Sleepless In Seattle
Here at Expedia it is prop night. "Prop" for propagation, when the new code is released to the web. I'm on the A-team, from 10PM to 6AM. I'm being mentored by one of the other people on the team, as it is my first go around. If I get a task I don't know how to address, I'll run down the hall and ask Kevin for guidance.
Kind of an interesting switch. I went to rehearsal this evening, then rushed to work. I don't think that would work for me on a regular basis. Taking the charge of a rehearsal back to work on regular basis would feel bizarre, though it would ultimately be better for sleep patterns. It's not often I go home from the office and feel too energized and manic to go to sleep right away. That is the rule instead of the exception when I come home from a rehearsal or a class.
Well, finally I felt I was at the point I'd wanted to be on the first rehearsal tonight. Good thing too; we open on Thursday. It's that infamous cracking point. Where the character work, blocking, text work, and running the play all start fusing. I gained a precise sense of the direction I need to take, and strangely enough what I need to work on the most is back story. I was way ahead of the ball on that, and now I need to strengthen and deepen it. I found myself on stage this evening knowing what I needed to get where I need to be. The Police ride-along on Sunday is sure to help. Little did I know that scheduling it so late would prove to be perfect timing. Didn't know why I was procrastinating, but it worked out.
Lots more to do, and with the heat off at work next week it will be so much easier to prepare. Sometimes I feel like my acting curve is like my old technical learning curve. I don't improve gradually, rather I tend toward the lower half of the class for the first part of the term, and finish with the top scores. There is a click moment, and all of a sudden ah ha's start cropping up.
Ahhhhh. Just got my first cup of coffee. Like any normal day I'll limit myself to two cups, or three max if I find it really hard to keep my eyes open.
I'm feeling better with the play, and hope to get to a point quickly where Ben (the director) isn't wondering what he was thinking when he cast me. When I decided to study acting seriously to give myself a foundation, little did I realize I'd be dealing with that bizarre learning curve over and over again. I kind of wonder if it is internal or external. Do others see gradual improvement throughout rehearsals, or do they see me suddenly blossom? I'm not sure I really want to know. The click moment is always a surprise, it lends me confidence and boldness, and makes me love the work all the more. Maybe I should be hesitant in dissecting it.
I really like my day job, which ironically I'm doing now in the middle of the night. My job has a feeling of transience. Kipley's dream theatre in Hoboken, Rachel's dream theatre here, Paula's dream theatre somewhere, etc. They call me too. I realized I'm not afraid of the change, not married to my current situation, and not really in a hurry to leave it. I'd give up a lot to change, but very, very few things that are meaningful to me. The hardest thing I can think of now is my ability to support theatre's financially, albeit in a modest way, and the possibility of giving up the Seattle theatre community. Sadly my feeling that my country is on a truly amoral and criminal course makes me feel I should be doing something more, upping the stakes for my wanderlust and creative urges.
Speaking of which, in between naps trying to prepare for tonight, I resumed my research into Harvey Matusow. I hit a point this afternoon where I really love this character. I suspect this is a turning point as important in writing as in acting. I still find it hard to read about the vicious undercurrent in America of the 40's, 50's, and 60's which is being relived nearly verbatim today, but I no longer dread reading more about it.
Haven't heard much on the poem I wrote a couple days ago, except from my very good friend Beth. We met through Kiwanis about five years ago, and she has watched me go through my artistic discovery and awakening. She scolded me saying I should have let her know she would have to get tissues to read the whole thing. She has a very conservative niece in Texas and asked if she could forward my poem. Wow, what a compliment. Of course we are close friends, so I doubt many others would be much moved, but actually crying and wanting to send it on is really something. Not that I think it is likely to sway anyone on the other end of the political spectrum.
Every conservative whom I've told I oppose the war because of my combat service and experience in collecting and analyzing intelligence can only respond with condescension. Between you and I, none of these people impressed me with their acuity before I knew their politics, so I find it hard to keep my face from twitching. I'm amused with the attitude and sad about the futility of trying to communicate with willful ignorance. I truly believe most people are very bright, if only they have the cajones to step away from comfortable notions. Using your noggin takes courage. We are gifted with intelligence, but only if you exercise it. If you don't exercise it, you lose it, and what then separates you from the animals?
