So it has been several days since the run of Jekyll and Hyde ended. I could and should have updated before this, but I think part of me needed a break from even thinking about the show.
The second weekend overall was better than the first. By a hair, the Saturday night show was probably the best over the closing matinee. But the latter was surprisingly well attended, and most of us in the show had decent energy because of that. Two near full houses in a row will do that. (Though there were times I found people laughing at dramatic places, hopefully not because of our performance.)
It was in some ways like another opening night on Friday. As I've said often throughout this production, we were working through some obstacles on this one, not the least of which was a shortened rehearsal time. So while there is usually almost no nervousness for me on a second weekend, there was some remaining. (Especially since the pick-up rehearsal wasn't exactly solid.) Not as bad as the first night of the show, but more nerves than I am used to by second weekend.
I am happy to report that some of the lines I had been messing up the first weekend, or in some cases switching around or unintentionally paraphrasing were corrected in the second weekend. Not all of them, however, as I realized when reviewing certain parts of the script later. I don't ad-lib my way through a show on purpose, and I don't like to paraphrase, (even though it's usually slight.) And I am always extra certain to get someone's cue line correct. Yet for this show, perhaps because of the reduced rehearsal time, or because of a highly disagreeable cast mate, I found myself less able to get every word into my head as written than i usually am. Better than I thought I was going to be by the end, but I prefer to be better still. (Even though I had a ton of lines for this one.)
I won't belittle myself or beat myself up over this, though. Sometimes one's best in one show is just not one's best in the next show. "Best" is what we have in us, earnestly offered and polished by hard work on a consistent bases throughout the rehearsal process. It took me a while to realize that even when we try hard, and do everything we are supposed to do, we aren't always going to have as high a quality ceiling for every single show. The key is to strive for it, want it, do one's best, and accept it in the end. (Mostly.) I would like to have done better with this show, but on the whole I have to say I still did pretty damn good, given all that was going on.
My director said she was happy with what I did in the show, so I have that to remember in the future as well.
Though I wouldn't want to have this many lines, and be on stage for that long on every show I am in, this does prove that I have it in me to do so, and that I have extended my comfort zone to some degree. Throw in the fact that originally I stated I preferred to not play Jekyll, and my overall ambivalence toward the original story of the novella, and I have come a long way in, I hope, giving life to the character that was familiar for an iconic personality, but also unexpected in places, with some aspect of myself and my own creativity thrown in there.
On the back wall of the stage were the words "Aliud et idem," as part of the graffiti design for the space. That was my contribution. It is Latin for, "Another, and yet the same." I couldn't think of a more appropriate short phrase to sum up the experience of Henry Jekyll, in both his own eyes, and in the eyes of this around him. Hyde(s) were different from Jekyll, another being, and yet part of him, the same. How much did he really change as a result of the "perfect tincture"? How much did he stay the same. The questions apply to "Hyde(s)" as well.
And also to the concept of theatre, here at the end of another run of another play. I've done this for years now, and no production is ever the same, even if it's the same play, or the same actors. It's always a little different. The same excitement, different triumphs. The same difficulties, different annoyances. Different show, but all of them are the human show.
They are another thing, and yet the same. Aliud et idem.
Showing posts with label closing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label closing. Show all posts
Friday, November 03, 2017
Monday, August 28, 2017
Finale Glen Ross
It has concluded, and may I say on a solid note.
Somehow, the energy didn't dip much for our final performance matinee. (This despite the fact that several of the cast members went out for something to eat and drink the night before. I opted not to join them.) I don't have an equation to determine this exactly, but to the best of my memory it is one of the highest energy closing shows I've ever been in.
I can't say I felt as on target as I did for the night before. (See previous entry.) I in fact skipped a line or two in a speech. Even setting that aside, the experience wasn't quite as exciting internally. Not quite as much of the golden ratio. Nonetheless, it was a closing show I could be proud of.
The audience, though small, was responsive. Again, not as much as the previous two audiences this second weekend, but as with last week, solid for a matinee. Both matinees being among the better performances in a two week run is uncommon for me.
This production was different in more than a few ways for me. I don't mean the particular challenge of a Mamet script, (though that was certainly part of it) but in regards to how I felt and behaved once the tech week and performances began.
To begin with, my level of ritual and tradition was lesser for this show than most of my others. My biggest rituals and "charms" if you will (which I've mentioned here many times) were still in place for this show. Yet despite the intense focus required to commit the script to memory, and to deliver it properly, I wasn't as somber in the final 15 minutes or so before curtain. Often I move off by myself, to meditate and such, but for this show I didn't. I remain relaxed, and reviewed my script in the actor's green room before hand, but didn't take a big pacing tour of the facility every night as I am known to do.
Perhaps it's just who I have become. Or perhaps the focus required for this play was so intense in some ways that part of my mind was allocating and prioritizing resources. Could the very intensity of the script and the work I put into same have caused my overall greater ease heading into the production? Was some part of my psyche saving energy for the show itself, by pulling it away from the need to be so ritualistic before hand? I think it's at least possible.
Maybe it comes from another angle. I have to admit that despite a few stumbles here and there, I felt more prepared each night for this play than I have for the last few years of theatre. That's not to say I've ever failed to be ready for a show, I haven't. But there is usually at least some gap between starting a show and total confidence in it-one which doesn't always get closed. This time, that gap was either much smaller, or not there, even before we opened. So much so, that there was a fairly large roadblock in my very first scene on the very first night...yet I never felt any panic about it. That might be a result of this higher level of preparation, might it not?
Why was I more prepared? In short, I think the script demands a different level of focus at different times than a lot of other plays. It's comparable to Shakespeare in effort to perform (even if not in content and poetry.) Not much room for zoning out, and I was conscious of this from the start. So I was even more tuned in than I usually am, and that is higher than most people I work with, if I may be so bold.
No need to analyze this into oblivion, though. Every experience in live theatre is different, for a variety of reasons. Glengarry Glen Ross at the Black Box Arts Center in August of 2017 happened to feel like a different experience for me. Not a totally poor one, not a disaster, just different.
And more tiring, no doubt about it. I didn't even go out to eat with the cast each time they did it, and I even skipped the cast party for the first time in my acting life. I felt emotionally spent, I had things to do at home, and I felt it was high time for me to exit the experience, the good and the bad, as soon as I could, after the final curtain, and so I did.
I have risen to the challenge of Shakespeare, and hope to continue to do so may times throughout my life. I can now say I have risen to the challenge of Mamet as well. To be frank, I think this experience will suffice. It's by far his best play, and his kind of rhythm can get more tiring for all the wrong reasons to me than other playwrights scripts. I'm glad this is on my resume, and I am satisfied with my work in it, but I don't feel a great desire to revisit David Mamet from now on.
Next theatre challenge? Unknown. I;m not cast in anything. I opted not to try out for the usual group of people that do Shakespeare in this area, despite many friends doing so, because of a venue change. Too long a commute for me each night, and a play that I never could get into. (Titus Andronicus.) I mentioned I'd fill a small hole in the cast if anyone backs out or something, but that I wouldn't be going trying out. It is what it is. Looks like they've got the people they need now. Here's to them.
Whatever is next, however, you can be sure I'll write about it here for you, whoever you mysterious, loyal blog readers of theatre are.
Somehow, the energy didn't dip much for our final performance matinee. (This despite the fact that several of the cast members went out for something to eat and drink the night before. I opted not to join them.) I don't have an equation to determine this exactly, but to the best of my memory it is one of the highest energy closing shows I've ever been in.
I can't say I felt as on target as I did for the night before. (See previous entry.) I in fact skipped a line or two in a speech. Even setting that aside, the experience wasn't quite as exciting internally. Not quite as much of the golden ratio. Nonetheless, it was a closing show I could be proud of.
The audience, though small, was responsive. Again, not as much as the previous two audiences this second weekend, but as with last week, solid for a matinee. Both matinees being among the better performances in a two week run is uncommon for me.
This production was different in more than a few ways for me. I don't mean the particular challenge of a Mamet script, (though that was certainly part of it) but in regards to how I felt and behaved once the tech week and performances began.
To begin with, my level of ritual and tradition was lesser for this show than most of my others. My biggest rituals and "charms" if you will (which I've mentioned here many times) were still in place for this show. Yet despite the intense focus required to commit the script to memory, and to deliver it properly, I wasn't as somber in the final 15 minutes or so before curtain. Often I move off by myself, to meditate and such, but for this show I didn't. I remain relaxed, and reviewed my script in the actor's green room before hand, but didn't take a big pacing tour of the facility every night as I am known to do.
Perhaps it's just who I have become. Or perhaps the focus required for this play was so intense in some ways that part of my mind was allocating and prioritizing resources. Could the very intensity of the script and the work I put into same have caused my overall greater ease heading into the production? Was some part of my psyche saving energy for the show itself, by pulling it away from the need to be so ritualistic before hand? I think it's at least possible.
Maybe it comes from another angle. I have to admit that despite a few stumbles here and there, I felt more prepared each night for this play than I have for the last few years of theatre. That's not to say I've ever failed to be ready for a show, I haven't. But there is usually at least some gap between starting a show and total confidence in it-one which doesn't always get closed. This time, that gap was either much smaller, or not there, even before we opened. So much so, that there was a fairly large roadblock in my very first scene on the very first night...yet I never felt any panic about it. That might be a result of this higher level of preparation, might it not?
Why was I more prepared? In short, I think the script demands a different level of focus at different times than a lot of other plays. It's comparable to Shakespeare in effort to perform (even if not in content and poetry.) Not much room for zoning out, and I was conscious of this from the start. So I was even more tuned in than I usually am, and that is higher than most people I work with, if I may be so bold.
