There are good days and bad days to this job. I like to focus on the good days because they truly out weigh the bad. Last week was one of our rougher weeks to get through. The kids were unfocused and refused to listen. However, once the show began, they did the best they could and were happy they put on a show in a week. It was frustrating during the week to get them to focus every 5 minutes and to have an accompanist that couldn't read music. We did the show almost completely in a cappella. We were able to push through, though. So to wrap up on the past week, the following are five things that happened that were positive about the week:
1.) Everyone remembered the blocking and lines (for the most part).
2.) We had a couple parents approach us and thank us for what we did during the week.
3.) I got to play the Queen...it was SO MUCH FUN.
4.) We had awesome help tearing down the set on Saturday.
5.) We only had one show that week!
And so we traveled through Wisconsin on Sunday and came to residency which happens to be only 30 minutes away from Green Bay! I'm not a huge football fan, but seeing an actual NFL stadium was super cool! Once Monday hit, we started with our very last auditions of the summer. These kids were vets of Missoula and were very excited to see us pull up. Once auditions started, all of the kids were not afraid to be big and expressive. They took risks and made developed characters out of one line. I was so happy. Plus, we were able to cast every single one! And again, we began rehearsals. This group is focused and already starting to learn lines. It's such a relief to not worry about kids calling for a line for every line they have. Not to mention, these kids have great imaginations and the characters are their own. I'm very grateful for this week to be our last week. It's a great end to an amazing summer.
We start our journey back to Montana on Sunday. ROAD TRIP! We get to go through North Dakota, including Fargo! One of my favorite parts of this job is seeing the United States. It puts life in perspective.
Anyway, I will post later about the last week. It's looking spectacular already.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Brighter Moments
I have decided I will end up living in Minnesota. It's a beautiful state and literally everyone you meet in Minnesota is friendly! Let me explain: The past week in Benson has been absolutely fantastic.
For starters, we met our contact, Chelsea, at the Burger King in the middle of town. She then led us to our homestays. This week Melody and I stayed in two different places. When I heard that, I was nervous. I liked being close to her so we could work on the show if problems came up and its a comfort to have my friend close to me in a stranger's home. However, I could not have asked for a better hostess. I stayed with the Tengwall's. Pat greeted us at the door and from then on, life was grand. Melody, Pat, Chelsea, Jackie, and I sat and talked about Missoula, Benson, and Pat's family for a good hour. It was spectacular. Pat was the only one home at the moment, as her husband and son were on a fishing trip. So for the majority of the week is Pat and myself. She was so incredibly sweet. (And her cooking was AMAZING! I miss home made meals. This family made sure Melody and I always had something to eat.)
Not to mention, the cast was amazing as well. Benson usually has 50 kids show up for their auditions. Melody and I were so excited that we didn't have to cut anyone. It's the worst part of my job when we have too many kids arrive. So, in the audition, it came time for them to count off so that we could see how many came. The last auditionee shouted, "65!" My heart sank... 65? NO! Especially when all of them were so excited to be a part of the show. Somehow, we cast the show with 55 and looked on to the rest of rehearsals. The rehearsals were awesome. These kids brought their personalities into the show and their ideas were hysterical. The kids were doing so well we were able to do a fun run of the show. This means that we give the kids a specific personality to give their character. For example, Snow White as a Pageant Queen, the Queen as a Valley Girl, the forest animals as cheerleaders. A fun run gets the kids to enjoy what they are doing instead of stressing out over their lines. I wish we had video of it. They were so creative.
Some of our cast members were family friends with the Zniewski's, the family Melody stayed with. The Zniewski's had a cookout with all of them. The mother asked us where we were going next and we explained that were going to Wisconsin which was going to take us right through Minneapolis and that we both wanted to go to Mall of America. She told us she had 10 brothers and sisters that lived in the Twin Cities. She immediately called one of them up and asked if we could stay with one of them on Saturday night, so that we could spend the whole day Sunday at the mall!! I still can't get over how generous all of the people in Minnesota are!! SERIOUSLY!!!
