A Smallish Project on the Horizon...

This Sunday I will be starting a smallish project for Walterdale Theatre.  When I was asked to be Master Painter for the first show of the season way back in the early summer I had to say No.  I knew that I would be too busy with the advent of the new theatre season and my new position at the Citadel.  However, a request from the set designer, former student Brendan Boyd, for help with painting the floor made me do a slight reversal. It's hard to say No to former students, especially those like Brendan. I came in with conditions, because my time is tight, but this Sunday I will go in and start the process.  I have yet to see the set design, so I am hopeful that I will have the right colours in the shop (it's a wood floor and there were a lot of varied browns in the paint shop). It should only take a couple days - for me, this month,that means Sundays.  There are a couple of wrenches in the works with the theatre being over-shared and the surprise of finding out an Open House and Tour is being held on one of my limited painting days, but I am optimistic about getting it done. I might be a little 'grumpy old man' about it, but it will get done.  I'm looking for suggestions for a good place for a massage in early October to recover from floor painting (it's the hardest on my back) so if you know any, let me know...

Knee Deep in Proof, First Contact with Christmas Carol...

This week we hit an important milestone in our rehearsals for Proof.  We finished Blocking the whole show.  We now move into putting the whole thing together and getting the feel of the arc of the show through stumbles and runs of larger chunks of it.  Sunday will see our first Stumble Through of the whole show and we will see where we are at for lines.  Since we did so much text work off the top I am not worried about that.  Already my actors are taking sizable chunks off-book and trusting themselves.  With a cast of four that means that everyone has a lot to get into their brain and body but they are all hard workers and seem to be really trusting the process.  Already I am seeing them trusting the emotional response and on Tuesday night we had a few moments of us tearing up at the table as we watched their work.  Truly lovely moments coming through.  Makes me happy as a director!  Now to put it all together! We are also blessed with a super fast and dedicated production team.  The set is built and we have blocked the whole show in situ.  Layers of paint have made for cool discoveries as we come in to see the world becoming more and more real each rehearsal.  It makes it easier for the actors to inhabit the world when it feels so complete right off the bat. We are lucky!

At work, we started Christmas Carol rehearsals this week.  Tuesday was the Meet and Greet and First Read Through.  There are quite a few new faces this year.  I have only ever seen the show once (last season) and this is my first year on staff for Carol, so I stayed for the Read to hear it.  I was a little surprised to see how much it moved me just from the table.  I must admit I had a couple tears to wipe away.  It is a testament to the actors in the cast that they could bring the piece to life without anything but their voices and their emotional commitment.  It will be all the more magical with the sets and costumes, but for me there is always something special about that first Read-Through! In any case, it is going to be a bit more active and noisy at the theatre with all those kids and the rest of the cast in the building.  I am looking forward to it.  Some of my favorite local actors are onstage, so it will be great to see it again!

Kristen hits a Wall... and Bounces... This Too Shall Pass...

Yesterday I hit a wall.  Suffice it to say I have taken on too much, and then overreacted because all my filters shut off due to system collapse.  I am a little embarrassed in retrospect, but I cannot do anything but apologise, so there you go.  I think it's all good. I hope so.

How did this happen?  Well, I think there is a reason why Walterdale frowns on people doing more than one big job on a show.  It can stretch you too thin and in combination with my other life jobs (mother, store-owner, and all the rest...) I simply stretched too far. There are other factors stressing me out - some challenging dynamics on the team, coming off another show so quickly, planning for the next two (which overlap), anxious about Fringe - so it was really a perfect storm situation.  I should have known.  On the way to the theatre to paint in the morning I was on the verge of tears the whole way and didn't know why.  I was yelling at the radio, other drivers, my gloves... I was clearly not in good shape. Today I am taking a rest day.  I have nothing but laundry and grocery shopping on the agenda today and I might even squeeze in a nap.

Anyhow, the set is coming along nicely.  I have posted my most recent picture, but I have actually done more since I took that picture.  Tomorrow I should be done and I will take another and post that. We are waiting on the 'real' furniture so it will continue to change when all that comes in. The show is also moving along.  We got some wonderful work done on my big scene last night and I finally feel I have my feet under me in it. I get to work with some wonderful, generous actors in this show and I am so grateful for that. I will be glad when I can just think about the acting... soon...