No need to analyze this into oblivion, though. Every experience in live theatre is different, for a variety of reasons. Glengarry Glen Ross at the Black Box Arts Center in August of 2017 happened to feel like a different experience for me. Not a totally poor one, not a disaster, just different.
And more tiring, no doubt about it. I didn't even go out to eat with the cast each time they did it, and I even skipped the cast party for the first time in my acting life. I felt emotionally spent, I had things to do at home, and I felt it was high time for me to exit the experience, the good and the bad, as soon as I could, after the final curtain, and so I did.
I have risen to the challenge of Shakespeare, and hope to continue to do so may times throughout my life. I can now say I have risen to the challenge of Mamet as well. To be frank, I think this experience will suffice. It's by far his best play, and his kind of rhythm can get more tiring for all the wrong reasons to me than other playwrights scripts. I'm glad this is on my resume, and I am satisfied with my work in it, but I don't feel a great desire to revisit David Mamet from now on.
Next theatre challenge? Unknown. I;m not cast in anything. I opted not to try out for the usual group of people that do Shakespeare in this area, despite many friends doing so, because of a venue change. Too long a commute for me each night, and a play that I never could get into. (Titus Andronicus.) I mentioned I'd fill a small hole in the cast if anyone backs out or something, but that I wouldn't be going trying out. It is what it is. Looks like they've got the people they need now. Here's to them.
Whatever is next, however, you can be sure I'll write about it here for you, whoever you mysterious, loyal blog readers of theatre are.
Sunday, December 11, 2016
Home Stretch
For the life of me, I thought I had posted about last week's matinee, but I hadn't. And now here I am only a few hours from this week's matinee closer.
Like last week's, today is sold out. It proved a plus, as usual for a full house last week. They crowd was really quite into singing at the opening of the show, and they gave us a nice ovation at the end. Though to be honest, neither they nor any of the audiences so far have laughed at some of the things I thought they might laugh at. True, it is not a comedy per se, but there are still moments of humor that haven't translated in this production like I thought they might.
Still, the full house on last Sunday was our largest crowd in the small intimate space so far for this production. Just having that many people present is helpful for a show like this.
I also knew several people in the audience that day. The sad truth is that most people I know locally do not see my shows, so I usually know people when they are there for others in the play as well. Always adds a little something when you know someone out there in the audience is a friend of yours. (Even though often you cannot see them.
As for this weekend so far, Friday was tough. Not terrible,but it was our smallest crowd. I think 15 total, which even in a house that small looks, well, small. And they were quiet.
Last night was I think our second largest crowd,and I had family in that one. They enjoyed it. I fumbled a bit in one part of my performance, but I covered well and I don't think anybody noticed.
I'd say that last night's audience, though not a full house might have laughed more than any of the others have. Still not as much as I might have thought, and I don't mean gut busting here. But from my own angle, I think someone laughed at something more often last night than the previous nights.
A friend of mind was in the front row, and I knew I had to mess with him at least once. (Our director said we could sometimes interact with the audience if we wanted.) I had only one real chance. As Topper, announcing he is a bachelor, I sort of play that to the audience. I addressed it last night to my friend in particular, partly because he is married, so I emphasized "bachelor" and pointed at home laughing. (Little did I know, Scrooge later patted him on the head at the end of the show.)
A fun evening overall, I suppose.
Now, one more full house, and we close this production, which in many ways seems to have hardly started. I'll update that, and give overall thoughts on the show, later tonight when I get home from the cast party.
Like last week's, today is sold out. It proved a plus, as usual for a full house last week. They crowd was really quite into singing at the opening of the show, and they gave us a nice ovation at the end. Though to be honest, neither they nor any of the audiences so far have laughed at some of the things I thought they might laugh at. True, it is not a comedy per se, but there are still moments of humor that haven't translated in this production like I thought they might.
Still, the full house on last Sunday was our largest crowd in the small intimate space so far for this production. Just having that many people present is helpful for a show like this.
I also knew several people in the audience that day. The sad truth is that most people I know locally do not see my shows, so I usually know people when they are there for others in the play as well. Always adds a little something when you know someone out there in the audience is a friend of yours. (Even though often you cannot see them.
As for this weekend so far, Friday was tough. Not terrible,but it was our smallest crowd. I think 15 total, which even in a house that small looks, well, small. And they were quiet.
Last night was I think our second largest crowd,and I had family in that one. They enjoyed it. I fumbled a bit in one part of my performance, but I covered well and I don't think anybody noticed.
I'd say that last night's audience, though not a full house might have laughed more than any of the others have. Still not as much as I might have thought, and I don't mean gut busting here. But from my own angle, I think someone laughed at something more often last night than the previous nights.
A friend of mind was in the front row, and I knew I had to mess with him at least once. (Our director said we could sometimes interact with the audience if we wanted.) I had only one real chance. As Topper, announcing he is a bachelor, I sort of play that to the audience. I addressed it last night to my friend in particular, partly because he is married, so I emphasized "bachelor" and pointed at home laughing. (Little did I know, Scrooge later patted him on the head at the end of the show.)
A fun evening overall, I suppose.
Now, one more full house, and we close this production, which in many ways seems to have hardly started. I'll update that, and give overall thoughts on the show, later tonight when I get home from the cast party.
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
Radium Girls Finale
Radium Girls is concluded. Has been for several days, and I've been slowly getting back to some of the things that being in the show delayed. Ironically, this blog was one of those things.
The second weekend, though by no means problem free, was stronger than the first, from an acting perspective. Saturday was our biggest crowd at the Black Box, probably about 30 people. Good crowd. The crowd for the closing matinee was smaller by about ten people, but arguably more responsive. My mother came on Friday.
As is sadly often the case, very few of my personal friends came to the show. No need to elaborate on that disappointing fact.
I personally felt that I myself gave stronger performances this weekend than I did last weekend. For whatever reason, right up until the end I always felt more nervous during my single scene as "Dr. Flinn." I've never been sure why this was the case. It could be because the scene required a long, rambling speech. It could be that I wasn't cast in the role from the beginning. That may seem silly, but all throughout the process in the back of my mind I felt like it wasn't "really" my character, even though I had the role since about week two of the rehearsal process.
Maybe I just didn't like the character. Or the scene, which I felt was one of the few in the play that was not well-written. I understood why it was there in a way, but it was too long, not a good match for me, and always took me out of the play a bit. It got a few laughs from the crowds during the run, and my cast mates very much enjoyed watching me in the scene, but internally it never totally clicked with me. On the final day I went a little further with the character, making him even broader and sillier in some ways, and that made it a bit less imposing to do the scene, but I never felt totally at ease with it. (On Friday I even dropped one of the sentences from his speech, but jumped right to the next one, without further incident.)
It can't be denied that there were tech and crew issues in this show that were never totally solved. They made the show longer, and through off at times what could have been a far better presentation. Not to bad mouth any one individual, because one single person can't be blamed for it, but scene changes and other such things were an issue when they didn't always have to be an issue. Maybe an extra week of rehearsals would have done it. Maybe. It doesn't matter now.
Such problems did a few times irritate me quite a bit, but over all the experience of being in Radium Girls was a positive one. I am glad to have been in it, now that all is said and done. I enjoyed it more than my previous show, for any number of reasons.
I feel I presented four distinct characters throughout my performance. Even Flinn, the one I didn't like, was sufficiently different from the other three. That's the biggest challenge of ensemble work-making sure each of your characters, no matter how "minor" appear to be different from the others. I feel I achieved that.
Not that it was always easy. Several times I had to jump right into the next character, necessitating rapid costumes changes. The -longer-than-they-should-have-been scene changes probably helped me cheat a bit, but for a while there I wasn't sure if I could find a system that would allow me enough time to change costumes quickly enough. I did, in the end. In an ideal world, I would have had a crew member helping me do that, which was discussed early on. But as I mentioned there were already enough issues with the tech aspects as it was, without adding more responsibilities to the team.
For the record, if you know the show or care to look it up, I enjoyed playing Berry, the lawyer for the Radium Girls the most, especially during the scene of the hearing. The reporter was my second favorite character, and the one I played most often during the show. Berry and the reporter are the two characters I said on my audition sheet I liked the most, and I'll always be grateful to the director for letting me play both of them.
I'll miss some of the folks from this show, most of whom i had never met before. I'd work with any of them again.
I'll also miss my hat from the show, though. I almost offered to buy it, but I didn't.
So, that's about it for this show. If you get a chance to see or be in a production of Radium Girls, I encourage you to do so. It is a good script, with a lot of room for different styles of acting, and stageable on a low-budget.
What's next for me? It may be happening very soon, in fact. On Saturday before the show I auditioned in the same building for a production of Macbeth, that a friend and Radium Girls cast mate is directing in the fall. If I get into that, I'll probably be rehearsing, or at least doing table work for that in the next couple of weeks.
But plenty of time to talk of that, should it happen. For now, I'm officially closing the Radium Girls chapter of my time, and this blog.
The second weekend, though by no means problem free, was stronger than the first, from an acting perspective. Saturday was our biggest crowd at the Black Box, probably about 30 people. Good crowd. The crowd for the closing matinee was smaller by about ten people, but arguably more responsive. My mother came on Friday.
As is sadly often the case, very few of my personal friends came to the show. No need to elaborate on that disappointing fact.
I personally felt that I myself gave stronger performances this weekend than I did last weekend. For whatever reason, right up until the end I always felt more nervous during my single scene as "Dr. Flinn." I've never been sure why this was the case. It could be because the scene required a long, rambling speech. It could be that I wasn't cast in the role from the beginning. That may seem silly, but all throughout the process in the back of my mind I felt like it wasn't "really" my character, even though I had the role since about week two of the rehearsal process.
