Yesterday was interesting. It was costume parade - when all of the actors don their costumes and line up on stage in groups to be inspected by their directors. I always enjoy it - this is when the visual show becomes evident.
Afterwards, we sat down with the leads. We had scheduled an emerygency rehearsal; however, some of the leads (mostly the ones who needed the rehearsal the most) had left, and everyone was tired. The actors agreed that they needed to work on blocking most of all, so we decided to do a speed-through of the show. We did Act 1 with one cast, then Act 2 with the other cast, speaking the lines/songs at top speed and walking through the entrances, crosses, and exits - all in just over an hour. It helped, at least me, figure out how this whole show fits together.
More than anything, I went home with a feeling of pride in these actors. They are troupers, and the ones that put in time like this are just phenomenal. They're what make these shows fly.
10 rehearsals left!
Saturday, February 26, 2005
Thursday, February 24, 2005
I Whistle a Happy Tune
Hello all!
I just wanted to let you know that things have perked up. I am back in my optomistic phase with the show. We've picked a poster from the designs submitted by various students (we do it as a contest each year, and the top three poster designs get cash prizes, thanks to our awesome administration). Each time we do this contest, it seems that the entries get better and better, thereby making it more difficult to choose.
I went to Barnes and Noble today after rehearsal (always a happy place to be!) in search of "Horton Hears a Who". We wanted to reference the book for our shadow puppets. I actually found a collection of 12 of Seuss' books (including most of the major parts of the show). I also found a very cuddly little elephant that I couldn't resist buying for our elephant-bird puppet. I've named him "Hojo LaBird" (as in Horton, Junior/a reference to Horton's friend Jojo; and the elephant-bird's mother, Mayzie LaBird). He is very soft and my cat is bewildered.
Speaking of my cat, if my writing seems awkward today, it's because Natasha, having been repeatededly removed from the warmth of my running laptop, has now settled on the end of the lapboard my computer is balanced on, thereby making me type at a 30 degree angle. Aww....
I just wanted to let you know that things have perked up. I am back in my optomistic phase with the show. We've picked a poster from the designs submitted by various students (we do it as a contest each year, and the top three poster designs get cash prizes, thanks to our awesome administration). Each time we do this contest, it seems that the entries get better and better, thereby making it more difficult to choose.
I went to Barnes and Noble today after rehearsal (always a happy place to be!) in search of "Horton Hears a Who". We wanted to reference the book for our shadow puppets. I actually found a collection of 12 of Seuss' books (including most of the major parts of the show). I also found a very cuddly little elephant that I couldn't resist buying for our elephant-bird puppet. I've named him "Hojo LaBird" (as in Horton, Junior/a reference to Horton's friend Jojo; and the elephant-bird's mother, Mayzie LaBird). He is very soft and my cat is bewildered.
Speaking of my cat, if my writing seems awkward today, it's because Natasha, having been repeatededly removed from the warmth of my running laptop, has now settled on the end of the lapboard my computer is balanced on, thereby making me type at a 30 degree angle. Aww....
Tuesday, February 22, 2005
Sitting Becalmed....
Hello faithful readers!
After a delightful weekend in San Diego (including a trip to IKEA!), we're back in the swing of things. The Whos rehearsed today as we head towards our final weeks. My moods sway from panicked to stressed to a stressed-induced euphoria. Poor students. ;)
Janelle and I decided today that this is the "Wednesday" time of the school year - it seems everyone at school is, well, blah. I know things will pick up in March, but for now it feels like we're just dragging ourselves to spring break.
Some things for the show are progressing well - I bought 25 some-odd yards of tulle and tomorrow we will begin crafting tails. Others things (our sets, for example) are, well, stalled.
Friday is costume parade - hurrah! I'll give you more of an update later!
-Moi, de-stressing.
After a delightful weekend in San Diego (including a trip to IKEA!), we're back in the swing of things. The Whos rehearsed today as we head towards our final weeks. My moods sway from panicked to stressed to a stressed-induced euphoria. Poor students. ;)
Janelle and I decided today that this is the "Wednesday" time of the school year - it seems everyone at school is, well, blah. I know things will pick up in March, but for now it feels like we're just dragging ourselves to spring break.
Some things for the show are progressing well - I bought 25 some-odd yards of tulle and tomorrow we will begin crafting tails. Others things (our sets, for example) are, well, stalled.
