We're in tech week. The last time I had tech was for The Rainmaker, which is a 2.5 hour long romance/comedy (or "romantice" as it said on the cover of our scripts). It's not a show that requires a lot of technical wizardry.
The 1940's Radio Hour is an entirely different beast. We've got three microphones (well, four, actually) and a different playing space than what we've been using all year. It's a bit more proscenium-y and less thrust-y. BUT we are using the entire house of the theatre (stairways and booths and audience seating).
The music is canned, so it's all pre-recorded. And the cast changes which mics they sing in throughout the show.
Needless to say, our entire world has been rocked slightly.
This afternoon was a slow four-hour spacing rehearsal. We just marked the show and finessed blocking and traffic patterns. No music, no tech, just getting used to the stage. Previous to this, we've been in the rehearsal hall, pretending there were levels when we were just acting on a single flat surface. Now, we're in the actual theatre space, using doors and staircases and the mini stage for our radio show. It's exciting, but slow-going work.
Tonight was a music/sound night. It's complicated, and I got a little frustrated at one point. It got hard for me to loosen up during a duet song I sing. I don't do well with compartmentalized information. I'll get a technical/music note and then get an acting kind of note right after that and it's difficult for me to combine the two. Plus, there's a small dance break. I knew tonight wasn't about performing; I was trying to be extra-sensitive about the monitors and mic levels and how I had to work with the mic. So I let the performing attitudes slide and I think that was rather detrimental. I was just going through the motions so that I could pay attention to the sound. Not everyone else was buying into that and it was just kind of a muddled mess.
The weirdest thing happened also: I had absolutely no energy at the beginning of the rehearsal. Once I was finished with the duet section, I had a bit of a break. I just sat down and read a bit of a magazine. Then, for whatever reason, this jolt of energy happened. We did the tap number and that was very energizing for the end of the rehearsal. Right when I was hitting a good stride, the rehearsal was over and we got a note to come back tomorrow ready to go.
I know a lot of this has to do with trekking up to the Cities for a day and hanging out with friends really late at night. I'm a bit behind on sleep right now, so I should just rest up now and get a good breakfast in, because (like they say in the song "Strike Up the Band"):
There is work to be done, to be done!
But I also need to figure out how to get jazzed about this work from the very beginning.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Rehearsing and Listening
Rehearsing a show is exhausting (understatement of the week). I think the entire cast was getting loopy as 10 p.m. drew nearer. We're working through the show right now, tightening and refining details so they are more specific, finding the proper focus. But I'm glad that we've had the opportunity to do a mini Viewpoints workshop prior to all of this. I don't feel weighed down by one single way of approaching the action. It's all very go-with-the-flow. I had choreography this morning, a tiny break, then I worked as an usher for a nearly sold-out Sunday matinee. That was a five-hour shift.
Now, let me explain. The show is only two hours. Ushers need to be at the theatre an hour before to set up everything and get the house set up. Then there was a small potluck/party after the show. I stayed around to clean up and take in the free food. That took another hour and a half or so. I kind of forgot about the whole lunch thing (which isn't something I normally do), so I wolfed down the pasta salads and this outstanding corn salsa. I don't even know what was all in it, but it was exquisite!
Needless to say, I was exhausted, and I knew that I had three hours of rehearsal later that night. I attempted to take a nap, but I just kind of lied in bed listening to the latest Cantus album.
Cantus is the nation's premiere vocal men's ensemble. There are 9 guys singing remarkable literature. Stuff from all over the world (new and old music).
The whole reason I spent this time listening was that I took a quick, rather spontaneous trip to Rochester to catch a concert featuring Cantus and the Choral Arts Ensemble. It was stunning, to say the least.
I sat in the back of this church, and it was packed. Lots of people were here for a benefit for the Choral Arts Ensemble. They started off the program and I was instantly hit with how much I appreciated, love, and (gasp) miss singing in choir at college. It was an insane commitment that had very little payoff it seemed. There wasn't much credit (if any, honestly). The hours were long. Rehearsals and personalities can get rather aggravating for even the most patient of people. But then the concerts come around and the tours start up. There's a lot of preparation we'd have to do just to make sure one measure of a particular piece was to our director's liking.
Until last night, I've usually always been singing in the ensemble. To sit down and have a rather objective perspective from a choir that I knew nothing about was refreshing and surprising. They were good. They even sang a piece I sang my senior year of high school. Sitting in the audience with all those supporters was completely invigorating. Those people LOVED the choir for a variety of reasons. I could tell they needed it, probably in ways they can't fully understand.
