The place gets a lot of foot traffic, and more than a few people peeked their heads in to ask us what we were up to. That is good word of mouth for you.

Next rehearsal is on Wednesday evening. Post election. Whatever shall the mood be like then?

More of Me to Go Around

I shall have two Sunday entries this week, neither of which is opinion or advice, given the large amount of news to cover.

I will go into detail about Saturday's rehearsal in the next entry. But for now, I would like to announce a partnership of sorts, between yours truly, and the proprietors of the website showbizradio.net.

If you go there, you will see that the website is dedicated to reviews, thoughts and news concerning theatre happenings in the Washington D.C. area. Starting this coming Wednesday, I will have a column appearing on this site, bi-monthly. The first and third Wednesdays of every month to be precise. I shall be discussing much of the same material that I have always discussed here on the blog. Namely, theatrical pursuits from the community actor's perspective.

Content for these columns will be exclusive to Showbizradio.net. So essentially, I shall continue to write my weekly advice and opinion column here on Always Off Book, but you can read further perspectives of mine on similar issues on said alternate location.

Do stop in and read my columns there, as much as you do here. And read the other fine things the site has to offer as well.