Things I Learned On Tour

The picture isn't blurry, that's just what the sunrise looks like when you're up that early.

So Friday was my last day of touring for this season and I am very happy to be done that part of my job. It was rewarding but exhausting and I'm ready for a few days of rest and a trip to visit my Mom and Grandparents before tackling James And The Giant Peach. (Which I am super pumped for!!)
So I made this list and I thought I'd share with you some things I learned on tour.

SOME THINGS I LEARNED ON TOUR:

1. If a line in the play is "Y'all like stories?" a child sitting front and center WILL scream out at the top of his lungs, "I LIKE TRANSFORMERS!!!" and proceed to make you crack up for the next ten minutes while you are trying in vain to go on with your lines and stay in character.

2. Signing autographs will probably never get old. I was that kid when I was little and I remember how much it meant to me.

3. Finding a comfortable way to nap in a captains chair that does not recline in the van is a talent and a skill.

4. Throw pillows are wonderful travel companions.

5. A Styrofoam cooler might not be great for the environment, but it is a luxury in the van.

6. I will never perform for a tougher audience than middle school aged kids who were clearly too cool and too old to see these weird actor people dance around and sing like idiots. It felt like doing a play in front of my graduating class of high school. I'm talking nightmare material, people. But if I can confront those demons with as much grace as I can, then I can do anything.

7. The calories in Pop Tarts, Starbucks Frappe Drinks, and Doritos absolutely do not count while on tour.

8. Trying to maintain gas station etiquette when you are clearly in there just to pee. My tip is to just look like a hot damn mess and nobody will approach you. Check!

9. Some 11 year old boy might start a fight and cry in the audience (that's 3 feet away from you) because he wasn't picked to come on-stage and act like a chicken for about 30 seconds.

10. I've learned what NOT to send my child to school wearing. (Particularly, I would not dress up my obese daughter in a light purple Cookie Monster shirt with the word NOM emblazoned on it paired with sweatpants the color of said Muppet. Just SINFUL.)

11. As tough as this is, I still love it and want to do it again. And again. And again.

Looking Forward

Hi there! It always feels good when I actually have time to update y'all on here. This week is my last week on tour!!! Next I will be working on James and The Giant Peach so my hours will be far more consistent and I will most likely have a little more down time. With this being the last stretch of tour, I am excited to give my poor back muscles a break and prepare for the end of the season. I actually got to thinking about all of the stuff I have to look forward to that will also keep me going this week.

Things I'm Looking Forward To (To distract myself from my 6:15am call for the next two days):

- Nicer weather that means more bike rides, walks, and runs around my apartment and downtown.

- More time to read! I bought a ton of plays at the library's used book sale last week and I am determined to actually read them instead of allow them to gather dust on my shelf until I dust them off again for a future student (hopefully).

- The farmers market will be back soon!! So excited to be able to get fresh, locally grown produce just a few blocks away and not rely on Walmart for my produce. (It felt a little sad just typing that fact.)

- Hopefully being better with my money and making a little bit more in the coming months.

- Booked my first REAL role (I mentioned I wanted to do this on my 25 before 25 list!!!) so that is happening in September and I'm floored.

- Getting more calls/emails about work. (Just had to put that out into the universe. Who knows? It might work!)

- I'm going to be teaching improv and acting this summer, and I am excited for the opportunity to grow as a teaching artist. I want to become better and learn from the kids as much as they will hopefully learn from me. I've already begun to do this with my improv class this semester but I know I am still very green. I fully plan on being a theater teacher down the road and I want to get as much experience as possible. Probably reading some more books probably wouldn't hurt.


Okay. Enough of my blabbering. Here's some photos to update you on the past couple of weeks:

Proof I was on the Rock N Roll Highway.

Shoes I was so close to thrifting. Definite regret.

Another thrift store find I left behind. This stein combines two of my loves, beer and owls. GO TEMPLE!

I did however take home this awesome tin of 70s metal coasters. It's kind of a weird thing to collect, but now I have 2 sets of coasters from that era. (Ignore the fact that I don't actually use them for my drinks)

A lot of times the best part of my day is just hanging out with Sinovia in her office.

