Monthly Archives: April 2016

Last night was opening night and all things went better than expected. Our little glitch in the actors for the produciton was taken care of and all flowed perfectly. These kids are incredibly resilient. I was forced to do the one thing I have always hated. I HATE to give curtain speeches. I trully feel I feel that I have NO PLACE in the production once final dress rehearsal is done. If I haven’t done my job by then, then it is never to be done. I do not understand directors who want to hover backstage, lead warm-ups, give last minute tips. My thinking is that once final dress rehearsal is over, a director is nothing more than a patron who will likely get the best seat in the audience for the opening. Read more →

I am a nervous, fluttering hen that has been sitting on an egg – trying to keep it warm and nurtured for the past three months. I have staved off the wolfs and the hyenas. I have protected it from the farmer who wanted to pluck it early, call it scrambled and have breakfast. I have kept the barnyard as clean as I can – while sitting on the egg – no easy task. Read more →

What in the world to do with Senioritis? This last month ( or better yet two months – – and progressively three months) of school are plagued by apathy and lack of focus. This is particularly true with seniors. The auditions for school productions are over. College letters of acceptance have either been sent out or they are not to be received. The next four years have been rather sketched out Grades are no longer a fear or issue – the good will remain good; the poor have long ago given up. Read more →

One very odd – but rather wonderful – tradition at our school is to have a big feed during the final rehearsals of every play. All of the parents and all of the boosters seemingly hoard food away for months, heat it up, and bring out the BIG platters and the BIG crockpots with the BIG spatulas and the BIG coolers. All of this is brought in during the day and sequestered away in a small storage room all waiting for that final school bell. Some dishes have now gotten so complicated that they must sit is this dark room plugged into the wall and bubble away. As one walks in there for a supply or two – one never does know what is “boiling in the pots in the back.” Read more →

For over the last 25 years, I have used the very same scene to work with my sophomore actors. The scene has been the Joe/Maggie scene from Act 2 of The Shadow Box. You may think that 25 years on the same scene lacks creativity on my part – but I have always found that scene to be so perfect for young actors to tackle research, environment, character – and get it all done in just 3 minutes. Read more →