2/26/14, Day 13,790: Have Another with Alisha, Mariah, Aja and Jason
This day is so named for Flux’s Have Another #12, which was beautifully led by Alisha Spielmann and featured some great scenes by Mariah MacCarthy, Aja Houston and Jason Tseng. I had to leave halfway through for rehearsal for Blood Brothers, which began my descent (ascent?) into a mostly bissful exhaustion that carried through the next three days. (G train, thy name is sleep deprivation).
This was also a day I had great planning conversation with an old friend about the Theatre | Technology arc for TCG’s National Conference, and a productive brainstorming session about the future of ARTSEARCH. In fact, in spite of my exhaustion, this was also a super-productive week for me at TCG, with break-throughs in several major projects.
2/27/14, Day 13,791: Blood Brothers Opens
This day is so named because we opened The Blood Brothers present…Bedlam Nightmares: Strapped In. I was mostly happy with my work: The role of Edmond involves four scenes, one of which is so funny I just have to stay out of my own way, two monologues with unique challenges, and one big scene between myself and (super scene partner) Matthew Trumbull that has fascinating arc of shifting intention and discovery. The key has been using the second monologue as a running start to jump into the final scene; if I hit the former right, the momentum carries me through the latter. This leaves the opening monologue as the part I’m still wrestling with the most, as I try to navigate how much of that speech is planned, and how much is improvised on the spot. The more I move towards a mostly improvised speech, the better it feels. Two more chances to explore it tonight!
I also realized that between The Life of Things and my Orderly role in the interstitial scenes, I’ve now acted in a Nat Cassidy and a Mac Rogers play. Two rare birds, one stone.
2/28/14, Day 13,792: A Great Day for Blood Brothers (Let’s Play Two)
This day is so named because we had a double-header of The Blood Brothers Presents… These past three days, I haven’t been able to do much else other than work at TCG, prep Have Another and rehearse/act in Blood Brothers, but I know going in some things would be lost by saying yes to these roles. Today is hopefully the star of getting back on my usual track.
Technique never stands still: it only advances or retreats…
Writing: 51 out of 61 days (Angel Juice)
Spanish: 51 out of 61 days
What small things did I do the past three days to help build the Honeycomb?
(And what does it mean to “Help build the honeycomb?”)
- Rehearsed and performed in The Blood Brothers Presents…;
- Asked Tom Vilsack to delay the cut in food stamps;
- Helped facilitate Flux’s Have Another #12;
- Signed another petition in support of ending the use of gillnets;
- For TCG, shared the exciting news that Taylor Mac will be a speaker at the Conference; and a series of great posts from Cornerstone Theater Company, Portland Center Stage, Paula Cizmar, Julie Henrikkus;
- Signed yet another petition for stopping the Keystone Pipeline;
- Ate vegetarian, but was only able to cook my own meals one out of the last three days because of the show(s);
Corinna Schulenburg 