This cat ran into the school we were loading into and Garrett had to grab it and take it outside. The cat kept trying to evade him and get in during our load in!

It was cold. Poor Kitteh!

I know New Jersey has farms, but I've never seen this much livestock out in my life in any other state I've travelled to so far. I freak out like a little kid when I see anything with four legs outside the van window.

Passed this little store several times this season while on tour.

Not gonna miss this view. 5 am call time comes very early!

It's cool when your friends let you borrow their dogs. Reminds me of home.

Sunrises and Furry Friends

Howdy! Long due for an update. Two weekends ago Jillian, Garret and I drove to Memphis for UPTA. I felt much more prepared and relaxed than last year and am pretty satisfied with the outcome. I also got to see some beautiful faces from back home. I had a lot of fun but am glad the stressful part is over. Now it's just the waiting game while I have my fingers crossed for some good contracts this next year!!

We've been traveling a lot with the tour and have been having a really good time. We survived our first two show day, so hopefully this marathon of shows starting tomorrow won't be as bad as previously thought. I've also have had a lot of down time to go on adventures around the city! And now, for a slew of photos.

It's UPTA time!

Temple Reunion UPTA style.

So happy the stressful part is over!

I sneakily took this on our way to an early morning call. They are pretty adorbs.

A beautiful view of the sunrise from our van.

Been spending a bunch of time with this little nugget, Ripley.

Finally got to see Adam Faucett and The Tall Grass play. I've been obsessed for months. Sarah, you need to check him out.

Found some awesome stuff in this antique store.

Terrifying, sad doll shoved in a corner. Probably for good reason.

Another pretty sunrise.
 

Met Snap the goat at our last show!!

Feel like Mrs. Doubtfire every day on this tour.

Fort building at 24 is awesome (especially when whiskey and puppies are involved).

Fort Building Team!

Howdy Y'all.

    I know it has been so long since my last blog post and for that I am terribly sorry! I kind of like how I feel responsible now to update this thing. Documenting stuff on here kind of helps me to not lose perspective and to stay positive about all the craziness that a life in theater can provide. So I will attempt to update y'all on what's been happening.

So my last performance of The Three Billy Goats Gruff and The Three Little Pigs came and went. I sincerely LOVED performing this show every day, even though I was extremely exhausted towards the end, both mentally and physically. I guess I wasn't aware of how taxing doing two shows a day and then trying to memorize and rehearse a play where I was required to learn tons of lines and speak in a psuedo-Arkansan accent in less than two weeks would be. (Even typing that sentence was exhausting!) I have been that busy before, but this time around was super stressful because I am the manager for this tour show. Basically the tour manager is the stage manager for the tour show while the production stage manager is busy dealing with the mainstage show going on. I know I can be a leader, but this is a job I never really wanted because I don't like doing a sub-par job and was afraid if I was overloaded that is what would happen. I will admit there were days where I felt distracted with all my responsibilities for the next show while still trying to stay present in a high energy children's play. Lines like "I'll bet you a dollar to a bucket of corncobs.." and "they's and them's and we's...." aren't natural for me and drastically different from how we speak at home so that responsibility weighed on me. And yes, we have "Yooz guys" and "Wooder" but it isn't quite the same. I had some of the worst run-throughs I have done since high school, but during our last one I finally felt everything clicked and I was able to really enjoy the performance and feel what it will be like to perform for kids. We have had three days on the road so far and things have gone pretty darn smooth. Granted, driving three hours each way through the Ozark mountains isn't too much fun, but as much as I am tired, stressed out, and currently writing this with some chest pains, I still absolutely LOVE what I do. I'd much rather feel sick and tired from doing this than from doing anything else. Period. Something about me just turns on when I'm performing and I wouldn't trade that feeling for anything. For now I'm enjoying my day off, breaking in my audition heels while dressed for the gym, and trying to stay thankful, positive, and keep on keepin on.And now for a ton of photos to give you an idea of what's been goin on in mah life!

Dress Rehearsal for The Arkansas Story Porch

Anything to make Sinovia laugh.

Jeremy and I backstage before my last Goat show.

Free hot lunch from an elementary school cafeteria. Cast morale was super high!

