My Boys

I've been talking non-stop about The History Boys since I started the project. It's now passed, a sand castle washed away by the water, but the memories stay with me. So, for those interested here are some pics plus a video montage (just like in the Oscars!) of the show so you get to see the super cool set among other things. I would love to say I'll never bring it up again but that's impossible!

C'mon, pretty good looking cast you have to admit!

Magnificently Unprepared

There is a quote from The History Boys that I often think about. Truth be told, there are many quotes from The History Boys that I think about, I do so like that play.

Anyway, there's a line that goes:

Magnificently unprepared for the long littleness of life.

It comes from a short poem by Frances Darwin Cornford (a granddaughter of Charles Darwin), about Rupert Brooke, one of the most preeminent English war poets of World War One. The entire poem reads:

A young Apollo, golden-haired,

Stands dreaming on the verge of strife,

Magnificently unprepared

for the long littleness of life.

There is something so freeing in those last two lines. No one ever tells a young person,"Yeah, you'll have some great times but sometimes you'll be bored or overworked or overworked and bored and won't be able to see the end." Or, have you ever heard a commencement speaker say,"You'll do great things graduates, take the road less traveled, etc. And, oh yeah, there will be bills to pay and diapers to change, and just when you think you're on top of the world, your spouse is going to call and wonder why you didn't pick up milk."

Now, I know that sounds just awful but it's true. Life isn't one long, glorious climb to the top. In reality, there are bills to pay and work to do and milk to buy. And for some reason, having someone put that sentiment into a work of art just makes it seem easier to handle. As if it's okay to acknowledge the monotony; or even that there is company in the boredom.

I guess I can sum it up best with yet another quote from The History Boys:

The best moments in reading (and I would add art/theater to this) are when
you come across something -- a thought, a feeling, a way of looking at
things -- which you had thought special and particular to you. Now here it
is, set down by someone else, a person you have never met, someone even who
is long dead. And it is as if a hand has come out and taken yours.

Games People Play

I've been having way too much fun. Seriously. The cast of The History Boys are a blast to hang out with. We have an entire week of fun and games!

On Saturdays, we have Dollar Day. Each cast or crew member writes his or her name on a dollar bill. All the dollar bills go into a pot. At intermission, we draw one dollar bill out of the pot and the person whose name is on the bill gets the entire pot. I won last week, almost $20.

On Wednesdays, we go to Sugar Mom's, a bar just around the corner from the Arden, which has 50 cent perogies and $1.50 PBR (Pabst Blue Ribbon) tall boys. Of course, I'm too old to drink crap beer and I have to drive so if I'm only going drink one or two beers, it's going to be good beer. Of course, $1.50 PBRs works well for young, unsophisticated taste buds.

On Thursdays, we have wine night. Everyone or most cast members brings in a bottle of wine and we open them in the green room after the show. Sometimes someone will bring cheese or cookies or whatever. We all just love hanging out with each other and it's cozy and we chat and discuss wine and whatever else.

I'm going to be soooooo bored when this show is over.

Anyway, out and about this past week, I learned about a new way to play 20 questions. I love those trivia question games that can be played anywhere a group of people are together. Here's the new version I learned, plus another game that I like to play. I'm hoping some people out there in the "sphere" will contribute their favorite game. I'm always looking for new forms of entertainment!

Reverse 20 Questions: One person thinks of a celebrity and gives only the first letter of the last name. In order for other people to ask a question about the celebrity, they must first stump the person with the celebrity with another celebrity whose last name begins with the same letter.
Here's an example: I choose David Bowie so I say my person's last name begins with B. Matt then asks me: Was your person involved in the baseball steroid scandal?
If I know who is talking about, I'd say: No I'm not Barry Bonds. And if I don't know then Matt can ask me a yes or no question about my person: Is it a man? Is he a singer? etc. Then the next person tries to stump me with another celebrity whose last name begins with B. 1980's TV stars work really well here. It keeps going until someone guesses David Bowie.

M_O_V_I_E_S Game: This is for the movie lover. I name a film. The next person has to name an actor in the film. The next person has to name a different movie that actor was in. The next names a different actor in that film. So I say Risky Business. Matt says: Tom Cruise. Jane says: Days of Thunder. Carol says: Nicole Kidman.

If someone can't name a movie or actor, he or she gets an "M." It keeps going until someone gets all the letters of MOVIES and thus is out. It's like HORSE in that way. There are no repeats allowed in a round.

Okay, your turn, what games do you people play?

