Well, dear readers, I don’t know if it’s allergies and guck going around but I have been fighting whatever it is for three weeks now and I am ever so bored of it, frankly. It hovers, it waits, it starts to come on, it goes away, I feel fine, I don’t feel fine, my throat feels weird, my throat feels okay, I feel congested, I don’t feel congested and through it all I have taken so much Airborne and sucked down so many ColdEEZ that I want to vomit on the ground. Add to that the occasional doses of NyQuil, the Mucinex D and the Claratin D and that’s just disgusting after a while. But I cannot give in to it – I have no time for this nonsense so send some excellent vibes and xylophones for the allergies/guck to be gone once and for all and for all and once. I has spoken!
Speaking of “I has spoken!” we had our long rehearsal day yesterday. I was up by nine and to LACC by ten-fifteen for our ten-thirty rehearsal. I stopped in to look at our set, and it’s getting better and fuller every day. We were in the big theater so they could finish loading in. We began with the opening number and went straight through all the way to the end of Namely You, a very big chunk of the show. The transitions from scene to scene get smoother every day, and the first scene (comprised of two, actually) is now playing really well. Druthers is a lot of fun and Jubilation T. Cornpone is a rouser. Kay Cole was with us today and she was as impressed as I with a lot of the work. We then began skipping around a bit because we couldn’t do any of the Barry Pearl scenes as he won’t be back with us until Monday. So we did The Country’s in the Very Best of Hands and the surrounding scenes. There was still confusion about the staging, which I wasn’t really understanding, since it’s pretty basic, but we finally got it all straightened out. Then we did the ballet, and then took a lunch break.
After lunch, we moved on to act two – we haven’t given nearly as much time to the second act so it was a bit rougher than I would have liked. Past My Prime was too sloppy both vocally and staging-wise, so I sent John and Maddy off to tighten it up and get the song more firmly in their bones. Then we did Put ‘Em Back, which the wives are really getting into now, and which is a ton of fun. We also did the scene prior to it. Then we moved on to the finale and we ran that several times to clean it up, tighten it, and get it smooth. When it’s done right, the finale of Li’l Abner is one of the best act two enders ever written, just as the Sadie Hawkins Day ballet is one of the best act one enders ever written. We worked a bit on the comedy in certain scenes and moments, and the actors are finding those beats now. John (Marryin’ Sam) had a suggestion for the first scene of act two and I liked it, we tried it, I asked our MD for some incidental music for it and it’s now incorporated.
The show continues to fascinate me in terms of its needs. It has a certain energy that has to propel it and anytime anyone drops below that the show flags, so I’m demanding about keeping the energy at a certain level throughout. I’m also extremely demanding about cues being picked up quickly unless there are joke lines. For actors who aren’t used to this style it can be daunting or seem unnatural, but with this show it is, in fact, completely natural to be at that higher energy level.
After rehearsal, a few of us went over to Palermo, where I had some penne and meatballs and a salad – neither were very good, I must say. Next time it’s across the street to House of Pies. Then I came home and sat on my couch like so much fish.
Last night, I watched the most recent episode of Mad Men – it was pretty blah to me. Only three shows left in AMC’s maddening and stupid decision to split this season in half so they could stretch it out another year.
Then I just relaxed, did stuff on the computer and that was my day and that was my night, save for the Airborne and sucking down ColdEEZ.
Today, we have a four-hour rehearsal starting at eleven. I will take the long scenes that always seem to give us trouble and run them until they are second nature, especially stuff in the second act. We’ll be in our space, so that will be good for everyone. Then I’ll come home, relax, and then be on my way to the STAGE benefit.
Tomorrow, I’m doing nothing and going nowhere. I will sleep as late as I can and just relax. I really need that kind of day. Then on Monday I must get singers their music for the next Kritzerland show. Then I’ll be at LACC at one even though rehearsal isn’t until five. Our show piano is being delivered and our Federal sound guy is coming down to check out the space and suggest what kind of mics for us to hang and where. There are three “opera” mics in there now, but I find those just don’t really work all that well, so I want some good mics hanging both front and back because there are no body mics for this show (I refuse to have them) and hopefully the placement of the band will result in music that’s not too loud for the singers. We have a full-out run-through at five and I have asked for everyone to be at performance level from that point on. Tuesday is a band rehearsal, which I’ll attend, and then we have a run-through at five. Wednesday is our sitzprobe, so other than singing through the score, we won’t get much else done, other than being able to run some stuff after. The sitzprobe really shouldn’t take more than two of our four hours. Thursday is another run-through and what they call a “light-over”. Friday we begin tech at nine and go until we finish. I had a long conversation with our lighting designer and told him to keep it as simple as possible. We have one spotlight, but I basically just want a few different “looks” to handle all the scenes. So, I’m hoping tech won’t be too horrible. Saturday we have a dress rehearsal, we’re off Sunday, and then we’re straight through to our opening night.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, rehearse, hopefully pick up some packages and see the STAGE benefit and eat. Today’s topic of discussion: In honor of Mother’s Day tomorrow, tell us some of your favorite memories of your mom. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, where I shall continue fighting the damn guck. Send those be gone guck excellent vibes and xylophones, please.