Friday is costume parade - hurrah! I'll give you more of an update later!
-Moi, de-stressing.
Tuesday, February 15, 2005
"My own planets and stars are glowing"
Salutations mes amis!
Guess what? I've been to the planetarium. So for a moment, I will branch off from my usual theatrical focus to tell you about my most recent field trip.
I am on a core faculty team, meaning that the students I teach in English class have the same science, math, and history teacher. As a team, we decided to take the students to the planetarium today.
Just before the end of first period, the science teacher and I loaded 75 eighth graders onto two buses and headed downtown. The math teacher stayed behind with the kids who didn't get their permission slips back on time, and the history teacher was (convenient) absent today. We took his sub instead.
You know, I think I was more excited about this field trip than a lot of the students. I hadn't been to a planetarium since I was in eighth grade.
We watched a star show ("The Ultimate Universe"- a title I always hear read with a booming bass voice and lots of reverb), then gave the kids about an hour to wander the museum/gift shop. I bought some glow-in-the-dark stars that were on sale and my 4th period class helped hang them up in my classroom. I also bought a chomping dinosaur head, which I've named "Bernard" (accent on the first syllable). He entertains me, and I entertain the students.
You know, I find it's rather effective to keep them wondering just how close to the edge their teacher really is.
All in all, our students were well behaved and seemed to enjoy themselves. This was despite, as one student observed, all of the other school groups there were from elementary schools. :)
Meanwhile, on the Seussical front, I spent some time at Home Depot today trying to figure out what I could turn into Seuss-inspired weaponry. Then I found feather dusters and an idea began germinating. We'll see how it turns out....
Happy Tuesday!
Guess what? I've been to the planetarium. So for a moment, I will branch off from my usual theatrical focus to tell you about my most recent field trip.
I am on a core faculty team, meaning that the students I teach in English class have the same science, math, and history teacher. As a team, we decided to take the students to the planetarium today.
Just before the end of first period, the science teacher and I loaded 75 eighth graders onto two buses and headed downtown. The math teacher stayed behind with the kids who didn't get their permission slips back on time, and the history teacher was (convenient) absent today. We took his sub instead.
You know, I think I was more excited about this field trip than a lot of the students. I hadn't been to a planetarium since I was in eighth grade.
We watched a star show ("The Ultimate Universe"- a title I always hear read with a booming bass voice and lots of reverb), then gave the kids about an hour to wander the museum/gift shop. I bought some glow-in-the-dark stars that were on sale and my 4th period class helped hang them up in my classroom. I also bought a chomping dinosaur head, which I've named "Bernard" (accent on the first syllable). He entertains me, and I entertain the students.
You know, I find it's rather effective to keep them wondering just how close to the edge their teacher really is.
All in all, our students were well behaved and seemed to enjoy themselves. This was despite, as one student observed, all of the other school groups there were from elementary schools. :)
Meanwhile, on the Seussical front, I spent some time at Home Depot today trying to figure out what I could turn into Seuss-inspired weaponry. Then I found feather dusters and an idea began germinating. We'll see how it turns out....
Happy Tuesday!
Saturday, February 12, 2005
Tuesday, February 08, 2005
Gee, How I Hate to Get Up In The Morning!
Greetings again, O Best Beloveds, and a happy Tuesday to you all!
Today was a good day. In Advanced Drama, we raided the dance classes' old costumes for fabric and started designing puppets for the show. The kids were coming up with some great test models, which makes me quite optimistic about the actual puppets.
At rehearsal, we ran some of the smaller scenes in the dance room while the Hunches worked on their dance on stage. It's looking cool, and it certainly was fun to see. We had to do a bit of work to convince our Mayor to actually hug his wife and son for the reunion scene at the end of the show, but hey, he's a teenage boy.
After the formal rehearsal, my Gertrudes hung out for a while, so we worked "Notice Me, Horton". One of them lingered along with one of my Cats, just chatting for a while, which is fun. Finally, realizing that it was past 6:00pm and I still had some tasks to do for accreditation tomorrow, we called it a night.