First Day of Painting - The Misanthrope at Walterdale

So I started painting The Misanthrope today.  It was primer day and the walls are high.  When I got to the theatre, the set looked like this:

A few hours (read: 5 hours) passed and a lot of painting was done with two fabulous helpers and when I left the set looked like this:

I have a lot to do.  More wall treatment on Thursday and Friday and hopefully I start the floors by the weekend.  There is also furniture.  I am recording the progress so that I can see all the steps involved!

It is going to mean a lot of hours at the theatre for me - since I am in the show, too - but it's home!

An Evening of Atmosphere - The Weir

Opening Night for The Weir was a wonderful success.  The house was very full, especially for such a small cast show, but perhaps the play helped as it seemed to be the perfect piece for this time of year.  It's a little spooky but cozy as well and by the end of the play you really get to know the five characters on stage.  My mother commented on how wonderfully defined each of them was and how they seemed to move around the space so naturally, as though they really were in their favorite pub. The weather in Edmonton this week seems to echo the weather in the play and it really felt like we were all gathered in the comforting space of this neighborhood pub, keeping warm from the biting wind outside.

I was very impressed with the performances onstage.  Cody Porter, always a favorite, was at his tip-top best.  He's the kind of actor who can convey so much with a single raise of his eye brow or expression.  He doesn't need to talk but when he does, like in his final story, he can mesmerize the audience.  It was captivating how real all five of the actors were onstage.  Kieran O'Callaghan was delightful and I imagine him driving home to his 'mammy' after the show and Justin Deveau pulled off the awkward single barman so well I wanted to give him a hug and pat his head. I also enjoyed the energies of newcomers to Walterdale, Gavin O'Toole and Gwyneth Kellii.  Gavin embraced the confidence and swagger of the well-to-do Finbar and Gwyneth's Valerie had an undertone of vulnerability that was heart-breaking. All in all, five strong performances combining to create a real world onstage.  I was also surprised to discover how much I was laughing.  When I saw it in rehearsal a week and a half earlier I wasn't focused on the show - more checking to make sure the paint looked right, but on Opening Night I was really struck by the layered humour of the piece.

Speaking of stage, I was so thrilled to receive numerous compliments on the set.  A labour of love and a test of my skills - so it was nice to hear that it all worked. To me it felt warm and inviting and that was what I was going for.

* Photo Credit: Douglas Dollars Stewart
* The Weir marks #47 in my 2011 Theatre Goal

Done for now... Approaching Birthday Weekend!

This weekend is my birthday.  Gibson just had his.  It is also Thanksgiving.  I am not sure what will happen.  I don't know what I want (other than an iPad) or what I'd like to do (a movie - I haven't seen one in a long time that wasn't rated G).  I want to feel celebrated and thought of.   The next few weeks are jam-packed so I would love a little rest before I hit them.  I wish it were as easy to please me as it is Gibson.  All he needed was Lego and a DS game... oh, and cake. I don't even need the cake.

Today I finished the paint job on the set... well, I finished all I can do until I see it under the lights.  I am only worried about one wall (whether I need to do more breakdown on it) so I feel pretty relaxed right now.  I was touched to receive a phone call this morning from Joan Hawkins, who I consider my painting mentor.  She had been out of town until this week and had popped in for some other theatre business and peeked at the set.  She called me just to tell me how great it looked!  This is kind of what Walterdale can be about.  People will take the time to give you a pat on the back when you do good stuff! The only thing she 'mentioned' to me was the wall I had come in that morning to finish.  I will regard myself as a good student in that her checklist was the same as mine.  I am feeling pleased that she approved - she'd tell me if there were issues that I missed. When they do the Media Photos I will link any pictures that give you a good look at the set.  I tend to have a bad colour balance when I try to take a picture in the space.

A Manicure is Wasted on Me... I'm painting a set...

I have been spending the last few weeks painting the set for The Weir at Walterdale Playhouse. This has been a terrific challenge for me.  I have designed a set before and painted it (Village of Idiots), I have been Master Painter before for another designer (Wyrd Sisters) and I have painted on many other sets, usually under the umbrella of a Master Painter, but sometimes I have been pretty much in charge (Nine), but this set really took it up a notch for me.  When Director, Anne Marie Szucs, was putting together her team back in the late spring she asked me if I wanted to be on it.  When Jim Herchak stepped forward as Set Designer I knew that the best place for me would be Master Painter since I know that Jim doesn't paint. It's also a tough position to fill since there are few people who want to take on the responsibility or feel they have the expertise to do it (many paint, but few will master paint...). Also, I figured it would be a good challenge.

