The Monday Cast

Since neither my double nor I had any conflicts during the run of the show, we decided to pick a random day to switch casts. We both wanted to perform with the others -- we made friends in both casts, and each one has such a different dynamic. It's really fun!

Well, we picked Monday the 8th and Tuesday the 9th to switch. As I drove to the theatre on Monday, I was kind of nervous! It occurred me that most of the people I was close to in the show are in my cast. Of course, as soon as I walked in everyone was completely welcoming. They were all excited to see me there, and to see how the show would be different. I imposed my preferences on them -- my Vadoma is a lot more huggy than Skye's -- and they imposed their charm and talent on me. I hung out backstage with Shauna, Nate, Stormy, and Tara for the most part.

Tara, Shauna, Stormy, and me

The show went by too quickly, and before I knew it, it was over! I was rather bummed that I wouldn't get to perform with them again. At least, not all together like that. Sami, the Monday cast's Allan, gave me a hug and said it had been a pleasure. It was just one of many well-wishes, but I felt so loved and appreciated. To think I'd been nervous!

Well, Wednesday night I had just sat down to dinner at Rodizio Grill for my office party, and I happened to check my phone and found a message. It was Skye. She was having car problems and wasn't sure if her parents would let her borrow their car. She asked if I could do the show. Did I mention it was 6:20 when I saw that message? I kind of flipped out. Not only did I not want to ditch the party, a free meal, my friends at work, and the chance to make my boss look good in front of her boss, but I was not at all sure that I could drive home to pick up my show stuff and get to the theatre in Magna in time for the performance. If I wasn't in the first act it wouldn't have been a problem, but I'm the second character onstage and the first to open her mouth! I told Skye I couldn't do it. I felt guilty, but I knew if I'd tried to make it I would have been stressed, the performance would not have been good, and I would have resented Skye for making me miss my party. I called Skye later that night, and she said she'd been able to borrow her step-dad's car and made it in time. The show was fine, we are still friends, I had a good time at the office party, and all was as it should be. Phew!

So, when at 5:45pm today I saw two messages on my phone -- one from Nolan the director, and one from Skye -- I rolled my eyes. It turned out that not only was the freeway closed up in Lehi where Skye lives, but so was the road that leads to the freeway. Fortunately, all I'd had planned for tonight was Christmas shopping. It was a little hectic driving home from work and then to the theatre. On a good day it would have taken 45 minutes. Because of the snow, it took me and hour and 15 minutes, which was actually about what I expected. I was able to go slow and the roads were not too bad. The funny thing is, at 5pm, a coworker had suggested that if I had the show tonight I should have left then. At the time, the messages were on my machine, but I'd been in a meeting when they called so I had no idea... Oh! The irony!

I arrived at 7pm and discovered I can get ready in 20 minutes -- who knew? It helps that I don't do anything special to my hair. I signed in, did mic check, and saw a whole bunch of people in the cast, so I was quite surprised when Nolan called to see where I was at 7:15. At that point, I was dressed, in make-up, and putting on jewelry in the dressing room. He was in the room just outside and had no idea I was there.

I was thrilled to get to perform with this darling cast again. Such neat people, and I felt like I got to do everything I wanted to. I'm excited to see them perform on Monday -- the show's closing night.

The audiences since Saturday have been awesome! For the first week, we had maybe 80 people in the audience each performance, if we were lucky. Since Saturday, we've had full houses, and they are the kind of audiences that laugh and applaud. If you've ever been in a show, you know that performers feed off of an audience's energy, and if we can tell the audience is having a good time, we can relax and give them an even better show.

Saturday was possibly our best performance so far; we were all focused and everything seemed to go right. We all felt we'd performed a magical show, and then we went outside and it was snowing! It was like the fairy tale we just finished sharing with the audience was just continuing!

However, last night was the funnest show by far. We made all sorts of mistakes and had a few odd problems, but the audience loved us, and we just started goofing off and really having a good time. Not technically our best, but man, we enjoyed being together and appreciated all the whooping from our friends and family! Emily A, Wendi, and Michele S. from work all came. They've been hearing for awhile about how I love to perform, but they had never seen me onstage. I think they were a bit surprised -- they knew I had it in me, but knowing and seeing are two different things -- and I know they had fun. I watched them during the last scene, and they were laughing as hard as anyone (yes, I break the fourth wall all the time. It's a weakness of mine).

Sam, Aubrey, and me

'Twill be fun to perform twice tomorrow. We have a 3pm matinee, and then our closing performance at 7:30pm. It occurs to me that the last time I was double-cast in a show, I ended up doing either 9 or 11 shows in a row. My double got sick. Four shows is nothing. I did that in Birdie and loved every minute of it. I am really excited that a group of my Birdie friends are coming to the show! Nothing better than having some support from people I admire and adore.

And here's a photo of my brother, Aaron, my grandmother, and my mom after the show on Opening Night. You know, that was before the weather suddenly got bitter cold and snowy... Don't we all look fantastic?

Megan in Toyland

And just like that I'm in another show!

Last week when I went to see Seussical at the Empress Theatre, I was talking with Aubrey and Nolan afterwards, and Aubrey commented to Nolan that she thought I would do really well as the lead gypsy in Babes in Toyland. I had learned earlier that Nolan is the artistic director at the Empress, but I didn't know he was directing the Christmas show. I didn't audition a month ago because 1) Christmastime is kind of bad timing because work is going to be stressful up to the January 15th deadline, 2) I wanted to do A Christmas Carol at HCT in spite of the bad timing, and 3) Magna is FAR! Anyway, the way Nolan and Aubrey were talking, I didn't think they were serious so I didn't think much about it, though I was flattered.