And sadly, on Saturday, after the show, we left Benson, MN. Not an easy goodbye. We loved it there. We hit up Mall of America (ASTOUNDING) and drove off to Wisconsin again.
This week has been a little rough. For starters, there is no focus. During the auditions we took, at least 30 minutes out of audition time to stress the importance of being SILENT. I think we have found out ways during this week to keep them silent but it has been a struggle. Also, we only had 30 kids show to these auditions and most of them are 10. This means that we had to cut the black forest creatures and I have to play the Queen this week. The black forest creatures are essential in set changes... Melody and I are still working on that... It is fun to play the Queen, though. I love playing a villian...
Wisconsin has proven to be a challenge but one thing today made it all worthwhile. I worked with the bats today. The bats are the youngest cast members (5 and 6 year olds). I taught them the bat song in the morning. During the bat song, a little boy plays Dracula. We only had one little boy, Ricky. So I pointed to him and had him do the motions for it. At one point in the song, he says "That's right, the one and only!" Ricky was so excited and when he spoke, I couldn't understand a word. It was like he had a lisp mixed with slurred words. I kept it positive. I said, "That's great! Now try to say it louder and slower." After a couple of times of listen and repeat, he got it!! It was amazing. Later that day, Melody and I were doing laundry and Ricky and his mom came into the laundromat. He told his mom that we were his directors. We introduced ourselves and said we loved working with Ricky. I told her that Ricky had his very own line too. The look of surprise and joy on her face was amazing. She thanked us for coming here and said she couldn't wait to see the show. That moment made this whole week a little lighter. It's been tough trying to look at the positive side of life recently, but moments like that one seem to brighten the whole week.
I can't believe this adventure ends soon. We have one more week and then we go back home. It's been an amazing summer. I'll update later on the rest of the week. Thanks for reading!
For starters, we met our contact, Chelsea, at the Burger King in the middle of town. She then led us to our homestays. This week Melody and I stayed in two different places. When I heard that, I was nervous. I liked being close to her so we could work on the show if problems came up and its a comfort to have my friend close to me in a stranger's home. However, I could not have asked for a better hostess. I stayed with the Tengwall's. Pat greeted us at the door and from then on, life was grand. Melody, Pat, Chelsea, Jackie, and I sat and talked about Missoula, Benson, and Pat's family for a good hour. It was spectacular. Pat was the only one home at the moment, as her husband and son were on a fishing trip. So for the majority of the week is Pat and myself. She was so incredibly sweet. (And her cooking was AMAZING! I miss home made meals. This family made sure Melody and I always had something to eat.)
Not to mention, the cast was amazing as well. Benson usually has 50 kids show up for their auditions. Melody and I were so excited that we didn't have to cut anyone. It's the worst part of my job when we have too many kids arrive. So, in the audition, it came time for them to count off so that we could see how many came. The last auditionee shouted, "65!" My heart sank... 65? NO! Especially when all of them were so excited to be a part of the show. Somehow, we cast the show with 55 and looked on to the rest of rehearsals. The rehearsals were awesome. These kids brought their personalities into the show and their ideas were hysterical. The kids were doing so well we were able to do a fun run of the show. This means that we give the kids a specific personality to give their character. For example, Snow White as a Pageant Queen, the Queen as a Valley Girl, the forest animals as cheerleaders. A fun run gets the kids to enjoy what they are doing instead of stressing out over their lines. I wish we had video of it. They were so creative.
Some of our cast members were family friends with the Zniewski's, the family Melody stayed with. The Zniewski's had a cookout with all of them. The mother asked us where we were going next and we explained that were going to Wisconsin which was going to take us right through Minneapolis and that we both wanted to go to Mall of America. She told us she had 10 brothers and sisters that lived in the Twin Cities. She immediately called one of them up and asked if we could stay with one of them on Saturday night, so that we could spend the whole day Sunday at the mall!! I still can't get over how generous all of the people in Minnesota are!! SERIOUSLY!!!
