Wow, it's been a while!

Let's see, what's been keeping me busy?

1. overlapping shows since October
2. the news that the Chief's cancer is back
3. dealing with all his pre-treatment tests and assessments
4. a relatively last-minute decision to host another Christmas open house, once we knew the Chief's medical schedule
5. a quick trip to visit my family over the weekend between Christmas and New Year's
6. a show that loaded in the first weekend in January
7. rehearsal and design work for my late-February show
8. TONS of pre-class homework for my musical theater workshop

Yep, been busy lately.

Hellish tech week

Here I am, doing hair & makeup on another community theater play; just 7 performers in this one.  It's been a tough tech week, though; here it is Wednesday, just one rehearsal left, and the cue-to-cue (usually the Sunday before opening) was tonight!  Worse, this was also the first night w/ costumes and only some hair & makeup for the cast.  Kinda hard to see what your makeup looks like under the lights if you aren't wearing any!  This ain't Broadway; you bring your own supplies, and if you forget 'em, well, that's on you.  The backstage masking is terrible, too; too many places where the audience can see backstage, leaving nowhere for cast or crew to hide.

Tomorrow night is our final rehearsal before they do this for an audience.  Here's hoping we can fix all the glitches...

Having a lot of trouble getting motivated to learn lines

I've been cast as understudy of one of the roles in the campus production of The Importance of Being Earnest.  As I understand it, there's an "understudy run" which is essentially a tech rehearsal on the set, with no costumes or only bits (e.g., skirts).  We don't get an actual performance, and I don't even know how much rehearsal we'll get before that run.  We're all supposed to be off book (i.e., have all our lines memorized) by Thursday, but I'm finding it really hard to make myself work on my lines when I haven't been to a rehearsal since the read-through (which I wasn't even required to attend).  For all that I'm getting the daily emails, I don't feel like I'm part of the production; it feels very weird.

Hebe! Who the deuce may she be?

My next show will be another Gilbert & Sullivan - HMS Pinafore, this time, as Cousin Hebe.  I missed the initial read-through, ironically because I was singing Hebe at an all-day G&S sing.  My first rehearsal will be this Saturday - can't wait!  I'm always eager for the first rehearsal of a new show, and this one will be interesting because the company generally does Broadway classics, not G&S.  I wonder if this will be like my last Mikado, also with a non-G&S company, in that I'll get to see a whole new group laugh at Gilbert's jokes and discover Sullivan's music.

The director told me at callbacks that she'll be relying on me and the MD to help her with her lack of G&S experience.  I take that to mean she trusts me not to be a know-it-all about it. :)  She's also counting on me to help with set building & painting.  Can't wait!

I have a PAID church gig!

I got an email yesterday from one of the other singers in the benefit concert I did last summer.  She wondered if I could sub for her at her church job for 2 weeks while she & her husband are out of town for a wedding.  My calendar's clear for the dates, so I said yes.  After singing for free at my own church essentially all my life, I'm actually gonna get PAID to go to 2 choir rehearsals and sing 2 services along with the rest of the choir.    Not my denomination, so I'll have to pay close attention to the order of service, but that's a minor point.  I have no plans to give up singing at my own church, but it's a nice little change of pace, and the cash will be a nice bonus. :)

This singing stuff is an unpredictable business.

Yesterday's voice lesson was one of those that happen every so often and make you wonder why you bother.  Seemed like everything I tried to sing below the staff was mushy, muddy, back in the throat - you name a technical problem, I had it.  My low audition piece (lots of it below the staff) was giving me so much trouble that my teacher and I both decided that I would definitely not be using it for the audition I had last night.  Five hours just wouldn't be enough to whip it into shape.

So that audition last night.  I sang my two higher pieces (one G&S, one Rodgers & Hammerstein).  They both felt good, the audition panel laughed (they're comic pieces, so that's a good thing), and the audition accompanist sightread like a champ and followed nicely, so it was all good.  I'm sure it helped that we'd touched on both pieces in my lesson yesterday afternoon, so all those technical niceties were fresh in my mind.