Here's Looking at You!

Some of The History Boys (I like to call them my boys but not to their face) compiled a video blog post for The Arden Theatre blog.

Anyway, I have trouble on my computer viewing videos embedded in blogs. I have to follow a link or look it up on YouTube. For some reason the embedded videos do not show up. So I'm going to post the link to the Arden blog in the hopes that your computer doesn't have the issues that mine does. If it does, perhaps we could start a support group.

The video post was made on opening day for The History Boys after a looooong tech process. The reason for the disclamer is that they did interview me and it did end up on the blog post. So now, you can see what I look like (I'm not actually a stick figure with a permanent headset and martini). I usually do not like having my picture taken or anything of that sort (one of the many reasons I like stage managing) but the boys convinced me that I don't look that bad. Just remember it was after a loooong tech process.

Also, it'll give you a glance backstage at the Arden and a look at some of my boys. Here's the link:
http://www.ardentheatre.org/blog/

For those gluttons out there, here is a link to some video of the last show that I worked on, The Seafarer. One of the actors, Brian Russell who played Richard, is back at the Arden working on Rabbit Hole which opens in late October in the upstairs theater. He's one of my favorite actors. And since I did write a bit about Seafarer, I thought it might be fun to show some of it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zosv49lwFJE

The History Boys in Bizarro Universe

You know how in comic books super heroes enter a bizarro universe where there is a parallel Superman or Spiderman. I actually don't read comic books so I'm not sure what really happens in Bizarro World.

But we here, backstage at the Arden dub the understudy run, the Bizarro Run. The Arden has a policy of understudying all the parts for all the productions. The understudies attend our rehearsals when they can but also rehearse with the Assistant Director. After we open the show, the understudies perform the play on the actual set using the actual props, lighting, sound, etc. The artistic department at the Arden then watches the run to ensure that the understudies know the part well enough to go on in a pinch.

These understudies are culled, for the most part, from the non-professional actors in the city. Every once in a while a professional actor in the production will understudy another role in the same production. In The History Boys, the actor playing Crowther (Peterson Townsend) is also understudying Irwin (if you know the play).

It is such a blast watching the exact same production with different actors. The understudies are supposed to imitate (for lack of a better word) the performance of the actual actor but one can't bringing a bit of him or herself to the role. I'm actually in the middle of the understudy run right now as I write this. Some of these actors are so good; it's a joy to watch them. I do feel a bit bad for Peterson though; he's not only performing the role of Irwin but because one actor is understudying two of the boys, he also has to do all the transitions as well. He's doing a great job though. Tonight, however, he has to come back and perform the role of Crowther.

So do the rest of us on the crew of course. It's always fun though, to visit bizarro world.

I'm Back!

Finally, a few minutes to jot down a post. It's my day off and the kids are at school. Instead of rushing around trying to get everything done, I'm picking one or two things to do and then relaxing - haven't had too much of that lately. I'm not good at being busy; I am fabulous, however, at doing nothing.

We finally opened The History Boys last Wednesday. Tech was difficult for this show because it's so big. We have 22 transitions that all have music set to them. For the week prior to opening, we rehearsed all day and then ran the show at night. It's not a short show so it made for a very long day. Here's the Assistant Director's take on tech, as told in haiku.

The day after opening, my daughter filmed a television commercial; her first one. She's been interested in acting and modeling so we signed up with an agency. I'm not sure how far she'll go with it. Anyway, the agency had called me a week earlier to say that this commercial was a possibility. They e mailed me the information but sent it to the wrong e mail address so I never got it. The agency never bothered to call me to see if I received it. So the morning after opening, I received an irate phone call from the production company asking where my daughter was. I had gone back to bed because I was up late the night before celebrating opening. I threw some clothes on, took my daughter out of school and drove off to spend the day at the commercial shoot. My daughter loved it. I was just glad that I hadn't had too much to drink the night before. Being tired is one thing. Being tired and hungover just sucks!

Needless to say I gave the agency a piece of my mind. I also spoke with the production company after and they assured me they blamed the agency as well. It was just one more thing to deal with.

On Friday, I took the train into Philly to protest the Arts Tax. Can you believe the state government wanted impose a tax on all performing arts and cultural institutions in order to balance the budget? Not chewing tobacco or cigars but the performing arts! Seriously, what did the performing arts ever do to the government? Cigars ruin your health so let's tax something that actually enriches your life. A bunch of theaters organized a protest and I felt I had to go. I really wanted to stay home and veg but what if everyone did that? I've heard that it is almost guaranteed not to pass the state senate which is good news.

