You know it ain't easy...
And I got to see that first hand, at the debut of Janet Kenney's play at the Boston Playwrights Theatre this evening. The name of her new play is "My Heart and My Flesh", and it's very strong. I liked the writing, the acting was great, the sets were cool, and the costumes were well-done. The only issue is that, unfortunately, the play wasn't quite ready for its debut, and instead of being opening night, it was an open dress rehearsal. Fortunately, the press doesn't arrive til Saturday night, and w/ a lot of work and a bit of luck, they should be ready. (As if I should know! I'm just assuming so.) I mention this b/c I got to see first hand just how damned hard it is to put on a production, and while I always understood this, I guess I didn't really "get it" until now. Janet had to put up her own money, become the costumer when the person hired couldn't do it, and with the director had to sticker and stamp 1500 postcards (with more to come on Saturday). She barely slept this week and was obviously nervous. Happily, the show is very good, but the actors still had to call "line" at times (which we had been alerted to, but it's something I've never seen before in a professional production, though they moved in and out of their parts with tremendous ease) ,and the transitions were somewhat rocky.
I guess I've kind of taken theatre for granted, to be honest. I figured if it was a production mounted by a reputable company with Equity actors, you had plenty of time to learn lines, mount sets, block, etc., etc., and I see that just isn't the case in the real world. I have the utmost respect for Janet and Courtney O'Connor, the Director (as well as everyone else involved with the play, particularly the fine actors), b/c they've obviously worked their bloody tales off, and when this thing is ready to go, it's gonna be kick ass. Meanwhile, I remembered how hard it was to put "Workin' Progress" on last year--I was the author and performer, but I also had to manage ALL the publicity, book the venues, handle the cue-to-cue, make sure the tech staff was on board, and even direct myself the last few shows. There was nothing easy about it, and it ceased becoming fun, as I spent more time worrying about whether or not the tech person would show up or would understand my cues than whether or not I could actually carry this off (and by the time I got on stage, I was generally exhausted and not really in the mood to perform anymore).
Fortunately, Janet is neither acting in nor directing this production, but she is incredibly hands-on, and I can see how nerve-wracking it has to be (this isn't the easiest play to stage, as it has at least 15 scene changes, lots of costume changes, a ton of props, and NO intermission). And yet, while I watched, I sooo wished it had been my play or I was acting in it (though I had no desire to be director, I confess, and especially not stage manager). God, I have GOT to get cast in something or I may explode! In any case, I really paid attention to what I thought worked in the play (most seemed to be successful, though I thought the ending was a bit forced and rushed; I feel this is problemmatic in a lot of contemporary plays), and I'm eager to sit down, hopefully this weekend, and begin a new play, probably a 10-minute one, as my current one just doesn't seem to work (it needs to be part of a longer play), and I really want to try to write a comedy, which fits the 10-minute form particularly well. It was also nice tonight to meet members of Write-On, the writing group/community I recently joined, and I hope I can continue to contribute and not simply be a hanger-on, as I DO believe in my work. Tomorrow night is my 20-minute play, "Uncharted Territory"'s, debut, and I'll be back soon to report on the results, hopefully successful.
I guess I've kind of taken theatre for granted, to be honest. I figured if it was a production mounted by a reputable company with Equity actors, you had plenty of time to learn lines, mount sets, block, etc., etc., and I see that just isn't the case in the real world. I have the utmost respect for Janet and Courtney O'Connor, the Director (as well as everyone else involved with the play, particularly the fine actors), b/c they've obviously worked their bloody tales off, and when this thing is ready to go, it's gonna be kick ass. Meanwhile, I remembered how hard it was to put "Workin' Progress" on last year--I was the author and performer, but I also had to manage ALL the publicity, book the venues, handle the cue-to-cue, make sure the tech staff was on board, and even direct myself the last few shows. There was nothing easy about it, and it ceased becoming fun, as I spent more time worrying about whether or not the tech person would show up or would understand my cues than whether or not I could actually carry this off (and by the time I got on stage, I was generally exhausted and not really in the mood to perform anymore).
Fortunately, Janet is neither acting in nor directing this production, but she is incredibly hands-on, and I can see how nerve-wracking it has to be (this isn't the easiest play to stage, as it has at least 15 scene changes, lots of costume changes, a ton of props, and NO intermission). And yet, while I watched, I sooo wished it had been my play or I was acting in it (though I had no desire to be director, I confess, and especially not stage manager). God, I have GOT to get cast in something or I may explode! In any case, I really paid attention to what I thought worked in the play (most seemed to be successful, though I thought the ending was a bit forced and rushed; I feel this is problemmatic in a lot of contemporary plays), and I'm eager to sit down, hopefully this weekend, and begin a new play, probably a 10-minute one, as my current one just doesn't seem to work (it needs to be part of a longer play), and I really want to try to write a comedy, which fits the 10-minute form particularly well. It was also nice tonight to meet members of Write-On, the writing group/community I recently joined, and I hope I can continue to contribute and not simply be a hanger-on, as I DO believe in my work. Tomorrow night is my 20-minute play, "Uncharted Territory"'s, debut, and I'll be back soon to report on the results, hopefully successful.
posted by Sue B at 7:30 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home