This afternoon was the mock run of next Saturday's NATS competition.  C has 7 students who'll be competing and 6 of us sang this afternoon.  We had an "adjudicator", we stood in the crook of the piano to sing, just as we will next week, and we were coached in how to introduce ourselves and our pieces.  C had us in age order, starting with her youngest students, which meant I "batted clean-up".  It wasn't too bad being last, as I only had to wait through 5 other people's music.  Having had the benefit of C's training, they all did well.  I got a little over-the-top with my brindisi, which caused one of my notes to "splat", but in general I was pretty happy with how it went, and did have fun singing the music.  Better, C was delighted with how my lowest song went.  She thought it was worlds better than yesterday and was very happy with how quickly I'd managed to incorporate her corrections.  Now if I can just manage to keep them in mind through the week so I've internalized them by next Saturday, when I have to sing for the judges...

The Chief came along for the ride.  (It helped, I'm sure, that I promised him dinner afterwards at a nearby restaurant we love.)  He said that, when I was warming up in the car going over, he wasn't so sure how I'd do, but thought that when it came down to it, I did just fine. :)

A string of good lessons - I think I'm getting this!

Had another good voice lesson today.  I continue to hit snags, still have a few places where I'm trying to work out the technical things (phrasing, breath control - the usual), but it all feels much more solid and much easier.  As I told my teacher this afternoon, I think I'm finally getting the hang of this business. :)  Seems like I'm thinking about and applying the latest technique I'm working on even when I'm not working on my lesson music (i.e., at church or in "Mattress" rehearsals). 

My two uni audition pieces are far enough along that they're ready for a second opinion.  A previous voice teacher lives near (and was the one who sent me to) my current teacher, so at C's recommendation, we've asked K to sit in on the 2nd half of my lesson next week so she can hear my audition pieces and offer suggestions.  It's been a long time since she's heard me sing; I'm looking forward to showing her my progress.

Last music-only rehearsal

Last night was our first music-only rehearsal in about a month, and our last until we get to the Sitzprobe in a few weeks (!).  I was reminded of the difference between doing this for a musical vs. an operetta.  Operettas tend to attract a LOT of trained singers, with the rest of us being amateurs with a lot of choir experience, all of whom can read music at least a little.  In community musical theater, on the other hand, you get a much wider range, from trained singers and instrumentalists to those who learn only by ear, or can carry a tune but have trouble holding their musical line when the people around them are singing something different.  That means a lot more time spent woodshedding parts.  I think that's at least one of the reasons we lost one of our ensemble members - didn't understand why others had so much trouble learning music he got on the first or second run-through.

So yes, in an ideal world we wouldn't need to spend nearly so much time on the music, but this is community theater, where the performers have day jobs.

Scenes from a busy day

Had a good day Wednesday, saw some interesting things:

• City employees planting coleus and begonies in beds at the foot of some city trees.  I was so busy examining the plants that I walked right past my destination, had to double back.
• On public transit 3 times; each time I saw more law enforcement personnel in mostly casual clothing (e.g., T-shirts or polo shirts with the logo of their unit) wearing badges with a black band.  Turned out there was a memorial service downtown for National Police Week.
• The usual array of characters - folks in T-shirts and shorts, or business suits, parents with kids of various ages, and the crazy lady (me!) juggling a tote bag (purse, book & water bottle), shopping bag, and bakery box with the results of my cooking class.  Yes, the baked goods arrived safely home. :)

Had a heckuva time figuring out how to get from the subway to my cooking class because the street exit dumped me two blocks away from where I thought it would.  It took me at least half an hour to find my way through and around the intervening mall (which was undergoing a lot of construction, which shut down at least one of the main exits) and the adjacent parking garage.

The pie class was so much fun!  Only 6 of us, and everyone had good questions so I learned a lot.  We also learned from seeing how the chef-instructor finessed an "oops" (the crust & ganache for the black-bottom banana cream pie took a header out of the freezer).  The resulting black-bottom banana pudding was delicious!  I like people-watching at that store - they get yuppies, military types, younger people, retirees (like me!), people who know exactly what they want, don't have a clue, or just want to browse the "toy store".

