Well, dear readers, it is Sunday, a day of rest and relaxation, not necessarily in that order. I have been waiting for a day of rest and relaxation and now I have it. I have 0 things scheduled for today, save for perhaps a meal later on. I shall merely putter around the home environment in my lounging pyjamas, my smoking jacket, my leopard-spotted dickie, and my bunny slippers. I may or may not answer the telephonic device and I may or may not respond to e-mails. In short, I may be incommunicado. Look at that word – incommunicado. That looks like someone just threw a bunch of letters in the air and they landed in happenstance fashion (stiletto heels, tank top, and micro-skirt). In any case, that is my plan and I’m sticking to it. Speaking of sticking to it, yesterday I stuck to it and it was none too happy because when I unstuck I left a gummy residue. Don’t you hate when you leave a gummy residue? Where was I? Oh, yes, yesterday and all that happened. I had to get up early, as she of the Evil Eye arrived to clean the home environment. I went and shipped a few items, and then picked up my hair products. Then I drove over to LACC for our rehearsal. I bought donuts for everyone and they were gobbled up by one and all and also all and one. We started off by reviewing a few of the big numbers, which, I must say, looked good and went well. I then dove in to the humungous twelve-page sequence that ends the show. The bulk of the sequence has nine people onstage, along with several big props – I remember how bloody complicated it was to do in the staged reading, and this was even harder because now we’re really going to have the props. It took three hours, but we got it all done and it’s fun – I have to now finesse certain bits, and certain blocking, but the structure is there and it’s all laid out, so the rest is easy. I also have to fill out the ending number – they’re in position for it but I have to now put movement in. We wrapped at around three, and then I came right home. I jogged, did some trading at my local DVD store (and picked up a few new items – including the new region 1 Carousel, which I’m happy to say looks brighter and sharper than its region 2 counterpart. I then got some pizza, came home, and sat on my couch like so much fish.
Yesterday, I managed to watch a motion picture on DVD entitled The Chairman, starring Mr. Gregory Peck and the recently departed Arthur Hill. Because it was completely reviled by everyone on its release, I didn’t see it back then. Well, it’s pretty wretched (of course eight people on the imdb think it’s GREAT!), unintentionally amusing, and downright stupid. The “chairman” of the title is an UNNAMED certain head of Red China. I couldn’t follow the stupid plot, but it involved some enzyme or something and Gregory Peck was the only one who could steal it so that Red China wouldn’t use it for EVIL. You know you’re in trouble when Mr. Peck meets The Chairman and plays ping pong with him. The film has one saving grace, one of Jerry Goldsmith 60s Asian-sounding scores. And that’s it, although I always enjoy watching Mr. Peck, and J. Lee Thompson at least knows how to shoot a scene. The transfer from 20th Century Fox, is excellent. For this piece of merde, they actually have a three-person commentary track. I ask you. I then watched a DVD of Mr. Barry Manilow – this is his farewell concert DVD, but I did not watch the farewell concert, I watched the other program included – which is fascinating. It’s a black-and-white bad-looking videotape of a rehearsal (with audience) of Mr. Manilow’s first touring show, from 1974. It’s really fascinating and interesting that this skinny, odd-looking, gawky New Yorker became a huge superstar, at least based on this video. At this point in his career, he never even left the piano once during the entire hour set. He did have The Harlettes with him. At this point, the only songs in his set that would become hits were It’s A Miracle (he opens the show with it, and still opens shows with it) and Could It Be The Magic. I’ll get around to the 2004 farewell concert, maybe even today.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button because soon I shall have my beauty sleep and be incommunicado (odacinummocni, spelled backwards).
As I’ve already mentioned ad nauseum, today I will be doing nothing. Oh, I may figure out some blocking for the final musical number, but that’s about it. Oh, and I have to listen to our finished mix for act one and make sure I’m happy with it (for the Alice and Emily CD), and pick up the act two CD and listen to that. But that’s about it.
For anyone who frequents myspace.com, one of my cast members has done a Brain From Planet X page, so check it out – the title song plays while you peruse the page, and you can become a “friend” of the Brain and post your comments. I must say, I’m really enjoying my cast members, who are all working very hard. Some have a ways to go yet, but as long as everyone works hard and tries, then I’m happy. And our very own Miss Adriana Patti is a wonderful assistant, very conscientious, always makes sure I have a Diet Coke in hand, and takes copious blocking notes so that there is never any question about who is supposed to be where when. She knows I’m very demanding about said copious notes and she’s doing a terrific job, as is our wonderful stage management team of Sheena and Amber. Sheena and Amber – that sounds like a sitcom that takes place in the jungle, doesn’t it?
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, jog and then do nothing whatsoever and be incommunicado except for posting here at haineshisway.com. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s free-for-all day, the day in which you dear readers make with the topics and we all post about them. So, let’s have loads of lovely topics and loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst we play ping pong with The Chairman.