Had a really great run-thru today, just stellar.  It was one of those rehearsals where you feel like you’re seeing it for the first time and it was exciting for me.  We had Alex back after a two rehearsal hiatus and as we were going through notes at the end, I would be like, “Paul, a bit louder on ‘daughter’, I’m losing it on the turn. . . Alex, I wrote ‘music soooo fab’ and underlined it.  Okay, Jameson, the end of your last monologue was prefect, just start it a bit bigger.  Okay, here I wrote, ‘Alex sounds awesome’. . . ” and so on.  I couldn’t get over it.

During rehearsal, noisy things happen.  Someone’s phone goes off, a computer makes a noise, someone drops something, whatever.  At one point today, the Stones exited and went to sit on one of the pretty wooden pews they have in the meeting room and there was this hideous cracking sound.  I turned to them, they all jumped up, chagrined, and moved to another pew.  I couldn’t see anything obviously askew, so I just turned back to the action onstage.  When we had a break, I asked them what had happened.

The mother loving pew split the long way down the seat, pretty much running the length of the whole thing.  This is not the fault of my actors, who did nothing but sit very normally down, obviously this pew was ready to go.  Still, it’s sort of an awkward thing to have to explain to the very good people at the Meeting House.

But besides breaking furniture, a most excellent rehearsal!

Had our first rehearsal in our actual venue yesterday, which was really great.  The room is really lovely and does a lot for morale, especially after all those hours in the basement.  Part of the loveliness of the room is the hardwood floor.  Rebekah and I rolled in early and I noticed a large basket of knitted booties sitting at the door of the room, presumably to keep the floor looking so gorgeous.  Bekah and I cheerfully dug through the basket to select the best pairs before anyone else got there.  I chose a purple pair that went well with my shirt and Rebekah picked a pair that suited her and then we spent a good ten minutes sliding around the floor, doing our best Sasha Cohen impressions.

The rest of the cast and crew showed up and a few were not as amused by the booties and just wore their socks, but most people found some that suited them.  I was a big fan of MaryLynn’s, which has puff balls on the tops.  Katrina wore two pairs for extra warmth, a festive combination of red and green.  Mostly I forgot about our snuggly footwear as we rehearsed, but at one point, Josh teasingly charged at Paul and his attempts to look scary were somewhat lessened by his rainbow colored booties.

Beyond booties, we had a very good run through and it’s great to finally be in our space.

Met with Nathan, our lighting designer after rehearsal to look at our wee little light board (seriously, it’s so adorable, I could probably carry it in my purse.) and get an idea of what we have to work with and what we have is more than I thought we were going to have going into this, which is exciting (run-on sentence, ahoy!). I was literally clapping my hands as Nathan demonstrated the handful of cute specials we have at our disposal.   Now I have to pack it all up again and haul it upstairs.  Boo.

Here we are in the middle of the week.  Fabulous.

Last week, the Stones had two really great Stoneclusive rehearsals.  They have a fair amount of speaking in unison which requires lots and lots of practice to get just right.  So gathered in my super cool basement, Katrina the SM, the Stones and I went to work.  They really made great progress and it’s fun for me to watch them because the more time they spend with each other, the more they start to do things besides their lines together.  This is an unplanned, unintentional thing, a side effect of their shared repetition, I suppose.  But I do get a kick out of seeing them turn their heads at the same time, sigh at the same time, those sorts of things.  They’re doing great work and I had a lot of fun rehearsing with them, even though I expect they occasionally want to sock me in the jaw.  I think I made them repeat one five word line about 25, 30 times.   We have another Stonesculsive rehearsal on Saturday after regular rehearsal is done.

Had some monologue work with Jameson last night, which was good.  It’s been a while since he and I worked one on one.   A danger of my basement is that once the space heater is going and the heated rug is up to full, you don’t realize how warm it’s gotten in there.  It’s downright cozy, but it makes you sleepy and “dull” as Jameson put it, so I kicked him out and we worked on one of his monologues outside on my sidewalk.

We keep rolling along.  Got some more costumes last weekend, so wee to that.  I think we’re going to get a lot of great work done on Saturday, so I’m eager to get there.  Bring on the weekend!