I got my hair cut quite short - a "summer cut".  It's the shortest I've worn it since, I think, my senior year in high school, short enough that it'll take a little getting used to, but I love it - so easy to take care of, and so cool!

The "Mattress" read-through was fun.  Only had about half the cast, but we got thru most of the dialogue & music to get a feel for the show.  This is gonna be fun!

A busy day in the life of a retiree

Taking advantage of having my weekdays open, I may have overdone things just a bit.  Tomorrow I have a haircut appointment at 11, a pastry class in a different part of town (accessible by public transit, fortunately!) from 2:30-4:30, and the first read-through for Once Upon a Mattress at 7:30.  I'm looking forward to all of these, and they aren't scheduled so close together that I'll be lucky not to be late, but they're sufficiently scattered geographically that I know I'll be oh, so happy to get out of my car for good when I get home after the read-through.

Happy 10th anniversary to me (a bit late)

I've now had my blog for 10 years as of last month - April 11th, 2005, saw my first-ever blog post.  I don't cover certain topics (I try to avoid politics, for example) but if you're interested in theater, gardening, or cooking, I hope you've been at least mildly entertained.

Since playing Pitti-Sing, my first lead, I've done 2 more G&S leads (Ruth in Pirates of Penzance and Dame Carruthers in The Yeomen of the Guard) and nice, meaty roles in several plays (biggest were Sara Lee Turnover in Daddy's Dyin', Who's Got the Will? and Veta Louise Simmons in Harvey).  I'm still taking voice lessons and working on my technique, and am now looking to become a Theater major this fall and a Voice major next fall.

The Chief and I still have the cabin and are looking forward to longer, mid-week trips there now that I'm retired.  I also have spent a larger percentage of time in the kitchen trying new recipes.  My issues of Cook's Country will now get a closer reading. :)  Today I spent well over 3 hours out in the garden planting most of the flowers we bought yesterday and Sunday.  So lovely to have the whole week for that, not just Saturdays & Sundays!

Snow day agenda

As I was hoping, we've got a snow day today.  (Hard to fathom that the SAME storm extends from Texas all the way to the mid-Atlantic!)  I've got plenty to fill the time: repair the fur coat Veta Louise Simmons wears in much of Harvey, review my script a few more times (tonight's line run is cancelled), do closing-night thank you notes for cast and crew - and that's just the Harvey-related list.

Really enjoying this rehearsal process so far.

Enjoying Harvey rehearsals so far.  One entertaining bit is the 10-month-old offspring of the couple playing Dr. Sanderson & Nurse Kelly.  First because said child is adorable and tolerates rehearsals amazingly well, possibly because Daddy is a high school drama teacher and Mommy techs so she's used to it.  She has also been a good sport about playing Harvey once or twice, perched on Daddy's shoulders to get the height correct.

We've got some great talent in the cast - our Elwood is very endearing.  (And already starting to get off book, darn it; I'm still stuck w/ my nose in my script. )  Even the people in the 3 or 4 cameo roles are stand-outs - I'll really have to bring my best game not to be shown up!

I'm loving this director's process.  She stops repeatedly, coaching the actors on posture, vocal levels, or phrasing to punch up the comedy or point up a relationship. She also asks us to try things, acknowledging that "I may not like it, but I want to see how it works."  Last night she gave me a very different way to deliver one small speech, changing the emphasis and adding some physicality. The first way was good, but the new way is even funnier so she's keeping it.  Now I just need to drill my vocal levels and where I step up as I build through that speech. Fun stuff!

Busy coupla theater weeks!

Last week I had rehearsals Monday thru Thursday.  Friday TW and I went to opening night for the production of Addams Family that I'd been called back for.  Saturday I took apart my Act I dress so I could move up the skirt and take the dress in at the waist.  Saturday night - rehearsal.  Yesterday I reassembled the dress, then had an audition that night.  Tonight - another audition, then came home and hemmed the dress.  (Now it just needs a self belt, but that can wait.). Tomorrow and Wednesday are our final rehearsals for "Death Takes a Holiday", and we open this Friday!  Whew!

