Spice, Proof and an unfortunate Germ or two...

This weekend was to be a little holiday for me.  My sister came to town on Friday so I took the day off work to go get her from the airport and get some visiting in.  Of course, the weather has been crap so a normally 45 minutes drive to the airport took an hour and a half.  I left plenty early so that was alright and the drive back meant for more visiting so that was all cool. I had, however, woken up with a scratchy throat and low-grade headache which did not bode well for the weekend... Good thing my husband is a pharmacist.  I medicated and hoped adrenalin and positivity would carry me through the weekend!

We took in Wannabe (Spice Girls Tribute Band) at the Citadel Club that night which was so much ridiculous fun.  We were joined by friends Kim and Cliff and enjoyed much chair dancing and singing a long to the tunes we guiltily knew all the lyrics to.  Cliff provided the biggest moment of entertainment however when he and a couple of other guys jumped onstage during the encore and he recreated the splash moment from Flashdance.  It was hysterical!  A fun night and my medicine managed to carry me through it alright. It was also great to see the house so packed.  The Club is a fabulous space for shows and I am so looking forward to Hawksley Workman in January for The God That Comes. 

Saturday I was supposed to do some shopping but instead I slept in and left my sister to go off shopping with my mom and brother.  I think I needed the sleep and that night we had dinner with more family before the Closing Night of Proof. It was nice to have our biggest house for the Close and share the play with so many friends and family.  Everyone seemed really impressed with the show so I was gratified that the hard work paid off.  We then had a relatively quick strike of set and theatre clean and then a nice potluck party where we enjoyed no-pasta pasta and square root vegetables and other yummy treats.  My ongoing sickness meant I wasn't going to be able to stay too late, but it was a nice wrap up to a wonderful theatrical journey.  I was so pleased with everyone on the team and in the cast.  I hope to be able to work with them all again!

Sunday the cold kicked into high gear.  I missed breakfast with the family and slept quite late.  I also missed a baby shower for a good friend but sent the gift on without me and my germs.  You do not bring germs to an 8 month pregnant lady.  You just don't...

And the cold continues... I missed work on Monday - did some work from home (was actually impressed with how much I could do from home - this Internet thing is pretty cool!), but slept a lot and medicated a lot.  I made it in today because the low grade headache seemed to be abated, but still left a little early when the productivity seemed to drop off.  I am hoping for even better tomorrow.  I have a long day tomorrow as it is Christmas Concert time for Gibson at his school.  I'm trying to get caught up with Christmas prep - a little baking, a little cleaning, bought a turkey, did some of my cards and some of my shopping - but I have a ways to go and if I don't get back to 100% soon, I am not going to be ready! Wish me luck and good health, please!

Anyhow, there are a few great theatre opportunities for you all this holiday season - The Snow Globe Festival is in it's third year, A Christmas Carol at the Citadel has a week left in it's run, With Bells On at Theatre Network is on, The Best Little Newfoundland Christmas Pageant Ever is at the Varscona and Grindstone Theatre is a having a special Christmas 11 O'clock Number. So there is a lot to see this week.  It seems to quiet down over the actual holiday, but this week is packed with things to do and see!

Winding Up a Great Couple of Months with Math, Madness, Genius and Doubt...

We are approaching the end of the run... only two more shows left and the journey that has been Proof will be over.  It's been a great experience. The cast really rose to the challenge of the script and they have consistently delivered engaged, present and compelling performances.  I was blessed with a fabulous design team who delivered pitch perfect details in set, costumes, props, lights and sound.  It was really lovely to just direct and not worry about the details because I had a team that was looking after it.  And my crew... I left the show in their capable hands with no hint of fear that it would be well cared for and looked after.

There were disappointments, mostly that we were hit squarely with the cold and snow and that affected attendance.  It descended on opening weekend, receded a bit around our dark day and then came back today.  It's hard to compel people to venture out when police are recommending people stay indoors. Throw in a lack of media attention and you have a recipe for disaster.

We did get a fabulous review from Sound and Noise which I was extremely pleased with.  You can't knock a review like that. Also, local blogger Louise Mallory wrote a nice review of the show.   VUE Weekly and St. Albert Gazette also did lovely preview articles on us. We also hosted a tweet-up night and had great fun following the show on twitter.  It was very cool to catch the reactions of the audience in near-real time. Anyhow, have a read and then buy your ticket.  I guarantee it is worth the price of admission and venturing out in the cold.