Maybe I just didn't like the character. Or the scene, which I felt was one of the few in the play that was not well-written. I understood why it was there in a way, but it was too long, not a good match for me, and always took me out of the play a bit. It got a few laughs from the crowds during the run, and my cast mates very much enjoyed watching me in the scene, but internally it never totally clicked with me. On the final day I went a little further with the character, making him even broader and sillier in some ways, and that made it a bit less imposing to do the scene, but I never felt totally at ease with it. (On Friday I even dropped one of the sentences from his speech, but jumped right to the next one, without further incident.)
It can't be denied that there were tech and crew issues in this show that were never totally solved. They made the show longer, and through off at times what could have been a far better presentation. Not to bad mouth any one individual, because one single person can't be blamed for it, but scene changes and other such things were an issue when they didn't always have to be an issue. Maybe an extra week of rehearsals would have done it. Maybe. It doesn't matter now.
Such problems did a few times irritate me quite a bit, but over all the experience of being in Radium Girls was a positive one. I am glad to have been in it, now that all is said and done. I enjoyed it more than my previous show, for any number of reasons.
I feel I presented four distinct characters throughout my performance. Even Flinn, the one I didn't like, was sufficiently different from the other three. That's the biggest challenge of ensemble work-making sure each of your characters, no matter how "minor" appear to be different from the others. I feel I achieved that.
Not that it was always easy. Several times I had to jump right into the next character, necessitating rapid costumes changes. The -longer-than-they-should-have-been scene changes probably helped me cheat a bit, but for a while there I wasn't sure if I could find a system that would allow me enough time to change costumes quickly enough. I did, in the end. In an ideal world, I would have had a crew member helping me do that, which was discussed early on. But as I mentioned there were already enough issues with the tech aspects as it was, without adding more responsibilities to the team.
For the record, if you know the show or care to look it up, I enjoyed playing Berry, the lawyer for the Radium Girls the most, especially during the scene of the hearing. The reporter was my second favorite character, and the one I played most often during the show. Berry and the reporter are the two characters I said on my audition sheet I liked the most, and I'll always be grateful to the director for letting me play both of them.
I'll miss some of the folks from this show, most of whom i had never met before. I'd work with any of them again.
I'll also miss my hat from the show, though. I almost offered to buy it, but I didn't.
So, that's about it for this show. If you get a chance to see or be in a production of Radium Girls, I encourage you to do so. It is a good script, with a lot of room for different styles of acting, and stageable on a low-budget.
What's next for me? It may be happening very soon, in fact. On Saturday before the show I auditioned in the same building for a production of Macbeth, that a friend and Radium Girls cast mate is directing in the fall. If I get into that, I'll probably be rehearsing, or at least doing table work for that in the next couple of weeks.
But plenty of time to talk of that, should it happen. For now, I'm officially closing the Radium Girls chapter of my time, and this blog.
Sunday, March 06, 2016
Send Off
Due to there being no matinees, last night we closed "A Night of One-ders" at the Black Box Arts Center.
It was our largest crowd of the run. (About 20 people) and in many ways was probably the best performance. It lagged in a few places it had always lagged, but overall energy was up, and I'd say we sent the show off on a positive note.
What can really be said at the end of a show such as this? If you've followed this mini-adventure since it began here on the blog, you know that this production was spotted with certain problems. Some of them were preventable, and some of them were not. It was usually difficult going, and for a time, at least to me, was worrisome. I wasn't convinced we were ready to open when we did.
Truth be told, the second weekend was in many ways stronger than our opening weekend, so in some ways that theory played out. However, opening weekend was acceptable, which is better than I expected at one point.
I always felt rushed in this show, always a bit more on edge than I like to be. More so than I tend to be for most shows I'm in. This was due in part to the fact that it was three shows crammed into one hour, both of which required a lot of stage time from me. I didn't get nearly as much of a break as I like to re-calibrate, especially between shows. No intermission either. I'd probably have to consider it long and hard before I tried out for something in this format again. (As in, being this rushed through the whole thing.)
As for the people I would work with most of them again, gladly. I probably will, in fact. They are all local, and I have known some of them for years.
Now the process of gently stripping away the thoughts, feelings and affects of this production, so as to prepare my artistic spirit for the next project(s). Being in a play is almost always the prime expenditure of creative time and energy during a run. Now I can reallocate that to other things I've been working on.
Oedipus Rep intends to have another show in June, auditions in April. It hasn't been decided what it is yet, so I don't know if I will audition for it or not. But I have plenty of time to think that over, and they have plenty of time to decide what they want to do.
For now, back to "normal" (read: non-production) time.
As always, thanks for following along on my journey through this show. Check back often to see what my next theatrical endeavor, thought, or idea will be.
It was our largest crowd of the run. (About 20 people) and in many ways was probably the best performance. It lagged in a few places it had always lagged, but overall energy was up, and I'd say we sent the show off on a positive note.
What can really be said at the end of a show such as this? If you've followed this mini-adventure since it began here on the blog, you know that this production was spotted with certain problems. Some of them were preventable, and some of them were not. It was usually difficult going, and for a time, at least to me, was worrisome. I wasn't convinced we were ready to open when we did.
Truth be told, the second weekend was in many ways stronger than our opening weekend, so in some ways that theory played out. However, opening weekend was acceptable, which is better than I expected at one point.
I always felt rushed in this show, always a bit more on edge than I like to be. More so than I tend to be for most shows I'm in. This was due in part to the fact that it was three shows crammed into one hour, both of which required a lot of stage time from me. I didn't get nearly as much of a break as I like to re-calibrate, especially between shows. No intermission either. I'd probably have to consider it long and hard before I tried out for something in this format again. (As in, being this rushed through the whole thing.)
As for the people I would work with most of them again, gladly. I probably will, in fact. They are all local, and I have known some of them for years.
Now the process of gently stripping away the thoughts, feelings and affects of this production, so as to prepare my artistic spirit for the next project(s). Being in a play is almost always the prime expenditure of creative time and energy during a run. Now I can reallocate that to other things I've been working on.
Oedipus Rep intends to have another show in June, auditions in April. It hasn't been decided what it is yet, so I don't know if I will audition for it or not. But I have plenty of time to think that over, and they have plenty of time to decide what they want to do.
For now, back to "normal" (read: non-production) time.
As always, thanks for following along on my journey through this show. Check back often to see what my next theatrical endeavor, thought, or idea will be.
Monday, November 14, 2011
WFCT: Signing Off
The show is closed. And as is the case nine times out of ten on this blog, I didn' cover the Saturday performance the night that it happened, meaning that I need to cover two shows with one entry.
Not that it should take long. I think that by now loyal blog readers have understood how this show was trending. I will say that both performances were acceptable overall, though there were places in each that I think got sloppy and could have been improved upon. Maybe if we had been doing it for two weeks it would have been, I'll never know.
As for which night was best, that is a matter of perspective. Saturday night was the slightly bigger crowd, and I think the performances were a bit more disciplined and on target. I think the energy was higher on Saturday night as well. According to my self assessment it was also the night I feel I gave my best performance of both the background stuff as well as the actual readings of which I was a part.
But Saturday's audience was not quite as responsive as the one on Sunday. For that reason, I was in the minority in my evaluation of the weekend, as most of my cast mates felt that the smaller, more rowdy, but more vocal Sunday audience,represented the best of the run. Especially true, once the laughs started to come from the actors milking things that, in my view, should not have been milked. I never did think that the cheap laugh was something to consider a reward for a job well done. If it were the cheap laugh that was all that mattered, I submit rehearsing would be necessary. We could have just read the script cold for the first time opening night, and which the crowd guffaw and our stumbling.
A few cast mates at intermission expressed to me that they felt the people were supposed to laugh at the dramas, (which they did, especially on Sunday night) because they were designed to be campy and ridiculous. I expressed disagreement with that sentiment, as I feel the dramas are only campy in retrospect, looking at them over 70 years of changing tastes. But at the time they were written, they were probably in most cases quite dramatic. When played correctly.
Now, I agree that a show could be conceived wherein the actor were exploiting over-the-top campiness as related to the 1930's radio style, and such. Yet this production was not presented as a parody of the 1930's. It was presented as a nostalgic look at same, and as such, I really would have preferred that the dramas be played straight. But then again, I have always felt that going for the cheap laugh weakens any comedy, even if the laugh is received. It has never been just about getting a response to me. Even when I am in a comedy. But certainly not a drama.
Nevertheless I remain proud overall of my performance in this production. I remained articulate and paced in my line delivery. Expressive even if not manic. I proceeded from day one with the notion that people who would only be able to hear me, and not see me, would still get 100% of my characters. (This was after all a radio play.) I think I gave them that in the end.
I succeeded at feeling less light headed during my performances in Act Two over the final two shows. I shifted around the mike on purpose while I was performing, instead of standing there as stiffly. I was less tense. I was in less of a hurry to switch characters after the first, opting instead to casually go back to the booth and get my between-shows drink. I think it helped.
This experience has been an interesting one. I was drafted into it, rehearsed it a handful of times for a few weeks, then everyday for a week. Only one rehearsal wherein all of the elements were in place. It all moved so fast, given the non-traditional nature of it. In the coming days I think I will look back and feel almost as if it never happened. Like a dream one has of doing something familiar.
Not that the experience was in any was surreal, but just that the normal deep emotional investment wasn't their do to the brevity and the format, and ergo the impact was different. I even opted out of going to dinner after strike with some of the members of the cast. I almost always go to such things, but I just didn't feel it last night.
