Saturday, September 12, 2009
Littlechapped...
I'm finding that it's rare at this point in my life that I work as hard at my acting chops as I do on my illustration chops. This weekend is an exception, but I'm actually finding it rather exhilarating. Hard work. Challenging task. Many rewards to be had. Here we go...
Stop the World update...
Hi all! Just a wee shout-out from the trenches. We're in the midst of our fast and furious staging rehearsals, yesterday getting through a good portion of the show. We're back at it today. With so little time in the schedule, the blocking (and minimal choreography) is taught to us and we pretty much have time to write it down and move on to the next scene. Once we're entirely staged, we'll get the chance to run the show tomorrow. Monday afternoon brings a final run with the orchestra, then there's show prep, photo call, and a 7:30 curtain. Whew! Talk about a whirlwind!
I'm feeling good overall, but my head is swimming just piecing together the staging with lyrics and subtext. It can be a lot even while none of the elements on their own is particularly complex. But I've done a bunch of homework so many sections of the show bring a big sigh of relief when they arrive. I never thought I'd say that about the monologues, but those moments are typically just me and my script (and sans the worry of messing someone else up). I've just got to remind myself to live in each moment as it comes... and not to get too cocky and ignore my script too much.
I've gotta give a shout out to the whole Stop the World gang... Everyone is just fab and so fun to play with. I feel incredibly supported by this group of friends. In the midst of all my brain fry, I really am having a great time and I look forward to the art and entertainment that we are going to create. Peace and love, y'all!
I'm feeling good overall, but my head is swimming just piecing together the staging with lyrics and subtext. It can be a lot even while none of the elements on their own is particularly complex. But I've done a bunch of homework so many sections of the show bring a big sigh of relief when they arrive. I never thought I'd say that about the monologues, but those moments are typically just me and my script (and sans the worry of messing someone else up). I've just got to remind myself to live in each moment as it comes... and not to get too cocky and ignore my script too much.
I've gotta give a shout out to the whole Stop the World gang... Everyone is just fab and so fun to play with. I feel incredibly supported by this group of friends. In the midst of all my brain fry, I really am having a great time and I look forward to the art and entertainment that we are going to create. Peace and love, y'all!
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Some recent and upcoming art...
Me again. Just thought I'd elucidate (Aristocats, anybody?) on the recent art projects. I was happy to get a call from Christian Hoff asking about a caricature. He'll soon be honored by Junior Theatre (the San Diego educational arts program he participated in when he was young), and will present a concert and a limited edition CD to raise money for the program.
Here are a few pieces I recently posted over at Squigs Knows His Lines. First off, here's a tip o' the hat to the folks involved in 9 to 5 on Broadway. They just closed on Sunday after a five month run. Then here are a couple images from my trip to DC... Musical of Musicals the Musical at MetroStage and Dirty Blonde at Signature Theatre.
The drawing board has a bit of a stack going in the in box... a couple personal caricature commissions, a show or two two sketch, and a whole lot of stuff I'm doing on my own (prep for the Broadway Flea Market on September 27 and the art for the Signature exhibit in November). Lots of fun in the works! Take care, all! Peace and love.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Stop the World!
Hey there! I mentioned a few posts back that I'd likely update regarding the process of jumping into Musical Theatre Guild's Stop the World I Want to Get Off. Well, here we go!
Not gonna lie... when I was offered the role of Littlechap, it took me a little time to fully decide to accept. It's a huge undertaking! Littlechap solos in a majority of the songs including the three tunes that have become more or less the hits of the show. There are upwards of 18 monologues of varying sizes. And depending on the direction of the show (thankfully in this case, a staged reading) there could be any combination of mime, clowning, dance, hat tricks, etc. I was scared! I'm still carrying a decent amount of apprehension and worry at being able to pull it off. BUT... I've turned the corner and have begun accepting a couple things: 1. This is a fantastic opportunity! I get to step beyond my usual comfort zone of being the sidekick/supporting character/secondary lead. 2. I get to work with a fantastic team that is really committed to telling the story of this über-flawed, somewhat misunderstood character and those in his life. 3. This is sort of alluded to in the comment 1, but a few years ago, I took to heart the quote (Was it from Eleanor Roosevelt?), "Do one thing every day that scares you." A good number of my most cherished accomplishments to date have come from taking this quote to heart.