I will miss this when it's done. When you direct you kind of feel lost once the show opens.  I have been back a few times but I wanted to give the show and cast time to deepen and grow.  But I am really looking forward to seeing it again on Closing.  It will be a bitter-sweet evening I am sure.

I hope to see you out, if not at my show, then maybe at yours...

Chekhov Makes Me Laugh! Yay!

This past week was insane!  I had two Openings: Proof on Wednesday and A Christmas Carol on Thursday.  As Director of the first and Marketing Administrator for the second I was very busy!  Fortunately both went very well.  I have been very pleased with Proof and it was great to share it with an audience.  Although the weather kept the turn-out smaller than I would have liked, they were extremely appreciative and I received glowing reviews from audience members at the reception following the show.  I hope that you all can take the time to see it.  I guarantee a great night of theatre worth braving the cold for. It runs until December 14th and the tickets range from $12-$16 so it's really an affordable theatre opportunity.

A Christmas Carol also went well.  It is so cool to see the people coming to Opening Night for this show.  Many of them have seen it before and they all look so excited to be back for it.  For many of them it is the kick-off of their Christmas season.  I also liked meeting the parents of the kids in the show. The pride and expectation is visceral.  If you haven't seen it before it is definitely worth checking out.  If you have, you know it's worth a return visit.  There's a very good reason why so many people have made this part of their holiday tradition!

Today, I saw the penultimate performance of Broken Toys Theatre production of The Three Sisters at the Varscona.  IT WAS SO GOOD!  I really wish I could have seen it earlier so I could have told you all how good sooner (but this literally was the first chance I had to get to it...).  The last show is currently underway so if you missed it you are out of luck. Clinton Carew did a fantastic job as both translator and director.  It's the same play by Chekhov, but he made it accessible and engaging. I'm really hoping this qualifies for Sterling 'new work', I am not sure how the category works for adaptations/translations.  He really tapped into how funny Chekhov should be.  The direction is also very elegant.  His use of the space is brilliant and often there are three clusters of action onstage, but never are you focused on the wrong grouping.  It moves briskly so that the 3 hour running time flies by.  Great performances from all involved.  Indeed the cast list is amazing.  It's so cool to see so many bodies onstage in an indie theatre production.  Everyone is in the same world.  Hard to pick a favorite when everyone is so strong.  Well done!  This is their second production and they are certainly proving themselves to be a company to watch!

Fringe on the Horizon... The Far Horizon...

So in the midst of all my busy, the Fringe Lottery was held last week.  I couldn't attend because I was knee-deep in a tech rehearsal, but had my iPad on hand for updates and was overwhelmed to get word that Finally Sauces was drawn, not once, but twice.  Round Barn did not get pulled, so we will try again next year if everyone is still up for it. I had decided to let the Fringe gods decide which projects would be on the docket and would have been happy with one, or two and probably stressed with all three so this has worked out.  We (Finally Sauces) will be presenting one of my scripts and one of Anne Marie's.  After Proof gets up and running we will have to have a meeting to figure out roles and responsibilities and discuss possible casting, but it is exciting to know so far in advance that we will be in.  I have done the Wait List before and that is stressful - best when you get in and are ready, but very sad when you are working on being ready and you don't get off the list. Trust me, the stress level drops considerably when you know one way or another.

In any case, it is fuel to put my focus on my writing at this point.  I have a script, but it needs work.  I look forward to having a deadline to push me forward.

The past few weeks...

I have been working on Proof at Walterdale.  We are a hair's width from Opening so that will mean my schedule will open up and I will be able to post in a more timely manner. I did manage to squeeze in a few shows over the last little while... better late than never!

A couple of weekends back I managed to get to Two One Way Tickets to Broadway's Forbidden Broadway at La Cite.  It was a fun night of parody of Broadway musicals.  I think it really worked for people who know musicals.  I am not sure how it would play for people who don't know the shows and performers being mocked.  It was pretty quick and the four performers all sang well and went for it.  My favourite moments were an outrageous Carol Channing performed by Kyle Thulien and almost every time Kristin Johnston was onstage. She has an electric stage presence and is a quadruple threat as you can clearly add comedian to the list of singer, dancer and actor.