I am not sorry I did this show, but it did come at a very busy time for me, and proceeded to unfold in a rather hectic manner. For those reasons, as much as I enjoyed certain aspects of the show on the day, I am somewhat relieved that it is concluded.
Not that it should take long. I think that by now loyal blog readers have understood how this show was trending. I will say that both performances were acceptable overall, though there were places in each that I think got sloppy and could have been improved upon. Maybe if we had been doing it for two weeks it would have been, I'll never know.
As for which night was best, that is a matter of perspective. Saturday night was the slightly bigger crowd, and I think the performances were a bit more disciplined and on target. I think the energy was higher on Saturday night as well. According to my self assessment it was also the night I feel I gave my best performance of both the background stuff as well as the actual readings of which I was a part.
But Saturday's audience was not quite as responsive as the one on Sunday. For that reason, I was in the minority in my evaluation of the weekend, as most of my cast mates felt that the smaller, more rowdy, but more vocal Sunday audience,represented the best of the run. Especially true, once the laughs started to come from the actors milking things that, in my view, should not have been milked. I never did think that the cheap laugh was something to consider a reward for a job well done. If it were the cheap laugh that was all that mattered, I submit rehearsing would be necessary. We could have just read the script cold for the first time opening night, and which the crowd guffaw and our stumbling.
A few cast mates at intermission expressed to me that they felt the people were supposed to laugh at the dramas, (which they did, especially on Sunday night) because they were designed to be campy and ridiculous. I expressed disagreement with that sentiment, as I feel the dramas are only campy in retrospect, looking at them over 70 years of changing tastes. But at the time they were written, they were probably in most cases quite dramatic. When played correctly.
Now, I agree that a show could be conceived wherein the actor were exploiting over-the-top campiness as related to the 1930's radio style, and such. Yet this production was not presented as a parody of the 1930's. It was presented as a nostalgic look at same, and as such, I really would have preferred that the dramas be played straight. But then again, I have always felt that going for the cheap laugh weakens any comedy, even if the laugh is received. It has never been just about getting a response to me. Even when I am in a comedy. But certainly not a drama.
Nevertheless I remain proud overall of my performance in this production. I remained articulate and paced in my line delivery. Expressive even if not manic. I proceeded from day one with the notion that people who would only be able to hear me, and not see me, would still get 100% of my characters. (This was after all a radio play.) I think I gave them that in the end.
I succeeded at feeling less light headed during my performances in Act Two over the final two shows. I shifted around the mike on purpose while I was performing, instead of standing there as stiffly. I was less tense. I was in less of a hurry to switch characters after the first, opting instead to casually go back to the booth and get my between-shows drink. I think it helped.
This experience has been an interesting one. I was drafted into it, rehearsed it a handful of times for a few weeks, then everyday for a week. Only one rehearsal wherein all of the elements were in place. It all moved so fast, given the non-traditional nature of it. In the coming days I think I will look back and feel almost as if it never happened. Like a dream one has of doing something familiar.
Not that the experience was in any was surreal, but just that the normal deep emotional investment wasn't their do to the brevity and the format, and ergo the impact was different. I even opted out of going to dinner after strike with some of the members of the cast. I almost always go to such things, but I just didn't feel it last night.
I am not sorry I did this show, but it did come at a very busy time for me, and proceeded to unfold in a rather hectic manner. For those reasons, as much as I enjoyed certain aspects of the show on the day, I am somewhat relieved that it is concluded.
Monday, July 18, 2011
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern...are Closed
*Another show concluded. And while the Sunday closer was not our best audience or performance, I do have to say it went better than I would have thought for a Sunday. The whole second weekend was clearly the best, and the second Sunday was better than any of the days of our first weekend.
I think we had about 15 people, including my own mother. The house was not as warm as the previous night's but they did laugh at things that most of the crowds did not. Yes, I am sure some of that was my mother laughing at a few of my moments, but I know her laugh, and she was not the only one.
It was hotter than the previous two shows. Not just because it was day time, but because the weather was hotter in general, and the house was once again not a very comfortable place to be. Neither was the stage. Even if in my brief moments began to feel a bit hot near the end.
My mother enjoyed what I feel was a good performance of Hamlet by yours truly. I can't say it was bar none the best one of the run. That honor probably does go to the night before. However the usual dip in energy, for both myself and the rest of the cast for a second Sunday wasn't as evident as I might have thought it would be. At least for those who ever had any energy in the first place. So kudos to such people.
I won't miss the umbrella bit, though it went okay yesterday. I won't miss sitting on stage hidden for 20 minutes waiting. I won't miss that costume. I won't miss the heat of a summer show. And I certainly won't miss certain individuals within the cast. But I will miss delivering the lines of Hamlet. I'll miss the pirate scene, as silly as it was.
The entire experience has given me something important, though. I have often mentioned my plans to stage my own Hamlet at some point, probably within the next 18 months if things go well. I knew that that would take work, and it well, both in terms of structure and art. Yet having this chance to be Hamlet in this play gave me a leg up on that experience. It doesn't stand in for the idea of course, but it was just enough to confirm that I do have an idea of Hamlet within me after reading the play so many times. And not just the broad strokes, either. Being in this play provided me with a preview of some of the nuance. The flourishes. The little details that can be utilized pursuant to playing one of the greatest roles ever. Staging the real Hamlet will be a challenge, as will performing the title role. But thanks to being cast in this play, I will not be approaching the role 100% cold. For that I am grateful.
It also taught me patience. Patience with terrible people, and how not to allow them to get to me too much. For while that jackass I have been talking about did piss me off, I take pride in the fact that I still said nothing more to the old fool than "Just leave me alone." I of course refuse to ever work with him or anyone like him again, because life is too short and theatre is too important. But I at least showed that I can be accosted and berated by a lunatic and not let it affect my overall performance in the production. If I may say so myself, I think that is a strength for an actor.
I don't know what my next theatre project will be yet. I am doing a few skits for a picnic next week, and for fun I may post some thoughts here on that when the time comes. But as far as plays, I don't yet know. I usually don't know right away. But when I so know, so will you, loyal blog readers, as it will be right here on Always Off Book, as it has been for over five years now. Thank you for your continued readership and interest in my theatre adventures.
Back to weekly advice posts for now. Hope you stop by on Tuesdays for those.
Photo by Martha Louden. Myself and Roger Hume as Polonious.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Six Month Retrospective
Last night was the closing show, strike, and subsequent cast party for Claudie Hukill, the play for which I have been the assistant-director since Christmas time. The production, not without it flaws and obstacles, ended up having a very good run. Now that it is over, there is a bit of a noticeable void, as always when a show ends. (It happens to directors too you know!)
Yet the end of this show has a particular aspect to it. I have been going to the same theatre several days a week, every week since August. Beginning with A Thurber Carnival, the exploits of which I will not get into here again. Go back through my archive to get up to speed on that if you weren't following me then.
The read through for A Christmas Carol was on the same evening as the pick-up rehearsal for Thurber, so there was no gap between those two shows. Claudie Hukill auditions were on the same day as one of the final performances of A Christmas Carol, and so there was no gap there either. In other words, when the previous two shows ended, I had something else theatrical to jump into right away. In the very same building. The void was still there, but in a sense it was more like one continuous loop. Striking one show, only to rehearse the next show on the same stage a day later. Remnants of the strike of one would be clearly visible during the next.
Without checking my records, I cannot with certainty state that I have never done three consecutive shows before. But I do not believe that I have. Furthermore even if I have, I can guarantee that they were never this close together before. All three being in the same venue enhances this notion that I have in a way been involved in one big theatre endeavor over the last half a year.
When you do a show anywhere, there comes a time when it becomes in a sense like a second home. For a few hours, anyway. Each person tends to put their stuff in the same places. Use the bathrooms at the same time. You know where the quiet spots are, if any. You get used to the climate settings. You begin to move about the place in your dailiy evening ritual with the familiarity and comfort of if not your own home, at least the home of a family member. The rules may be different there, but you hit that groove. And that's just for six weeks of a show. Now multiply that by six months and three shows, and you get the idea.
I will of course return to that place many times. I will see shows there, and be in them. Perhaps even direct one at some point. But each time I come back to venue after a break, it feels a tad different. The longer the break, the more different it feels, even if the venue itself hasn't changed that much. Until of course I am there again for six weeks and it feels like that second home again. Even when I am in a show again, I wonder if ever there will be another solid six month stretch at one venue like this again. Certainly not for the foreseeable future.But such is the way of the community player.
For the first time in a long while, I don't have the slightest idea what my next theatre project will be. There are no auditions lined up right now that interest me. And it is probably just as well. After half a year, I think I should take a months long break from the stage. At least until summer, when something else may show up. I need to spend those months catching up on that other talent of mine, writing.
But do not stay away, loyal blog readers. Some of that writing will be right here on Always Off Book. I am taking a break from doing theatre for a few months. Not taking a break from writing and talking about it!
And so it goes.
Yet the end of this show has a particular aspect to it. I have been going to the same theatre several days a week, every week since August. Beginning with A Thurber Carnival, the exploits of which I will not get into here again. Go back through my archive to get up to speed on that if you weren't following me then.
The read through for A Christmas Carol was on the same evening as the pick-up rehearsal for Thurber, so there was no gap between those two shows. Claudie Hukill auditions were on the same day as one of the final performances of A Christmas Carol, and so there was no gap there either. In other words, when the previous two shows ended, I had something else theatrical to jump into right away. In the very same building. The void was still there, but in a sense it was more like one continuous loop. Striking one show, only to rehearse the next show on the same stage a day later. Remnants of the strike of one would be clearly visible during the next.
Without checking my records, I cannot with certainty state that I have never done three consecutive shows before. But I do not believe that I have. Furthermore even if I have, I can guarantee that they were never this close together before. All three being in the same venue enhances this notion that I have in a way been involved in one big theatre endeavor over the last half a year.
