Hedda Status

Last night we ran rehearsal while the light people were messing with things that were broken and not working right. I think they're going to kill each other. I just hope it doesn't happen in the theater. Yellow police tape could add to the mood, but would be rather difficult to walk around in the dark.

We're working on the 2001 details that need to be ironed out: who's going to get the piano music for when I'm supposed to be playing it, we need to paint the blocks the piano is on, there needs to be a bell pull so we can ring for the maid, several more pages of "Lovborg's Big-Ass Manuscript" need to be handwritten, etc., etc., etc.

Meanwhile, I completely mangled the blocking and several lines in Act II and III last night. Not good. Not acceptable. Not cool. I don't want to even go to work today, I'd rather run lines so I'm absolutely sure I won't look like a freaking freaky idiot on Friday. But I can't. 'Cause that whole "paycheck" thing is a tad important. Dammit. And my corset still isn't here even though I paid the three-day shipping fee for it, and I don't have a tracking number yet.

***Deep cleansing breath*** (Dammit)

On the other hand, even when I screwed the crap out of scenes, people were able to pick up and go with it.

There are nice bits emerging that weren't there before. A connection, a sense of really being "on" and "in" the moment. If the rough patches are eliminated, the rest is starting to feel okay.

As for the others: Adam rocks. His scenes are dead-on. It's awesome to watch. Annette has always had the best ability of anyone I know to take an emotional scene and make it real. Not seem real; be real. She's up to refining her approach now, and in my opinion, blows me out of the water. Brian has a good lock uptight/overeducated/slightly befuddled Tesman he's been aiming for. Ellen's Aunt Julia is truly frightening for anyone related to people like that. Trust me. Berta is too small a role for Madonna's talents, of course, so there's really nothing to say there. Of course she has her down cold, there was never an issue about that. But I do wish we could get her a smoke machine. Finally, Greenman's off book for the first half. Better than I am. And he's managing to make Brack quite creepy without breaking the mustache-twirling barrier. The last scene is going to be very chilling.

We open when????

UPDATE:

Yes, I'll stop freaking now.

And I'm going to drop by home on my way to rehearsal - I just got an email from the lingerie people with the tracking numer, and it looks like I might have my corset.

Woo hoo!!