MaryLynn here. Yesterday we had an amazing rehearsal (detailed by Kate below). Alex Heetland, our music director/composer/foley artist du jour attended rehearsal and enhanced every scene with his clever and beautiful accompaniment. So much more of our production has come to life now. I am more and more convinced with each rehearsal that we have a really good thing going here. Kate’s direction and vision for each of our characters and the feel of each scene is really blossoming. Each of us are doing are parts in this production, and it’s coming together beautifully. As an actor, I keep discovering more, and my fellow actor’s performances are just getting better every minute. We bounce off of each other, Kate gives us great ideas, Alex fiddles on the piano, and it’s all just so great. I was there for six hours, and I couldn’t be happier about how I spent my day.

But something sort of funny happened. It’s also sort of tragic. And embarrassing. But bear with me, because it’s all good.

A couple actors are onstage doing a scene, and Kate says, “And then there will be a black out.”

For some reason, this idea hadn’t really processed with me yet. But then it hit me.

The walls of the (beautiful, large, simple) room we’re performing are peppered with many little windows. And two of our performances take place at 2 PM….

Let me have a little fun with this situation for a sec. In a cartoon, this is the moment where the intimidating, ruthless boss is making an important announcement, and the puny, impish assistant has to tap him on the shoulder and nervously whisper in his ear, “Uhh, sir….There are, uh….ahem. There are windows. Windows…in the room…”

And then the meeting is adjourned for a moment so that the ruthless boss can whoop the ass of the impish assistant.

That’s not how it went at all. But it was fun to illustrate.

So, oops. Talk about a collective oversight.

But! Never fear. We’re creative folks, and this problem will be solved. We will have our black outs, and we will likely come up with something even better than our original plan. That’s just how we roll.

Had a monster rehearsal today.  Six hours and there was still more I would have liked to have worked on.  Ah, well.

A good rehearsal, though.  We were sans Katrina and Tammy, our ASM was doing the stage managerly duties, which was great because Tammy is great.  We also had Alex, our sound designer, who rolled in a piano and proceeded to be awesome all over the place.  Alex is insanely talented and I would hate him if I wasn’t so thrilled to have him on board and if he wasn’t such a cool guy.  He even made a pizza run in the middle of rehearsal, which was appreciated by all us hungry children.

So we would be doing a scene and Alex would play something so beautiful and great that he like, wrote over breakfast or something and then wave his hand carelessly as if it were all no big deal.  Meanwhile, the cast, Tammy and I are just standing there, mouths agape.  The piano is my favorite instrument (to listen to.  I had lessons as a little kid, but apparently didn’t like it enough to keep practicing.) and I had to make a real effort to pay attention to the actors sometimes because my brain wanted to just lay down and listen to Alex play all day long.

As I think I’ve mentioned before, music is a big part of the story of this play (What with Orpheus and all) and the cast is all very musically inclined.  What Alex (and Jameson, our Orpheus, as well.) is doing is really bringing things to a whole other level.  Paul was monologuing (note: not a real word), a pleasant little bit about rain and Alex, in his very Alexy way, said, “Mind if I try something here?” I gave him the affirmative and Paul started monologuing again and Alex began playing rain under him and it was just impossibly lovely.  And Paul’s performance (already very solid) was enhanced tenfold.

So it was great having Alex there.  It’s so much fun for me as a director to say, “Hey, Jameson, can you write and play a song for your character to play here?” and Jameson will say, “Yeah.”  and then at the next rehearsal he does.   Or, “Alex, can you make the sound of rain in a bucket?” and Alex will say, “Oh, sure.” and then do it.  There are places for both Jameson and Alex to collaborate a bit and I enjoy watching them talk and play around, especially since I’m not very musically inclined myself.  It’s a little like they’re speaking another language and while I can’t always follow the process, I know the result is going to be good.

We also started using some costume pieces with a couple of the girls today, which, as a sometimes costumer, I love.  Costumes are other performance enhancers (isn’t that what they call steroids?  Or is that energy drinks?) and it’s amazing what the right shoes or skirt can do to help you find your character.  Good work, Rebekah.

Stones only rehearsal on Monday, which I am pumped about.  For some reason, choruses and narrators are always my favorite bits of shows and I haven’t had enough time with our three fabulous Stones.

Right.  That’s enough from me.  Time to bake cookies, I think.

It’s been noted that there hasn’t been an update on the ol’ blog in a while, and since I have a bunch of time off from my day job, you get to hear from me (Katrina) again. Lucky you!

Rehearsal started up again last night after a bit of a Christmas time slow-down. Everyone’s off visiting their families and such, and hopefully spreading the word about Eurydice (hint, hint). Last night we had a small rehearsal in the black box theatre at Concordia University. It’s the first time we were in a space that’s actually comparable in size to our performance space, and it was fantastic. It’s amazing what such a change can make, especially after getting so used to Kate’s awesome basement. Rebekah was pulling costumes downstairs and actually called me at one point because she could hear the actors running around- something they’d never really been able to do before.