When you do a show anywhere, there comes a time when it becomes in a sense like a second home. For a few hours, anyway. Each person tends to put their stuff in the same places. Use the bathrooms at the same time. You know where the quiet spots are, if any. You get used to the climate settings. You begin to move about the place in your dailiy evening ritual with the familiarity and comfort of if not your own home, at least the home of a family member. The rules may be different there, but you hit that groove. And that's just for six weeks of a show. Now multiply that by six months and three shows, and you get the idea.
I will of course return to that place many times. I will see shows there, and be in them. Perhaps even direct one at some point. But each time I come back to venue after a break, it feels a tad different. The longer the break, the more different it feels, even if the venue itself hasn't changed that much. Until of course I am there again for six weeks and it feels like that second home again. Even when I am in a show again, I wonder if ever there will be another solid six month stretch at one venue like this again. Certainly not for the foreseeable future.But such is the way of the community player.
For the first time in a long while, I don't have the slightest idea what my next theatre project will be. There are no auditions lined up right now that interest me. And it is probably just as well. After half a year, I think I should take a months long break from the stage. At least until summer, when something else may show up. I need to spend those months catching up on that other talent of mine, writing.
But do not stay away, loyal blog readers. Some of that writing will be right here on Always Off Book. I am taking a break from doing theatre for a few months. Not taking a break from writing and talking about it!
And so it goes.
Monday, December 06, 2010
"The End Of It"
The title of this entry comes not from the play, but from the last section of the original novel, A Christmas Carol. But I used it for the final entry for this play two years ago, and I am doing so again.
First and foremost, I need to say that it is quite an infrequent experience for me to have my final performance be either the best, or in front of the biggest crowd. Today's matinee, however was both. Five seats short of a full house, and a very response, cheerful crowd at that. They laughed at a few things that the other crowds did not find so amusing.
As well as things that all of the other crowds found amusing. Such as my often mentioned "Happy New Year!" bit. It was always well received, and tonight was it's best reception. And though I didn't reach 100% internalization, (another hot topic here on the blog the last two weeks) I do feel my performances in this final day were of high quality, and full of energy. And the same can be said for basically everyone else in the show.
It was especially true for the break-up scene. It went better than last night, as Belle and I managed to more successfully recreate the graceful hand motion at the end of the waltz that we first did on Friday, but didn't quite achieve the following night. It may have been our best presentation of that scene. If not, it was certainly the second best. I am happy with my move in later rehearsals to present Scrooge's frustration, as opposed to presenting anger or total coldness. I shall miss performing that scene just as much as I shall miss Fred's first scene, wherein he greets Uncle Scrooge.
I had fun with Old Joe, and will miss him a bit as well. I won't miss being Peter Cratchit in either scene, frankly, despite the drama in the second. My brief moments as Christmas Future were always fun, though not my biggest challenge ever. I won't particularly miss any of the scenes in Dickens' attic, even though they are sort of the raison detre of this particular version. I always found myself chomping at the bit to get on with the actual story. (And according to my mother, who was in today's audience, some people in the house agreed with this notion, being confused by the attic moments, and unsure of what was happening.)
And then there is the Fred party scene in the Christmas Present section. The one scene that always made me a bit nervous beforehand, despite it usually being just fine. A scene I did not hate, but probably won't miss too much. And it was just fine today, and the audience was very appreciative of it. But it was not without it's problems.
To begin with, a moment wherein I was supposed to walk slowly off of a 5 step turret we built for the play did not exactly go off as planned. It is round in shape, and as I turned to deliver a line, something happened. I lost my balance for a moment, or caught my show on something, and felt myself falling forward a bit toward the ground, and away from the steps. So in the only thing I could think of to correct it error, as well as to prevent possible injury, I simply leaped off of the turret and landed in the middle of the stage while delivering said line. A bit much, but I don't think the audience noticed, and in fact seemed to be laughing rather heartily at that moment. But whether at my mini-stunt, or at something else going on on stage, I can't say. I can say the jump was a bit higher than I initially thought it would be. But better by far than falling off the thing.
The second snafu for that scene will take some explaining, but was so amusing to me I'd like to take the time to do so.
Fred blindfolds his friend Topper during the scene for a game of "Blindman's Buff". There is a gag here, wherein I look for a handkerchief, and the supposedly unseen Ghost of Christmas Present throws it, and I catch it. It always got a chuckle or two. However, at the top of the act, one of my fellow actors came off stage, and delivered a message to me on behalf of the actor who was playing Christmas Present; He had forgotten to grab the handkerchief.
That actor didn't come off stage for close to half an hour straight. He had no way to get it, and I was about to go on as Peter Cratchit. I pondered ways to cover the problem while performing Peter. (A role which had few lines.) During my brief exit, I discussed it with a fellow actress who suggested something I had already considered...taking off my ascot during the scene and using that. (Ironically, this is exactly what happened two years ago, when another actor was playing Fred, and the blindfold was somehow misplaced.) The problem was, I wasn't sure I'd have time to put it back on for my remaining scenes. I never could get it on without several tries.
Bob Cratchit enters the scene now. Played by the same actor who will later play Topper. During a section we all hated, wherein the Cracthit family had to mime its way through what seemed like a 10 minute speech by the Ghost of Christmas Present, I leaned over toward "Bob" and explained the problem to him. "Bob" then explained to me that he had retrieved the blindfold from backstage and sneaked it on with him. He mentioned it was laying behind us. I couldn't look without being conspicuous, but sure enough when I exited the Cratchit scene, to prepare for the Fred scene, I saw the wayward prop, and pocketed it quietly. It was then available to me during the party scene. And though a joke was lost, the audience was none the wiser of this. (At least until some of them read this entry!) It was a nearly perfect fix involving nearly half the cast, and not a bead of sweat was shed because of it. That is what focus and team work will bring you during a show!
None of that would have been possible if this production wasn't one of the most prepared, well rehearsed, and overall smooth flowing shows I have been in for a while. I have discussed the reasons why this may have been so for in previous entries. I won't go into them again, but suffice to say today was a prime example of the importance of being so.
As well as a prime example of why two weekend simply are not enough in most community theatre shows. Loyal blog readers will know already I have long advocated for a three weekend schedule for at least some community shows, given how almost all of them hit their true stride during the second weekend, right before they close. (If the stride is ever hit at all...) If once in a while that sense of finally hitting that rhythm could carry into one more weekend, I think a show could have more life than most community players would imagine.
A subject worthy of further consideration and discussion, but not here. Here is the time I look back on yet another show that has concluded. A show that I didn't even think I would be in, given I did not audition for it. But one I am glad I agreed to appear in. It was not revolutionary, nor life changing. nor was it perfect. But as I was telling one of the other actors during strike today, I feel it was one of those shows where we basically achieved anything we could have expected to achieve. I don't think we left anything on the stage, as it were. I think we did everything we set out to do, despite the inevitable obstacles. And hopefully we opened up the holiday season on a positive note for at least some of the people who came to see us these last two weekends. Perhaps even converted a real Scrooge or two into a happier frame of mind? One never knows.
So though once again almost none of my friends came to see me, (a sadly regular occurrence) I count this production of A Christmas Carol as a positive one. I give us a B+ or A- for the entire run. Quite the improvement over my previous show.
And an improvement over the last time we performed this show, two years ago, in some ways. Even the strike was smooth and without incident.
Now my focus turns both towards the holidays themselves, and toward my next theatre project; being an assistant-director for Full Circle's next production. I will decide in the coming days whether or not to chronicle that here on the blog, but until then, I bring my blogging about the Full Circle Theater Company's 2010 production of A Christmas Carol to a close. With my thanks to cast and crew of same.
And no, I will not end this entry with the most obvious Tiny Tim reference of all time.
First and foremost, I need to say that it is quite an infrequent experience for me to have my final performance be either the best, or in front of the biggest crowd. Today's matinee, however was both. Five seats short of a full house, and a very response, cheerful crowd at that. They laughed at a few things that the other crowds did not find so amusing.
As well as things that all of the other crowds found amusing. Such as my often mentioned "Happy New Year!" bit. It was always well received, and tonight was it's best reception. And though I didn't reach 100% internalization, (another hot topic here on the blog the last two weeks) I do feel my performances in this final day were of high quality, and full of energy. And the same can be said for basically everyone else in the show.
It was especially true for the break-up scene. It went better than last night, as Belle and I managed to more successfully recreate the graceful hand motion at the end of the waltz that we first did on Friday, but didn't quite achieve the following night. It may have been our best presentation of that scene. If not, it was certainly the second best. I am happy with my move in later rehearsals to present Scrooge's frustration, as opposed to presenting anger or total coldness. I shall miss performing that scene just as much as I shall miss Fred's first scene, wherein he greets Uncle Scrooge.
I had fun with Old Joe, and will miss him a bit as well. I won't miss being Peter Cratchit in either scene, frankly, despite the drama in the second. My brief moments as Christmas Future were always fun, though not my biggest challenge ever. I won't particularly miss any of the scenes in Dickens' attic, even though they are sort of the raison detre of this particular version. I always found myself chomping at the bit to get on with the actual story. (And according to my mother, who was in today's audience, some people in the house agreed with this notion, being confused by the attic moments, and unsure of what was happening.)
And then there is the Fred party scene in the Christmas Present section. The one scene that always made me a bit nervous beforehand, despite it usually being just fine. A scene I did not hate, but probably won't miss too much. And it was just fine today, and the audience was very appreciative of it. But it was not without it's problems.
