Well, dear readers, I have decided to marry an Orthodox Jew Buddhist Mormon named Rivka Miyoshi Osmond. What do you all think of that? Oh, I see – it’s April Fool’s Day and we fools shall be getting a workout, let me tell you that. I had you going though, didn’t I? Didn’t you just think for a moment that I was going to marry an Orthodox Jew Buddhist Mormon named Rivka Miyoshi Osmond? Well, March was certainly a month, wasn’t it? First off, we set a brand spanking new posting record, with over 9800 posts, beating our previous record of just over 9200 posts. We didn’t set a record in terms of hits, but we’ll take what we can get. March also saw my return to the stage for the first time in twenty-one years. Oy and vey. March also saw me finishing the short story collection and a new musical comedy. And March saw two new Kritzerland releases. All in all, not a bad little month. Yesterday was a very long and very tiring day for me. I got up early, did things around the house, and got ready to go to the theater for our taping of the show. It took quite a while for the three cameras and eight microphones to get set up, but at three-thirty we began to pre-tape some sequences. Matt and I did our entire scene, then did a few specific pickups within it. It went very well, and that gave me quite a good comfort level, knowing we had some good stuff already in the can. Getting Tammy made up was the ordeal I knew it would be, and I had to step in and finally say we weren’t doing a glamour shoot. We then shot a bit of Tammy and Matt’s first act beginning. And I shot all of Matt’s long monologue. That was all we had time for, and then we had sandwiches and salads brought in, so we good chow down.
The show got started really late – 8:15. The reason for that was we had a lady who was completely soused and loud and obnoxious, and the decision was made to ask her to leave before the show began, and that, of course, took about ten minutes to actually get her out of the theater. We just didn’t want to deal with that sort of thing during the one and only taping of the show. We had a really nice-sized crowd (over two-thirds full), and we had a small little section of excellent laughers – the rest of the crowd was quiet, but very attentive and into the play. I really think the problem with laughs partially has to do with the poster of the play, which shows Tammy in distress. That and the “thriller” moniker sort of make the audience think they’re not supposed to laugh. Prior to the distress poster, the laughs came much easier, which is interesting. The first act seemed to go well (I watched it on the three backstage monitors, up until five minutes before my entrance), and the end of act one was quite visceral. Act Two was somewhat strange in terms of Matt’s and my energies – but I rather enjoyed that, and some really interesting beats happened, which I was pretty happy with. I tripped over a couple of lines, and I added a word or two here and there, but I knew I was safe because of the pre-taping. The second half of the act went to hell for a couple of reasons, one of which had to do with a large prop being folded the wrong way, which changed some blocking and not for the better. Matt also went to MattLand for a few lines, so after the show, we reshot three little sequences, and got them right. I shot a bunch of inserts to use throughout the show, and I had Tammy and Matt do their offstage lines with microphones, in case it’s problematic hearing them through doors. We came around and did some reverse shots on a couple of scenes, and we wrapped out around eleven-thirty. I must say, I was completely wiped out from doing my stuff so many times, and then having to really direct the pickup sequences for the camera. And I’d only eaten a little turkey sandwich all day, so I had to stop and get some food on the way home, which I then shoved down my gaping maw.
My Gaping Maw – that’s the title of my next novel. Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because it is, after all, April Fool’s Day, and if we don’t click then we will all turn into brass doorknobs. And now, let’s have a rousing chorus of What Kind of Fool Am I?
I’m tellin’ you, today I have to relax. Oh, I have to ship out a couple of packages, but other than that, I’m doing nothing but resting and sitting on the couch like so much fish. I have to rest my voice the entire day because I used it so much yesterday and it’s quite hoarse right now. I shall probably watch a DVD and eat a light repast or perhaps a light represent. And then I shall toddle off to the theater for our closing night – from what I understand it will be quite a full house. At last night’s show we had dear readers PennyO and Laura (and Laura’s son, but not dear reader Sandra), and we had a couple of people from the musical theater workshop (MTW), too. In fact, both PennyO and one of the kids from the workshop are coming back tonight. After the show, we’re having a closing night party in the theater, and I shall be taking photographs, if I can find my digital camera – we used it to take the photos used on the set, and I don’t know where it’s got to.
Once the play is closed, I really want to relax for a couple of days, and I’m thinking that Sunday and Monday will be off limits to any work, other than polishing the musical. And then, of course, we’ll be diving into the musical later in the week, and then there will be no rest until that’s done at the end of May. We also have dear reader Hisaka coming in for a visit and I have to decide whether to accept a directing gig for someone’s act – just not sure I want to journey down that road with this particular singer. We shall see. And I must book the rest of the cabaret series.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, run around the City of Studio in my undergarments for all to see (April Fool’s – we HOPE!), I must drive about in my motor car, I must ship a package or three and pick up a package or three, I must relax and smell the coffee or the roses or the popcorn, and I must relax. Today’s topic of discussion: What are your favorite April Fool’s jokes you’ve played? Also, what are your favorite candies made by See’s? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I toddle off to get married to an Orthodox Jew Buddhist Mormon.