We're well into rehearsals for Annie Get Your Gun and I'm amazed that we have as much done as we do.  At the same time I wonder if I'm pushing the kids too hard, or not involving the ensemble enough.  I worry that my staging is trite or even cheesy.  None of the set had been built yet and while there is an extremely good reason for that, I'm constantly being asked when we will have the set. (My Tech Director is working on another show at the moment, and while the designs are drawn up, we will start building after the other show is taken care of.)

 

I'm in the process of completing a comprehensive prop list.  That's a chore but needs to be done.  I've arranged for 6 of the 8 seniors to get on the radio to do some promotion for the show (gotta call that last station to see about getting the last 2 on over there...). 

 

We have blocked all of the show, except "Annie's Big Trick" and the big song-and-dance numbers.  Those will get done over the next 3 weeks by far more talented choreographers than I.

 

Finally met with the costumer this past week to get some costume ideas down.  It looks like we can borrow many of the costumes from the summer's production of The Music Man.  For what does need to be made, we've found ways to work around the budget issues that are always present when working in public schools.  Hopefully, we will be able to do the same with the set.

 

The show opens offically on Friday, November 17th.  A day short of a month from now. 

 

Most of the time, I feel like we're on track with where we need to be in the rehearsal process.  We're two-and-a-half weeks into the process and have 4 weeks to go.  Other times, it feels as if we are far behind (due to not having some songs choreographed) and many never catch up.

 

I have faith in my students.  I know that if I can give them proper guidance, they can pull off a killer show.  I have faith in me, in that I can guide at least some of these students to really good performances.  But I'm still learning how to do that.  I'm walking the line between taking it too seriously and letting the fun stuff pull the process off the rails.  I need to find time to work with other support people in ways that doesn't pull my focus away from rehearsals.  But that's the only time that some of the support people can be there too.  I now understand why there hasn't been cohesiveness in musical directors at this school.  While the students are great, the time frame can leave one frazzled and suffering from spinning syndrome*.

 

I have been offering small rewards & bribes to help speed along the rehearsal process.  On Monday night, the whole cast is going to the media night of a college production of the musical Dames at Sea in which one of the choreographers/friend of our program is performing.  This may be one of the few times some of the cast has seen a musical outside of being bussed to a high school show while they were in grade school.  They are really excited.  I've also told them that if we are far enough along by October 30th, that they might have Halloween off.  That was before I found out that we can't rehearse on October 30th due to 75% of the cast participating in an out-of-town choral festival that evening.  It's still up in the air.  Maybe I have have a Freshman Cast Theatre Workshop the night of the 30th to teach them some basics of acting and theatre history.  Like why the back of the stage is called "up" and the front of the stage is called "down".  (The answer is that stage floors used to be raked--some at fairly severe angles-- so the back of the state would be noticable higher or "up" of the front of the stage.  You wouldn't be able to tell from the audience and it would make more of the stage visible to the audience in general.  Especially in theatres with no elevated viewing areas. )

 

Are you still reading this?  It's a stream of consciousness posting today.  Bear with me--the riding is going to get more exciting as we get closer to show time!

 

*Spinning Syndrome: That feeling created when you have some much going on at once that needs your full attention that you feel like you are spinning out of control without getting dizzy.  Also a cause of increasing stress and anxiety.  Cured by burst of loud and angry frustration and much caffiene.