The other good news is that I had some responses to my hotel-sheets inquiries. I drove out to a Marriott by the airport after I left school tonight to pick up a box of sheets the hotel manager had promised to leave me. The box was actually so large that it took both the housekeeping manager and me some time to wedge it into my backseat. Yea! It will be interesting to get that out of my car and into the school tomorrow, but then again, what else are TAs for?
I think we're good to go on our sheets, now, and that's from just one hotel!
So I drove home, picking up some dinner on the way. When I got there, I was just in time to strip to my pajamas (okay, underwear), turn on "Scrubs" and settle in to eat. Most delightful after a long day.
unfortunately, just after "Scrubs" ended, the doorbell rang. I quickly pulled on my clothes and answered it to find my brother. He said he had just finished typing a paper and wanted to get out of the dorm for a while. We talked for a while- he ate some corndogs, I browsed the internet, etc. He started playing the guitar I have, and I recalled one of my smaller Seuss projects. So Andy figured out the chords to the opening of one of Gertrude's songs, and mapped them out for me. Tomorrow, I'll pass my notes on to my two Gertrudes so they can actually strum along to the opening of "The One-Feathered Tail of Miss Gertrude McFuzz". This will be interesting since neither them nor I play the guitar. Fortunately, anyone who plays the guitar is always more than anxious, so I think we'll be okay figuring it out.
Tomorrow - accreditation, which means, among other things, that I have to be at school at 6:45. I've been trying to brace myself mentally for this day all week, in the hopes that if I am psychologically prepared, I will actually wake up and get up (those are two separate events for me) on time. Oy. Not a big deal, you say? Consider this, though. I am my father's daughter and although I am technically supposed to leave my apartment at 6:45 each day to get to school "on time", there have been many a day this year when I don't even wake up until 6:45. Whoops. Thank goodness for prayer and light traffic, right?
Farewell good friends!
Today was a good day. In Advanced Drama, we raided the dance classes' old costumes for fabric and started designing puppets for the show. The kids were coming up with some great test models, which makes me quite optimistic about the actual puppets.
At rehearsal, we ran some of the smaller scenes in the dance room while the Hunches worked on their dance on stage. It's looking cool, and it certainly was fun to see. We had to do a bit of work to convince our Mayor to actually hug his wife and son for the reunion scene at the end of the show, but hey, he's a teenage boy.
After the formal rehearsal, my Gertrudes hung out for a while, so we worked "Notice Me, Horton". One of them lingered along with one of my Cats, just chatting for a while, which is fun. Finally, realizing that it was past 6:00pm and I still had some tasks to do for accreditation tomorrow, we called it a night.
The other good news is that I had some responses to my hotel-sheets inquiries. I drove out to a Marriott by the airport after I left school tonight to pick up a box of sheets the hotel manager had promised to leave me. The box was actually so large that it took both the housekeeping manager and me some time to wedge it into my backseat. Yea! It will be interesting to get that out of my car and into the school tomorrow, but then again, what else are TAs for?
I think we're good to go on our sheets, now, and that's from just one hotel!
So I drove home, picking up some dinner on the way. When I got there, I was just in time to strip to my pajamas (okay, underwear), turn on "Scrubs" and settle in to eat. Most delightful after a long day.
unfortunately, just after "Scrubs" ended, the doorbell rang. I quickly pulled on my clothes and answered it to find my brother. He said he had just finished typing a paper and wanted to get out of the dorm for a while. We talked for a while- he ate some corndogs, I browsed the internet, etc. He started playing the guitar I have, and I recalled one of my smaller Seuss projects. So Andy figured out the chords to the opening of one of Gertrude's songs, and mapped them out for me. Tomorrow, I'll pass my notes on to my two Gertrudes so they can actually strum along to the opening of "The One-Feathered Tail of Miss Gertrude McFuzz". This will be interesting since neither them nor I play the guitar. Fortunately, anyone who plays the guitar is always more than anxious, so I think we'll be okay figuring it out.
Tomorrow - accreditation, which means, among other things, that I have to be at school at 6:45. I've been trying to brace myself mentally for this day all week, in the hopes that if I am psychologically prepared, I will actually wake up and get up (those are two separate events for me) on time. Oy. Not a big deal, you say? Consider this, though. I am my father's daughter and although I am technically supposed to leave my apartment at 6:45 each day to get to school "on time", there have been many a day this year when I don't even wake up until 6:45. Whoops. Thank goodness for prayer and light traffic, right?
