Kicking off the second quarter

October kicks of the the second quarter of our fiscal year and it has started at full speed. This week has been non stop. From wrapping up Secret Life of Girls and the Trolley Tours last weekend we have been on the run all week. Rehearsals are going on for the City Mouse and the Country Mouse Story Theatre Tour which goes out November 2, Reunion at Hippie High which is the Murder for Hire troupe putting on a performance for Caldwell County High School Junior Class fundraiser on Oct. 24, the walking Ghost Tours which are this weekend, and Tom Dick and Harry which opens 3 weeks from today.

Last night at rehearsal for Tom Dick and Harry we unfortunately had to replace one of the actresses. She is going through some difficult family issues and it was in her best interest and that of the the family for her to drop out. What is most important in everything we do is the health and well being the people involved.

After rehearsal last night I contacted Maria Miller who just finished the Secret Life of Girls to step into the role. I dropped off a script at her home about 9:30 last night and she will be at rehearsal tonight for a review of Act Two and then tomorrow night for a run through of the entire show. Maria is then off with her family for 4 days on Fall Break. The character she will play only speaks Albanian. So Maria will be studying her lines will lying on a beach and when she gets back she will have just 2 weeks to prepare for opening. I'm confident in her abilities to do a great job. Last night we finished blocking the show. That means that all of the performers now know where to stand, sit, and what part of the stage to move to on their lines. Blocking a farce comedy is like a giant crossword puzzle. Each person has to be at certain spots in order to see or not see what is happening in the scene. In addition characters have to enter and exit room at exactly the right time in order to keep the comedy at a heightened level. Some people love farces because the action and the pace are so fast that it leaves you almost breathless. Farces are about action and that means lots of movement. My armchair definition of a farce is a room with 6 doors. Tom Dick and Harry has 5 doors and a window and all are used for entrances and exits. Jim and I went to the warehouse yesterday and brought back several door frames and wall units to start building the set. We should have the basic structure up by this weekend and then there is a lot of finish work to do. We also brought back the bench seats for the theatre van to take the Murder Mystery Cast to Caldwell County on the 24th. Those have to get removed again to put in the set for the Story theatre show to go out 1 week later. A lot of the time at the theatre is spent moving equipment from one building to another and then moving it back. An example is the lighting for Secret Life of Girls. A large part of the lighting instruments are used in the main theatre. We have to un-cable the lights and take them down and re-hang and focus them for the studio show and then un-cable, take them down and re-hang and focus them back on the mainstage for the next show over there.

April just completed the performances of the Gifted and Talented show she directed at Lone Oak Elementary. Technical Director Jim Keeney made her a portable masking unit for her to be able to hide the kids behind at the sides of the performance space. The gifted talented shows often perform in the library in a space where there are no "wings" or side areas masked off from the audience. We've used large 4x8 foot flat walls in the past, but they were difficult for April to transport and manage by herself. The new masking set up more like the fabric panel dividers that you would find at a convention or expo center to separate exhibits. We used some of old drapes that were donated by the community college when they purchased new drapes a few seasons ago.

The Curtain Call fundraiser committee met last night to continue its planning for next the auction event next March. Melisa Mast, Valerie Pollard, and Renie Barger are heading up the committee. Melisa has been working on the business campaign and has some great ideas. We also did brainstorming last night on some of the auction packages including a couple of adult Prince and Princess parties. The auction is really shaping up to be lots of fun and those that attend will also be able to bid on roles in CINDERELLA for a one night only performance. The wicked stepsisters and a couple of other fun roles like the mice who help Cinderella and some of the princesses that the prince has to dance with at the ball will be up for auction. These are all great cameo roles.

Cindy Miller has been hard at work on the Annual Fund Drive campaign that will kick off the week after Fall Break. We are moving the annual campaign into the first part of our fiscal year in order to do a better job of managing the funds from this campaign. This is going to be a long month.

So far all of the the shows and events this season have made their budgeted goals. The first quarter has been very successful for the theatre and the second quarter is looking good as well.