I sure needed it.
And Cantus comes up. These guys are mind-blowing! The effortlessness and ease they sing with! I was just in awe (and I consider myself to have a pretty critical ear and eye when it comes to a performance like this). There's a sensitivity and absolute connection to the music and words and story behind the pieces. They're a pretty theatrical group and do a lot of engaging things with their faces and restricted body language (since, you know, they're singing). But all of it was such a fascinating performance. I felt transported to other countries and times and...ugh...it was stunning.
It makes me wonder when I'll be able to dive into that sort of thing again. It's hard to discern how that can happen at the moment (and also to realize that I'm only 23...so there's time and who knows where I'll be a year from now). But it's something I don't want to slip.
We'll see what happens.
And speaking of future endeavors, I'm sending off my U/RTA stuff tomorrow. It's all ready to go. Monologue camp until those auditions!
Now, let me explain. The show is only two hours. Ushers need to be at the theatre an hour before to set up everything and get the house set up. Then there was a small potluck/party after the show. I stayed around to clean up and take in the free food. That took another hour and a half or so. I kind of forgot about the whole lunch thing (which isn't something I normally do), so I wolfed down the pasta salads and this outstanding corn salsa. I don't even know what was all in it, but it was exquisite!
Needless to say, I was exhausted, and I knew that I had three hours of rehearsal later that night. I attempted to take a nap, but I just kind of lied in bed listening to the latest Cantus album.
Cantus is the nation's premiere vocal men's ensemble. There are 9 guys singing remarkable literature. Stuff from all over the world (new and old music).
The whole reason I spent this time listening was that I took a quick, rather spontaneous trip to Rochester to catch a concert featuring Cantus and the Choral Arts Ensemble. It was stunning, to say the least.
I sat in the back of this church, and it was packed. Lots of people were here for a benefit for the Choral Arts Ensemble. They started off the program and I was instantly hit with how much I appreciated, love, and (gasp) miss singing in choir at college. It was an insane commitment that had very little payoff it seemed. There wasn't much credit (if any, honestly). The hours were long. Rehearsals and personalities can get rather aggravating for even the most patient of people. But then the concerts come around and the tours start up. There's a lot of preparation we'd have to do just to make sure one measure of a particular piece was to our director's liking.
Until last night, I've usually always been singing in the ensemble. To sit down and have a rather objective perspective from a choir that I knew nothing about was refreshing and surprising. They were good. They even sang a piece I sang my senior year of high school. Sitting in the audience with all those supporters was completely invigorating. Those people LOVED the choir for a variety of reasons. I could tell they needed it, probably in ways they can't fully understand.
I sure needed it.
And Cantus comes up. These guys are mind-blowing! The effortlessness and ease they sing with! I was just in awe (and I consider myself to have a pretty critical ear and eye when it comes to a performance like this). There's a sensitivity and absolute connection to the music and words and story behind the pieces. They're a pretty theatrical group and do a lot of engaging things with their faces and restricted body language (since, you know, they're singing). But all of it was such a fascinating performance. I felt transported to other countries and times and...ugh...it was stunning.
It makes me wonder when I'll be able to dive into that sort of thing again. It's hard to discern how that can happen at the moment (and also to realize that I'm only 23...so there's time and who knows where I'll be a year from now). But it's something I don't want to slip.
We'll see what happens.
And speaking of future endeavors, I'm sending off my U/RTA stuff tomorrow. It's all ready to go. Monologue camp until those auditions!
Saturday, October 31, 2009
On to the next show...
Whew - I'm pretty exhausted. I've been working quite a bit in the theatre, only non-acting duties:
--box office shifts
--some office work for education and development
--house managing
--cleaning
--tracking line notes for the opening of A MIDNIGHT DREARY, which is a world premiere play about Edgar Allan Poe (it opens tonight, Halloween).
Doing line notes requires me to be on book and keeping track of what the actors say. If they flub anything, I note it. If they switch words or sentences around, I make a note. I certainly make a note if they call for line. I only did this for three runs (1 tech run and 1 dress rehearsals). It's tricky. I had an electronic copy and was glued to my computer for a good two hours. Meanwhile, ghouls and nightmares appear on stage. Spectres of Poe's work is projected on the stage. The lights are great. Nearly the entire show is underscored. It's very spectacle-heavy, but I can't quite comment on the effect of the show. But it feels like I know so many of the lines already. Anyway, I'm eager to see the show without having to worry about anything else.
