I've been performing CARMEN at night and rehearsing (and sometimes performing) HMS PINAFORE during the day. I've hardly had a second to myself to clean or cook or properly feed myself - or even say hi to my non-amore opera friends. But the past two weeks have also been two of the most ridiculously satisfying and rewarding of my performing life.
First of all, everyone keeps coming up to me telling me how I "stand out" in the chorus. Well - I could have told you that. It is my greatest blessing and biggest curse. Makes me very hard to cast - but when cast - I get awesome parts. It's still wonderful to have people come up to you after each show and tell you that your acting is just stupendous and your high Cs are gorgeous. That at every moment on stage - you are completely engaged and engaging. I know that I'm doing my work and it's thrilling.
Secondly, I had a voice lesson with Mary. I took my role in Pinafore to her, and my role is actually quite small. I have a total of two speaking lines, and maybe 8 lines of singing. (or heck - let's make is 16 bars of singing - what you would get at most non-equity auditions.) No arias or anything. The director told me the character was supposed to be snooty stick up her butt prim and proper matronly character who turns into an S&M vixen with her two lines at the end. Wait...I play PRINCESSES. Let's be very clear about that. PRINCESSES! FAIRIES! things with GLITTER! Young innocent teenaged girls who dance ballet. No stick up the butt S&M vixens. So I went to Mary and said HELP! And she helped. And I went to rehearsal, and now I apparently steal the show. Everyone just cracks up at everything I do, and people who performed with D'Oyley Cart (The RSC equivalent of Gilbert and Sullivan) tell me I'm am hysterical and need to do Offenbach operettas. Apparently Offenbach wrote these operettas for a girl who was a soprano but got cast as mezzos - apparently looked somewhat "peruvian," was funny, and could dance very well. Ummmm - MEEEEE!!!!!!!! But I also think its hysterical that I'm stealing the show as Cousin Hebe - I'm not sure that has ever happened in the history of the production - and the director came up and hugged me and said he was convinced I could act any role at any time. Tres interessant.
And I must say - that is the greatest thing about doing Carmen and Pinafore. I've had the freedom to explore my acting without having any pressures of being "the lead." And - not a single one of my characters is the slightest bit princessy. I'm a mean feisty street fighting girl who works in a cigarette factory, a Spanish bar maid, an earthy gypsy smuggling contraband through the mountains, and a spectator at a toreodor match. Oh - yeah - and a stick up the butt matron turned S&M vixen. And I feel like I've gained back something I had lost - or had been buried underneath insecurities etc... my "it' factor - the thing I had as a junior camper at Interlochen that let me be cast as Little Moon. The pure JOY of performing - none of the trepidations of "don't let me mess up" or "PLEASE LET ME GOOD." Just being up there and having FUN. Creating a world and living in it. And SINGING THOSE HIGH NOTES LOUD AND PROUD!
I've also met so many wonderful people. People who have seen MYSTERY MEN people who READ THE NEWS and listen to podcasts - heck - one of our leads studied cosmology in college and we can have astronomical discussions - one of the girls is reading Tina Fey's autobiography so we can compare notes, they introduce me to all the opera singers and songs I should know, I help them learn about Musical Theatre (where they all want to go since it is actually possible to GET PAID - as far as I can tell - no one actually pays you to do opera unless you are at the Met. It's quite depressing actually. And makes me thankful for AEA as frustrating as it can be.)
I have a week more. I hope I continue to enjoy it as much as I have the past two weeks. 6 more CARMENS one more PINAFORE. Here's to good shows for all!
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