Farewell good friends!
Monday, February 07, 2005
F-R-E-E- (No the long way!)
Can I just say this? Hooray for donations. That may be one of the few cheers for big business.
So I have this idea to introduce international puppet theater into "Seussical". Here's a link to one of the styles I'm picturing: Shadow Puppets.
This idea is complicated on two fronts. 1) budget and 2) the fact that I have never done anything like this before. Fortunately, neither of these issues are stopping me.
My mom had the brilliant idea to call up hotels and see if they've got any sheets they're willing to get rid of. I figure we get one good sized sheet, make a frame to stretch it out on, and bingo, shadow screen. So after rehearsal today, I called up about 7 different hotels in the area. I've left messages for various general managers and housekeeping staff, but I am very optimistic. The one manager who was still on duty said that they usually just take them to the DI, but they don't care who the old sheets go to. "So what are you looking for? 10? 100?"
Suddenly, I see myself surrounded by sheets. 100! We make screens out of them, flow-y fish puppets, ghostly hunches, puppets galore!
I tell him we'll take "whatever". He, along with 6 other hotels, will be getting back to me soon.
My stage manager made some calls during one of his TA-ing class periods and talked Home Depot into making some donations, too. They requested a list of what we want, and they said they'd get back to us. The manager there also pointed out that each Home Depot is run on an independent budget, so we could hit up multiple stores. I have hope that we might actually be able to afford this show!
As for the second obstacle, well, that's what Advanced Drama will be figuring out tomorrow!
TTFN!
So I have this idea to introduce international puppet theater into "Seussical". Here's a link to one of the styles I'm picturing: Shadow Puppets.
This idea is complicated on two fronts. 1) budget and 2) the fact that I have never done anything like this before. Fortunately, neither of these issues are stopping me.
My mom had the brilliant idea to call up hotels and see if they've got any sheets they're willing to get rid of. I figure we get one good sized sheet, make a frame to stretch it out on, and bingo, shadow screen. So after rehearsal today, I called up about 7 different hotels in the area. I've left messages for various general managers and housekeeping staff, but I am very optimistic. The one manager who was still on duty said that they usually just take them to the DI, but they don't care who the old sheets go to. "So what are you looking for? 10? 100?"
Suddenly, I see myself surrounded by sheets. 100! We make screens out of them, flow-y fish puppets, ghostly hunches, puppets galore!
I tell him we'll take "whatever". He, along with 6 other hotels, will be getting back to me soon.
My stage manager made some calls during one of his TA-ing class periods and talked Home Depot into making some donations, too. They requested a list of what we want, and they said they'd get back to us. The manager there also pointed out that each Home Depot is run on an independent budget, so we could hit up multiple stores. I have hope that we might actually be able to afford this show!
As for the second obstacle, well, that's what Advanced Drama will be figuring out tomorrow!
TTFN!
Tuesday, February 01, 2005
A Little Fall of Rain
We are wrapping up our music rehearsals this week. We ran the highlights of Act 1 with the entire cast on Monday, and they did pretty well, especially given that it had been two weeks since we had learned some of those songs. Today we ran the whole Act 1 with just the soloists, a process we'll repeat with Act 2 tomorrow and Thursday.
As we ran over the songs again today, I encouraged my actors to start having more fun, to find their characters. We started doing some minor blocking in the middle of the circle of desks (we were rehearsing in my classroom, as the stage was being used for an Academic Games competition), and as I coaxed my Hortons onto the tops of their desks ("Then carefully, tenderly, gently he crept/up the trunk to the nest where the little egg slept"), I prepped my Things 1 and 2 for the scene where they create a rainstorm for Horton.
According to the script, they are supposed to pelt Horton with water from squirt guns. Lacking those in my prop supplies, I grabbed two bottles of water from my fridge and tossed them to my Things. They caught them as Horton and the Bird Girls were singing their part, and looked at me wonderingly. I nodded and encouraged them to "Go ahead!" Unfortunately, I was forgetting the precariousness of giving 8th graders those instructions with fully-loaded water bottles.
It took less than 3 seconds for them to empty those 1 liter bottles on both Hortons, the Mayzies and the Bird Girls, some of my Whos, and Janelle, not to mention the scripts each of those characters were holding.
