June 1, 2008
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A Good Show!
Okay, I’ve been negative and critical and now I’ll be positive. Today’s Shrew was pretty much as good as I have hoped it could be. Of course there are things we can do better; I can do better. But I was so happy, at last, to be in this production.
I had 10 people in the audience, a significant proportion of today’s gate, and they are all knowledgeable theater goers, albeit fans. They are not shy about slamming both me and the show I’m in if they think it blows. But…they liked it! They really liked it! While they really enjoyed the entire cast, they singled out Kate, Grummio, Biondello, Hortensio, and Licentio for particular comment. (I want to mention this, not to discourage any other cast members, as they liked all of you, just to be an honest reporter.) I think I gave my best performance today but there are still things I can do better and will strive for next week.
It was hot! The theater has no air conditioning, the fans have to be off as they’re tied to the lights, and the crew FOOLISHLY insisted on closing the windows! It must have climbed into the 90′s in the room. As I walked around the room (it is in the round) the people looked like the graveyard scene from “Our Town.” Come on people, keep the windows open! Yes the theater is near the train but the audience can hear the train anyway. Okay, on to next week.
I got an email from Arden Club Theater in Delaware to audition for Petruchio in Kiss Me Kate. They are having trouble casting the role and I had inquired a few weeks ago. They’ve since had several auditions , but I couldn’t make any of them. I would love to do it but it is far! In addition, it will cause challenges with my wife as it breaks my compact not to do shows in the summer. I am going to see if Arden will agree to not have me rehearse on weekends and also honor my vacation. Of course I’ll have to affirm this before I even audition! But maybe… I would love to do Kiss Me Kate and I ain’t gettin’ any younger. I figure I’ve only got a few more years in which to pull off any romantic leads other than “The Sunshine Boys.” (And that’s not very romantic). As it is, if my leading lady is too young it looks weird. My voice is still in good shape and I can still hit the high notes but that’s going to go eventually as well. So maybe I can squeeze in another show or 20!
Comments (1)
John,
There have been budget cuts in my district and I am out of a summer school teaching job. If you know of any resources that hire educators with Special Needs experience, especially with autism can you let me know.
Glad to hear that your show went well!
Abby