And sadly, on Saturday, after the show, we left Benson, MN. Not an easy goodbye. We loved it there. We hit up Mall of America (ASTOUNDING) and drove off to Wisconsin again.
This week has been a little rough. For starters, there is no focus. During the auditions we took, at least 30 minutes out of audition time to stress the importance of being SILENT. I think we have found out ways during this week to keep them silent but it has been a struggle. Also, we only had 30 kids show to these auditions and most of them are 10. This means that we had to cut the black forest creatures and I have to play the Queen this week. The black forest creatures are essential in set changes... Melody and I are still working on that... It is fun to play the Queen, though. I love playing a villian...
Wisconsin has proven to be a challenge but one thing today made it all worthwhile. I worked with the bats today. The bats are the youngest cast members (5 and 6 year olds). I taught them the bat song in the morning. During the bat song, a little boy plays Dracula. We only had one little boy, Ricky. So I pointed to him and had him do the motions for it. At one point in the song, he says "That's right, the one and only!" Ricky was so excited and when he spoke, I couldn't understand a word. It was like he had a lisp mixed with slurred words. I kept it positive. I said, "That's great! Now try to say it louder and slower." After a couple of times of listen and repeat, he got it!! It was amazing. Later that day, Melody and I were doing laundry and Ricky and his mom came into the laundromat. He told his mom that we were his directors. We introduced ourselves and said we loved working with Ricky. I told her that Ricky had his very own line too. The look of surprise and joy on her face was amazing. She thanked us for coming here and said she couldn't wait to see the show. That moment made this whole week a little lighter. It's been tough trying to look at the positive side of life recently, but moments like that one seem to brighten the whole week.
I can't believe this adventure ends soon. We have one more week and then we go back home. It's been an amazing summer. I'll update later on the rest of the week. Thanks for reading!
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Special Talents: Problem Solving Skills
What should Melody and I put on our acting resumes? PROFESSIONAL PROBLEM SOLVERS
The week in Iowa went well. The kids were good and all of the helpers were amazing. This does not mean, however, that we went without a few glitches. (Which is what makes this job fun and keeps us on our toes). For instance, on show day we call the kids 4 hours before the show so they can get into costume, have a dress rehearsal, put on make-up, and then perform the show. This week we had a Friday and Saturday show. On our Friday night show, Melody was putting on make-up with the help of some of our older cast members and I was keeping the other kids occupied with some theatre games. I glanced over to where Melody was doing make-up and at that very second, the girl who played the mirror that week collapsed. Melody and the older cast members rushed to her aid while I tried to rally all of the others into a big group and get them in lines for the show.
All I could think was, "We have to get her water and help and I need to get these other kids out of here....Am I going to play the mirror this week???"As I was gathering everyone together, I was also trying to go over the lines in my head. Thank goodness, however, she quickly recovered. A case of nerves mixed with extreme heat can do some real harm! She drank lots of water and got on stage. I was so proud of her! She did a wonderful job both Friday and Saturday.
So our week in Iowa was very good. The kids performed very well and the audience was super. It was the best audience we have had so far. They were so responsive to the jokes and clapped after every scene. Watching the kids come back stage with smiles as big as the sky is probably my favorite part of this particular week. We also stayed at a beautiful bed and breakfast called "The Inn of the Six-Toed Cat". Kay Boam was our wonderful hostess for the week. Let me tell you, this woman can cook the most wonderful breakfasts you will ever eat! We loved to talk and laugh with her. Saying good bye to Kay was the hardest thing to do this week.