You know, after the water fight we had in Advanced Drama last year, you would think that I would remember that middle schoolers lack of propriety when armed with water bottles....
Harm or Help?
Pondering:
As most of you are aware and as I am coming to believe, I don't teach what's typical for "junior high school" theater. I think part of that is because I didn't start doing drama until high school, so I lack that personal experience. I am teaching my students as I was taught. And they enjoy it.
Here's what makes me wonder: Yesterday, one of my veterans came to visit during rehearsal, and stayed awhile to chat. I asked if how drama was going at GHS, and he gave a lukewarm "eh". Pressed, he explained that "It's just not like your drama classes."
You know, that's not the first time I've heard that response, either. I love pushing my kids, keeping my expectations high for them. And they like it, too! They take pride in it, running up to me after each performance to ask if it was a high school level show or not, knowing that I will be honest. Knowing that a middle school level performance is below my standards for their success.
But maybe I'm doing a disservice. What good is my pushing them like this if it makes them so restless in high school drama class that they give it up?
The thing is, while I have been thinking about this, I can't even imagine changing how I teach. I'd get so bored if all we did was goof around with no purpose!
It's funny how much of my teaching is driven by a need to keep boredom away. Not from my students. From me.
As most of you are aware and as I am coming to believe, I don't teach what's typical for "junior high school" theater. I think part of that is because I didn't start doing drama until high school, so I lack that personal experience. I am teaching my students as I was taught. And they enjoy it.
Here's what makes me wonder: Yesterday, one of my veterans came to visit during rehearsal, and stayed awhile to chat. I asked if how drama was going at GHS, and he gave a lukewarm "eh". Pressed, he explained that "It's just not like your drama classes."
You know, that's not the first time I've heard that response, either. I love pushing my kids, keeping my expectations high for them. And they like it, too! They take pride in it, running up to me after each performance to ask if it was a high school level show or not, knowing that I will be honest. Knowing that a middle school level performance is below my standards for their success.
But maybe I'm doing a disservice. What good is my pushing them like this if it makes them so restless in high school drama class that they give it up?
The thing is, while I have been thinking about this, I can't even imagine changing how I teach. I'd get so bored if all we did was goof around with no purpose!
It's funny how much of my teaching is driven by a need to keep boredom away. Not from my students. From me.
Saturday, January 29, 2005
Clovers Clovers Everywhere
Glory be! We have an accompaniment!
Through a friend of a friend, Janelle found someone who had laid down piano and drum tracks of the Seussical score for a high school in the area. After some negotiating, we got the CDs. It is such a relief to have the music we'll perform set and ready to go!
Although there is little room for improvising with pre-recorded accompaniments, I think it is a better option than a live orchestra at this level. It lets the focus stay on the actors and the story, instead of being caught up in slow-tempo, off-key music. Our school's orchestra department does a great job on their own, but accompaning a show is an entirely different matter.
We've also begun work on the clover blossoms for Horton. I bought $30 worth of yarn at Wal-Mart on Monday, and since then my TAs and anyone else who's bored have been converting that yarn into pom-poms. We're about two-thirds of the way through the yarn, and we've filled an army trunk with blossoms.
Next week, we start making puppets!
Through a friend of a friend, Janelle found someone who had laid down piano and drum tracks of the Seussical score for a high school in the area. After some negotiating, we got the CDs. It is such a relief to have the music we'll perform set and ready to go!
Although there is little room for improvising with pre-recorded accompaniments, I think it is a better option than a live orchestra at this level. It lets the focus stay on the actors and the story, instead of being caught up in slow-tempo, off-key music. Our school's orchestra department does a great job on their own, but accompaning a show is an entirely different matter.
We've also begun work on the clover blossoms for Horton. I bought $30 worth of yarn at Wal-Mart on Monday, and since then my TAs and anyone else who's bored have been converting that yarn into pom-poms. We're about two-thirds of the way through the yarn, and we've filled an army trunk with blossoms.
Next week, we start making puppets!
Monday, January 24, 2005
A boy, an egg, and an idea
Hello all!
I am here with a few remnant cast members - a Mrs. Mayor, a Gertrude, and a Horton. We are chatting about kissing and "friends" and Spamalot and punishments for the Hortons. I have decided (wielding my director's power as I do) that my Hortons need some character development. So, they will "get" to carry around their prop eggs for a while (classes and all), and their prop clover blossoms for a while. Oh, how I love causing embarrassment among my students!
