Stay your thanks awhile and pay them when you part
The show is closed. I am depressed. I miss it already! I am a couple weeks late on a blog, but Leah said she was going to do a blog "takeover" and write one. That has yet to happen, although she says she is "thinking thoughts" so the final blog of this season will hopefully be a recap from that Genius-Goddess! I'm sure she has a lot to say about her first (hopefully not last) SBTS experience.
But for this penultimate blog, you'll have to put up with more of my whinging and "deep thoughts." There is a lot to cover that happened over the last two weeks of our tour. We only had 3 Winter's Tale performances in that time. But some shit went down during Merry Wives. Jonathan got bit by a rattle snake. I shit you not. Jonathan, who my four loyal readers will remember is a genius who came into auditions and blew us all away. He's so talented and funny and apparently can't look where he is stepping. But before a show way down in OC, he was hiking up a trail (and let this be a lesson to all of you...hiking leads to being hospitalized) and stepped on a rattler who bit him and then rattled. Cy (who directed the play and actually understudied Jonathan the night before) came down and filled in. Jonathan was rushed to a hospital where he stayed for two days. Sidebar: Annie and I were celebrating our 14 year anniversary a week early in Vegas with Steph and her husband and when we came out of KA, Steph's phone was blowing up with this news. So Jonathan had to be replaced in Winter's Tale on Weds. Fortunately, Ryan has one of those brains that remembers everything he hears. He can quote every movie he sees, and he sure as shit could step in for Jonathan. It was very impressive. Well done, Ryan!
Fortunately, Jonathan was healthy enough to finish out the rest of the week. No word yet on whether he has fallen into quicksand or been trapped by an avalanche since then.
I can't believe it is over. I really loved this one. It was emotionally taxing, but so much fun. And to work with these actors was an honor. This production felt complete. That's a rare thing. I've been in hundreds of plays, and the number of them that I felt was fully realized probably ranks in the single digits. I'm going to miss it so much. Fortunately I start rehearsing Bloody Poetry on Monday with many of my favorite people. Steph is directing, and I get to act with Cy, Suzanne, Booey, Olivia, and Ryan again. It's at Little Fish, and it's going to be dope!
I feel like our best performance wasn't closing night this time. For my loyal readers, you will remember that for whatever reason the last time I hear a thing the easier time I have imagining it is the first time that I am hearing it. (We had a great show on closing too, BTW). But we had our best show at Polliwog. And it came with some drama. The power was dicey. We could either have all the lights and no sound, or half the lights and sound...we chose the latter. We had a huge contingent from one of our local Shakespeare festivals on hand. (The wonderful folk from the Kingsmen, whose "Two Noble Kinsmen" was utterly delightful). You always want to do well for your peers. Leah really wanted to do well, since her BF is a Kingsman, and she worked there for the last two years. And she was fucking radiant! The play jumped to a whole new level because she was just living in the moment...all the time. What I experienced last year closing Macbeth, she lived at Polliwog. (You can go read that if you haven't already...it was a good blog). Playing opposite that vulnerability and energy was awesome!
I am really so grateful to all those who came out to see the show this year. Doing a show is sort of like having a wedding. You invite all the people you hope will come and even though some people don't show up, the event is perfect for what it is. And with theatre, it is a shotgun wedding where the people doing it don't know one another until rehearsal. In both wedding scenarios, we made out like bandits. We had a great group, and so many wonderful artists that I love and admire showed up that I am humbled. And with an ego like mine, you know that ain't easy!
So thank you for this perfect summer! Thanks to Steph, Lisa, Sara, Suzanne, Elena, and Cinthia. Thanks to the my partner in this, Leah! Thanks to my dear friends who went on this journey with us: BJ, Greg, Olivia, Cy, Chris, Justin, and Ryan. And thanks to all the first timers that joined us: Thomas, Jonathan, Jon, Sean, Birgid, and my dear Allie who went away to travel and then grad school. Miss you!
