Well, dear readers, this week is flying by, like a gazelle having a chaw of tobacco. Does anyone still have a chaw of tobacco? I, as a sprig of a twig of a tad of a lad of a youth was always fascinated by chewing tobacco, mostly from the western movies and TV. I thought it would taste like gum, but then I finally figured out that gum tasted like gum and therefore tobacco probably tasted like tobacco, whatever that was. I never did try it because having to spat out a big glob of it onto the ground seemed gross to my tender Jew sensitivities as a child. Why the HELL am I talking about chewing tobacco of all things? Well, you haven’t really lived until you’ve seen the gazelle spat out a big glob of it after a good chaw. I guess it’s still quite popular with the populace and our very own Nick Redman seems to have his own brand.
The real question is what is in those Oliver Twist tins? They look like little rat pellets, don’t they? But enough about me. Yesterday was a day that went by painlessly. I only got about six hours of sleep due to the helper coming by to ship a LOT of CDs. I didn’t really have enough time to go back to bed, so up I stayed. I began making a list of songs that are possibles for the July Kritzerland show, as I’ve pretty much decided what that show is going to be. Then I went and had a Cobb salad with ranch dressing – but I had them leave out the turkey and bacon and only had ham. It was actually really good. Then I came home, had some telephonic conversations, and then was on my way to rehearsal. Because we’d done two-thirds of the show yesterday, I really thought it would only take about an hour to finish the rest of the blocking, but I forgot about a big number that really had to have staging. The tap section had already been choreographed, but I had to do the before and after and figure all of that out, so that alone took about ninety minutes, but I think it came out really cute. Then I finished the rest of the show, which didn’t take all that long. We spent our remaining time running the big number several times. Our very own Grant Geissman’s lovely daughter Greer has been assisting on this, writing down all the blocking and throwing Sami occasional lines if she needs them, although she’s pretty solid. So now she just has to put words with movement and then we’ll be all ready to start running it start to finish.
After rehearsal, I stopped at Gelson’s and got some cherries and a little pasta Bolognese from their hot food deli. Then I came home. I had a brief visit with Kevin Spirtas, who’s moved back to LA after a few years in New York. Then I ate the pasta and a few cherries whilst sitting on my couch like so much fish.
Last night, I watched the first hour of a documentary about Orson Welles called Magician, directed by Chuck Workman. It’s a somewhat perfunctory tour through the life of Mr. Welles, mostly concentrating on his films. It has some nice archival interviews with him, and the usual suspects like Scorsese and Spielberg make their ubiquitous appearances. It’s all pretty surface, but I’m enjoying it and will finish it up but probably not until tomorrow.
I then continued my organizing and cleaning things up and I can actually walk into the CD closet now, which was so loaded with piles of CDs you couldn’t even set foot in there. So, that was good.
Today, I have a local CD dealer coming to pick up some CDs, then I have errands and whatnot to do, including banking, I’ll grab a bite to eat, I’ll hopefully pick up some packages and then I shall be on my way to rehearsal. Our set designer is coming a little early to make the stage presentable. Sami has a couple of costume changes even for the workshop, so we have to set up a couple of flats as they’ll be for the show. Then we’ll start at the beginning and slog our way through the show – I’m sure there’ll be some starting and stopping along the way, but my hope is to get a pretty good run at it. If there’s time, then we’ll do detail work and drill the staging of the numbers. Then I have to go straight to the studio to do the little recording with David Wechter. I’m hoping that won’t take longer than three hours, as I will seriously be fading if it goes any later than that.
Tomorrow, I have stuff to do during the day, then I’m meeting our lighting guy around one so he can do all his stuff before we begin rehearsals. Then we have our three-hour rehearsal, then we’ll go get something to eat. Saturday is the same and then Sunday we’ll probably get to the theater early and just drill whatever needs drilling.
Let’s all put on our pointy party hats and our colored tights and pantaloons, let’s all break out the cheese slices and the ham chunks, let’s all dance the Hora or the Wooly Booley, for today is the birthday of Arnold M. Brockman, our very own Name That Song person. So, let’s give a big haineshisway.com birthday cheer to Arnold M. Brockman, our very own Name That Song person. On the count of three: One, two, three – A BIG HAINESHISWAY.COM BIRTHDAY CHEER TO ARNOLD M. BROCKMAN, OUR VERY OWN NAME THAT SONG PERSON!!!
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, do stuff, eat, hopefully pick up packages, have a rehearsal, and do a recording session. Today’s topic of discussion: What are your favorite films and performances of Mr. Orson Welles? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, where I shall not have a chaw of tobacco.