View of the Ozark mountains from our drive on tour.

Heather and I at an exhibit opening party at the Arts Center.

Dear God, Please Don't Let My Beard Fall Off

    
    This morning we had our first show for the kiddies! The audience was SO responsive and amazing. They clapped and cheered during every blackout like they were at a rock concert! I was very nervous that my billy-goat beard would fall off, but thankfully it stayed on as long as I needed it to. I've figured out that if I can get through the goat play, I can kind of relax a little bit in the pig play. (If only for the fact that I don't need to worry about fake beards falling off.) I really enjoy playing the Sleepy Pig. I really love Keith's (the playwright's) sense of humor and bringing life to his characters. They are sarcastic and muppet like and it's just an absolute ball to do the show. (I'll let you know if that opinion changes after a few two-show days.) 
    Now that 3LP&3BGG is open, rehearsals have begun for the next touring show, The Arkansas Story Porch. This is another Keith play, but the characters are homesteaders living in the Ozark mountains. The rehearsal period for this show is going to be much shorter than last tour and I have a ton of lines, a lot of which are monologues with lots of odd southern-isms. I'm also the tour manager for this show, so that is a lot of extra work I am not super excited about. But I'm hoping to make this tour as smooth and positive an experience as possible for everyone involved.

Currently: 

Anticipating... Rehearsals for the tour to get going so I can get my bearings with this script. Also anticipating getting my body back into shape with a solid sleep schedule so I can accomplish all of the things I need to these next few months. Also anticipating buckling down and really hitting the gym now that I've joined one!

Reading... The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron. It's helping me get back on track. I wish I had more time to read other things!!!! 

Relieved About... Hmm... This is a tough one. I guess on a deep level I'm relieved that people like my work in this show and still enjoy my company and working with me. When I come up with something less vague than that I'll let ya know.

Watching... I watched Sleepwalk With Me and really enjoyed it. Highly recommended. I've also been watching a lot of reality t.v. , mostly as motivation on the treadmill. Also been watching Girls this season, but am not gonna lie, not really liking where the storyline is heading. When will all the girls be in the same scene again? That'd be nice. Just sayin.

Listening to... The Joy Formidable and The Tallest Man On Earth on Spotify. I love listening to new (or at least new-to-me) stuff. Please share! 

Craving... Some good sleep. Some relaxation. Some focus to get my UPTA package finished and send out some last minute submission packets. Time for the gym. Just time for me, I guess.


Here's some pics from this week:

Tryin to learn a few chords on this here Banjotar for the next show.

A sleepy, sassy pig.

T-Rexified Tony. 

It just kills me how adorable Garrett is with the puppy.d

All the puppies!

Goats and Pigs and Trolls, Oh My!

    So I’ve been back to work for two weeks now and it has been a whirlwind! I get to be back on the Mainstage in The Three Little Pigs & Three Billy Goats Gruff starting next week! Rehearsals are in full swing and we are just getting into tech this weekend. I also taught my first improv class for the kiddies. I have 7 students, all of them female save for one little boy who made it very apparent his love for all things guns/military/violence/etc. Yikes! These kids say some crazy things and I just have to be on my toes so they don’t eat me alive. So far the first class went smoothly, but I know I will lose the attention of these kids fast so I need to have a lot of things planned for just an hour-long class. I also really hope I can impart some portion of my “wisdom” to them through the guise of silly improv games and exercises.

Didn't use this board as much as I thought I was going to. But I did draw them Toast MaGotes.

 Sitting at rehearsal today and watching my castmates really gave me some perspective. These four people are so incredibly talented. They are all smart actors with different strengths that they bring to the show and I have already learned so much from working with them. This is our first show where us young company actors are playing all of the lead roles and carrying the show. I already am just so proud of us. I know we have a long way to go before we open but I already feel like this play is going to be such a great joy to be a part of. I’ve also really enjoyed working with our director. He’s a super laid back dude with a great sense of humor. I hope the kids think I'm funny too!

The set was up and painted and beautiful when I walked into rehearsal tonight!

One of my favorite moments in the show.

So much talent in this Ginger.

Just wanted to add this adorable pic of Charlie. So glad he's back home with Jillian and Garrett!