I'm pumped for the opening night party tonight. I don't have a costume or anything, but I'll probably get all schnazzy.
Yesterday, I had a short choreography rehearsal for The 1940's Radio Hour. There's not a ton of dancing, but some. Biff and Connie sing this great duet together. A dance break is part of it. There was the smallest, TINY, bit of a dip that we do and I completely dropped my dance partner. I don't have a single excuse other than we were just marking it. She started to dip, and I wasn't ready to support her. Needless to say, Connie slid agonizingly slow out of my arms and on to the floor. She wasn't hurt, but now she and the rest of the cast has plenty of fodder that I can never live down for the rest of my life....
Afterwards, we worked on music. I should've warmed up. That's one strange thing about this professional world. You don't have a voice teacher or someone leading the group in vocal warmups. I'm going to have to be way more diligent about getting the voice back up to speed.
We have a read-through/sing-through of the show tomorrow. It's the first script rehearsal.
I also hear there's going to be lots of Viewpoints exercises. I've read bits and pieces about Viewpoints from Anne Bogart's book, but I've never implemented it or done any of them before. I'll let you know how it goes.
(Man, I have GOT to get off book with these songs...deadlines are creeping up on me...)
--box office shifts
--some office work for education and development
--house managing
--cleaning
--tracking line notes for the opening of A MIDNIGHT DREARY, which is a world premiere play about Edgar Allan Poe (it opens tonight, Halloween).
Doing line notes requires me to be on book and keeping track of what the actors say. If they flub anything, I note it. If they switch words or sentences around, I make a note. I certainly make a note if they call for line. I only did this for three runs (1 tech run and 1 dress rehearsals). It's tricky. I had an electronic copy and was glued to my computer for a good two hours. Meanwhile, ghouls and nightmares appear on stage. Spectres of Poe's work is projected on the stage. The lights are great. Nearly the entire show is underscored. It's very spectacle-heavy, but I can't quite comment on the effect of the show. But it feels like I know so many of the lines already. Anyway, I'm eager to see the show without having to worry about anything else.
I'm pumped for the opening night party tonight. I don't have a costume or anything, but I'll probably get all schnazzy.
Yesterday, I had a short choreography rehearsal for The 1940's Radio Hour. There's not a ton of dancing, but some. Biff and Connie sing this great duet together. A dance break is part of it. There was the smallest, TINY, bit of a dip that we do and I completely dropped my dance partner. I don't have a single excuse other than we were just marking it. She started to dip, and I wasn't ready to support her. Needless to say, Connie slid agonizingly slow out of my arms and on to the floor. She wasn't hurt, but now she and the rest of the cast has plenty of fodder that I can never live down for the rest of my life....
Afterwards, we worked on music. I should've warmed up. That's one strange thing about this professional world. You don't have a voice teacher or someone leading the group in vocal warmups. I'm going to have to be way more diligent about getting the voice back up to speed.
We have a read-through/sing-through of the show tomorrow. It's the first script rehearsal.
I also hear there's going to be lots of Viewpoints exercises. I've read bits and pieces about Viewpoints from Anne Bogart's book, but I've never implemented it or done any of them before. I'll let you know how it goes.
(Man, I have GOT to get off book with these songs...deadlines are creeping up on me...)
Monday, October 26, 2009
So Long, Jimmy
We closed The Rainmaker on Saturday. It was a generous, full house. It was a great final performance, I think. I continued to discover new things. The entire cast and crew bought into the show from the day we started work on it. It continued to blossom throughout the run (around 70 performance, or so). I'll miss it.
I'm not going to miss the plateful of mashed potatoes though.
I don't even think I'll be able to eat them at Thanksgiving.
But I do have a month to recover.
I'm not going to miss the plateful of mashed potatoes though.
I don't even think I'll be able to eat them at Thanksgiving.
But I do have a month to recover.
Monday, October 19, 2009
"You Look Foolish"
That's a line from The Rainmaker. Jimmy says it to his Pop. I absolutely LOVE saying it every performance, because it's hilarious and full of irony (Jimmy's wearing a huge bass drum while he asks his Pop to clean up the whitewash on his shirt).
ANYWAY....
