Adding Theater Flair...

We closed a show a week ago Saturday. Because people are good and creative, small gifts and trinkets were handed out both on opening and closing nights. I love it when people do that--I wish I could be more like them.

There's always a question of what you do with these mementos. I suppose some toss them away--appreciative of the thought, but not really a "saving things" type. Of course, we can't save everything we are given or that remind us of something or someone else. I think some people try, but it's a losing battle. There's just not enough space for everything.

Thankfully, a couple of the trinkets I received came with pins. I attached my Peter Pan pin, a pin with different colors--both I got on opening night--and a small metal acorn to my backpack where I already have a pin from when I did  Shrek and another from the Christmas Carol at Centerpoint Legacy Theatre. I've had those pins on my backpack for years.

Some people collect window decals and place them on their cars to tell everyone where they've been. Others collect other things that mean something special to them. Until the show ended, I didn't think I was a collector from shows I've done, but looking at my backpack now, I guess I am.

I can't say how many more trinkets and/or mementos I'll add to my collection. I can say that even though my collection is small, each item means something special to me. Here's to collecting theater flair!

To The Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday Cast...

To The Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday Cast...

Tonight we saw the culmination of hundreds, maybe even thousands of hours of combined practices, not to mention time spent listening to the "rehearsal track" and reading over and over your lines. We sat and watched from above. You put smiles on our faces as we sang the songs in the balcony. You made us wish we were with you on the painted stage among the lights and the smoke, performing for friends and family.

We spend a couple of months together learning everything we need to know to put on a great show, and then it's over. It's a strange feeling when the realization hits that when next week comes, there are faces you won't see and friends--some new, some you've had for years--you won't get to offer a handshake, or give a hug, or a slap on the back. They'll be coming to the theater always the day after you--their curtain will open only after it closes for us.

Those who perform do it for many reasons. There is a rush you get when those people in the audience are cheering and clapping for you and for the way you (and the cast and crew...) made them feel. It can be one of the most amazing feelings you'll ever have. But there's a more subtle yet rewarding feeling that you get from the rehearsals, where we experiment and risk and learn and retain and we do it together. Starting next week, we're now two teams instead of one.

To the other cast, I wish you well. May all your marks be hit, your notes be reached, your costume changes be successful and your time on stage together be an experience you'll remember forever. Break a leg! Take care.