Impossible Mystery--Opening Night

I made up my mind last night that I was going to be very low key today. For me, organizing things, cleaning house, baking things helps. I get all domestic when I need to chill out. I like order and my house is a good place to start.

So today I made a starter for sourdough bread. At first I thought I could just bake the bread today and when I found out it had to sit for a whole night I was a little bummed. But then I pulled out my box of peaches and made 8 pints of jam. There. How's that for creativity and domesticity?

I walked my dogs in sprinkling weather. I avoided doing any business, though I could have done a few things. I didn't want to be muddled. After last night's mess, I knew I needed to stay focused on being calm and controlled, not harried and complicated. I got things ready for the show--namely, my own pair of black pants to wear under my Japanese robe when I play Oba San. Last night, the pants that came with my costume fell down to my hips. Oba San started looking suspiciously gang banger. Not a good look!

I felt fuzzy--PTSD fuzzy. Opening night for Hairspray I had felt horrible--like I was walking on marshmallows. I was so worried I'd puke onstage. Not that I felt sick. I think I was just imagining the very worst thing that could happen to a person in front of hundreds of people, and that would be puking. I realized by Night Two of Hairspray that a little Xanax takes the panic of barfing right away. So tonight, when I started feeling all floaty and fuzzy, I took some Xanax. It didn't help. I took more. (And be clear here--my doses are miniscule bits off of a pill. I am not downing pill after pill.)

I went to pick up the cookies Macey's donated (adorable sugar cookies with white frosting and a question mark), came home, put on my make up including false eyelashes. (I love false eyelashes.) I toyed with the idea of trying to 40s up my hair, but the fuzzy feeling persisted. Caden went through my lines with me AGAIN, and off we went to opening night.

By the time I got to the theater, I started feeling normal. I started looking forward to the performance. Here's what happened:

1. I broke the glass I was holding in the Highlight Club scene. This is after another glass fell off one of the table and smashed, with sound effects from behind the curtain. My glass only went into two pieces and Caden helped me rectify it. Note to self: Don't pick up anything that is glass. 
2. I blew one line in the Japanese scene. I fixed it but it flustered me slightly. Then I had to fix part of the whole scene because the lead in that scene keeps dropping lines. I got a little freaked and in my head it was like (really, this is what it felt like) Gah--what do I do now? I don't know that I fixed it perfectly, but I did fix it and didn't think I could do that. Yeah me!
3. I am supposed to bang a big metal gong. I banged it so hard the banger thing came off of the string it was tied to. No I didn't technically break it, but it was a little freaky that I had been in two scenes and two things broke. 
4. The fireplace in the mansion scene fell over. I had nothing to do with it! So ha. Things happen to other people, too! I guess it wasn't tragic as it's a scene that has ghosts. Maybe the audience thought the ghosts were supposed to knock over the fireplace.
5. My final scene that has me as an English Society lady, Lady Chattaway, is my favorite scene and one I completely screwed up last night. But--drum roll--tonight it was flawless! And super fun! I heard afterward that the audience, all 20 or so people, really liked we three silly ladies.

I consider this a successful opening night. A few more things:

1. There are no divas in this show. This makes the energy so much more level, pleasurable, and consistent. There is no drama. 
2. Everyone is working hard in this show. Though it doesn't seem like work, I can feel it. Like we are all part of a whole, working for one purpose. I guess that goes back to the lack of diva thing. We all want the same thing--a good show.
3. Though I have laughingly said in the past few weeks, I don't care what happens in the show as long as I look good, that wasn't me being a diva. What I meant was, please God, don't let me look like an ass. This has now changed to, please, let me contribute to and not detract from a good production.

I am sad that we only have two more shows because I think all the bugs will be worked out by the time our run is over. That being said, I think this is a lovely, successful, sincere beginning to a group that plans on putting on shows in the month of October every year during Spanish Fork's Harvest Moon Hurrah celebration. How honored I am to be a part of this!

http://www.spanishfork.org/dept/parkrec/arts/hurrah.php
Keep playing!