Last night Kate worked with MaryLynn and Paul (Eurydice and her father). They have had a lot of rehearsal time to work on their characters’ relationship, and it’s been so interesting to watch the progression and… morphing of their interactions as we’ve had time to  discuss and learn more about the characters’ particular (and clearly unusual) situation. It’s probably the thing we’ve had the most opportunity to work on, and their scenes together are by far my favorite. So, awesome job you two.

Now that we’re almost in the new year, rehearsals are going to pick up considerably and it’s going to be nice having the chance to work with others more closely than we’ve been able to so far. Saturday there is an almost-full-cast rehearsal that I’m sadly not going to be able to attend (although my awesome ASM Tammy will be making her first appearance) and then on Monday we finally have a change to get all the Stones in one place, just the three of them, to mold their awesome and obnoxious Stoney-ness.

It’s always exciting to see a show slowly come together. There’s less than two months until we open. It’s going to go fast. Then I’m sure you’ll get a full recap from one or all of us on this amazing and ridiculous adventure.

What with all these other people blogging, I have to step up my game to make sure my Important Voice Is Being Heard.

I think that, if for whatever insane reason, I became famous somehow,  a real downside would be that my egotistical nature (which is ((mostly)) something I play up for funsies) might be taken seriously and then I’d just look like a dick.  Can I say that on this blog?   If you’re offended, pretend I said “jerk”.  Anyway.

So we’re just rolling right along.  Getting into a little Christmas slow down, which is a great reason to slow down, I think.   I freaking love Christmas and this weekend I’m going to bake festive cookies and watch Elf and NOTHING IS GOING TO STOP ME.

Again, sidetracked.    Sorry.

So in reading the posts of Eric, Katrina, MaryLynn and Rebekah, I’m getting the warm fuzzies.  I’m well aware that I’m the luckiest director this side of the Mississippi -probably the other side as well- in my cast and crew.  Because what happened in the Genesis of this little company is that they all, honest to God, got e-mails that essentially said, “Hey, we’re starting a theatre company for these reasons and will you please be in our first play?”  I mean, the sales pitch wasn’t exactly impressive in terms of the practicals:  No pay!  Rehearse in Kate’s creepy basement!  Weird rehearsal schedule! and a thousand other inconveniences.  In the case of at least one actor, he hadn’t even spoken to me in a couple of years.  And bless their hearts, they all said yes.  They’re all so  immensely talented and they’re willing to take a chance on this little company of ours.   That is a very humbling feeling, gentle reader, in the best possible way.

It helps that we all know each other and like one another.  Many of our talents were honed together under the guidance of the same teachers (often Randy, our Prospero).  I’ve been onstage, backstage or in the classroom with all of these people at one point or another and our mutual respect  and easy friendship is a great asset to us, especially in this first production, where we’re not only trying to get a show off the ground but a whole freaking COMPANY.  Usually a production is a time of bonding and relationship forming and we all started with a leg up in that department.  I think the play and the audience will benefit greatly from our cohesiveness.     Hm.  I think I might have just come up with another exercise for my cast. . .

Well, this is getting long-winded.  On a hard, practical note, we’re moving right along, our Facebook page is live, which is awesome, the site launches soon, and our last rehearsal went very well.  We were out of the basement and on a stage of shorts.  Pictures on Facebook and in earlier entries.  Production meeting tomorrow.   The 25th is upon us.  May all your Christmases be white, dear reader.

I went to rehearsal on Tuesday and took some photos – all of them can be seen on the company’s Facebook page!

Well hello there.

Time to add another blogger to the list. Katrina here, stage manager extraordinaire.

When Kate approached me about SMing Eurydice (which I knew she was going to because, I mean, come on), I was stoked. I worked with everyone involved while we were in college and I’ve missed not only creating theatre with them, but just seeing them in general. I love what MaryLynn posted about community and the relationships developed or evolved through the process of creating theatre.

Since college I’ve worked on productions with a couple local theatre companies. The experiences were great… but I’ve also turned down several opportunities because of what I’d learned about myself thanks to the other shows.

