2009 - Year in Review

This is a little bit late, but here it is anyway. 2009: A Year in Review (and in pictures)!

January -March: COMPANY

Role: Amy

Company: Music Theatre of Denton

March - May: CRAZY FOR YOU

Role: Irene Roth

Company: Music Theatre of Denton

June: DON'T DRESS FOR DINNER

Role: Assistant Stage Manager

Company: Denton Community Theatre

June: ENCORE II: CALLBACKS
Role: Performer
Company: Denton Community Theatre

June - August: SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS
Role: Milly
Company: Denton Community Theatre

Let's not forget Pottygate 2009:

In October, I trashed my wedding dress with my wedding photographer, Lynn Michelle, and we ended up on a nationally televised segment of The Today Show:

Screen shots:

Video on YouTube of segment:

Photo Evidence:

October: CHICAGO
Role: Matron "Mama" Morton
Company: Music Theatre of Denton

October-November: TALKING OF MICHELANGELO
Role: Dayna
Company: Fight Boy Theatre

December: A TUNA CHRISTMAS
Role: Assistant Stage Manager
Company: Denton Community Theatre

December: One for Mahler (a musical cabaret)
Role: Founder and Performer
TWITA (This Week in the Arts) Podcast & Interview Here

I also wrote the following reviews for John Garcia's THE COLUMN:

Oliver! (Theatre Coppell)

The Spitfire Grill (Stage West)

Man of La Mancha (OnStage in Bedford)

My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra (Rover Dramawerks)

Funny Girl (Lyric Stage)

Christmas My Way (Garland Civic Theatre)

A Christmas Survival Guide (Runway Theatre)

I unofficially wrote my thoughts on these shows, as well:

Carousel (Denton Community Theatre)

A Feminine Ending (Water Tower Theatre)

Evil Dead: The Musical (Level Ground Arts)

Crushing Grain (Level Ground Arts)

*****

Whew!! No wonder I was so exhausted at the end of 2009! But what an AMAZING and successful year! Here's to even more fun in 2010! Happy New Year!

Getting Married Today

A clip from our production of Company:

Company rehearsal, Feb 3, 2009

An excerpt from my journal during the rehearsal process for Company:

Tonight at rehearsal, we finally got to the big Amy/Paul/Bobby scene at the end of Act I. Running "Getting Married Today" in the actual scene and not just standing at the piano was a real eye-opener. I forgot to take the big breaths necessary to sustain me through the entire verse, and my voice was struggling through what's left of a cold as well. Yikes. However, the entire cast was really supportive and encouraging, which is par for the course with this group. There's a lot of trust and companionship between all the cast members, which I think is really necessary in this type of show. It's an ensemble piece, with every role playing equally important to the next. I love shows like this for that very reason. There is no segregation between "leads" and "chorus" and there are no temper tantrums or dirty diva attitudes. I think most of that is also due to the maturity level required to really play each relationship on stage the way it was intended.

ANYWAY, back to the scene we ran tonight. It's a real emotional roller coaster of a scene for me because Amy is having a minor meltdown. I'm wrestling between trying to find a "back story" and a motivation behind what she is saying and doing, and just reading the lines my way and trusting them as written -- simply letting George Furth's script come through. I mean, I AM making choices and educated decisions, both with the help of the director and discussions with Michael (Paul) and Tyler (Bobby) during any down time we get during rehearsal.

I think we got things off on the right food tonight, for sure. We made a lot of progress, even for two very shaky runs through it as we try to get off book and get scripts out of our hands. What I didn't realize would be so tough, though, is working directly opposite my husband. On one hand, sometimes it's hard to keep a straight face and take each other seriously. On the other, the very nature of the scene and the lines really break my heart. I was brought to actual tears tonight at one point, which, while a bit distracting to me, probably actually added to the scene in a good way. And while I'm reeling from that, there's still what I consider to be the second-most poignant moment in the whole show -- Amy's moment with Bobby. I love Tyler and respect him so much as a friend and a fellow actor that I truly treasure this moment on stage!

While it's in my nature to step back and immediately begin cataloguing all the things I need to fix, I truly am very happy with the progress we're making. It's my hope that these onstage relationship continue to grow and develop as this process continues.

Wow, it was fun to re-read and post that! I definitely hope to post more of these, and to continue to keep journals during the rehearsal process of pieces that I work on.

Pictures* from "Company" - Finally!

Getting ready backstage...getting our hair "did."

The amazing Lauren, sound technician, handing out our microphones in the dressing room.

Beautiful Rachel (Marta) getting ready.

I love this picture! Front and back of the hairdo. Wish Nathan would do my hair every day!

"The Little Things You Do Together"

"Have I Got a Girl For You!"

Jenny (Olivia Norine), David (Rob Stadt) and Bobby (Tyler Donahue)

"You Could Drive a Person Crazy" -- Marta (Rachel Robertson), Kathy (Kathryn Murphy) and April (Amy Wells)

"Getting Married Today" -- Amy (Mandy Rausch)

"Side by Side/What Would We Do Without You" -- Company

"Ladies Who Lunch" -- Joanne (Shelby Johnson)

"Being Alive" -- Bobby (Tyler Donahue)

The cast and production team! What a fun show!

*All photos courtesy of Eagleton Photography