So now we head to Benson, Minnesota. We drove mainly through the country. Nothing but fields of corn and beans. Here is where we ran into our next big problem. Picture this: You are cruising down this country highway and you see a huge sign appear out of nowhere saying BRIDGE CLOSED... You look around... Maybe you can go around. So you get out of your beautiful F150 and start searching for ways to go around the bridge... Then you see there is no bridge... Just a gaping hole that has remnants of what once could have been a bridge but now look like Roman ruins. Now what do you do? Do you go to the scary looking farmhouse a few feet away? Do you get back in the truck and turn around hoping the GPS can find a detour? Or do you take that ominous dirt road that looks like the set of Strangers? TAKE THE DIRT ROAD, OF COURSE. So that's what we did. We ended up driving in the middle of the corn field... I swore I thought someone was going to jump out of the corn at us with a chainsaw or some other such murder weapon. But thankfully, nothing like that happened, and we found a way around the river and the "closed bridge" and still made it in time to Benson to meet our contact.
So now we are in lovely central Minnesota. The people we are staying with are super sweet. This week, Melody and I are staying in two separate homestays. It's different, but both sets of hosts are wonderful people. We are so excited to start working here. I'm already in love with this town. Wish us luck! Our auditions are tomorrow!!!
The week in Iowa went well. The kids were good and all of the helpers were amazing. This does not mean, however, that we went without a few glitches. (Which is what makes this job fun and keeps us on our toes). For instance, on show day we call the kids 4 hours before the show so they can get into costume, have a dress rehearsal, put on make-up, and then perform the show. This week we had a Friday and Saturday show. On our Friday night show, Melody was putting on make-up with the help of some of our older cast members and I was keeping the other kids occupied with some theatre games. I glanced over to where Melody was doing make-up and at that very second, the girl who played the mirror that week collapsed. Melody and the older cast members rushed to her aid while I tried to rally all of the others into a big group and get them in lines for the show.
All I could think was, "We have to get her water and help and I need to get these other kids out of here....Am I going to play the mirror this week???"As I was gathering everyone together, I was also trying to go over the lines in my head. Thank goodness, however, she quickly recovered. A case of nerves mixed with extreme heat can do some real harm! She drank lots of water and got on stage. I was so proud of her! She did a wonderful job both Friday and Saturday.
So our week in Iowa was very good. The kids performed very well and the audience was super. It was the best audience we have had so far. They were so responsive to the jokes and clapped after every scene. Watching the kids come back stage with smiles as big as the sky is probably my favorite part of this particular week. We also stayed at a beautiful bed and breakfast called "The Inn of the Six-Toed Cat". Kay Boam was our wonderful hostess for the week. Let me tell you, this woman can cook the most wonderful breakfasts you will ever eat! We loved to talk and laugh with her. Saying good bye to Kay was the hardest thing to do this week.
So now we head to Benson, Minnesota. We drove mainly through the country. Nothing but fields of corn and beans. Here is where we ran into our next big problem. Picture this: You are cruising down this country highway and you see a huge sign appear out of nowhere saying BRIDGE CLOSED... You look around... Maybe you can go around. So you get out of your beautiful F150 and start searching for ways to go around the bridge... Then you see there is no bridge... Just a gaping hole that has remnants of what once could have been a bridge but now look like Roman ruins. Now what do you do? Do you go to the scary looking farmhouse a few feet away? Do you get back in the truck and turn around hoping the GPS can find a detour? Or do you take that ominous dirt road that looks like the set of Strangers? TAKE THE DIRT ROAD, OF COURSE. So that's what we did. We ended up driving in the middle of the corn field... I swore I thought someone was going to jump out of the corn at us with a chainsaw or some other such murder weapon. But thankfully, nothing like that happened, and we found a way around the river and the "closed bridge" and still made it in time to Benson to meet our contact.
So now we are in lovely central Minnesota. The people we are staying with are super sweet. This week, Melody and I are staying in two separate homestays. It's different, but both sets of hosts are wonderful people. We are so excited to start working here. I'm already in love with this town. Wish us luck! Our auditions are tomorrow!!!
