4 December
So of course, after all that, rehearsal kind of kicked my ass yesterday.
Mostly, it was just so rushed. I couldn't get out of work until fifteen minutes after I was supposed to already be there, since I had to send out the checks for the first of the month, but Cop Boy had to leave early, so they had already started when I got there, with Kelly in my role.
Kelly plays a nice woman who works in the building, but the last two rehearsals she has been stepping in for Cheryl, who plays a mean woman in the building, and it's an extremely interesting concept to have them be played by the same person! Especially since when Kelly is nice, she gives Brian a scarf and a candy cane, and when she is mean, she takes them back again. It's really a scream.
But anyway, I flew onto the stage and sort of half-assedly did the show, not really connecting the way I should, and then at the end, when Brian had to book, Laura and I and Gemma worked on the two monologues. And Laura was trying to get me to do mine faster and more excited, and I said the words that I never thought I would ever say in my life, "I'm not certain if I can find that in my characterization."
What? Who am I suddenly, Rod Steiger? But the sad part was that I really meant it, that the transition from the line two lines before the monologue had to be said a certain way, and I couldn't get from that to how Laura wanted me to do it. I also said to her, though, "I'm not usually like this, I swear, and I've been on your side of the fence plenty, being the director saying 'Just pick it up for God's sake!'"
But she was great, and started free-associating things to help me, and she came up with one that I thought might work, but I said that I didn't think that I could do it, it had to marinate, and I'd do it today at the tech for her. "I'm not worried about you," she said, "My problem is trying to direct these actors all of whom are at different levels--Brian's been acting for like a year, and you have been for what, ten? Fifteen years?" "Thirty-four." "Shit, how old are you?!"
So anyway, I actually figured out the transition on my way home, and I did it in the bathroom when I got there, and she was right! It really is so much better and more moving this way. It's been awhile since I have had a director with better instincts than me.
Though I did find it terribly funny that she complimented Gemma and I on our relationship, "You are both finding great touches in the way that you relate to each other," which is hilarious, because as far as I'm concerned, I have no relationship with Gemma's character. I mean, I do, but I'm completely ignoring it.
It probably was director bullshit, though, like when you see an absolute piece of crap, but instead of saying, "That was an absolute piece of crap--what idiot had the temerity to let you act?" you say, "Okay, that was really good, you have a solid show there, there are just a couple of tiny adjustments that we need to make..."
One funny thing about Brian that I want to include, because I think it's just the cutest little thing I ever did hear.
Sometimes I call him Cop Boy, you may have noticed, and that is because that's what he is, he's a policeman! He actually is a lieutenant, the youngest one ever in the history of the NYPD. And I'm not certain which I think is cuter, the fact that this cop spends his evenings acting Off-Off-Broadway, or the fact that the day job of one of the actors I'm working with is a lieutenant with the NYPD.
And I'm still collecting addresses for who wants a Christmas card! If you got one last year, only let me know if your address has changed, because once you are on the list, you cannot ever get off.
Today's
horoscope:
You'll want to spend lavishly on someone close to you. Be sure you can afford it!
One year ago today:
My capsule review "Go see Best in Show, it is actually funny!" They should put that on the poster.
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Last Updated Tues 4 December 13:26:09 2001