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November 10, 2017:

A NOTE TO 10,000 OF MY NEAREST AND DEAREST FRIENDS

Bruce Kimmel Photograph bk's notes

Well, dear readers, this month is flying by, like a gazelle doing the rhumba. Does anyone still do the rhumba? I do, and I don’t even know what the rhumba is. But I’m doing it now and I am fabulousssss. I am doing the rhumba and there are no two ways about it. But let me take a break from the rhumba so that I may write these here notes, because neither wind, nor sleet, nor snow, nor fire, nor rhumba must stop the notes from being posted. It simply isn’t done, especially since this here site just turned sixteen. In other news, I have been nominated for a Broadway World Award – Best Director of a Play (Local Production) for Dial ‘M’ for Murder. I have no idea who nominated me, but I do have an idea how the award is actually won. You see, it’s a voting contest – the nominee who can get the most people in their universe to vote for them is the winner. So one really must get about ten thousand of their nearest and dearest friends to vote for them. And so I call on you dear readers, 10,000 of you who are my nearest and dearest friends, to cast your vote for me and yes I will provide the handy-dandy link right now. My category is listed above and you simply must vote because if I cannot count on 10,000 of my nearest and dearest friends to vote for me, then I don’t know what. Actually, I don’t know what. I know who but I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting what. I shall be devastated if 10,000 of my nearest and dearest friends do not help me win this marvelous award, which I would like to add to my Robby, my Scenie, my Mac, and my Eddon. And if I should win? Pie. Yes, pie for all 10,000 of my nearest and dearest friends. So, here is the handy-dandy link and vote for me for Best Director of a Play (Local Production). I also congratulate my two leading players – Adam Segaller and Carrie Schroeder for their nominations, as well as Kay Cole for Best Cabaret (female) – as you know, I directed her show.

https://www.broadwayworld.com/los-angeles/vote2017region.cfm

Have you voted yet? Have I won yet? Yesterday began with a start – my alarm did not go off at eight-thirty and I was awakened by a knock at the door from the helper’s husband who had arrived to do two box runs to the new house. I managed to get myself together (no mean feat) and get him started. Then a nice young woman came over to box up the rest of the CDs so we could get the shelves out of that closet. It’s about time the shelves came out of the closet, don’t you think? While she did that, I went to the new house and unboxed six boxes of books, and then came back here. The nice young lady filled all the boxes, and she’ll be back this afternoon to fill the rest with CDs in various and sundried other places. Then I grabbed a quick bite – a patty melt and side Caesar salad. Then I had to mosey on over to LACC for a paper tech that didn’t happen because our lighting person didn’t bother to give my stage manager a cue sheet. We did go over a few things, and we went over sound stuff with the sound fellows. But I really didn’t need to be there that early to just sit around for two hours.

Then rehearsal began. We spent thirty minutes cleaning stuff up and then we ran the show. The run-time was exactly what it’s been, which is just amazing to me. The show felt tighter, the actors are finding nice moments, and we still need to strengthen some things before we open. After watching one act one scene I decided to rethink the last three minutes of the scene in terms of blocking – just didn’t feel right to me the way I’d staged it. The set changes were much smoother but they still have a ways to go until they’re perfect. And we’re adding stuff to them in terms of actors, so that every change has something going on during it – that way they’ll be seamless. Act two isn’t quite as smooth as it needs to be – so I’m looking at ways to address that. But overall I can see the show now and the pace is getting better and the actors are picking up their cues and finding their show energy.

We ended about ten minutes early and I went directly to the new house and unboxed five more boxes of books. The boxes are all alphabetical and really easy, but I seem to be missing I and J, so we’ll have to figure out if that was mislabeled or something. I’m sure it will turn up. I came home right after that, answered e-mails, and that was that.

Today, I’ll be up by ten, I have to pick up some mail, and then we have a one to five rehearsal. I’m hopeful of finishing early, though. Directly after, I’ll go to the new house and unpack as many boxes as I can so I can bring the empties back here. There’s still so much stuff to do besides the big stuff. I have drawers to empty, pots and pans to get to the new house, glassware and cups and still quite a few CDs in other locations to do. Once I get all the drawers emptied, I think we’ll be ready to do the two big move days. I have help in the afternoon so that will be good and we’ll get as much done as we can and then I’ll eat.

Tomorrow we begin tech – in actuality that should have been today but today is an official holiday. So we really have one day to get tech right. I’m there at nine to work with everyone for two hours. Then the cast comes and we do a cue-to-cue until two, take an hour meal break, and then finish the cue-to-cue by four, at which point we’ll begin a run-through with no stops. Any mistakes, lighting-wise, they can just take notes and fix it without the actors. Once home, I’m hoping the other helper can come and we can do more boxing and runs to the new house. I want as much out of here as possible for the big part one move on Sunday. Monday we have our band for a rehearsal, and then a sitzprobe with the cast, then a meal break, and then we do our first dress rehearsal. Tuesday is our second dress rehearsal, Wednesday is an invited dress, and Thursday we have our first performance, which we’re all thinking of as a preview. Our official opening is on Friday.

Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, get 10,000 of my nearest and dearest friends to vote for me, I must pick up mail, have a run-through, box, do a house run, and then eat and relax. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Friday – what is currently in your CD player, and your DVD/Blu and Ray player? I’ll start – CD, Kritzerland stuff. Blu-ray, all in boxes. Your turn. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, happy that 10,000 of my nearest and dearest friends will click on the link and vote for me so I can WIN.

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