I can tell I mostly do musicals because...

I learned the other day that I've been cast in "Death Takes a Holiday".  First read-through is tonight, and the producer sent out a preliminary rehearsal schedule yesterday.  It looked awfully short to me - 6 weeks of rehearsal before we go into Tech Week.  That's actually pretty standard for a play.  It's just that for someone like me, who's used to the 8+ weeks typical to rehearse a musical, it seems a bit compressed.

I had considered auditioning for a December show, but since this one runs until the weekend before Thanksgiving, that's too much overlap.  Even a January show might be pushing things.  February, however...

"Here I come to save the day!"

Last week I got a somewhat panicked email from a director I've done a few shows with.  She's directing Sound of Music, opening in mid-July, and was there any chance I could play Frau Schmidt?  After checking with the Chief that we didn't have any plans, I agreed to do it.  Then I looked at the calendar; I'd just agreed to take a role (good thing it's a small one!) in a show that opened in just TWO WEEKS! =:o

I've now had 3 whole rehearsals and am already sorta off book.  Good thing, as we tech in this Sunday.  Monday we have an open rehearsal (i.e., with a paying audience), so I really want to be off book for that.

Costume fittings tonight.  I'll be wearing a brown dress, several sizes too large, but elastic at the waist will make it work.  Brown is definitely not my color, but I don't mind. After all, I'm the housekeeper, not the lady of the house.  My sartorial compensation is that I also have a walk-on as Fräulein Schweiger in the concert scene near the end, so I get to finish the show in my authentic Austrian dirndl.

First Sitz as a principal

Today was the Sitzprobe (first musical run-thru with the orchestra), my first as a principal with this company.  First time I've sung with an orchestra.   It was a little intimidating at first, and a lot of work to make sure I could be heard.  However, I think this is gonna be fun, especially once we have our set, costumes and - best of all - an audience. :)

It's almost here!

Tech week, that is.  Saturday is the Sitzprobe w/ the orchestra and Sunday is load-in, with the cue-to-cue that evening.  Tech week!  When the theater magic happens!  I'm practically bouncing in my seat as I type, looking forward to seeing all the costumes (mine is navy) and the set, seeing how much luck I have projecting to the back row in my low register, finally being able to set spacing because we'll have the actual doors, "houses" and so forth.  There'll also be a "green room sweatshop", so I'll take my sewing machine to the theater along with the rest of my gear come Sunday.

I've always loved tech week, but for some reason I'm particularly excited about this one.  Maybe because this is my first role with this company?  Maybe because I'm psyched about the set & costumes?  Doesn't matter; gonna be fun.  Even better is the fact that I was able to take the week off work, so I'll be able to sleep in after getting to bed late after rehearsal every night.

TW is getting involved too.  He's already been out to the scene bay twice to help with the set and plans to help with load-in Sunday morning.  He's also planning to usher the last performance, then stay to help with strike.  What a great guy!

Getting excited

We load in 2 weeks from today.  We started running the show at rehearsal (as opposed to running certain chunks) a week ago, which is always fun (if a little scary at first).  Today our producer/costume brought the first few costumes for fittings.  Some wonderful fabrics there - this show is gonna look beautiful!  Our director didn't have all that many notes for us after rehearsal, and those were mostly fine-tuning.  TW helped work on the set yesterday and told me it's essentially built except for the painting.

Things are shaping up nicely - getting exciting! :)

Busy theater weekend

Quite the theater weekend I had.  Rehearsal Friday night and again Saturday morning/afternoon, the strike & after party on Saturday, then Sunday I went from the cast rehearsal that afternoon to the orchestra rehearsal that evening.  Audition last night, voice lesson and rehearsal tonight - whew!

Tomorrow night's choir practice was cancelled, so I actually get a night at home for a change.  TW might not recognize me!  :D