The last week: reflection on a mini-adventure

Here it is: the Sunday before the last week of my time here at summer stock. I think I've done alright. I am happy with what I've gleaned from these weeks here. I've decided I should write down all the things I've learned so I don't just go back and do things wrong or change the things I've been doing right for the next time around.

Positive Attitude. 
Simple and something I've heard over and over again growing up, but man oh days is it effective.  I was so much happier and efficient at work (i.e. rehearsals) when I jumped into with no scoffs or rolling of the eyes (yes mom, rolling of the eyes).

Love of all.
Similar to having a positive attitude: having a positive outlook on the people you work with.  Every person I worked with this summer was great. But there were some who did not see the good in a lot of them, or they just chose to look past it at all the faults.   How can I work alongside you if A. I think you're stupid, or B. I know that you think I'M stupid? Best to just chose to not see the worst in everyone, even if they never did get their lines right.

You can't please everyone.
But you can sure try.

Apply, Apply, Apply.
This is the reason you spent $80,000 on your education.  Unless spending that much money you don't have gives you joy.  I found most of the things I did instinctively were the things I learned in High School from Talashia K-Yoder.  The college stuff I had to purposefully apply.  This also is closely related to Know your old habits and Constantly reevaluate your art. 

Give.
No matter how hard I was working at my own character, or lines, or projection, I had to give to the others on stage.  This company also liked the actor to give to the audience by turning out and speaking very clearly: a good tool to helping the audience understand, but not nearly as effective as fully committing yourself to everyone in the room. If I wanted to really know what my fellow actor was saying, the audience would be right there listening intently as well.

Time: an inexplicable concept

Well, here I am again scolding myself for not writing enough.

The opening of the last show of the season was this past weekend. It was a good weekend for me-I really enjoy the show, I was pleasantly surprised by a number of my friends and family who came, and I am beginning to realize my time here is dwindling.

With the show opened and the fact that I'm only called in during the day once or twice a week, it gives me much time to do...whatever.  Yesterday a few of us went downtown Indy and wandered around, shopped, ate, and watched the new Batman movie.  It was a great escape from itty bitty Frankfort and I realized that I missed being in a big city.  Along with escapades and vacation days, I'm starting to look ahead to the future more and what I need to accomplish.  Goshen College's fall mainstage is Urinetown and I'll be doing my Senior project with that show.  So I'm doing a lot of the production work in these weeks leading to auditions for that (it still seems like ages away). I am looking for jobs that pay me as well.  January still looks scary as I  currently have no assigned job yet, but I have options, and I have ideas, which is a better place than I was in earlier this summer.

So here I am: scrambling to get a whole bunch of things done in time for fall, but still wanting to soak it all in.