Monday, July 18, 2011
Lost in Corn
First of all, the week in Wisconsin went very well! The kids did a very good job and they all had a blast. There were a few dropped lines but they recovered well and had the audience rolling with laughter. I'm so proud of them.
This week we found ourselves in Iowa. I've driven through it to get to South Dakota but this is the first time I have actually experienced Iowa. For starters, THERE IS SO MUCH CORN. Miles and miles of corn. In every direction you look, there is corn to be found. We haven't hit any major towns in Iowa and, therefore, all we have encountered are farms, much like southern Illinois. The town we have our residency in is extremely small. I thought my hometown was tiny. I come from a town of about 8,000. This town's COUNTY has 7,000. It's a very interesting dynamic. I like the aesthetic of the town. The shops and movie theatres are very inviting and intriguing. Everyone knows everyone. The place where we are staying is named "The Six-Toed Cat". It's a wonderful bed and breakfast place and the people working there are sweet hearts. I have never stayed in a bed and breakfast before. It's been a wonderful experience thus far, and its only Monday!
Anyway, we held auditions this morning. Our contact said to expect around 25 kids but 49 arrived! We were relieved. We can do the show with 25, but it would take some adjusting. The kids were so excited! We were told that Missoula Children's Theatre is a high light of their year! I couldn't wait to see what they had to offer! During auditions, the majority of them were so creative and excited to say the lines we gave them. My favorite part of Snow White auditions is hearing the evil laugh from the older kids. Each one is different. This week we had a 12 year old girl cast as the queen because she had no reservations with the queen lines and her laugh was brilliant. The queen usually is given to an older girl because of the amount of lines. But, as soon as she walked onstage for the first rehearsal, she was fully committed to the character. I was so pleased! Usually, the girl who gets the queen needs a little coaxing to fully commit. Not this one. When she said her first line, I was scared half to death and then extremely excited. She is going to rock in this production.
I'm so excited to see how this week goes. All of the kids are dedicated and are excited about their parts. It's such a joy to watch the kids grow as actors and as people. I have a great feeling about this week. These kids are going to be stellar.
This week we found ourselves in Iowa. I've driven through it to get to South Dakota but this is the first time I have actually experienced Iowa. For starters, THERE IS SO MUCH CORN. Miles and miles of corn. In every direction you look, there is corn to be found. We haven't hit any major towns in Iowa and, therefore, all we have encountered are farms, much like southern Illinois. The town we have our residency in is extremely small. I thought my hometown was tiny. I come from a town of about 8,000. This town's COUNTY has 7,000. It's a very interesting dynamic. I like the aesthetic of the town. The shops and movie theatres are very inviting and intriguing. Everyone knows everyone. The place where we are staying is named "The Six-Toed Cat". It's a wonderful bed and breakfast place and the people working there are sweet hearts. I have never stayed in a bed and breakfast before. It's been a wonderful experience thus far, and its only Monday!
Anyway, we held auditions this morning. Our contact said to expect around 25 kids but 49 arrived! We were relieved. We can do the show with 25, but it would take some adjusting. The kids were so excited! We were told that Missoula Children's Theatre is a high light of their year! I couldn't wait to see what they had to offer! During auditions, the majority of them were so creative and excited to say the lines we gave them. My favorite part of Snow White auditions is hearing the evil laugh from the older kids. Each one is different. This week we had a 12 year old girl cast as the queen because she had no reservations with the queen lines and her laugh was brilliant. The queen usually is given to an older girl because of the amount of lines. But, as soon as she walked onstage for the first rehearsal, she was fully committed to the character. I was so pleased! Usually, the girl who gets the queen needs a little coaxing to fully commit. Not this one. When she said her first line, I was scared half to death and then extremely excited. She is going to rock in this production.
