Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Go Team MASC!

I mentioned earlier that I was impressed by the teamwork this cast has demonstrated. I would like to elaborate on that, if I may. (Knowing that only Justin and Karla can stop me, bwah ha ha!)

As Jason said, theatre is a team effort. It doesn't matter how well you know your own lines if the next person doesn't know their own. You just have to be able to roll with what you have. I remember drawing a blank onstage during As You Like It, and being very impressed by the way Karla covered it.

A few people have come up to me to run lines, and that is always encouraging. It was especially nice when you consider that it started 2 weeks ago. Angie always seems to be one of the first ones off-book, but it was a bit of a race this year.

Not only does running lines with each other mean that we remember them, but it helps us understand the context of the words. Kayla came to me just last night, and I explained one of the words she was mispronouncing, along with its meaning.

Which reminds me: as an English major, I have a tendency to correct people's pronunciation. I mean to help, but it often makes me come off as a know-it-all. If I have come off that way in this show, nobody has said anything, or indicated that they were unhappy with it. I have seen almost no negativity between the cast members at all.

But the show isn't all about acting. Another impressive sight from last night was the speed with which the set was taken down and put away. By the time I went backstage to change my shirt and got back onstage, almost everything was completed. This is in no small part thanks to Mike Hulsizer, our resident sound and light wizard. But I am fairly certain I saw everybody chipping in to make it go faster.

We have also had a lot of people pitch in props and equipment. I do not know how my costume changes will go quite yet, as we changed something last night. But it looks like I will have three shirts from three different cast members. One is from my closet, one from Jason's, and one from Justin's. Although, as noted in other posts, we purchased costumes for the show this year, people are still bringing in their own costume pieces to contribute.

The fairies are doing quite well, and I know that they were recruited by our own cast members. Thank you for that, ladies and gentlemen.

Kate and Brian-Paco each told me about the events of this weekend, as a wedding was held in the park without our knowledge. I am impressed that the people present were able to be diplomatic enough to avoid anything negative coming from it. I was also impressed that from the way it was told, the first people on the scene were cast members, arriving singly. That, my friends, is dedication.

Last but certainly not least, I noticed that a number of actors helping Justin change scenes last night. It's just another example of everybody finding out what has to be done and making sure it gets done.

I have to go for now, but I will see you all tonight. Until then, enjoy your day.

-Jim, our own Fenton

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