pretty random

KWLT is putting on Moonchildren in January, and I'm doing a poster for them. Check out the photos and tell me which ones you like best!

To learn more about Moonchildren, vas-y!

For everyone who missed the show -- turns out, this was *everyone* except my devoted leapfish -- here are some pictures and random notes for you. If you'd like to watch the show at a rate of 2 frames per second, where you have to advance the frames yourself, visit this page to see 347 still photos from opening night. Thanks robsgoatfarm for taking them, and mccorpsecorpse for the camera and hosting! I'm including photos of the shows I was in below, but you can see all twelve shows at that page, in the following order:

1. Bonedock Jones, England's greatest detective
2. What It's Like, a conversation (and clothing switcheroo) on gender roles
3. Parental Guidance, a cute take on parents' wishes for a child's first date
4. Weed Dreams, described below with pics
5. War To End All, cell phones and the battlefield, together at last!
6. Broken Mirror, a moving scene on abuse and response

   INTERMISSION to allow a breather after that very serious one

7. Something Went Wrong, described below with pics
8. Middle Earth Dating Service, featuring Smeagol on a blind date.
9. On Second Thought, or, Love in the 21st Century, featuring a hooker, a writer, and an office worker, along with a dancing Orgy troupe.
10. The Key to the Mystic Halls of Time, described below with pics
11. Fairy Tale for Boy and Girl, a hilarious two-person four-character uncountable-laughs show.
12. Lewd Loves of a Lusty Laundress, described below with pics.

Now, since this is my journal after all, far more attention shall be paid to the shows I was on stage for. Wooo!( Read more... )

My favourite quote for this hour anyway from a popcorn show I'm not in:

Rargh! Hi, I'm a dragon.

Edited to reflect the actual line, courtesy of quingawaga.

Tech weekend (noun):

1. The weekend immediately before a theatre production opens to audiences.
2. The period in which the lights and sound cues are dealt with.
3. A time for discovering forgotten props, sounds, effects, and set pieces.
4. The longest weekend you've ever experienced.
5. The point at which it becomes frighteningly apparent how unprepared you are.

Oh. My. InsertDeityHere.

Yesterday, we carried, painted, cut, arranged, and so forth. Easy. Today, we delivered, constructed, duct taped, painted, hung, approved lights, approved sounds, invented props, attempted to varying levels of success to practice scene changes, and then, when we were all exhausted (but at least had everybody present finally) tried to do a real run with set, props, and so forth. Energy is always low at the end of tech weekend, so any show needing high energy suffered. Any show needing concentration suffered. Any show with complicated cues suffered.

I fucked up one line in my first show, but only slightly. Would not be visible to audience at all.

I fucked up two lines in my second show, but only one would be visible to the audience.

My third show... oh, dear. The Keys to the Mystic Halls of Time involved overlapping conversations that include many repeated phrases. For example, "No Thanks" is a cue twice, and the beginning of a line one other time. Frustratingly, characters are asked questions but cannot answer until another couple lines have gone by. Hard to describe. Hard to learn. Man, that one was a disaster. A show that needs energy, concentration, and has complicated cues. Sweet.

My fourth show went fine for me, but as it was the final show of twelve, the energy was just drained away, and we were all happy just to get through it.

I can't wait for tomorrow, when we have energy again. We're going to practice Mystic Halls of... Line? as many times as we can before the dress rehearsal. It's only six minutes, so hopefully a good 4-5 times. It feels like we need 20-25 runs, but the law of diminishing returns will just eat us alive if we try anything so foolish.

In honour of my costume for the final play (Lewd Loves of a Lusty Laundress) I am using my hot boy in kilt icon. I don't wear a kilt, but I am shirtless!

He who acts as his own lawyer has a fool for a client.

Our flight was cancelled. It was a little silly. Departure time arrived and there was still no plane. Then they made an announcement that there would be a delay, but they weren't sure how long yet. Then the Departures screen showed our flight as cancelled. Then 15 minutes later they announced it was cancelled. Mechanical issue, so that's annoying but OK. We managed to get shifted to a Moncton flight, to save two hours of driving, then cancel one car rental and find a different one, but we're still going to be arriving in Alberton, PEI, around 1:00 AM. Ugh.

I resisted the call of the Bell Internet Kiosks for six hours, but finally had to give in. I am soooo bored.

Also, because quingawaga is reading: I've spent tons of time on my lines, and purposely brought no entertainment to distract me from that task. :-)

As mentioned earlier, I got a part in the Popcorn Plays V. As also mentioned earlier, it's an ensemble cast, with multiple roles both on and offstage for each person.

Today was the first read-through, and now I know my roles and have my scripts. The scoop:

• Directing What It's Like. A man and woman discuss gender roles, then exchange outfits (and mannerisms) and discuss again.
  
