You might remember that I lovingly refer to January-March as “The Dark Ages”. This year, The Dark Ages have really been flying by because I’ve been so extremely busy. Up until two days ago, I was working on four shows simultaneously (in addition to school!); I was the LX/followspot op for one show, stage manager for one, stage crew for another and in rehearsal as crew for yet another show. Two of those shows closed in the past two days and the third goes into tech rehearsals tonight.
Damn, I’m exhausted.
I can totally handle working into the night (usually 7 – 11 PM for evening performances, although rehearsals are during the day), but what I don’t love so much is having to be awake at 6 AM for school. My love and passion for my art are keeping me going, though, and I only have to deal with this schedule for five more months (Class of 2010!).
Scheduling craziness aside, I really do love what I’m doing and I’m working with some truly amazing people. Oh, and I finally have some money in my pocket (a nice perk). Oh, and did I mention that I’m in talks to stage manage a show over the summer? I have tons of work in the pipeline, which is definitely a good feeling.
As long as I have my work to keep me busy, the Dark Ages won’t be so bad this year.
The next two weeks are going to be so busy.
I’m (finally) taking my Driver’s Ed. course in the mornings from 8:45 – 12:00. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not mentally taxing (the teacher even said that you only need 20% of your brain to pass…), but it’s awfully early compared to when I’ve been waking up this summer and three hours is a pretty long time to just sit there.
Then, I have rehearsals from 7 PM – 11 PM. Granted, I have a 6-hour gap (allowing for travel time, etc.) between Driver’s Ed. and rehearsal, but it’s not a lot of time when you consider that I usually take a nap during that time and I have to work on my French and this and that and blah blah blah. When will I be able to loaf around and do nothing?!
And the worst part is that I only have seven hours to sleep between rehearsal and Driver’s Ed. the next morning (I doubt I’ll be able to come home from rehearsal and go straight to bed and I have to be up at 7 AM the next morning). I need my sleep!
Of course, it will all work out eventually. And I do enjoy being busy, so it’s really not that bad. Driver’s Ed. is only this week and next week and we go into tech next week for my show, so come next Saturday morning I’ll probably be bored out of my mind (until our evening shows, of course)!
Last night, I had my moment of validity, a.k.a. my “So Much Better” moment (if we can speak in Legally Blonde terminology)! I had been totally nervous and scared of messing up majorly for the show that I’m working on right now, but evidently I am doing a great job and not messing up majorly and burning the show down to the ground! I love moments like this (some people wait a lifetime! was that a bad music joke?). :]
I went out to lunch with Cara today and we had the best time. It was awesome for us to catch up on what was going on with each other and to spill the beans on some stuff that we had been holding in for way too long. I feel so much better about a ton of stuff now. We literally sat at Panera for four hours and just dished it to eachother and it was fantastic.
I returned to the stage today after a yearlong hiatus of production work and I realized that I miss performing so much! Here I am postshow, still all snazzy and covered in stage makeup.
I have everything in here that I need to run a show. Prompt book, pens/pencils/Sharpies/paper/other office supplies, batteries, electrical and duct tape, Advil, and, of course, iced tea packets.
We took a different picture but the angle made my thighs look big.
I haven’t been in the theatre for a week. I’m going into creative withdrawal.
