All Should Know

I am so incredibly close to being DONE with my lighting project. I did not think it was going to happen, but I just might finish! Huzzah!!

Preparing for the Winter

I want a coat rack. You see it in the movies and in plays all the time and it looks so elegant. Also, there is plenty of room between our front door and our couch to comfortably have a coat rack. I have visualized myself many times coming in from a day of class and rehearsal and stopping by the door to take off my coat and my scarf and placing it on the conveniently located hook. I am rather fond of the image it creates.

Recently, I needed to improvise. I am a complete wimp when it comes to cold weather, so I wore my pea coat on Friday even though it's barely past the "chilly" stage. When I got home, I did not want to hang it up in my closet because I expected to use it again the next day, I did not want to toss it on the floor for obvious reasons, and I did not have the folding chair that normally sits at my desk since it was used in my scene and has not found its way home yet. However, I did have the vacuum cleaner sitting proudly, but unnecessarily in the middle of my room. The handle was at the exact right height and the pea coat hung quite well on it. I was also highly amused every time I checked the time Saturday morning and saw my pea coat on my vacuum cleaner. So I am hopeful; if my dream of owning a coat rack is not fulfilled I know I can supply a suitable substitute...that is, until I need to vacuum.

Spike Heels

I did it. It's over. I have now been a director.

Yesterday was the day of truth when our scene was performed for the department. I am very proud of the work the girls did and I think it was a huge success. There were some awkward things like a drink being spilled and the audience laughing at points we did not expect. Also there is a lot of pressure in workshop to do it right since the scene is only performed once. In spite of the small slip-ups, they did a wonderful job and I could not have asked for better! I was also fortunate to have an extreme amount of time for my tech. The group before me had to finish early, so we pounced on the space and set up as soon as they left. That meant we were able to have everything set and ready to go at the time we were supposed to begin instead of fifteen minutes in. That meant that I was able to run the show twice, taking pictures during one run, work some problem areas, take some staged pictures, and get out early. That NEVER happens! The blessings of this were 1) we left feeling confident because we did not need our whole time 2) we left feeling refreshed because we were supposed to finish at midnight 3) I have plenty of pictures to share.

"I'm the big success story. I moved to Boston, I work in a law office and they have no idea what that means! It means I get to read books I don't understand."

"I'm sorry."

"I think you'd better finish your drink."

"He's the best man I've ever met and he's not good enough for them."

The beginning of the dance. Lydia feels awkward.

The end of the dance. Lydia has finally relaxed.

Photo Hunter: Scary

I noticed that all of my other photo hunter posts talk about how difficult the word is. So this week, I want to say that finding a scary picture was easy. The first one is some dorm fun from freshman year. Scary how time flies!

For the next one, airplane food is always scary but there's something about reconstituted soy beans that is even more frightening than usual.

PhotoHunt

Don't Stop Me Now

Tonight we had the best rehearsal ever! Last night we had a strong run-thru then had to redo one moment many, many times which was wearying. This afternoon we had our dress rehearsal and I think both of the girls were tired (I know I was). The first run dragged without energy and felt strained. We reworked a few moments then I had my girls improv what happened directly before the scene and continue into the scene itself. The girls were slow at first (as was expected) but they soon got into the game and the scene started with a level of tension that we had never had before. They never lost their energy and tension through the shifting emotions of the scene. We were energized and confident and I know we will be satisfied no matter what happens on Friday because we have performed the scene at it's best. I am excited for workshop and so proud of my girls!

At the end of the scene there is a dance. We played with several different songs and styles of music, trying new things each night. We finally chose "Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen which is a highly energizing and empowering song that is fun to dance to and describes the character of Georgie and also our work on the scene. "Don't stop us now, we're having such a good time, having a ball!"

Photo Hunter: Family

For me the term "family" is quite expansive. I was terrified by the thought of digging through the hundreds of pictures of my family and having to choose only one. Or two. Or thirty. However, somewhere in the course of my weekend, although I can't be sure if I was waking or sleeping, I was struck with inspiration. Baseball. When I was a child, we went from Florida to Texas to my aunt and uncle's house where all the family that could met for Thanksgiving and each year we would all get together and play baseball in the back yard. We do not meet like we used to, but my nephews are completely enamored of the sport. This is a picture of my nephew, David, and my cousin, Ben, playing baseball together last Christmas since baseball has been my family's sport for as long as I can remember.

PhotoHunt

You Can't Teach an Old Dog New Tricks

Okay. That's fine. The old tricks work quite well for me. In fact, I am learning at this point so I am not planning to teach anybody anything. I really don't feel like I'm asking for too much.

Here is my first request: Light, turn on.

Unfortunately, this is too large a task for our archaic lighting instruments.

As a part of our lighting design class we must design a moving light show (sometimes called Roboshow) to 3-5 minutes of music. For the past 10.5 hours at least one person in our class (and at least one lighting staff member) has been trying to make the lights work. The good news is we had a school holiday today so we had the time to deal with it. The process is slow and somewhat excruciating, but the project has a lot of value and should produce something I can be extremely proud of and enjoy.

For now, the conclusion of the day is this: You can't teach these old dogs old tricks!

On a lighter note, my friend made up a lighting joke today. (Background: when a light is on at its highest intensity it is at "full," so a lighting designer will ask for a specific light at full).

THE JOKE: What did God say when he created the world? Sun, at full.