So, my rough sketch of the play casts the story in a comical light, but this piece is really not satire at all. Please, please, PLEASE don’t poo-poo the play just because of patricide! It’s really not about that. Synge paints beautifully endearing characters full of life and poetry –especially Christy. More than patricide, it’s a play about love, mirth, loyalty, and identity.
I am so excited to be serving as an assistant stage manager for this production. The rough months of last semester I painstakingly wrote about are behind me. I am jumping into the fall with a new outlook and revived motivation. I know what I am doing. I have no doubts about my role as ASM here at Hope. The routine is old-hat by now. I am also focusing on flexibility – fitting into the mold of a role; becoming the employee, team member, partner (or what have you) I need to be in any given circumstance. Jumping up and saying, “OK! I’m here! What do you need of me? I’ll do it. I’m up for anything.” Being open and available. Saying yes.
The production is a phenomenal platform to test my re-found confidence. For one, our stage management team ROCKS! My dutiful SM is one of my close friends I met just before our freshmen year – Dylan. He’s a fantastic and efficient stage manager. The two of us haven’t had a chance to work together yet, and we were so excited when we found out that we get to play together this year. When rehearsals began, we clicked into rhythm beautifully. We play off each other, bounce ideas back and forth, and can predict the other’s next move. His role as SM and my role as ASM are expected, assumed, and delivered without question (we have both stage managed before and I made it clear at our preshow meeting that I did not want to step on his toes, and he had license to smack me if I overstepped his authority). My fellow ASM is a freshman named Aaron, and he’s the bomb! He’s a fast learner, has good humor, and is incredibly eager to learn the ins and outs and offer his services. I also am privileged to be working with the theatre department’s newest faculty member – Richard Perez. He is now our new managing director at Hope Summer Rep and one of Hope’s newest professors, teaching the Directing I class (which I am currently taking!). As a long-term artist in the professional theatre scenes of New York City, Bloomington, and Chicago, Rich has a wealth of knowledge for us up-and-comings. When I began working for him over the summer, he became a great support for me and encouraged me to set my trajectory on the right path for the coming academic year – to stay positive. In the past month, I’ve told so many of my peers that I owe a lot to Rich for helping me shape my new attitude this semester. As I keep learning from him, I’ll probably just owe him more! Working with Rich, I am learning, along with the cast, to focus on specificity, deliberateness, intuition, and exploration. Each one of his students is encouraged to take risks and challenge themselves to exceed their best efforts.
One of my favorite lines in Playboy is, “a daring fellow is the jewel of the world.” I took that quote to heart as the summer closed. For many, the fall is dreary; doors are shut, and everything is cold and dying. But for me, this fall means new beginnings, rejuvenated motivation, and an exciting adventure. What’s past is past. I have nothing to prove to anyone except myself. So, why not take a risk? Go big or go home! It all starts now.
I am so excited to be serving as an assistant stage manager for this production. The rough months of last semester I painstakingly wrote about are behind me. I am jumping into the fall with a new outlook and revived motivation. I know what I am doing. I have no doubts about my role as ASM here at Hope. The routine is old-hat by now. I am also focusing on flexibility – fitting into the mold of a role; becoming the employee, team member, partner (or what have you) I need to be in any given circumstance. Jumping up and saying, “OK! I’m here! What do you need of me? I’ll do it. I’m up for anything.” Being open and available. Saying yes.
The production is a phenomenal platform to test my re-found confidence. For one, our stage management team ROCKS! My dutiful SM is one of my close friends I met just before our freshmen year – Dylan. He’s a fantastic and efficient stage manager. The two of us haven’t had a chance to work together yet, and we were so excited when we found out that we get to play together this year. When rehearsals began, we clicked into rhythm beautifully. We play off each other, bounce ideas back and forth, and can predict the other’s next move. His role as SM and my role as ASM are expected, assumed, and delivered without question (we have both stage managed before and I made it clear at our preshow meeting that I did not want to step on his toes, and he had license to smack me if I overstepped his authority). My fellow ASM is a freshman named Aaron, and he’s the bomb! He’s a fast learner, has good humor, and is incredibly eager to learn the ins and outs and offer his services. I also am privileged to be working with the theatre department’s newest faculty member – Richard Perez. He is now our new managing director at Hope Summer Rep and one of Hope’s newest professors, teaching the Directing I class (which I am currently taking!). As a long-term artist in the professional theatre scenes of New York City, Bloomington, and Chicago, Rich has a wealth of knowledge for us up-and-comings. When I began working for him over the summer, he became a great support for me and encouraged me to set my trajectory on the right path for the coming academic year – to stay positive. In the past month, I’ve told so many of my peers that I owe a lot to Rich for helping me shape my new attitude this semester. As I keep learning from him, I’ll probably just owe him more! Working with Rich, I am learning, along with the cast, to focus on specificity, deliberateness, intuition, and exploration. Each one of his students is encouraged to take risks and challenge themselves to exceed their best efforts.
One of my favorite lines in Playboy is, “a daring fellow is the jewel of the world.” I took that quote to heart as the summer closed. For many, the fall is dreary; doors are shut, and everything is cold and dying. But for me, this fall means new beginnings, rejuvenated motivation, and an exciting adventure. What’s past is past. I have nothing to prove to anyone except myself. So, why not take a risk? Go big or go home! It all starts now.