The set has certainly proven to be so.  I like it, don't get me wrong, but there are a lot of surfaces and it is, for the most part, a realistic set.  Village was not realistic, and neither were Wyrd Sisters or Nine.  When the set is abstract, you can play with the textures to a large degree.  When it's 'real' you have to make it work.  I have learned a lot.  It's been tough.  My painting mentor, Joan Hawkins, is out of town so I had to mine my memory and experiment a bit to get what I wanted.  I did use a lot of the things she taught me.  The first attempts were not as successful as the later work, but the beauty of paint is that layers will save you.  It was also interesting because I had no reference for colours or textures on the model.  Jim trusted me to figure that out and that has been interesting. I have a few more things to finish up, but I am about 93% there.  I have spent about 40 hours on the deck working so far (more at home on the computer searching for reference images) and I probably have about 6 - 10 more next week to finish up the little details.  It's tough for me because I generally have to work one day and rest one day because of the strain on my back (it doesn't seem to like it when I paint the floor...).  I have had some wonderful help (Thanks Julie, Jenelle, Kent, Elinor and Ruby!) and I have learned a lot.  When I look at it I am really quite proud of what I have done so far.  I hope that I can make the rest of it match what is in my head.

I encourage you to stop by the Walterdale Open House or AGM this Saturday and check it out in person, or better yet, come at see the show in a couple of weeks! 

Living in the Theatre - Painting by Day, Directing by Night!

After all the build up for me in the rest of the season I am solidly up to my neck in Nine at Walterdale.  We are enjoying being spoiled by a set being mostly done much earlier than scheduled.  This has allowed us to do a lot of spacing in the actual theatre with all the architectural elements (except the poles - one comes in today and the other two should be in on the weekend).  It has been wonderful and has actually pushed us ahead of scheduled.  I am hoping this means I can give some nights off here and there.  That will only happen, however, if new conflicts from the cast stop rolling in.  It is hard to say 'no' because everyone has a (ahem) good excuse.  Anyhow, we are in good shape and that makes me happy.  Because of the strength of the cast, there are things I do not have to put a lot of time into (like character work) because they come with their homework done. I like that!

In the day times, since the set has been done, I have been leading the paint crew. I am technically second in command, but I can paint in the daytime and I prefer that happening so that I don't get kicked off the deck in the evenings. We are therefore, ahead of schedule when it comes to paint, too!  Yay!  I have had a nice gang of helpers to keep my company and make the work go so much faster! It does, however, make for long days and I have to watch how much of my time I schedule for the painting so that I do not stress myself out too much. 

As I have gotten older, I find that I cannot handle the long hours as well. I also have a hard time getting to sleep right away in the evenings as I come home wired from rehearsal so I have to watch that.  I need nap time I think.  In any case, I am delighted with how we are progressing!

Feeling Better... not 100%

This week was far more productive than last week. First of all I am feeling better so that helped. I still am a little froggy, but nothing like what was hitting my head last week so that's all good. Oliver's birthday meant that I had to get moving Monday to be ready for Tuesday. I also had to get some of my work done for Fringe (Pieces) since I had neglected to get it done the week before. I did Toys R Us and picked up the Dairy Queen Ice Cream cake and made up loot bags for Oliver's Drama Camp. That handled the birthday. I offered to have a party earlier in the month but Oliver said all his friends are away on holidays so I just took the two boys to Chuckie Cheese for game playing and pizza. They were fine with that. I know that Oliver might think about the fact he doesn't get the boat-load of toys that other kids do because his summer birthday has meant very few birthday parties, but I know my kids have a lot of stuff. They don't need much more and he seemed quite happy with what he got. I'd rather that than too much stuff!