Here's a bit of an interview with Sally Wingert, a delightful actress in the Twin Cities (italics are my emphasis).
AVC: What do you do as an artist to make the right conditions for art?
SW: I try to be really open, I try not to shut down things that are said. I try to listen more than I talk, which is a very hard thing for me. I try to put away my fear of being foolish and looking stupid because you almost invariably experience both on your way to art. And I try to get a good night's sleep.
You can read the whole interview here.
ANYWAY....
Here's a bit of an interview with Sally Wingert, a delightful actress in the Twin Cities (italics are my emphasis).
AVC: What do you do as an artist to make the right conditions for art?
SW: I try to be really open, I try not to shut down things that are said. I try to listen more than I talk, which is a very hard thing for me. I try to put away my fear of being foolish and looking stupid because you almost invariably experience both on your way to art. And I try to get a good night's sleep.
You can read the whole interview here.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Away We Go! (A great film, by the way)
Things are a bit stressful at the company right now. We're working on four shows (performing two, rehearsing one, and pre-production on another). I'm only involved with two of those, so I've got more of a break than others. But the stress can spread. Additionally, we're nearing the end of our summer/fall rep. This means people are snatching up tickets like hot cakes. We were sold out for The Odd Couple (tonight's show) on Monday. I think this is a record-breaker of some kind. Around 7500 people have seen this show. Last year (a five-show season) had just under 20,000 people attend our theatre. This show is going to have almost HALF of our our audience this year...well...that's how it's looking so far.
In any case, the artistic director mentioned something that his screen saver says: "we're all on the same team." We're all here to make excellent theatre. We've got different ideas of how that's best done, but the results point to the same end. I mean, we live, eat, work, play, sleep theatre. It was inspiring, actually. It was a nice little reminder.
Only five performances of The Rainmaker remain. My aim is to have the best show on the final night. I've always had that idea in the back of my mind. It's been a continual arc (with some blips, some small, some not-so-small), and I'm immensely proud of all the work that everyone has done on this show. It's grown into something quite beautiful. A week never passes when some stranger says this is the best show they've seen at the theatre. It's hard to take in just what that means--especially when these are season ticket holders and donors. They've seen them all, and keep coming back. I'm grateful The Rainmaker has had so much success. It's going to be bittersweet to finish it off (that sounds like I'm going to kill it or something).
In other news, I just finished playing the trumpet for an hour or so. I probably played too long, but I'm trying to build up endurance. The tone quality comes back relatively quickly. I haven't played trumpet in over a year. But I'm playing it in The 1940's Radio Hour right after Thanksgiving. It's a canned show, which means we've got a recording of the music to sing to every performance. There's no live music. Well, the one exception is when Biff (my role) brings out his horn for "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy." Today I transposed the trumpet solo in the middle. It's a bit tricky and requires a lot of lip slurring (multiple notes can be played with any one valve combination--so I have to change the note with my lips and air).
Finally, on Monday, I'm part of a staged reading that will be taped. It's called Mettle of Honor--a historical play about Dr. Mary Edwards Walker. She's the only woman to have received the Congressional Medal of Honor. It's basically all voice acting, but I'm playing a variety of characters: her husband, a couple soldiers, a Yankee Killer, and a sideshow barker (and a dog...who barks...). They require different voices (especially since we're just using stands and changing hats every once in a while to distinguish scenes). I don't consider myself to be a voice/dialect person. But I'm working on it. The sideshow barker is fun. I usually just accept that with my baby face, I'll be an ingenue type for a while. This small project allows for some stretching, and it appears to be going well.
I think tonight (I have the night off!) I'll look over some scripts and start narrowing my monologue options, maybe even start crafting some first drafts of cuttings. We'll see how that pans out. Some tv shows on Hulu are tempting.
The list piles. The more I consider what I've got on my plate, the more I realize just hoe much is going on. Many of the projects are in the near or distant future--nothing is too immediate. If I'm wise, I'll start tackling some of the bigger things now.
In any case, the artistic director mentioned something that his screen saver says: "we're all on the same team." We're all here to make excellent theatre. We've got different ideas of how that's best done, but the results point to the same end. I mean, we live, eat, work, play, sleep theatre. It was inspiring, actually. It was a nice little reminder.