I'm so excited to see how this week goes. All of the kids are dedicated and are excited about their parts. It's such a joy to watch the kids grow as actors and as people. I have a great feeling about this week. These kids are going to be stellar.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
My Job is Amazing
Here's a little look at what I have been doing with my summer. To the right are the Snow White teams that are touring this summer. We became like a close family for the two week training process. We had an awesome trainer, Matt Loerhke who taught us the entire show in one week. We all had a blast with the lines and blocking. MCT's Snow White is really witty, with puns scattered in almost every other line. Left to Right
Back: Dana Vincent, Eric Doades, Claire Bancroft, Me
Boxes: Melody Waters, Matt Loerhke
Front: Hannah Barudin, Carly Schneider, Laura Barron
It's been a fun show to work on. We all play Witless the Woodsman. This character acts as the narrator and Snow White's best friend. It's a funny character that has a lot of physical comedy. It was fascinating watching each of us play Witless. We all have the same lines, but the characters are never the same. All of us have crafted our own Witless and they are all amazing.
To the left is Melody and myself in our Witless the Woodsmen costume. We have too much fun with Witless. Sometimes I want to video tape us running over our lines ... It's hysterical listening to all the voices we use not only for Witless, but when we say Snow White's or the Queen's lines. I love how much laughter is in my job.
During training, we had to go through all of the costumes, making sure everything was there. So, of course, we had to try them on. You know... to make sure they were fully functional. Below is a picture of a turtle shell and a blue bird's hat.
So there you have it. A little sneak peek at costumes and the fabulous teams that are touring this summer. This week is going well. Tomorrow we try a full run through with EVERYONE and then go to a Friday show! These kids are going to be amazing. They all have their own unique jokes and character traits. Wisconsin is filled with really talented kids.I asked an eleven year old girl today if she wanted to pursue acting in high school and, possibly, as a career and she replied, "Yeah I think I'd like to take a crack at the show biz." I could not stop laughing. Watch out Hollywood and Broadway. This girl is coming at ya!
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Theatre Every Day, Everywhere
I know it's been a long time since I last posted. Getting internet in the various places I have been has been scarce. But I'm finally sitting in a nice coffee shop with internet checking the e-mails and facebook notifications. Let me fill you in on the craziness and absolute awesome times Missoula Children's Theatre has brought me.
First, the company paired me with Melody Waters. She is a wonderful friend and fabulous tour partner. I can't believe we just met two months ago because it feels like we have known each other for years (courtesy of our first day driving that lasted 17 hours). We work well together and we know what each other needs. Its great. I just took her to Chicago last weekend because we had an unbooked week. It was her first time there and we had a blast. We were able to see a show at the Steppenwolf Theatre and Second City. It was absolutely amazing. We also took a tour of the Steppenwolf with one of my dad's friends. We even got to go to the roof and see the city skyline. I'm going to live there some day. It's official.
But anyway, let me talk about the tour! We have been all over the Midwest. It's interesting to be in my part of the country but not anywhere near where I've been before. It's so beautiful. Seeing the country is more amazing than I imagined. Seriously. Pictures of our beautiful country don't do it justice. Go west and see the mountains. Do it. You won't regret it.
The weeks with the kids fly by. Each group has a new set of talent and challenges. I love seeing what each group has to offer. For example, last week we had a lot of girls who were dancers and it totally changed our ballet number and made it wonderful. This week we have girls who are into gymnastics. The ballet is totally different but equally as wonderful as last week. That's my favorite part, I think. It's never the same show. Ever. The lines are the same but each child brings his or her soul into it and the characters take a new life. I love adapting to them and figuring out how to teach them.
Some weeks we have more younger cast members, which is definitely a challenge but it is so amazing and rewarding to see that nine year old memorize a major part and take the stage. I love how driven they are. This week is a younger cast but all of them are working so hard and have such great ideas, that I forget sometimes they are ten or eleven.