Saturday morning, Aubrey called and left a message asking if I was considering the part because apparently Nolan had called some other people who had recommended me, and she thought it would be fun to do a show together. I called her back and then talked to Nolan. It turns out the lead gypsy isn't a terribly large part, but it's an important one. The script they're using is a new one based on the original stories, not necessarily the Disney movie, so my part isn't in the movie. I admit I'm vain enough to want to be a lead, but it's kind of cool this part is smaller, because I'll have fewer rehearsals, and if I need to work backstage during the show (yeah, right, like that will happen), I can. I asked Nolan if I could have until Monday to think about it, and he said that was fine.

So, I thought about it and talked to a few people. I called Nolan on Monday and accepted the part. He told me a bit more about the show and I'm pretty excited! I get to sing, dance, and act, it's not a huge part, everyone is double-cast which gives me even more room to breathe work-wise, and there are a couple of cast members who live in my area who I can carpool with. Score!

I'm in the Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday cast, and the show runs from December 1st through the 22nd; please pencil me into your calendars! My first rehearsal is tomorrow, and I'll have more details about tickets and such when we get closer to opening.

Yay! I'm in a show!

An Adventure in Magna

Last night I saw Seussical the Musical at the Empress Theatre. I have a two friends in it, and since I have missed most of both of their shows in the last 3 years, I decided to make the effort to go.

I left work at about 6pm and grabbed a sandwich at Subway (yum!). I then drove down to Magna and parked at Magna Park, which is just a few blocks away from the theatre, so I could eat and read and have a few moments of quiet before the play. All was well until 7:13pm when I went to turn my car on... and it wouldn't start. The lights came on, there was electronic beeping involved, but no revving, no catching, nothing. Ack! I'm not going to pretend I didn't see it coming -- my car died randomly last week at a traffic light, but managed to start up again after a minute and I haven't had the chance to have it checked out -- but, really? My car waits to die until I drive all the way out to Magna?

Well, I had three options: 1) I could call AAA right away and have them take a look; 2) I could call my dad and take a look; 3) I could go to the play and deal with my car later. I opted to see the play because -- as mentioned before -- I knew it would mean a lot to my friends, and I figured one of them could give me a ride to the park and maybe use jumper cables on it. I knew whatever I chose to do would be inconvenient because, well, are car problems ever convenient? Of course not. That's why they're called problems.

So, I walked to the theatre and ended up sitting next to a creepy and chatty guy who didn't get the hint that I just wanted to read the program and feel sorry for myself. I enjoyed the play very much! I don't think I stopped smiling during the entire first act. The actors were obviously having a great time, the music is wonderful, and the costumes were fun and inventive. It was delightful seeing my friend Aubrey play Miss Gertrude McFuzz. It's her ultimate dream role, and she was gorgeous and hilarious! My other favorite characters were the Sour Kangaroo and the Mayor. Cyndi has such a fantastic, strong voice, and her frown was straight out of a Seuss book. The actor playing the Mayor had a ton of personality and didn't hold anything back! I've seen Seussical a few times, and this was the first time I saw a Mayor I'd actually vote for.

I called home during Intermission to let my parents know what was going on. My dad guessed there might be something wrong with the starter (that was my guess too) and he told me to call him when the play was over so he could come and take a look. And then, when I sat down for Act II, I had a terrible thought: what if my car was stolen or vandalized?! I'd left my stereo and iPod in there. I was pretty sure they were in the glove compartment, but what if they weren't? If someone did break into my car, they could open the glove compartment easily enough anyway. What if I had to buy a new car or repair this one because it was stripped? I spent much of the second act trying to figure out if I can afford a new car. I considered leaving so I could check on it, but by that time it was dark and I really didn't feel safe walking around historic Magna by myself in the dark. I did a lot of praying instead. I managed to pay some attention to and even enjoy the second act. Aubrey completely stole the show because she was so adorable, and I was very impressed by the tap dance number performed in the dark with just black lights illuminating the white gloves the dancers wore.

When the show ended, I called Dad and asked him to pick me up at the theatre so we could drive over to the park together. By that time I was also worried that someone might have locked the park up and towed my car! (I know, I know. If it isn't one thing, it's another.) I got to talk with Aubrey and Nolan and tell them how much I enjoyed the show. Even with all my car issues, I was glad I'd stayed to watch. It had a lot of energy and a good message over all, though if you think about it, the show is a little contraversial. Bullying? Child abandonment? Drugs? Genocide? What are we trying to teach our kids?! Thank goodness it all ends well and everyone learns their lesson. In so many ways, I wish life were more like musical theatre.

Dad picked me up and -- hallejulah!-- we found my car untouched! It still wouldn't start, though. My dad checked a few things and we both realized neither of us had jumper cables. While I was calling Triple A, the park caretaker drove by and my dad explained what was going on. The caretaker left and came back about 10 minutes later with some jumper cables, so we gave that a try. Nothing doing. At that point, he needed to lock up the park, so I called Triple A back to cancel the appointment. The caretaker, Gail (I want to say his name is Gail Weathers, but I think that's only because I saw Scream a few weeks ago; that movie is SCARY!), promised us the car should be safe and he'd open the park again at 7am. Dad drove me home about 11pm.

I got up this morning at 6:30 and Dad picked me up about 7. We drove back to the park, I called Triple A, and then we grabbed breakfast at the drive thru at McDonalds. We arrived back at my car at the same time the tow truck did. It only took 20 minutes for the truck to come! That's got to be some kind of record! I was grateful. The truck took my car to a place my dad recommended in Murray, and Dad dropped me off at work, where I am now.

I'm more than a little nervous about what the problem with my car may be and how much it may cost to fix it, assuming it can be fixed. I really hope it can be! I don't want to have to buy a new car! I do have a little money saved, so I'm hoping at worst I have to put off buying the washer and dryer for my condo.

I guess I'll keep you all posted.