Only five performances of The Rainmaker remain. My aim is to have the best show on the final night. I've always had that idea in the back of my mind. It's been a continual arc (with some blips, some small, some not-so-small), and I'm immensely proud of all the work that everyone has done on this show. It's grown into something quite beautiful. A week never passes when some stranger says this is the best show they've seen at the theatre. It's hard to take in just what that means--especially when these are season ticket holders and donors. They've seen them all, and keep coming back. I'm grateful The Rainmaker has had so much success. It's going to be bittersweet to finish it off (that sounds like I'm going to kill it or something).
In other news, I just finished playing the trumpet for an hour or so. I probably played too long, but I'm trying to build up endurance. The tone quality comes back relatively quickly. I haven't played trumpet in over a year. But I'm playing it in The 1940's Radio Hour right after Thanksgiving. It's a canned show, which means we've got a recording of the music to sing to every performance. There's no live music. Well, the one exception is when Biff (my role) brings out his horn for "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy." Today I transposed the trumpet solo in the middle. It's a bit tricky and requires a lot of lip slurring (multiple notes can be played with any one valve combination--so I have to change the note with my lips and air).
Finally, on Monday, I'm part of a staged reading that will be taped. It's called Mettle of Honor--a historical play about Dr. Mary Edwards Walker. She's the only woman to have received the Congressional Medal of Honor. It's basically all voice acting, but I'm playing a variety of characters: her husband, a couple soldiers, a Yankee Killer, and a sideshow barker (and a dog...who barks...). They require different voices (especially since we're just using stands and changing hats every once in a while to distinguish scenes). I don't consider myself to be a voice/dialect person. But I'm working on it. The sideshow barker is fun. I usually just accept that with my baby face, I'll be an ingenue type for a while. This small project allows for some stretching, and it appears to be going well.
I think tonight (I have the night off!) I'll look over some scripts and start narrowing my monologue options, maybe even start crafting some first drafts of cuttings. We'll see how that pans out. Some tv shows on Hulu are tempting.
The list piles. The more I consider what I've got on my plate, the more I realize just hoe much is going on. Many of the projects are in the near or distant future--nothing is too immediate. If I'm wise, I'll start tackling some of the bigger things now.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Oh the weather outside is frightful...
I had to go to the basement of the house today. That's where all the storage is. In the storage are hats and scarves and blankets. Alas, I'm in Minnesota, so go figure.
It snowed almost all day. It's let up by now, and I hear the sun will be out tomorrow. It'll be all melted (most of it has already). It was optimal snowball snow.
Shoot, I need to find my gloves.
Plenty of leaves are green.
Flowers are still out...lilting, but they're still there.
This morning, I woke up at 5:30. This is early. This is supremely early for me. I usually roll out of bed around 9 or 10...or 11. I had to tag along for a pre-show workshop for some students. The school was an hour away, and their first period begins at 7:50...I just shudder at the prospect of having early American Lit that early in the day.
Anyway, another actor and I gave them a bit of a jumpstart on The Rainmaker, explaining the world of this drought in the late 1930s and just how much of a big deal it is for Lizzie to get married--not only for her happiness and comfort, but for economic reasons too (of course, Jimmy, my character, thinks the world's going to blow up, so he just wants everyone to be as happy as they can before the big BANG!).
The actor (who plays Starbuck) is in charge of a lot of educational elements with the theatre. Afterwards, we talked about how we can be more effective. We both agree that getting them on their feet doing some of those goofy acting warmups isn't a bad idea. That also gives a small taste of what it may be like to participate in our summer conservatory.
The students will see the show on Friday morning (which will start at 10 am, that's quite an early call...) I hope our little talk was helpful or provided a TINY bit of context that will orient the stakes.
[Above is the view from my window this morning]
I spent the rest of the day calling a lot of community education departments in the area. Each school district has an office for community ed. We're hoping to advertise our workshops for students and teachers (and the conservatory). I left a lot of phone messages and quickly got over my phone anxiety. It usually takes a couple trials to figure out how best to say what I'm trying to say. But trust me, I've made plenty of strange voice messages where I just end up fumbling over my words. Ah well.
I'm starting to feel a bit under the weather. I've been pumping lots of Emergen-C and water. I bought a bunch of soup and orange juice. I'll be getting to bed earlier than normal (and it feels like midnight already, but it's only 9 pm). Tomorrow is a long day at the restaurant.
In other news, I'm starting to dive into grad school audition work. Doing some re-research and looking over scripts and monologue possibilities. I've got some good leads that are pretty exciting.
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