We also have workshops each week before or after rehearsals. Today, for example, we had a make-up workshop. The kids love this one. We make them old, bruised, a mime, a princess, the joker, and so much more. We also make it a teaching moment. Melody and I laughed so hard today. One little girl asked if we had mascara. My mother always taught me that sharing mascara was bad because eye disease could be passed that way, so that's what I told her. We don't use mascara for safety reasons. At the end of the workshop, we asked, "So what did you learn today?" A little boy raised his hand and said, "I learned that you can pass eye diseases".... It was everything I could do to keep it together. It was so touching but so not what we wanted them to get out of the workshop. At least now those kids will not share eye makeup.
That's all for today. I will update later. Have a stellar day!
First, the company paired me with Melody Waters. She is a wonderful friend and fabulous tour partner. I can't believe we just met two months ago because it feels like we have known each other for years (courtesy of our first day driving that lasted 17 hours). We work well together and we know what each other needs. Its great. I just took her to Chicago last weekend because we had an unbooked week. It was her first time there and we had a blast. We were able to see a show at the Steppenwolf Theatre and Second City. It was absolutely amazing. We also took a tour of the Steppenwolf with one of my dad's friends. We even got to go to the roof and see the city skyline. I'm going to live there some day. It's official.
But anyway, let me talk about the tour! We have been all over the Midwest. It's interesting to be in my part of the country but not anywhere near where I've been before. It's so beautiful. Seeing the country is more amazing than I imagined. Seriously. Pictures of our beautiful country don't do it justice. Go west and see the mountains. Do it. You won't regret it.
The weeks with the kids fly by. Each group has a new set of talent and challenges. I love seeing what each group has to offer. For example, last week we had a lot of girls who were dancers and it totally changed our ballet number and made it wonderful. This week we have girls who are into gymnastics. The ballet is totally different but equally as wonderful as last week. That's my favorite part, I think. It's never the same show. Ever. The lines are the same but each child brings his or her soul into it and the characters take a new life. I love adapting to them and figuring out how to teach them.
Some weeks we have more younger cast members, which is definitely a challenge but it is so amazing and rewarding to see that nine year old memorize a major part and take the stage. I love how driven they are. This week is a younger cast but all of them are working so hard and have such great ideas, that I forget sometimes they are ten or eleven.
We also have workshops each week before or after rehearsals. Today, for example, we had a make-up workshop. The kids love this one. We make them old, bruised, a mime, a princess, the joker, and so much more. We also make it a teaching moment. Melody and I laughed so hard today. One little girl asked if we had mascara. My mother always taught me that sharing mascara was bad because eye disease could be passed that way, so that's what I told her. We don't use mascara for safety reasons. At the end of the workshop, we asked, "So what did you learn today?" A little boy raised his hand and said, "I learned that you can pass eye diseases".... It was everything I could do to keep it together. It was so touching but so not what we wanted them to get out of the workshop. At least now those kids will not share eye makeup.
That's all for today. I will update later. Have a stellar day!
Thursday, May 19, 2011
There's Nothing Like a Good Play
The semester finally ended and I find myself with some spare time. I love it because it means I can catch up with the list of plays I want to read! I just finished re-reading No Exit by Jean-Paul Sartre. If you haven't read it, please go find it now. Sartre is an existentialist novelist and philosopher. I am not an existentialist but I love to research it and read the plays. No Exit is one of my favorites. It paints an interesting picture of hell with three characters. None of them knew each other in life, but the fates have decided to put these three soles together. And together they put each other through hell. It raises questions about life and death that you may or may not be able to answer. The thing I love most about existentialism is it does make you think. It makes you analyze not only the literature, but yourself as well. Go read this play!
Another good read, if you want to check absurd-ism or existentialism out, is The Play About the Baby by Edward Albee, or anything by Albee. Stick with it. It gets confusing, but the messages are excellent!
So go to the library or the nearest book shop and pick up some plays. They really are amazing.
Another good read, if you want to check absurd-ism or existentialism out, is The Play About the Baby by Edward Albee, or anything by Albee. Stick with it. It gets confusing, but the messages are excellent!
So go to the library or the nearest book shop and pick up some plays. They really are amazing.
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