So Stop the World scares me. But I have an amazing, supportive show family to rely upon and learn from and cling to. Producers Michelle Duffy and Scottie Dreier made me do this. Ha... just kidding. Sorta. Director Doug Clayton and music director Ron Colvard have been great to work with in our meetings and music rehearsals and I have complete confidence in them (and choreographer Joe Giamalva and assistant director Ken Werther and stage manager Art Brickman). The cast is incredible, and I'm particularly thrilled to be playing opposite an actress I've idolized for so long (as well as cherished the friendship of her and her family), Tracy Lore. I feel blessed. As I mentioned, we had a couple days of music rehearsals and we get together tomorrow for a potluck and some fun before we look ahead to our wacky rehearsal weekend. Here we go!
Here's a peek at my script. Since this is a staged reading, the script will be an extension of my arm for most of the performance. I decided to create a personal master script and neurotically scanned the script and bits of the score into Photoshop. I cut and pasted the few edits and inserted the score bits where I thought I might need them. I just picked up the preliminary copy from the printer today. And after highlighting, it looks like you'll find a pot of gold tucked behind the last page. Since I have so many words, I decided to color code various scenes. Yellow shows typical lines. Orange features lyrics (anything sung). Pink shows the eight "Stop the world!" monologues in which Littlechap steps out distinctly to the audience. And blue highlights the "interview" sections where Littlechap converses with his unseen boss (voiced by a horn from the orchestra). It's a nice visual reminder when scenes shift gears.
The thing I've latched onto at this point is that this show, while a behemoth pile of songs and scenes, is just a series of moments. I just need to tackle each moment as they come and worry about the next one when it comes. That's the best I can do. I'm excited. Here we go!
Not gonna lie... when I was offered the role of Littlechap, it took me a little time to fully decide to accept. It's a huge undertaking! Littlechap solos in a majority of the songs including the three tunes that have become more or less the hits of the show. There are upwards of 18 monologues of varying sizes. And depending on the direction of the show (thankfully in this case, a staged reading) there could be any combination of mime, clowning, dance, hat tricks, etc. I was scared! I'm still carrying a decent amount of apprehension and worry at being able to pull it off. BUT... I've turned the corner and have begun accepting a couple things: 1. This is a fantastic opportunity! I get to step beyond my usual comfort zone of being the sidekick/supporting character/secondary lead. 2. I get to work with a fantastic team that is really committed to telling the story of this über-flawed, somewhat misunderstood character and those in his life. 3. This is sort of alluded to in the comment 1, but a few years ago, I took to heart the quote (Was it from Eleanor Roosevelt?), "Do one thing every day that scares you." A good number of my most cherished accomplishments to date have come from taking this quote to heart.
So Stop the World scares me. But I have an amazing, supportive show family to rely upon and learn from and cling to. Producers Michelle Duffy and Scottie Dreier made me do this. Ha... just kidding. Sorta. Director Doug Clayton and music director Ron Colvard have been great to work with in our meetings and music rehearsals and I have complete confidence in them (and choreographer Joe Giamalva and assistant director Ken Werther and stage manager Art Brickman). The cast is incredible, and I'm particularly thrilled to be playing opposite an actress I've idolized for so long (as well as cherished the friendship of her and her family), Tracy Lore. I feel blessed. As I mentioned, we had a couple days of music rehearsals and we get together tomorrow for a potluck and some fun before we look ahead to our wacky rehearsal weekend. Here we go!
Here's a peek at my script. Since this is a staged reading, the script will be an extension of my arm for most of the performance. I decided to create a personal master script and neurotically scanned the script and bits of the score into Photoshop. I cut and pasted the few edits and inserted the score bits where I thought I might need them. I just picked up the preliminary copy from the printer today. And after highlighting, it looks like you'll find a pot of gold tucked behind the last page. Since I have so many words, I decided to color code various scenes. Yellow shows typical lines. Orange features lyrics (anything sung). Pink shows the eight "Stop the world!" monologues in which Littlechap steps out distinctly to the audience. And blue highlights the "interview" sections where Littlechap converses with his unseen boss (voiced by a horn from the orchestra). It's a nice visual reminder when scenes shift gears.
The thing I've latched onto at this point is that this show, while a behemoth pile of songs and scenes, is just a series of moments. I just need to tackle each moment as they come and worry about the next one when it comes. That's the best I can do. I'm excited. Here we go!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