Speaking of embarrassment, we are debating if we should add kissing to the show; specifically, Horton and Gertrude or Mr. and Mrs. Mayor. I've already relinquished my other trademarks for plays (huge fight scene and a guy in drag). But a show with no kissing? Hmm. That might mean I actually won't get pulled into the principal's office and yelled at by outraged parents for once....
Here, I'm going to type the dialogue going on as I am writing this post:
Gertrude: I think it's great that she's making you (Horton) carry around an egg!
Horton: (taking my candy jar hostage) This is my new egg!
Mrs. Mayor: You know what I didn't know? That white thing inside the egg is the umbilical cord! You know that white thing that floats!
Me: Horton, you want to say anything else?
Horton: Me?
Mrs. Mayor: No, the other Horton.
Horton: Um... let's see.
Mrs. Mayor: I really didn't know that.
Horton: That's why you should get the unfertilized ones.
Mrs. Mayor: That's when they're raw. Yuck. That's gross.
Me: Hold on! Talk slower so I can type.
Gertrude: That's why I'm the smart one. I'm not talking.
Horton: (finding a cardboard poster tube next to my garbage can) What's this for?
Me: Some posters I got in the mail.
Mrs. Mayor: Oh my gosh, look at Horton.
Horton: (has inserted his arm into the tube and is now dancing)
Mrs. Mayor: Domo arigato
Gertrude: (joining in) Mister Roboto!
Horton: (whacks Mrs. Mayor with the tube)
Mrs. Mayor: Ow!
So, you see what kind of fun we have when I don't lock them out of my classroom after rehearsal. So much for grading the English papers I promised to hand back last week. Whoops.
See, this is why it would be a good thing if I only taught theater.
FYI, we rehearsed "Chasing the Whos" today sans sheet music (we forgot to copy it). It actually went really well! The chorus is finally picking up sound. Until we put them up on stage, that is. Oh well. 7 weeks to go!
I am here with a few remnant cast members - a Mrs. Mayor, a Gertrude, and a Horton. We are chatting about kissing and "friends" and Spamalot and punishments for the Hortons. I have decided (wielding my director's power as I do) that my Hortons need some character development. So, they will "get" to carry around their prop eggs for a while (classes and all), and their prop clover blossoms for a while. Oh, how I love causing embarrassment among my students!
Speaking of embarrassment, we are debating if we should add kissing to the show; specifically, Horton and Gertrude or Mr. and Mrs. Mayor. I've already relinquished my other trademarks for plays (huge fight scene and a guy in drag). But a show with no kissing? Hmm. That might mean I actually won't get pulled into the principal's office and yelled at by outraged parents for once....
Here, I'm going to type the dialogue going on as I am writing this post:
Gertrude: I think it's great that she's making you (Horton) carry around an egg!
Horton: (taking my candy jar hostage) This is my new egg!
Mrs. Mayor: You know what I didn't know? That white thing inside the egg is the umbilical cord! You know that white thing that floats!
Me: Horton, you want to say anything else?
Horton: Me?
Mrs. Mayor: No, the other Horton.
Horton: Um... let's see.
Mrs. Mayor: I really didn't know that.
Horton: That's why you should get the unfertilized ones.
Mrs. Mayor: That's when they're raw. Yuck. That's gross.
Me: Hold on! Talk slower so I can type.
Gertrude: That's why I'm the smart one. I'm not talking.
Horton: (finding a cardboard poster tube next to my garbage can) What's this for?
Me: Some posters I got in the mail.
Mrs. Mayor: Oh my gosh, look at Horton.
Horton: (has inserted his arm into the tube and is now dancing)
Mrs. Mayor: Domo arigato
Gertrude: (joining in) Mister Roboto!
Horton: (whacks Mrs. Mayor with the tube)
Mrs. Mayor: Ow!
So, you see what kind of fun we have when I don't lock them out of my classroom after rehearsal. So much for grading the English papers I promised to hand back last week. Whoops.
See, this is why it would be a good thing if I only taught theater.
FYI, we rehearsed "Chasing the Whos" today sans sheet music (we forgot to copy it). It actually went really well! The chorus is finally picking up sound. Until we put them up on stage, that is. Oh well. 7 weeks to go!
