Well, dear readers, we’re another day closer to opening night. Yes, you heard it here, dear readers, we’re another day closer to opening night. It also happens to be quite late in the evening, and therefore I will write these here notes as quickly as possible so I can get some semblance of my beauty sleep. I shall not tarry nor shall I dally nor shall I darry nor shall I tally. Reading these here notes will be like an Evelyn Wood reading experience. You will finish them so fast it will make your head do a Linda Blair. As a side note, do they still teach the Evelyn Wood Speed Reading course? Evelyn was quite popular with the populace, but until these here notes I hadn’t heard her name mentioned in eons. We used to have such interesting people touting interesting things – Evelyn Wood, Arthur Murray, Jack LaLanne – now we Ron Popeil and it just isn’t the same. Now you see, I’ve gotten sidetracked. In any case, speaking of Evelyn Wood, yesterday was a speedy day in which everything went speedily. I got up speedily, I got ready speedily, and I hied myself to rehearsal speedily. Since we were going to only have our leading lady for an hour today, I wanted to start the run-through right at ten sharp so we could at least get through act one. However, the idiots who run Roy Arias studios didn’t arrive until three minutes after ten, then spent five entire minutes trying each of the twenty keys on the key ring. He finally found the one that worked and we walked into a room that was completely screwed up, with dirt on the floor, the piano across the room, and nothing cleaned up. So, we had to waste almost fifteen minutes putting the room back, and I, of course, called our General Manager and had her ream the idiots out. They don’t give a crap, however, although they did promise to give us an extra half-hour on Wednesday – bully for them. That doesn’t help the fact that I then had my leading lady for thirty minutes. We began the run-through around ten-thirty and the leading lady left at eleven – but I’d already prepared for it, and our associate choreographer stepped in and did a terrific job – acting AND singing-wise. Everyone was very impressed. The run went very smoothly, I gave notes, and then we broke for lunch. After lunch, we cleaned up a few things, I cut one line of dialogue in one scene and placed one of its components in another scene, which really helped both scenes. Then I let everyone go except for three actors, one of whom has been struggling for days to remember lines and solidify the performance. I worked the actor very hard, line-by-line, until it began to work like I know it has to – I’m hoping that the intensive session had its effect and that the actor worked on it at home and will come in today not having forgotten everything we did. Because when it’s sharp and when the actor is doing what’s needed, it’s just wonderful. And when it veers from that, it’s not. Since we open in two days, I became really forceful and will continue to do so as needed.
After rehearsal (and more Roy Arias BS), I came home briefly, had a couple of pieces of pizza, then went back to Roy Arias for our band rehearsal. We found out the hard way that our room only has ONE working power outlet and it was on the opposite side from where our second keyboard player was. They finally, after twenty minutes, found us a long enough extension cord. So, we got a late start and therefore didn’t quite get through everything, although there wasn’t that much left and everything that WAS left is a reprise of something we’ve already done. It took about fifteen minutes for the players to find their groove, but boy did they find it and boy are they terrific. The keyboard player was completely sight-reading as I think he’d been out of town until yesterday – still, he did a fine job. The drummer had, at my request, listened to the CD, and he had all the little things I liked down pat. The bass player is great, and the reed player is fantastic. Towards the end of the session, Miss Juliana Hansen stopped by to listen and then we all walked over to the NYMF party.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because for short notes these are turning out to be really long. Was there an Evelyn Wood speed WRITING course? I should have taken it.
Last night, I attended a party for NYMF. It was a very loud party, and I tried to get out of there as quickly as possible but kept running into people I know. When I arrived, I met the NYMF publicity person, who came running up to me and was very gracious and had me photographed with the head of NYMF. Then Gregg Henry came up to me and we had a really nice chat – his show, Little Egypt, which also began life in LA, is part of the festival. Cason and BJ were there, as were dear readers and husband and wife, Noel and Joy. I didn’t see FJL or Skip there. It was so loud you couldn’t even have a conversation. I ran into the lovelier than lovely Doug Cohen (he wrote No Way To Treat A Lady, which I recorded) and we had a nice chat. I was there longer than I wanted to be, but I finally made my exit and came home. The best thing I heard was when someone told me The Brain had good buzz. It’s lovely when a Brain has good buzz.
Today, we do an early run-through with as many costumes as are there (a few are still being worked on), and Barry is now working in the new, improved, and, most importantly, amusing Brain head. After the run, we’ll have notes, lunch, and then we do our three-hour sitzprobe with the band. And then it’s on to our final dress rehearsal on Wednesday. It’s my intention to do it early in the day, work any last-minute problem spots and/or difficult costume changes, and then, if all is well, I’ll let everyone go early, so they can rest up and prepare for what surely will be a busy and intense tech and sound day on Thursday.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, rehearse, lunch, do a sitzprobe, and then come home and buckly down Winsocki and do some fundraiser work that I must get done. Today’s topic of discussion: What is the first movie you remember seeing – where did you see it, how did it affect you, and how vivid is the memory of it. And does the film hold up today. And what is the first play or musical you ever saw – where did you see it, how did it affect you, and how vivid is the memory of it. And does the show hold up today? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I check to see if Evelyn Wood is still teaching her speed reading course.