I wish I was doing the show tonight. I don't imagine that will change anytime soon. So I will just wish the best for these wonderful people and hope we work together again! Soon!
But for this penultimate blog, you'll have to put up with more of my whinging and "deep thoughts." There is a lot to cover that happened over the last two weeks of our tour. We only had 3 Winter's Tale performances in that time. But some shit went down during Merry Wives. Jonathan got bit by a rattle snake. I shit you not. Jonathan, who my four loyal readers will remember is a genius who came into auditions and blew us all away. He's so talented and funny and apparently can't look where he is stepping. But before a show way down in OC, he was hiking up a trail (and let this be a lesson to all of you...hiking leads to being hospitalized) and stepped on a rattler who bit him and then rattled. Cy (who directed the play and actually understudied Jonathan the night before) came down and filled in. Jonathan was rushed to a hospital where he stayed for two days. Sidebar: Annie and I were celebrating our 14 year anniversary a week early in Vegas with Steph and her husband and when we came out of KA, Steph's phone was blowing up with this news. So Jonathan had to be replaced in Winter's Tale on Weds. Fortunately, Ryan has one of those brains that remembers everything he hears. He can quote every movie he sees, and he sure as shit could step in for Jonathan. It was very impressive. Well done, Ryan!
Fortunately, Jonathan was healthy enough to finish out the rest of the week. No word yet on whether he has fallen into quicksand or been trapped by an avalanche since then.
I can't believe it is over. I really loved this one. It was emotionally taxing, but so much fun. And to work with these actors was an honor. This production felt complete. That's a rare thing. I've been in hundreds of plays, and the number of them that I felt was fully realized probably ranks in the single digits. I'm going to miss it so much. Fortunately I start rehearsing Bloody Poetry on Monday with many of my favorite people. Steph is directing, and I get to act with Cy, Suzanne, Booey, Olivia, and Ryan again. It's at Little Fish, and it's going to be dope!
I feel like our best performance wasn't closing night this time. For my loyal readers, you will remember that for whatever reason the last time I hear a thing the easier time I have imagining it is the first time that I am hearing it. (We had a great show on closing too, BTW). But we had our best show at Polliwog. And it came with some drama. The power was dicey. We could either have all the lights and no sound, or half the lights and sound...we chose the latter. We had a huge contingent from one of our local Shakespeare festivals on hand. (The wonderful folk from the Kingsmen, whose "Two Noble Kinsmen" was utterly delightful). You always want to do well for your peers. Leah really wanted to do well, since her BF is a Kingsman, and she worked there for the last two years. And she was fucking radiant! The play jumped to a whole new level because she was just living in the moment...all the time. What I experienced last year closing Macbeth, she lived at Polliwog. (You can go read that if you haven't already...it was a good blog). Playing opposite that vulnerability and energy was awesome!
I am really so grateful to all those who came out to see the show this year. Doing a show is sort of like having a wedding. You invite all the people you hope will come and even though some people don't show up, the event is perfect for what it is. And with theatre, it is a shotgun wedding where the people doing it don't know one another until rehearsal. In both wedding scenarios, we made out like bandits. We had a great group, and so many wonderful artists that I love and admire showed up that I am humbled. And with an ego like mine, you know that ain't easy!
So thank you for this perfect summer! Thanks to Steph, Lisa, Sara, Suzanne, Elena, and Cinthia. Thanks to the my partner in this, Leah! Thanks to my dear friends who went on this journey with us: BJ, Greg, Olivia, Cy, Chris, Justin, and Ryan. And thanks to all the first timers that joined us: Thomas, Jonathan, Jon, Sean, Birgid, and my dear Allie who went away to travel and then grad school. Miss you!
I wish I was doing the show tonight. I don't imagine that will change anytime soon. So I will just wish the best for these wonderful people and hope we work together again! Soon!
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