In the Garden!

Once upon a time -- half my life ago (has it been 15 years already?) -- I played a maid in The Secret Garden at the Childrens' Theatre. We had a HUGE cast, and I was in a ton of random scenes as a little blonde maid. The concept of the show was that the household, like the garden, starts drab and gray and then blossoms, so we started the show with tightly-bound hair and no make-up on and totally silent, and by the end we had all fluffed our hair out and put lipstick on and were giggly and silly (backstage we were always giggly and silly -- it was such a fun show!). I think I should find and watch the video of the show. Those were good times.


Anyway, fifteen years later, I get to explore another part of the story! The Childrens' Theatre is doing The Secret Garden again, and I am playing Lilias Craven -- the dead mom whose garden Mary finds and brings back to life, along with all of the people at Misselthwaite Manor (yes, I'm a ghost! *scary* Whooooo!). This isn't the musical version of the play, so my part is pretty small, but since the play opens a week after I close Kiss Me Kate and I have all kinds of rehearsal conflicts, I am not surprised. In fact, I am thrilled! I won't have much stage time, but I absolutely love the character, director, cast, and story. Plus, I'm playing someone everyone loves/loved. It's awesome!

Our director asked us to read the book and come to the first rehearsal with insights into the character. I had seen many movie and play versions of The Secret Garden, but I had never read the original book by Frances Hodgson Burnett! It was amazing to me how closely the play script follows the book; I can go through the scenes and find character motivations for each one. Of course, since my character is dead, most of my insights come from what other characters say and remember about her -- my imagination can take care of the rest.

The cast is full of good friends and I am really looking forward to this experience. It is a smaller, more intimate cast, in this smaller, more intimate theatre, and the director has some really cool ideas. It's going to be a neat show. I love going back to shows I've done and playing other parts! (I've done Brigadoon, Bye Bye Birdie, and Oliver twice, and multiple versions of A Christmas Carol.) This is a great story with so many layers to discover; I am excited!

Goliaths

Above all else, may we ever remember that we do not go forth alone to battle the Goliaths of our lives. As David declared to Israel, so might we echo the knowledge, "The battle is the Lord's, and he will give [Goliath] into our hands" (1 Samuel 17:47).

But the battle must be fought. Victory cannot come by default. So it is in the battles of life. Life will never spread itself in an unobstructed view before us. We must anticipate the approaching forks and turnings in the road. We cannot hope to reach our desired journey's end if we think aimlessly about whether to go east or west. We must make our decisions purposefully. Our most significant opportunities will be found in times of greatest difficulty.

President Thomas S. Monson, "Meeting Your Goliath," New Era, June 2008

Sister Smyth

Yesterday marked my 10 year Anniversary of the beginning of my full-time mission in Phoenix, Arizona for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It's weird to think that whole thing was 10 years ago. It feels really surreal sometimes. Here's the little description I put in my professional resume:

"February 2000 to July 2001 Full-time representative for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: Assisted with humanitarian aid in northern Arizona, developed speaking and presentation skills, and communication and people skills. Trained small groups in communication skills. Learned to organize and prioritize time and resources."

That doesn't even begin to describe all of the people I met, stories I shared and heard, facets of myself I discovered, rollercoaster of emotions I felt, or the relationship I developed with God. Even now, I read through my missionary journals and I can't explain what the whole experience meant to me. I know that it was something I had to do, I know there were specific people I had to meet, and I know that I am who I am today because of all that I learned. (How's that for vague?)

I can't find a photo of myself from the actual day I went into the MTC (my scanner isn't cooperating anyway), but here are a few others.

A photo of my roommates from the semester before my mission. We all sang "I'm Ready Lord" at church the Sunday before I left, and since I left right after Valentine's Day, I talked about God's love for us.

A photo of me at the Jordan River Temple, after having completed my first endowment session. I went through about 10 days before I entered the MTC. (I have been back to this and other temples many, many times since then.)

This is the family photo I carried around for my entire mission (notice how dirty it became). This photo was taken December 1999. By the time I came home, we had welcomed my new sister-in-law into the family, too, rendering this photo out of date :) How I wish I had the patience to let my hair grow this long again!

With Sister C at a 7-Eleven on Bell Road in Phoenix. A few days before I left, I asked my mom if we could stop by 7-Eleven and get a slurpee. She said, "Do you think they won't have slurpees in Arizona?" Sure enough, for the first 15 months of my mission I served in towns small enough they didn't even have a 7-Eleven! When I mentioned this to one of the member families in one of those towns, they offered to drive my companion and I to Phoenix for the next transfer meeting there. The family made sure to stop at this 7-Eleven so I could get my slurpee. The crazy thing? A few months later this 7-Eleven ended up being a part of my last assigned area.

This is at the Salt Lake airport on the day I came home July 2001. Phoenix to Salt Lake -- not very far away, but it was a whole other world and a whole other life for me!

Possible Career Path?

...Perhaps not, but I love this song and the way these kids dance it!

My Valentines

Hope your Valentines Day was as happy as mine, and that your companions were as cute, too!

Another Op'nin, Another Show!

It's here! It's finally here! Opening night of Kiss Me Kate at Rodgers Memorial Theatre! It's been a rough couple of weeks, what with the tech rehearsals, set changes, and new costumes, but we're finally ready to present our product to the world! I hope it's successful. It certainly has been fun!

If you're interested in coming to the show, let me know and I'll send you the dates I am performing. Please visit the Rodgers Memorial website for theatre location and prices (you get a discount if you say you're coming to see me!).

I will say that based on your sensibilities the show probably isn't suitable for kids under 13. It's no naughtier than, say, your average Doris Day movie, but it may be disconcerting that most of the ensemble is dancing in (modest) underwear for most of the second act. We are fully covered and have multiple layers on, but it's still underwear. You have been warned :)

I am so excited to open this show! I am very proud of it and the work that I and all of my cast members have done. It's going to be a good one!