Then, over the weekend we had 5 shows (1 on Friday and 2 each on Saturday and Sunday). I am wiped. Tonight is the Barrymore Awards which is the local Award ceremony for Philadelphia Theaters. I had thought about going but I'm glad I'm not. It'll be nice to see my family for once. After reading Brian Miller's post about couples splitting because they are leading separate lives, I'm doubly glad I'm not going.

Tomorrow, is the understudy approval run for The History Boys. The understudies perform the play on the set with lights and video and props. It allows the Arden to make sure that the understudies are capable enough to go on if an actor calls out. It's always fun to see the same play performed by different actors. Of course, at the moment I'm just feeling that it's one more thing I have to do.

There's a great line in the play: History, it's just one fucking thing after another. Sometimes, my life feels like that.

Pop History

So blogging has gone to the bottom of the list for me lately. In my precious spare time, I've had a choice between blogging and napping; I've chosen napping. It's all good, I'm sure I'll get back in the swing after the show opens.

At least, I hope so. The show currently runs 3 hours. The good news: it does not feel like 3 hours at all; it's so engaging. The bad news: It runs 3 hours.

This past week, we added some sound in for the transitions between scenes. The director, Terry Nolen (who incidentally is also the Artistic Director for The Arden), loves using the cast as scene changers. I have to agree, it makes everything run so smoothly and offers the audience continuity by allowing them to see the same people on the stage all the time. There is also the chance to work the scene change into the action of the show as well.

Anyway, our sound designer (who will also be providing some video for the show) is Jorge Cousineau. This guy is so bloody awesome! I can't think of a better way to describe him. The assistant Production Manager calls him "a mad genius." That fits as well.

He grew up in East Germany and came of age in the 1980's, around the time The History Boys takes place. He told us how he would rig antennae and recording devices up in order to get the radio stations coming out of West Germany and the rest of Europe. He'd record them on a tape player (old school) and then he and his friends would share what they had. He said that sometimes he'd have to stand "just so" in order to get the station he wanted.

So you can see why he became a sound designer. He also composes music; there's no end to his genius.

Well, the actors in our play are quite young since they have to play teenage boys. They didn't come of age in the 1980's. So Jorge made them all a CD of 1980's music so they could listen to what English lads were listening to at that time. I, of course as stage manager, had to have a copy and I love it! I actually recognize some of the songs which made me happy because the songs on the CD are all what teens listened to in Europe.

Jorge and I had a quick conversation about music of the 80's. I said I listened to: David Bowie (Let's Dance anyone?), Talking Heads (Stop Making Sense), U2 (I did hear them first in France on a school trip in 1984), and, hmmm, well, I can't think of the rest. Jorge just said, "Yup, American music."

As I write this, I'm listening to the CD and loving the trip down memory lane and learning about the music I missed on this side of the pond. What did you listen to in the 80's?

Let's Here it for the Boys!

We've been in rehearsals for two weeks now for The History Boys. I can't wait for school to start tomorrow! Once those kids get on the bus, I'll have an hour to myself before rehearsals. It's hard to be "on" all the time.

Although, I have to say, it's been easier with this show than with most. A few weeks ago, I blogged about some of my worries going into rehearsal. My biggest fear: would I get along with the cast?

And the answer is a resounding YES! This cast is amazing! I love them all! The boys, and yeah they are 21-30, but still they are boys, are so polite and nice and funny. And not to leave anyone out, there are 3 older actors (older than 30) in the show, and they are just as great. Take tonight for example, we did a run thru of Act One, and I took line notes (I jotted down when an actor missed a line or changed a word). When I approached each actor to let them know his mistake, each one said, "Oh great I'm so glad you took notes." Many times, an actor gets annoyed with me for doing this. Yeah, you messed up the line and it's my fault?

And, everyone is so into the play, really in it. There are--so far--17 transitions in the show during which the boys come on stage and re-configure the desks and tables into different rooms such as the classroom, the staff room, etc. And these boys learned these transitions so quickly and remember them. Of course, it could be their youth and the fact they don't have children on which blow all their brain cells. But still it's impressive.

Can you tell I'm really excited to work with this cast? So in honor of the boys, here's a link to, of course, Let's Hear it for the Boy

I cannot figure out how to embed a video into my blog. Also, I'm going to get around to everyone's blog this week, just as soon as those kids get on that bus!