Saturday, January 22, 2005
Wednesday, January 19, 2005
Checking In
Hello all!
It seems like it's been a while since I've written. We had a three day weekend with Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (yea!), during which I went to see House of Flying Daggers (excellent fight scenes and coloration, as usual; but I liked Hero better).
Tuesday marked Day 1 of 3rd quarter at school, aka second semester. It was an English day for me (as opposed to a Theatre day, that is), and we kick started our unit on the Holocaust with a pretty good round of small group activities and discussions. Oh, we also had a warm-up discussion on the significance of MLK, Jr's work. To quote one of my beloved students "Martin Luther King is important because he made it so we don't have slavery today."
Oy I say.
Today was the first Drama day of the new semester, which meant I had two new classes. Big classes. My Drama 1 classes now number at 41 students and 38 students. Thank goodness we're on block schedule. Otherwise, it would take us the better part of a week just to get through monologue performances.
For Advanced Drama today, I took my students to see "Steel Magnolias" at the PTC. They actually really enjoyed it (yes, even the boys). It's great to see that they have progressed enough to really enjoy a good production, even if it's not your typical teenage fare.
As for Seussical, I spent yesterday's rehearsal working with some of the leads on their solo parts. We had fun - we were able to start doing some minor blocking and character work. The bigger achievement was that we directors made up a rehearsal calendar. It actually looks like we can get it all done in time!
(Mark those words - chances are I'll be recanting them later....)
TTFN!
It seems like it's been a while since I've written. We had a three day weekend with Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (yea!), during which I went to see House of Flying Daggers (excellent fight scenes and coloration, as usual; but I liked Hero better).
Tuesday marked Day 1 of 3rd quarter at school, aka second semester. It was an English day for me (as opposed to a Theatre day, that is), and we kick started our unit on the Holocaust with a pretty good round of small group activities and discussions. Oh, we also had a warm-up discussion on the significance of MLK, Jr's work. To quote one of my beloved students "Martin Luther King is important because he made it so we don't have slavery today."
Oy I say.
Today was the first Drama day of the new semester, which meant I had two new classes. Big classes. My Drama 1 classes now number at 41 students and 38 students. Thank goodness we're on block schedule. Otherwise, it would take us the better part of a week just to get through monologue performances.
For Advanced Drama today, I took my students to see "Steel Magnolias" at the PTC. They actually really enjoyed it (yes, even the boys). It's great to see that they have progressed enough to really enjoy a good production, even if it's not your typical teenage fare.
As for Seussical, I spent yesterday's rehearsal working with some of the leads on their solo parts. We had fun - we were able to start doing some minor blocking and character work. The bigger achievement was that we directors made up a rehearsal calendar. It actually looks like we can get it all done in time!
(Mark those words - chances are I'll be recanting them later....)
TTFN!
Friday, January 14, 2005
They Made Me Stop
Week one - done!
We've spent the week working on the music for the show. "Seussical" is close to an operetta in the amount of singing, so we (Janelle and I) decided to dedicate the first month of rehearsals just to learning the songs. Unfortunately, this makes things a little boring for the kids (one hour of the same task!). I think it'll improve as they learn more of the music and find the fun in it.
Today (Friday) was a student non-attendance day, which I look forward to. It's amazing how much I can accomplish in a virtually empty school. To my dismay, though, I found out that the custodians would be locking up the school four hours earlier than I had planned. There goes my plans to finish the rehearsal calendar and costume designs in time to hand out on Tuesday!
I called my parents as I drove away from school at 2:00, having been escorted from my classroom to the door by the janitors in their efforts to get rid of me. As I complained about my principal's lack of consideration for teachers who need days like today to get things done, my dad pointed out that I was complaining about getting off work early.
So I made the best of it. I spent an hour browsing at Borders, then went to a matinee of "A Very Long Engagement".
:)
(Quick review of "A Very Long Engagement": I do like Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Audrey Tautou's film-making, but Amelie is better. This was too much of a war movie for my taste. There are some lovely shots, though. It was particularly fun to play the "Hey, I've been there!" game. For example, see the photos attached below....)