Last weekend I grabbed the last available ticket for the Saturday Night performance of NLT Bitches and Money 1878 at the PCL Theatre. This was a surprising departure from last season's shows.  It was a non chronological steam-punk caper of sorts.  Very well directed, acted and designed with an intriguing script that left you with a few more questions than answers.  It was fun, but I do admit I wanted a little bit more, but I think that was the script more than anything.  I liked the play with chronology and the absolute commitment to the choices.  It was also a nice surprise in that I have seen two of the three actors before (Ben Gorodetsky and Andrea Jorawsky) but never quite in this way and it made me appreciate the depths of their talents more.  The third actor (Laura Gillespie) was new to me and a delightful discovery.  Nice to see three young and skilled performers bringing it with such an interesting piece.

Tonight I took a drive out to Spruce Grove to see Marion Bridge at Horizon Stage.  I'm a sucker for a Daniel MacIvor play!  Indeed, if I weren't directing Proof, I would have been auditioning for this show. I did get to take part in a small way by contributing to the sound design as the evil Kara Ryan in the audio from the TV Soap that the sisters watch off stage.  As it was, they certainly didn't need me as the trio onstage were totally up for the job.  Director Anne Marie Szucs kept it simple and let the script do the work. This was a wise choice in the severe thrust of Horizon Stage. It's a hard space to block in but I think they did a nice job considering the constraints. I really liked the interplay of the three sisters, eldest-alcoholic-rough-around-the-edges Agnes (Erin Forwick-Whalley), middle-never-a-problem-ever-patient Theresa (Julie Sinclair) and youngest-strange-homebody Louise (Sarah Van Tassel).  The three worked well together and felt believable as sisters. They managed to raise them above the potential stereo-types of the characters and make them real. I love the script but had forgotten how funny it was.  This production used the humour to lift it up above the events that could otherwise seem very sad.  It was a lovely night out and totally worth the icy drive!

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!

Pig Girl - Hard to Watch, Important to Think About

The other night I took in Pig Girl at Theatre Network.  I am not one to shy away from shows with difficult and challenging topics, as I like theatre that leaves me with a pang in my heart and thinking for days.  The topic is the abduction and murder of marginalized women in the Vancouver area by Robert Pickton and the impact on their families. Although Pickton's name is never mentioned, it's pretty clear that he is the model for the Killer (Randy Hughson).  It's a tough piece to watch for many reasons. The topic itself is not very palatable.  In real time we watch the Killer assault and prepare to kill Dying Woman (Nadien Chu), this is itself is very hard to watch as it is graphic and unrelenting and ever present.  Side by side with that we watch the frustrated Dying Woman's Sister (Elinor Holt) plead for help from the Police Officer (Brian Dooley) over the many years of her sister's disappearance.   It challenges everyone sitting in the audience about how much they care about these lost women.  It's very clear to me that playwright Colleen Murphy is angry and this comes through in her play very clearly in her representation of Police Officer.  I think this was what was hardest for me.  As the figure of authority, Police Officer represents all of society, and the anger leveled at him in this script is palpable.  As he appears uncaring and annoyed at the persistence of the Dying Woman's Sister it says something about the world as a whole.  Initially, when I left I was ticked off at that portrayal as I thought that the play actually was dehumanizing the police, making them more monstrous than the actual killers. I know RCMP officers and they truly care about the people they work with, most of whom are marginalized like the Dying Woman.  But then I started to think about it and why I was so angry.  In this play, the Police Officer is all of us.  The Police Officer is those of us who read the horrifying stories in the newspaper and are appalled, but distanced. We feel sad, but we are thankful that this is not our world.  We might hold our children closer and use the Dying Woman and Killer as a cautionary tale, but we do not do much more than that.  I am not sure where to go further though. We can think more of these lost women as humans who did not deserve what happened to them no matter what their life choices.  We can think more about their families who have lost precious daughters and sisters and mothers.  We can give money to the organizations that help protect those women (you can do this right in the lobby of the theatre). Beyond that, I am not sure what else we can do, because there will always be monsters in the dark that take the shape of humans and prey on those least able to help themselves...