To begin with, a moment wherein I was supposed to walk slowly off of a 5 step turret we built for the play did not exactly go off as planned. It is round in shape, and as I turned to deliver a line, something happened. I lost my balance for a moment, or caught my show on something, and felt myself falling forward a bit toward the ground, and away from the steps. So in the only thing I could think of to correct it error, as well as to prevent possible injury, I simply leaped off of the turret and landed in the middle of the stage while delivering said line. A bit much, but I don't think the audience noticed, and in fact seemed to be laughing rather heartily at that moment. But whether at my mini-stunt, or at something else going on on stage, I can't say. I can say the jump was a bit higher than I initially thought it would be. But better by far than falling off the thing.
The second snafu for that scene will take some explaining, but was so amusing to me I'd like to take the time to do so.
Fred blindfolds his friend Topper during the scene for a game of "Blindman's Buff". There is a gag here, wherein I look for a handkerchief, and the supposedly unseen Ghost of Christmas Present throws it, and I catch it. It always got a chuckle or two. However, at the top of the act, one of my fellow actors came off stage, and delivered a message to me on behalf of the actor who was playing Christmas Present; He had forgotten to grab the handkerchief.
That actor didn't come off stage for close to half an hour straight. He had no way to get it, and I was about to go on as Peter Cratchit. I pondered ways to cover the problem while performing Peter. (A role which had few lines.) During my brief exit, I discussed it with a fellow actress who suggested something I had already considered...taking off my ascot during the scene and using that. (Ironically, this is exactly what happened two years ago, when another actor was playing Fred, and the blindfold was somehow misplaced.) The problem was, I wasn't sure I'd have time to put it back on for my remaining scenes. I never could get it on without several tries.
Bob Cratchit enters the scene now. Played by the same actor who will later play Topper. During a section we all hated, wherein the Cracthit family had to mime its way through what seemed like a 10 minute speech by the Ghost of Christmas Present, I leaned over toward "Bob" and explained the problem to him. "Bob" then explained to me that he had retrieved the blindfold from backstage and sneaked it on with him. He mentioned it was laying behind us. I couldn't look without being conspicuous, but sure enough when I exited the Cratchit scene, to prepare for the Fred scene, I saw the wayward prop, and pocketed it quietly. It was then available to me during the party scene. And though a joke was lost, the audience was none the wiser of this. (At least until some of them read this entry!) It was a nearly perfect fix involving nearly half the cast, and not a bead of sweat was shed because of it. That is what focus and team work will bring you during a show!
None of that would have been possible if this production wasn't one of the most prepared, well rehearsed, and overall smooth flowing shows I have been in for a while. I have discussed the reasons why this may have been so for in previous entries. I won't go into them again, but suffice to say today was a prime example of the importance of being so.
As well as a prime example of why two weekend simply are not enough in most community theatre shows. Loyal blog readers will know already I have long advocated for a three weekend schedule for at least some community shows, given how almost all of them hit their true stride during the second weekend, right before they close. (If the stride is ever hit at all...) If once in a while that sense of finally hitting that rhythm could carry into one more weekend, I think a show could have more life than most community players would imagine.
A subject worthy of further consideration and discussion, but not here. Here is the time I look back on yet another show that has concluded. A show that I didn't even think I would be in, given I did not audition for it. But one I am glad I agreed to appear in. It was not revolutionary, nor life changing. nor was it perfect. But as I was telling one of the other actors during strike today, I feel it was one of those shows where we basically achieved anything we could have expected to achieve. I don't think we left anything on the stage, as it were. I think we did everything we set out to do, despite the inevitable obstacles. And hopefully we opened up the holiday season on a positive note for at least some of the people who came to see us these last two weekends. Perhaps even converted a real Scrooge or two into a happier frame of mind? One never knows.
So though once again almost none of my friends came to see me, (a sadly regular occurrence) I count this production of A Christmas Carol as a positive one. I give us a B+ or A- for the entire run. Quite the improvement over my previous show.
And an improvement over the last time we performed this show, two years ago, in some ways. Even the strike was smooth and without incident.
Now my focus turns both towards the holidays themselves, and toward my next theatre project; being an assistant-director for Full Circle's next production. I will decide in the coming days whether or not to chronicle that here on the blog, but until then, I bring my blogging about the Full Circle Theater Company's 2010 production of A Christmas Carol to a close. With my thanks to cast and crew of same.
And no, I will not end this entry with the most obvious Tiny Tim reference of all time.
Monday, October 04, 2010
"I Should Like to Get This Over With as Soon As Possible"
The title of this post is a line from A Thurber Carnival. It's not a big line, and it wasn't even my line. But I think it best sums up how I feel, and have felt, as I post this final entry about the play.
I didn't post anything about Saturday night's show. I'll say quickly that it went about as well as Friday went. Though not without mistakes, (from the usual suspects.) The fact of the matter is, the second weekend actually diminished in quality compared to most of the first. The laughter was about the same, but from a performance stand point, we did better on the whole during the first weekend.
So much like the previous night was Saturday that I don't really see the need to write about it in any great detail.
Today, on the other hand, being the closing day, warrants at least some commentary, both performance related, and as pertains to other things. I'll start with the actual performance.
There was an honest mistake during the much hated word dance. I'm not angry about it, because the person involved rarely makes mistakes, and her dedication to doing well was always obvious. I wasn't sure how to fix it though. But one of my friends and veteran stage actress simply jumped to the next sound cue line, thereby bringing the music change up, and leading us to where we needed to be. Not that that made the dance good. It sucked from day one, and 100% of the cast hated it from day one. The audience didn't get much out of it either, as usual. Though they got much more out of later segments.
It was not our largest crowd, but for some skits it was the most vocal and responsive. Especially during the skit involving a discussion of the play Macbeth. The didn't seem to be into Preble though. Which is sad because it remained, from start to finish both my favorite skit in the production as well as the smoothest and most well done. That one has been on autopilot for weeks, so well did it go. Though it didn't happen today, that one was always the source of my biggest laughs in all of the production. I will miss doing it the most of all five of my appearances.
Second place would be The Unicorn in the Garden. Short, sweet, and silly it too always went well. (Once the choreographer kept her nose out of things.) I had precious few lines, but always a big laugh line at the end. And I got to stretch my non-verbal acting muscles. I enjoyed and appreciated the chance to do that. My opposite and I played off of each other well. (Which we also got to do during Walter Mitty.)
If Grant Were Drunk at Appomattox didn't go smoothly of course, because the same problem guy was in it. I'll get to that later in the post. I wish more audiences would know the full story of that skit, because he doesn't deserve the laughs he always gets at the end. (While delivering his own doctored version of the closing line. He wasn't happy with the way it appeared in the script. Like much of that scene...) I'll miss that sketch the least, for obvious reasons.
The rest of my sketches went pretty much exactly as they always did. During the curtain call as we danced off stage in party hats and blowing noisemakers, I opted to yell "yeah!". Why? Because I could. Because it was all over. Because it accurately revealed how I felt about it being over. And because I wanted to own at least one moment in the run that was marked by my own little personal curve ball. So I did. Annoyed some people, but honestly, at that moment I didn't much care. I did it for me. (Unlike some, I did something just for me after the show was over, not in the middle of a scene.)
Yet it was a hallow victory for me. For the responsive crowd was too little, too late, in regards to making the final leg of this taxing, exhausting show 100% enjoyable. Which leads me to some final thoughts about both today, and in general, pertaining to non-performance issues.
To begin with, there was even more garbage to deal with from the same trouble maker that has been, quite frankly, a huge dead weight on this production from the beginning. I hadn't been at the theatre for ten minutes today before he was once again having words with the director. This time, it was about his refusing to help strike and clean up the venue after the show.
If you are reading this blog for the first time, or otherwise have no theatre knowledge, know that helping to tear down the set, put things away and cleanup the theatre after a show has closed is part of the gig. It is what actors who volunteer agree to do when they agree to take a part. Refusing to do it is basically like rehearsing for weeks, and the simply refusing to show up on opening night. It's not done. Period.
I could just ignore this. Maybe. Just as I could have just ignored all of the terrible things this man did throughout this already difficult production. I didn't ignore him in person two weeks ago, because I think he was being unfair to everyone around him, myself included. (And especially to our technical crew.) I have managed to ignore him both in person and on this blog since then. But now that the play is over, and in light of today's antics, I have opted to mention more of my assessment of him and his effect on the play.
I do this not as a personal vendetta, or to stroke my own ego. I have plenty of other outlets for that, if I ever need them. But I opt to go into this here for two reasons. First, because of the promise I make to my blog readers to always be as honest as I can about my theatre experiences, without being indiscreet. Second, because once again his actions and comments towards other members of this production were totally without merit. I'd rather look like an ass on a rant for a few minutes in defense of misjudged people then look like a quiet, contemplative professional and say nothing about the major insults he has perpetrated on those that don't deserve them. Judge me as you will, but enough is enough.
Late Saturday night, our stage manager sent out an email with strike assignments. Anyone reading their email in the morning would have seen it. And it is not unusual. Some stage managers don't even give strike assignments until you get to the theatre on the final day. In response this morning, this guy had sent an email to cast and crew. Naturally, I refused to open it, given that I haven't wanted anything to do with him since early tech week. (As our blog oft hath shown...) But when I heard him making his pitiful excuse today to the director, (who was angered enough by it to yell at him), I eventually went back and read his email. More on that later.
He told the director, (in plain sight of everyone else gathered) that because this was his first appearance at Full Circle Theatre company, he had no reason to expect that strike and clean-up would take place right after the final show. So he had made other plans.