We've spent the week working on the music for the show. "Seussical" is close to an operetta in the amount of singing, so we (Janelle and I) decided to dedicate the first month of rehearsals just to learning the songs. Unfortunately, this makes things a little boring for the kids (one hour of the same task!). I think it'll improve as they learn more of the music and find the fun in it.
Today (Friday) was a student non-attendance day, which I look forward to. It's amazing how much I can accomplish in a virtually empty school. To my dismay, though, I found out that the custodians would be locking up the school four hours earlier than I had planned. There goes my plans to finish the rehearsal calendar and costume designs in time to hand out on Tuesday!
I called my parents as I drove away from school at 2:00, having been escorted from my classroom to the door by the janitors in their efforts to get rid of me. As I complained about my principal's lack of consideration for teachers who need days like today to get things done, my dad pointed out that I was complaining about getting off work early.
So I made the best of it. I spent an hour browsing at Borders, then went to a matinee of "A Very Long Engagement".
:)
(Quick review of "A Very Long Engagement": I do like Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Audrey Tautou's film-making, but Amelie is better. This was too much of a war movie for my taste. There are some lovely shots, though. It was particularly fun to play the "Hey, I've been there!" game. For example, see the photos attached below....)
Monday, January 10, 2005
And Thus We Begin.
I got to school this morning at 7:20 - 10 minutes before the students are allowed into the building. My plan was to laminate the cast list before posting it, to prevent "jokes" written by the passing crowds. So, after being ambushed by one of my auditioners in the parking lot as I pulled into a space, I headed straight to the office and switched on the laminator.
It took 11 minutes to warm up.
Papers laminated, I wedged my way down the hall, hearing the shouts as I neared the auditorium doors - "There she is! She's coming!" The crowd parted and I taped the papers to the door, then barely made my way out of the crowd as it surged forward to look. Cheers, shouts across the hall - "You made it!" "You're Mayzie!" Etc. The cell phones come out as kids call home. Fortunately, I don't see too many kids in tears or visibly upset- I always dread that part.
I did hear of some dissention in the ranks - kids saying we played favorites, casting students from my Advanced Drama class primarily. So the question - do we address these feelings or ignore them? I asked Janelle (the choir teacher) , and we decided to talk to the cast about it.
The thing is, I know it can help to have something like that to believe in. If you can blame the rejection (i.e. not being cast how you want) on a more external factor, it's easier to deal with.
But we didn't play favorites. All three of us directors collaborated on the decisions. There may be some benefit to having me as a drama teacher, since that means a) I have seen more of your talent over the semester/year and b) you have direct training in how to audition. However, many of my students ended up as extras and many students I have never had in class made bigger roles. The thing is, it's just up to the directors. That's the thing that sucks about auditions - you are being judged by people who won't or can't tell you why you're just not right.
Ug. Empathy.
The rehearsal went well, though. We reviewed what the characters are/do, handed out scripts, and started working on "Oh the Thinks" (the opening song). There is so much excitement and creativity surging through these kids!
It took 11 minutes to warm up.
Papers laminated, I wedged my way down the hall, hearing the shouts as I neared the auditorium doors - "There she is! She's coming!" The crowd parted and I taped the papers to the door, then barely made my way out of the crowd as it surged forward to look. Cheers, shouts across the hall - "You made it!" "You're Mayzie!" Etc. The cell phones come out as kids call home. Fortunately, I don't see too many kids in tears or visibly upset- I always dread that part.
I did hear of some dissention in the ranks - kids saying we played favorites, casting students from my Advanced Drama class primarily. So the question - do we address these feelings or ignore them? I asked Janelle (the choir teacher) , and we decided to talk to the cast about it.
The thing is, I know it can help to have something like that to believe in. If you can blame the rejection (i.e. not being cast how you want) on a more external factor, it's easier to deal with.
But we didn't play favorites. All three of us directors collaborated on the decisions. There may be some benefit to having me as a drama teacher, since that means a) I have seen more of your talent over the semester/year and b) you have direct training in how to audition. However, many of my students ended up as extras and many students I have never had in class made bigger roles. The thing is, it's just up to the directors. That's the thing that sucks about auditions - you are being judged by people who won't or can't tell you why you're just not right.
Ug. Empathy.
The rehearsal went well, though. We reviewed what the characters are/do, handed out scripts, and started working on "Oh the Thinks" (the opening song). There is so much excitement and creativity surging through these kids!
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