Theatre is demanding. Obviously. It takes time and effort on everyone’s part and that work is actually part of what makes the process so great. But I don’t think it should also be inconvenient. While we all love what we’re doing, we have lives outside of Kate’s basement (or whatever space we’re working in). We have jobs and families and obligations. I stopped accepting offers from local companies because their schedules and demands were always so inconvenient that I’d end up regretting taking the job and resenting the production and just wanting every rehearsal and performance to be over so I could get back to the rest of my life. That’s not how it should be. Shame on me for feeling this way, but it’s just how I am I guess.

Kate, bless her, actually recognizes the world outside the production because lo! she is a part of said world. She worked with the team’s lives and schedules to create a rehearsal calendar that works. Rehearsals don’t happen six nights a week, and they don’t end at 11:00 and night. Thank God.

Plus everything – rehearsals and performances – take place in St. Paul. I take the bus (when I can’t bum rides. Thanks for the rides, guys!) and that makes my life about a hundred times easier.

Okay, that was a very long winded way to say how excited I am to be working with this company. I may not SM for anyone else ever again, but if Prospero needs me, I’ll be there.

Unless I can’t.

Hi, there. Rebekah here.

So here’s yet another style for your reading enjoyment…my inaugural blog entry. That’s right folks, there are four of us on this here interweb journal! Sooo… I’m just going to dig right in, and try to put forth my perspective on this whole thing a bit at a time.

Ever notice that sometimes even the things you love can be kinda hard? Since I graduated (May of last year), I haven’t done much acting to speak of, aside from a church project or two, helping out. I’ve still done some costuming and directing (which I forgot how much I really love), but it’s been a while since I’ve really acted (you know, had more than four lines). And these lines have to be exactly perfect, because I’m saying them with two other people. Ah, the joys of being in a chorus. Which, don’t get me wrong, I have no problem with. And right now I prefer a supporting role, since my acting skills are feeling a little rusty.

So I was feeling rather crappy before rehearsal last night, because, a. it’s freaking cold outside and people still don’t know how to drive in snow; b. we were supposed to be off book and I was not ready for that because I’ve only had one rehearsal (and we were sans one stone at that one); c. I hate memorizing lines; d. all of the above. I picked up Kate from work and we headed to our latest rehearsal site. We were nearly an hour early, but it wasn’t enough time to warrant a trip home, so we settled in for a nice long wait. And our wonderful director (though sometimes she may like you to think she’s above the peasants of the world, namely, everyone else) offered to run lines with me, “the lowly actor.” And you know, it’s kind of amazing how far a little help goes. A long way, let me tell you. A loong way. And I’ll admit I started feeling better about this whole thing. I stopped thinking, What have I gotten myself into?I shoulda just stayed behind the scenes! And started thinking more along the lines of, I can sorta do this, I think. Yes, I probably won’t bring the ship down.

So when the time came, we headed over to the rehearsal space. I was feeling much better, ate a little dinner, and was happy to see the rest of the cast coming in. And oh, my gosh. Not to gush too much (gush, gush, gush), but I pretty much love working with Kate and the rest of the cast. I felt like we got so much accomplished, and things are starting to meld. Certainly not ready to perform yet (let’s not run the actor’s nightmare, please), but definitely clicking and on-track. And I remember now why I love this so much. With all the little bits and pieces that it takes for a show to come together and theatre to be theatre, it’s a beautiful process to witness, and to be a part of it is absolutely priceless.

At the end of rehearsal, Kate sat us all down onstage, pointing out that it was the first time she’s had the full cast together (aw, one big happy family!), and asked us all to tell a story about our dads. A little bonding moment for us all. Cool, right? How many directors do you know that do that? I’m so thankful for our theatre family. Not to get too sappy, or anything, but that’s really what we are, and for me, that’s probably the best part of the experience.

On a different note, I’m the one, right now at least, who’s in charge of business stuff. And I say “stuff” because I really know very little about what I’m talkin about with this. BUT, yesterday I did get our FEIN (Federal Employer Identification Number), which I didn’t even know we needed, until I found out you have to have it to register for a tax ID number, which I also got. And now that we have our tax ID, we’re set up for…wait for it…ticket sales!!! Go, Eric, go!

SHAMELESS PLUG: That said, if anyone knows what the heck they’re doing when it comes to filing taxes (and other business “stuff”) and feels led to donate their time and expertise, we would certainly not turn them down! In fact, we’d pretty much love you for life. Anyone?… Anyone?… Bueller?

Okay, so there you have it. My first posting. Aren’t you proud? (Hi, Mom.)

I don’t know what MaryLynn was talking about when she said she was the long-winded one…I think I may give her a run for her money. So, Eric. I’m on here. Now this is your new favorite blog.