Thinking isn't supposed to make you feel all happy like some 60's sitcom character. People seem willing to accept pain as a result of physical exercise, but not as a result of exercising their minds.
Kind of an interesting switch. I went to rehearsal this evening, then rushed to work. I don't think that would work for me on a regular basis. Taking the charge of a rehearsal back to work on regular basis would feel bizarre, though it would ultimately be better for sleep patterns. It's not often I go home from the office and feel too energized and manic to go to sleep right away. That is the rule instead of the exception when I come home from a rehearsal or a class.
Well, finally I felt I was at the point I'd wanted to be on the first rehearsal tonight. Good thing too; we open on Thursday. It's that infamous cracking point. Where the character work, blocking, text work, and running the play all start fusing. I gained a precise sense of the direction I need to take, and strangely enough what I need to work on the most is back story. I was way ahead of the ball on that, and now I need to strengthen and deepen it. I found myself on stage this evening knowing what I needed to get where I need to be. The Police ride-along on Sunday is sure to help. Little did I know that scheduling it so late would prove to be perfect timing. Didn't know why I was procrastinating, but it worked out.
Lots more to do, and with the heat off at work next week it will be so much easier to prepare. Sometimes I feel like my acting curve is like my old technical learning curve. I don't improve gradually, rather I tend toward the lower half of the class for the first part of the term, and finish with the top scores. There is a click moment, and all of a sudden ah ha's start cropping up.
Ahhhhh. Just got my first cup of coffee. Like any normal day I'll limit myself to two cups, or three max if I find it really hard to keep my eyes open.
I'm feeling better with the play, and hope to get to a point quickly where Ben (the director) isn't wondering what he was thinking when he cast me. When I decided to study acting seriously to give myself a foundation, little did I realize I'd be dealing with that bizarre learning curve over and over again. I kind of wonder if it is internal or external. Do others see gradual improvement throughout rehearsals, or do they see me suddenly blossom? I'm not sure I really want to know. The click moment is always a surprise, it lends me confidence and boldness, and makes me love the work all the more. Maybe I should be hesitant in dissecting it.
I really like my day job, which ironically I'm doing now in the middle of the night. My job has a feeling of transience. Kipley's dream theatre in Hoboken, Rachel's dream theatre here, Paula's dream theatre somewhere, etc. They call me too. I realized I'm not afraid of the change, not married to my current situation, and not really in a hurry to leave it. I'd give up a lot to change, but very, very few things that are meaningful to me. The hardest thing I can think of now is my ability to support theatre's financially, albeit in a modest way, and the possibility of giving up the Seattle theatre community. Sadly my feeling that my country is on a truly amoral and criminal course makes me feel I should be doing something more, upping the stakes for my wanderlust and creative urges.
Speaking of which, in between naps trying to prepare for tonight, I resumed my research into Harvey Matusow. I hit a point this afternoon where I really love this character. I suspect this is a turning point as important in writing as in acting. I still find it hard to read about the vicious undercurrent in America of the 40's, 50's, and 60's which is being relived nearly verbatim today, but I no longer dread reading more about it.
Haven't heard much on the poem I wrote a couple days ago, except from my very good friend Beth. We met through Kiwanis about five years ago, and she has watched me go through my artistic discovery and awakening. She scolded me saying I should have let her know she would have to get tissues to read the whole thing. She has a very conservative niece in Texas and asked if she could forward my poem. Wow, what a compliment. Of course we are close friends, so I doubt many others would be much moved, but actually crying and wanting to send it on is really something. Not that I think it is likely to sway anyone on the other end of the political spectrum.
Every conservative whom I've told I oppose the war because of my combat service and experience in collecting and analyzing intelligence can only respond with condescension. Between you and I, none of these people impressed me with their acuity before I knew their politics, so I find it hard to keep my face from twitching. I'm amused with the attitude and sad about the futility of trying to communicate with willful ignorance. I truly believe most people are very bright, if only they have the cajones to step away from comfortable notions. Using your noggin takes courage. We are gifted with intelligence, but only if you exercise it. If you don't exercise it, you lose it, and what then separates you from the animals?
Thinking isn't supposed to make you feel all happy like some 60's sitcom character. People seem willing to accept pain as a result of physical exercise, but not as a result of exercising their minds.
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