  
• Stage Managing On Second Thought, or, Love in the 21st Century. Hard to explain. Instead, I give you the cast list:
  1. Carol, and Waitress
  2. Nate, and Man, and Member of Carol's Orgy and Dance Troupe
  3. Katie, and Member of Carol's Orgy and Dance Troupe
  4. God, and Member of Carol's Orgy and Dance Troupe
  
  
• Playing the part of Z in The Weed Dreams. My costars are X and Y. It's a mix of THX 1138, Spartacus, and a smidgen of Will & Grace.
  
  
• Playing the part of Battila The Hunter (or Scott) in The Key to the Mystic Halls of Time. I'm an online role-playing game afficionado who cares more about the game, and my Internet-connected co-warriors, than I do about my wife.
  
  
• Playing the part of The Prince in Lewd Loves of a Lusty Laundress. Unimportant is the plot (fairly tale style rescuing of a damsel, lalalala). Important is the fact that I spend my entire time on stage with no shirt on, and most of it swordfighting a pirate. Fun! Also scary. I am dieting from now until the show. Possibly also starting a smoking or heroin habit, depending on which will make me thin and dashing the fastest. Input on this choice?
  
  
• Playing the part of Harry in Something Went Wrong. By far my favourite play of them all, and not just because I have a big and FUNNY part. But those are true. The play centres around a lovers' quarrel precipitated by a clown I've killed and brought home. The script is so fucking funny! I can't wait. If it gets taped maybe I can digitize for distant fans to watch.

Hooray! Someone took pictures from the One-Acts and posted them, so now you can see me on stage!

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8AauWTVk0at2HB

I hate making plans to not attend the cast party and then wishing I was there. I never used to enjoy cast parties in university -- it was such an alcohol- and pot-fest, which didn't really appeal to me -- but I would attend because I could walk home easily (this was in Fredericton). Less simple here.

With this show, at first I didn't like some of the cast, I didn't like some of the casts of the other plays, and I was not really happy with whatever. Things finally started to click production week, and tonight I feel like I really should be there. But I'm home instead.

I made the mistake of having one drink while there too, so I can't even take the rental car and drive back. At least, not until I sober up. Yes, one drink is enough. Plus I'd be abandoning my still-recovering sick husband.

Phooey.

Tonight, Kitchener-Waterloo Little Theatre held auditions for their January One-Act Play Weekend. The alert among you will recognize this as the same thing I auditioned for last year. This year, it's three one-act plays directed by their authors. I had tried googling them but came up empty, which was weird.

First, I read a monologue from Between the Cracks, playing a young and just barely still idealistic parole officer. Then they had me play a far-too-enthusiastic train company employee, creeping out a passenger. Then they asked me to sing. Ack!

One of the three one-acts is a musical. On the audition form, they asked if I was comfortable singing alone (No), or singing in a group (No. Pause. Thing about it. Decide to stretch my limits. Erase. Yes)

I love the idea of being able to sing. I am incredibly jealous of jdhorner's voice, thespos' singing experience, ... I am devoid of musical skills, at least developed ones. I even put a guitar on our wedding registry, and have fooled around with it maybe twice. Kinda depressing.

I have precisely one singing on stage experience in my life. In high school, a group of friends used to attend a Whose Line Is It Anyway? rip-off show at a bar in Ottawa. I got chatty with the producer/host, and the next week he asked me if I wanted to be in the show!!!!11eleven! I took about three seconds before saying yes. It was great fun, and I love improv. But partway through the show a familiar tune started playing on his electric piano, and I said "Oh shit." I had forgotten that most shows included the Hoe-Down! For the unfamiliar, this is a game where each of the four contestants has to sing, alone, a completely made-up song about a topic they've been given only seconds beforehand. Mine was about cows I seem to recall. I survived, but I have no recollection of anything I sang. My friends might. I hope not.

So during the audition, one of the directors says "You say you're comfortable singing in a group."

Well, I say, I'm willing to give it a shot.

"Are you comfortable singing now?"

In front of six strangers? Sure! Umm...

"You can sing any old thing, doesn't matter, just a couple lines. Even Happy Birthday." No royalty payments to Irving Berlin's estate, I note.

Umm... I couldn't think of anything I was willing to take a risk on except Happy Birthday.

So that's what I did. They stopped me after only two lines, hopefully because they had heard enough, and not because of any sort of pain.

All I can think of is Oh god, what if they give me a singing part?!? leapfish still knows and occasionally sings his lines from Oklahoma, but I've got nothin'. We shall see.

The play: The Bear, by Anton Chekhov. Also sometimes translated as The Boor, interestingly. EDIT: Jan 20-22.

The role: Luka, servant to the mistress of the house.

The entire script, actually, is behind that last link. Or, alternately, this one.

YAY!