You can add "liar" to the list of adjectives I already apply to this man, as far as I am concerned. Because anybody who does community theatre (especially someone like him who claims to have done it for decades) knows full and damn well that strike and clean up is always right after the final performance. I didn't believe for a minute that he was unaware of this fact. I think it was yet another way for this wretched man-baby to avoid doing anything he didn't want to do, and to stick it to anybody who insisted otherwise.
The director seemed to feel the same way, but being too busy with other things to put up with even more of his sniveling, she basically told him to go away. (After pointing out to him that all theatres strike after the last performance.)
And then he proceeded to be terrible while on stage, as usual. Blowing lines, late entrances, and just overall sloppiness of presence. (Most of which I had to cover for, of course, since I am in all but one of his scenes.) Loyal blog readers know I forgive mistakes made by hard working people. (As in the dance today, mentioned above.) I do not forgive mistakes made by the arrogant and/or lazy.
The show had enough difficulties without being saddled with the laziest, most inconsiderate, dishonest and down right mean spirited talentless hack with whom I have ever had the displeasure of appearing on stage. Being a lackluster actor is one thing. Having a bad day and flipping out once in a while is one thing. Being a tiny bit of a diva even is one thing. But to be so unconcerned with the welfare of either fellow actors, the director, the stage crew or anyone at all but himself is something else. Especially when the guilty party has zero stage talent to balance things out.
I read his excuse email after I got home from strike and the so called "cast party". I replied to him with the only words I have sent in his direction for two weeks, and hopefully the last I will ever send to this bum. I told him that I smelled BS, and clicked "send." Enough is enough.
I'll read nothing from him that comes back, if anything does. I'll certainly not work with him ever again. As in I will write his name on any audition application in any local theatre I'll try out for to make sure it doesn't happen. In my ten years as an actor, that is a first.
His presence, especially in the last two weeks, without a doubt put a huge damper on this show. Others are more tolerant in person than I, and can engage cordially with such folk. But my suspicion is that nobody really wanted him around. That nobody enjoyed him.
Not that he was the only thing with which people were unhappy. I am sad to report that there really was no cast party even for those who remained. People did their strike duties as quickly as they could, and were quite literally out the door. Which continues the pattern. This is one of the few shows I have been in wherein there was not a single night of drinking, eating, or otherwise socializing after any of the performances, opting instead to leave the premises post haste. Schedules certainly may have played a part, as may have the personalities involved. But I have to believe that at least part of it had something to do with an innate desire to see the back of this experience. To "get this over with as soon as possible." At least in regards to the cast party.
It's sad, in a way. But not really a surprise. Assuming that most of these people would have stuck around had all things been equal, I can see why so many of them just wanted to be gone today. It was a very stressful, exhausting, and in some ways depressing production. One that was survived as opposed to enjoyed. And though I may have been the most vocal, some brief comments from others today did indicate that I was not the only one who had grown weary of certain actions, certain problems, and certainly certain people throughout the last seven weeks.
I stayed for a while. There was some food, and I was hungry. I did want to thank the director for casting me, and be present for the presentation of the gift. And for the free glass of champagne. I wished it had all gone better for the director, and indeed for all of us. But like me, the director is jumping right into another show after this. (As director she had her first rehearsal of her new show this very night.) May that show go more smoothly for her than this one did.
In the end, I met some nice new people during this show. People with whom I would like to work again. And I also learned a few things about myself, and what my limits are. Here and there, I even got to explore some new non-verbal acting skills. (See: Unicorn.) So I can't say I got nothing out of the experience. But I can say that I didn't get quite enough out of the actual performing to make the bad worth going through. I am glad I continued to perform at such a high level despite the stress factors. But now I just want to put this one behind me and move on rather quickly. May the next time I encounter those that I like from this show be far more conducive to producing a high quality and fun show.
It is over. On to A Christmas Carol.
I didn't post anything about Saturday night's show. I'll say quickly that it went about as well as Friday went. Though not without mistakes, (from the usual suspects.) The fact of the matter is, the second weekend actually diminished in quality compared to most of the first. The laughter was about the same, but from a performance stand point, we did better on the whole during the first weekend.
So much like the previous night was Saturday that I don't really see the need to write about it in any great detail.
Today, on the other hand, being the closing day, warrants at least some commentary, both performance related, and as pertains to other things. I'll start with the actual performance.
There was an honest mistake during the much hated word dance. I'm not angry about it, because the person involved rarely makes mistakes, and her dedication to doing well was always obvious. I wasn't sure how to fix it though. But one of my friends and veteran stage actress simply jumped to the next sound cue line, thereby bringing the music change up, and leading us to where we needed to be. Not that that made the dance good. It sucked from day one, and 100% of the cast hated it from day one. The audience didn't get much out of it either, as usual. Though they got much more out of later segments.
It was not our largest crowd, but for some skits it was the most vocal and responsive. Especially during the skit involving a discussion of the play Macbeth. The didn't seem to be into Preble though. Which is sad because it remained, from start to finish both my favorite skit in the production as well as the smoothest and most well done. That one has been on autopilot for weeks, so well did it go. Though it didn't happen today, that one was always the source of my biggest laughs in all of the production. I will miss doing it the most of all five of my appearances.
Second place would be The Unicorn in the Garden. Short, sweet, and silly it too always went well. (Once the choreographer kept her nose out of things.) I had precious few lines, but always a big laugh line at the end. And I got to stretch my non-verbal acting muscles. I enjoyed and appreciated the chance to do that. My opposite and I played off of each other well. (Which we also got to do during Walter Mitty.)
If Grant Were Drunk at Appomattox didn't go smoothly of course, because the same problem guy was in it. I'll get to that later in the post. I wish more audiences would know the full story of that skit, because he doesn't deserve the laughs he always gets at the end. (While delivering his own doctored version of the closing line. He wasn't happy with the way it appeared in the script. Like much of that scene...) I'll miss that sketch the least, for obvious reasons.
The rest of my sketches went pretty much exactly as they always did. During the curtain call as we danced off stage in party hats and blowing noisemakers, I opted to yell "yeah!". Why? Because I could. Because it was all over. Because it accurately revealed how I felt about it being over. And because I wanted to own at least one moment in the run that was marked by my own little personal curve ball. So I did. Annoyed some people, but honestly, at that moment I didn't much care. I did it for me. (Unlike some, I did something just for me after the show was over, not in the middle of a scene.)
Yet it was a hallow victory for me. For the responsive crowd was too little, too late, in regards to making the final leg of this taxing, exhausting show 100% enjoyable. Which leads me to some final thoughts about both today, and in general, pertaining to non-performance issues.
To begin with, there was even more garbage to deal with from the same trouble maker that has been, quite frankly, a huge dead weight on this production from the beginning. I hadn't been at the theatre for ten minutes today before he was once again having words with the director. This time, it was about his refusing to help strike and clean up the venue after the show.
If you are reading this blog for the first time, or otherwise have no theatre knowledge, know that helping to tear down the set, put things away and cleanup the theatre after a show has closed is part of the gig. It is what actors who volunteer agree to do when they agree to take a part. Refusing to do it is basically like rehearsing for weeks, and the simply refusing to show up on opening night. It's not done. Period.
I could just ignore this. Maybe. Just as I could have just ignored all of the terrible things this man did throughout this already difficult production. I didn't ignore him in person two weeks ago, because I think he was being unfair to everyone around him, myself included. (And especially to our technical crew.) I have managed to ignore him both in person and on this blog since then. But now that the play is over, and in light of today's antics, I have opted to mention more of my assessment of him and his effect on the play.
I do this not as a personal vendetta, or to stroke my own ego. I have plenty of other outlets for that, if I ever need them. But I opt to go into this here for two reasons. First, because of the promise I make to my blog readers to always be as honest as I can about my theatre experiences, without being indiscreet. Second, because once again his actions and comments towards other members of this production were totally without merit. I'd rather look like an ass on a rant for a few minutes in defense of misjudged people then look like a quiet, contemplative professional and say nothing about the major insults he has perpetrated on those that don't deserve them. Judge me as you will, but enough is enough.
Late Saturday night, our stage manager sent out an email with strike assignments. Anyone reading their email in the morning would have seen it. And it is not unusual. Some stage managers don't even give strike assignments until you get to the theatre on the final day. In response this morning, this guy had sent an email to cast and crew. Naturally, I refused to open it, given that I haven't wanted anything to do with him since early tech week. (As our blog oft hath shown...) But when I heard him making his pitiful excuse today to the director, (who was angered enough by it to yell at him), I eventually went back and read his email. More on that later.
He told the director, (in plain sight of everyone else gathered) that because this was his first appearance at Full Circle Theatre company, he had no reason to expect that strike and clean-up would take place right after the final show. So he had made other plans.
You can add "liar" to the list of adjectives I already apply to this man, as far as I am concerned. Because anybody who does community theatre (especially someone like him who claims to have done it for decades) knows full and damn well that strike and clean up is always right after the final performance. I didn't believe for a minute that he was unaware of this fact. I think it was yet another way for this wretched man-baby to avoid doing anything he didn't want to do, and to stick it to anybody who insisted otherwise.
The director seemed to feel the same way, but being too busy with other things to put up with even more of his sniveling, she basically told him to go away. (After pointing out to him that all theatres strike after the last performance.)
And then he proceeded to be terrible while on stage, as usual. Blowing lines, late entrances, and just overall sloppiness of presence. (Most of which I had to cover for, of course, since I am in all but one of his scenes.) Loyal blog readers know I forgive mistakes made by hard working people. (As in the dance today, mentioned above.) I do not forgive mistakes made by the arrogant and/or lazy.