I tackled the media stuff for Fringe. Brent finished the poster and I love it. I hope you do too! The media kit is massive - so massive that it won't send via email. So I made a decision just to send the Media Release and we will have hard copies of the Kit at the Fringe Media Launch on Tuesday. No use clogging up the in-boxes of all those reporters. I figure most of the information they need is in the release as well. It must be hard with all these shows for the media folk to sift through it all. I cannot imagine. The program is almost done. We are waiting on a section from the Alzheimer's Association. That will come in on Tuesday. I am out of my comfort zone with this stuff, but if you aren't stressed, you probably aren't learning, right? I also balanced this with painting on the sunny days. I have some more to do, but I am hoping tomorrow or Sunday will be sunny so I can finish. I have Wed and Thursday next week as well. I have a few little prop things to find and then we are good. We had a great meeting for tech with myself, Erin (Sound) and Kim (SM) and with those two I feel so relaxed about the tech, that it's all good there!

Now, let this all begin! Oh, and come see the show!!!!

Progress...

Last night we started the floor for the Village set. It is coming along. I am takign today off because I am physically very tired and my muscles need a day off. I also have to find a monologue for my audition on Thursday (yikes!).

Here is a picture from last week. I am going to take an updated photo tomorrow so you can see where it is going. I hope to get the border started tomorrow morning and some of the finicky bits.

Painting a World I Created...

My set for Village is coming along splendidly. This is a very exciting thing for me since it is a new adventure. My lovely Master Builder Ted Fischer built everything super fast and I started painting at the same time so we are ahead of schedule. Last night Joan Hawkins came in to paint with me and she helped me find textures and make some decisions about paint for the floor. Joan is the go-to girl for painting questions so I was glad to have her there. I was there a lot yesterday, and although I wasn't as productive as I have been on other days, we are delightfully ahead of schedule. Today is a day off from painting. I will still work on props at home, but my pecs need a rest. Back tomorrow!

Damage Control... Before This Gets Worse, I'd Better Do Something...

I have always had good intentions when it comes to working out. However, you know how good intentions work... throw in my life and nothing that is completely and only about me gets done. However, this week it is pretty bad. I had a dance rehearsal Tuesday night for A Little Night Music wherein we waltzed for about 45 minutes of the hour and a half (maybe a bit more, hard to tell), this was followed by set painting the next morning for about 3 and a half hours at Walterdale and on Thursday morning I was walking like a 90 year old. My right knee was killing me and my lower back was not happy. I took Thursday off and tried to rest through the ache, but then I painted again on Friday and that afternoon was not good. I know that I have to make the time for me to get in better shape. I am not going to run marathons, I do not even care what size I wear, it's the aches and pains that I cannot deal with. This week must start with me as priority. That is my intention... let's hope I follow through.

Paint Fumes...

I went in to the theatre on the weekend to 'help' paint the Charlie Brown set and have since spent 4 days there painting, watching paint dry and waiting around until someone could help with set up so I could paint. The job was much bigger than anticipated and there was no plan in place to get it done. Once we got a grip on what was entailed in completing the process (Wednesday night - late, late, late) we sat down as a small group of painters (3 of us) and made a much needed plan. Hopefully we will be done tonight. If all goes according to plan, we should be. I know that it will look really cool and will be all lovely, so that is what pushes me to do it. I really didn't have the time to spare, but apparently no one else did either. I felt really guilty that I couldn't go help last night, but I had other plans and I shouldn't feel that way. I had only thought I would be going in for a few hours on the weekend, not spending 4 days in there (including all of Canada Day)... but guilt is like that, isn't it?

Busy Weekend...

This weekend is half over but for me it is just starting. Since Mark works Saturdays I didn't really feel that I could get much rest. Oliver had Friday off school so I had both boys for Fri and Sat and we did our activities and some errand that needed doing and they even managed a water fight both days. Gibson has a hard time understanding that in a water fight he will get wet too. He just wants to be able to get Oliver wet and he figures that should be the rule.

Now, Sunday morning and my weekend really starts. Mark has plans with the boys for today and tomorrow and in the time I have when I am not rehearsing I have things to do. This afternoon I am meeting AM for lunch and a play (that I really hope I understand because it is outside of my comfort zone, I think). It will be good to see AM as I haven't seen her since her Capital Region Directorial Debut. After the play I will shop a bit and then I have rehearsal. When I get home... I will sand the mudded walls in the main floor bathroom, TSP the walls and start painting! YAY! I hope to finish the painting Monday morning and afternoon and clean it all up before I head off to Rehearsal. Isn't it funny how I can be so excited about being able to paint a bathroom?