Down The Chimney

So this past week or so has been the meatiest part of our touring schedule. We traveled to all different areas of the state, sometimes driving as long as 3 and a half hours to do one 45 minute performance.

Some highlights:

• I can now say I (and my castmates) made someone laugh so hard that they peed their pants. Some little girl in the second row made a giant puddle. ON MY BIRTHDAY. Winning. 

•  At the same performance, the kids were told it was my birthday. Some little boy in the front row who was SO into the show and was wearing rec specs shouted to me, "Happy Birthday and Merry Christmas!!!" I almost cried. So cute.

•  Some horses were right up against the fence of a parking lot we were in and I walked over and got to pet them! It was so cool!

•  Whenever *SPOILER ALERT* Aleigha comes down the chimney as Santa, the kids freak out and it's always great to try to anticipate how they will react. Some crowds are louder and more animated than others. But this clip from our performance from the other day really takes the cake. Just listen for this girl's reaction after "down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound..." 

•  We've had 1 show days so far this week. So easy it's almost too good to be true.

not so high-lights:

• One of our longest drives yet had us going up some pretty windy and narrow roads. We may or may not have had to stop for some motion sickness on the way. Pretty not awesome.

• Today our van wouldn't start so we had to wait for another van to come get to us, unload our entire set and re-load it into a much dirtier, smellier van. Boo.

• I also feel like I've been anticipating so much in this show. I am trying so hard to be present and really react, but it has been SO difficult! I don't think I've ever rehearsed a show this much and performed it so many times. Other shows I've been in felt slightly under-rehearsed so I was always a tiny bit nervous and didn't know what to expect. This I could do in my sleep, which is both good and bad. I don't feel like I'm doing my job to my fullest potential. I know most people probably wouldn't notice it but it is important to me to be able to do a long run and still keep it fresh and present. Any tips and tricks on how to accomplish this, actor friends?

All in all it's been pretty fun playing a funny character for once. And the show has definitely grown since we've been out performing. Some of my favorite things in the show are the newer things we've discovered during the run, and even things I thought at first I was going to hate doing I thoroughly enjoy (rapping). I'm hoping to have it taped so I can show any interested parties what the heck kind of nonsense I've been up to down here. The south has been interesting so far. But I'm SO ready to get back to the East Coast and recharge my batteries.