The show had enough difficulties without being saddled with the laziest, most inconsiderate, dishonest and down right mean spirited talentless hack with whom I have ever had the displeasure of appearing on stage. Being a lackluster actor is one thing. Having a bad day and flipping out once in a while is one thing. Being a tiny bit of a diva even is one thing. But to be so unconcerned with the welfare of either fellow actors, the director, the stage crew or anyone at all but himself is something else. Especially when the guilty party has zero stage talent to balance things out.
I read his excuse email after I got home from strike and the so called "cast party". I replied to him with the only words I have sent in his direction for two weeks, and hopefully the last I will ever send to this bum. I told him that I smelled BS, and clicked "send." Enough is enough.
I'll read nothing from him that comes back, if anything does. I'll certainly not work with him ever again. As in I will write his name on any audition application in any local theatre I'll try out for to make sure it doesn't happen. In my ten years as an actor, that is a first.
His presence, especially in the last two weeks, without a doubt put a huge damper on this show. Others are more tolerant in person than I, and can engage cordially with such folk. But my suspicion is that nobody really wanted him around. That nobody enjoyed him.
Not that he was the only thing with which people were unhappy. I am sad to report that there really was no cast party even for those who remained. People did their strike duties as quickly as they could, and were quite literally out the door. Which continues the pattern. This is one of the few shows I have been in wherein there was not a single night of drinking, eating, or otherwise socializing after any of the performances, opting instead to leave the premises post haste. Schedules certainly may have played a part, as may have the personalities involved. But I have to believe that at least part of it had something to do with an innate desire to see the back of this experience. To "get this over with as soon as possible." At least in regards to the cast party.
It's sad, in a way. But not really a surprise. Assuming that most of these people would have stuck around had all things been equal, I can see why so many of them just wanted to be gone today. It was a very stressful, exhausting, and in some ways depressing production. One that was survived as opposed to enjoyed. And though I may have been the most vocal, some brief comments from others today did indicate that I was not the only one who had grown weary of certain actions, certain problems, and certainly certain people throughout the last seven weeks.
I stayed for a while. There was some food, and I was hungry. I did want to thank the director for casting me, and be present for the presentation of the gift. And for the free glass of champagne. I wished it had all gone better for the director, and indeed for all of us. But like me, the director is jumping right into another show after this. (As director she had her first rehearsal of her new show this very night.) May that show go more smoothly for her than this one did.
In the end, I met some nice new people during this show. People with whom I would like to work again. And I also learned a few things about myself, and what my limits are. Here and there, I even got to explore some new non-verbal acting skills. (See: Unicorn.) So I can't say I got nothing out of the experience. But I can say that I didn't get quite enough out of the actual performing to make the bad worth going through. I am glad I continued to perform at such a high level despite the stress factors. But now I just want to put this one behind me and move on rather quickly. May the next time I encounter those that I like from this show be far more conducive to producing a high quality and fun show.
It is over. On to A Christmas Carol.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Heaven Can Wait No Longer
Metaphorically, that is. Yesterday afternoon, the show closed in Hagerstown.
Historically, my blog entry about the final show is less about the particulars of the show, and more about the fact that it is over. More of a look back. This one will be no exception, though I will say I felt almost as good about my performance as I did on Saturday. About 90% to that level, I would say. So I got to close on the second best performance I gave.
I found the worry bead, but stuck with the washer for the performance though.
This production, as I have said, seemed quite fast all things considered, though once we got to performing it seems a little slower in some ways. When I think that opening night was a mere ten days ago it's a little hard to fathom. It got fast at the end though for a different reason. There was no strike. I had been preparing to help strike the set and clean the entire theater after the curtain come down, but much to my surprise I was told that other than picking up out personal property, the cast had not striking responsibilities. This is the only company that I have been a part of that does business like that. It actually felt weird to leave the building the last time with the set still in tact. (It will be taken down later in the week.)
The cast party was also a short and sweet affair. I have been to some cast parties that lasted hours. This one was just under 90 minutes. But fun. We gave fake awards to each other, mocked each other, and congratulated each other. We even played "Heaven Can Wait" trivia, which was fun, though I only got one right. No matter. It was the show that was the thing.
Most shows improve a bit the second weekend when compared to the first, but I think Heaven Can Wait was one of the most obvious examples of this trend. The four shows on the second weekend were worlds above the three shows of opening weekend.
Which is one reason why, in the end, I have opted not to address the sensitive issues I mentioned a few days ago here on the blog. I realize that I said I would after the show was over, but by and large the issues, both from a personal and a professional standpoint were corrected. I of course would have preferred that they never happened at all, and I maintain the did not have to. But I cannot in good conscience mention the issues when so much energy was put into correcting them, eventually. So I will just leave it at this: I am relieved and gratified to know we got passed them, even if we did so too late for my tastes. That business is well concluded.
As for other things, this final show was strange for a few reasons. To begin with, as I have said a million times before here, my last exit from the show is (was...) a good 20 minutes before the final curtain. My final line was just over a half an hour before same. So I had more time to gear down, and come in for a landing with the realization that it was all over. I spend most of that time picking up my trash from the green room, getting a head start on what I thought would be strike.
Sometimes when the end of a show comes, you feel that you have done exactly what you set out to do, and that makes it easier to accept its ending. I put Heaven Can Wait in that category. I came off stage the last time knowing that I had put everything into "Tony" that I possibly could have done. I was satisfied with the overall improvement that was obvious in the entire cast in a short amount of time. And I enjoyed most of the crowds that we had. I felt it was a good place to conclude. I agree that it would have been nice to have a third weekend, because we were all just starting to hit a stride with things as it closed. But I do not regret what happened.
More importantly perhaps even than the show, was the fact that I not only introduced myself to a whole new company, (which I plan to be involved in plenty of times again in the future), but I made new friends. That doesn't always happen in a show, especially with someone as difficult to get to know and understand as I tend to be at first approach. I feel good about having a few more theatre people in my life now.
Plus, there is plenty of time to get to know some of these people more. In the past I tried to say a million things in my "final" cast email, (which I sent last night), but now I realize, in the age of Facebook, we can all take our time and get to know each other gradually. Not just by being in shows again together, (which I am sure will happen in the future), but outside of theatre as well. I've never been part of a new company in the Facebook era before...so hopefully it will help me keep in touch with some of these great actors and people now that the show is over.
So, to those involved in the show that may be reading this, once again, thank you. I will see you soon. On or off stage. I'm glad I auditioned.
Historically, my blog entry about the final show is less about the particulars of the show, and more about the fact that it is over. More of a look back. This one will be no exception, though I will say I felt almost as good about my performance as I did on Saturday. About 90% to that level, I would say. So I got to close on the second best performance I gave.
I found the worry bead, but stuck with the washer for the performance though.
This production, as I have said, seemed quite fast all things considered, though once we got to performing it seems a little slower in some ways. When I think that opening night was a mere ten days ago it's a little hard to fathom. It got fast at the end though for a different reason. There was no strike. I had been preparing to help strike the set and clean the entire theater after the curtain come down, but much to my surprise I was told that other than picking up out personal property, the cast had not striking responsibilities. This is the only company that I have been a part of that does business like that. It actually felt weird to leave the building the last time with the set still in tact. (It will be taken down later in the week.)
The cast party was also a short and sweet affair. I have been to some cast parties that lasted hours. This one was just under 90 minutes. But fun. We gave fake awards to each other, mocked each other, and congratulated each other. We even played "Heaven Can Wait" trivia, which was fun, though I only got one right. No matter. It was the show that was the thing.
Most shows improve a bit the second weekend when compared to the first, but I think Heaven Can Wait was one of the most obvious examples of this trend. The four shows on the second weekend were worlds above the three shows of opening weekend.
Which is one reason why, in the end, I have opted not to address the sensitive issues I mentioned a few days ago here on the blog. I realize that I said I would after the show was over, but by and large the issues, both from a personal and a professional standpoint were corrected. I of course would have preferred that they never happened at all, and I maintain the did not have to. But I cannot in good conscience mention the issues when so much energy was put into correcting them, eventually. So I will just leave it at this: I am relieved and gratified to know we got passed them, even if we did so too late for my tastes. That business is well concluded.
As for other things, this final show was strange for a few reasons. To begin with, as I have said a million times before here, my last exit from the show is (was...) a good 20 minutes before the final curtain. My final line was just over a half an hour before same. So I had more time to gear down, and come in for a landing with the realization that it was all over. I spend most of that time picking up my trash from the green room, getting a head start on what I thought would be strike.
Sometimes when the end of a show comes, you feel that you have done exactly what you set out to do, and that makes it easier to accept its ending. I put Heaven Can Wait in that category. I came off stage the last time knowing that I had put everything into "Tony" that I possibly could have done. I was satisfied with the overall improvement that was obvious in the entire cast in a short amount of time. And I enjoyed most of the crowds that we had. I felt it was a good place to conclude. I agree that it would have been nice to have a third weekend, because we were all just starting to hit a stride with things as it closed. But I do not regret what happened.
More importantly perhaps even than the show, was the fact that I not only introduced myself to a whole new company, (which I plan to be involved in plenty of times again in the future), but I made new friends. That doesn't always happen in a show, especially with someone as difficult to get to know and understand as I tend to be at first approach. I feel good about having a few more theatre people in my life now.
Plus, there is plenty of time to get to know some of these people more. In the past I tried to say a million things in my "final" cast email, (which I sent last night), but now I realize, in the age of Facebook, we can all take our time and get to know each other gradually. Not just by being in shows again together, (which I am sure will happen in the future), but outside of theatre as well. I've never been part of a new company in the Facebook era before...so hopefully it will help me keep in touch with some of these great actors and people now that the show is over.
So, to those involved in the show that may be reading this, once again, thank you. I will see you soon. On or off stage. I'm glad I auditioned.
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