Archive for December, 2009

A Christmas Carol Backstage: The Long Run

Malcolm on 12 16, 2009 | 5 Comments

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I’ve done many lengthy runs of different shows, and the experience varies.  Some shows are simply more demanding than others.  Doing Shakespeare’s A Winter’s Tale eight times a week for weeks on end was difficult physically and emotionally – but ultimately rewarding.  Other shows are such a joy that you don’t notice what you’re putting your body through.

Then there are musicals.

It’s been a while since I’ve done a musical.  I love them, they are what got me started as an actor but I had forgotten how much more energy it takes to do a musical than it takes to do most plays.  This production of A Christmas Carol is not a “let’s all sit on a couch and talk” kind of theatrical experience.  I’m singing while dancing ballet!  And then it’s offstage to change costumes and run back onstage again.  And there’s nothing like it; being able to see the smiles and the tears on the audience’s faces.  You can feel how you’re touching the audience - that for those two hours, we’re all in this experience together.  Rewarding.

One question I always get is “What’s difficult about doing a long

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Opening Night!

Malcolm on 12 14, 2009 | 6 Comments

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After weeks of rehearsing it all comes down to one night: Opening Night.  Often opening day is spent trying to stay calm and conserving energy.  I often pretend to take a nap.  I know I’ll never actually get to sleep, but I always lie down and close my eyes anyway.  Luckily for this production of A Christmas Carol, we had performances leading up to the actual opening, called previews.  At first it’s just a few company members sitting in the house, getting us used to having an audience.  It really helps – you get used to the flow of the show, and learn how demanding it will actually be.  You also learn where people may laugh.  There are always surprises in that department, you recognize jokes and expect laughs in those places, but you never know what an audience will find humorous.  By the time we got to the night before opening, the house was completely sold out!  And there were reporters and other members of the press seeing the show to review it.  It’s great to get some of them there before opening night if at all possible, as it helps take some of the pressure off the opening.  A part of you wishes they would wait a

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