Friday, November 03, 2006
A PERFECT GATHERING
And so it was: Doug Sills, Jen Gambese, Mary Stout, Gerry Vichy, Beth Leavel, Brad Oscar, Alan Muraoka, Lynn Ahrens, Steve Flaherty, David Holcenberg, and so many gifted others...there we all were, sitting around some put-together tables on the 7th floor of the Dramatists Guild on Broadway, and we were all in totally creative work and rehearsal mode...the entire process was, in fact, process oriented, so there were no nerves, no having to prove anything, no tacit assumptions that this was any sort of audition for anyone or anything...in fact, when we did the final read-through, there were no other people in the room, except for Steve's significant other, whose opinion he respects...we were each others' audience from beginning to end, and we watched as we each became familiar and comfortable with the pages in front of us...it was so respectful, so truly creative.
As a result, the new work on the show got a good showing and we all had a really good time. It was so easy and congenial, Lynn even felt okay about giving me an entire new verse of Belle's song to try right before we began...she wanted to spring it on her co-workers as a surprise, and the lyrics were so clever and helped further the character so much, that it was a hit: sort of like a mini-opening, of at least some new lyrics...exciting and fun...that's how much we all trusted each other. That was nice. I truly loved sitting next to Doug Sills, who is so handsome and sexy and has such a great spirit and singing voice...he was delectable as "Alan Swann"...truly. And such a nice guy!
I'm so glad that Lynn A. asked me to be a part of that process.
Last night, I went down to NYU to work with some students on a recital I promised I would help with, and that was fun too! It's Stephanie Barnum's Senior Recital and she is so beautifully voiced and such a good actress...I discovered that when I saw her in John Simpkins' production of URINETOWN at NYU...John got wonderful work out of her in the role of young romantic lead, and I walked away from that fabulous production impressed by her skills ...she has put a section into her recital (as they are all required to do I think) from an American Musical and she chose WEST SIDE STORY, so we are working on scenes from that, and she has chosen such talented classmates to help her! We worked for several hours and made some good progress...her recital is on November 11th. This is fun, to watch these students grow so beautifully, and to be able to help them in any way.
Our Dining Room renovation is underway and we feel so good about it: fresh plaster and new paint do wonders....(that reminds me: I have to get a manicure and pedicure soon!) The walss will soon be a beautiful ruby red color, and when we find the right ceiling light, it will be a peaceful and elegant room. Perfect for Thanksgiving!
As a result, the new work on the show got a good showing and we all had a really good time. It was so easy and congenial, Lynn even felt okay about giving me an entire new verse of Belle's song to try right before we began...she wanted to spring it on her co-workers as a surprise, and the lyrics were so clever and helped further the character so much, that it was a hit: sort of like a mini-opening, of at least some new lyrics...exciting and fun...that's how much we all trusted each other. That was nice. I truly loved sitting next to Doug Sills, who is so handsome and sexy and has such a great spirit and singing voice...he was delectable as "Alan Swann"...truly. And such a nice guy!
I'm so glad that Lynn A. asked me to be a part of that process.
Last night, I went down to NYU to work with some students on a recital I promised I would help with, and that was fun too! It's Stephanie Barnum's Senior Recital and she is so beautifully voiced and such a good actress...I discovered that when I saw her in John Simpkins' production of URINETOWN at NYU...John got wonderful work out of her in the role of young romantic lead, and I walked away from that fabulous production impressed by her skills ...she has put a section into her recital (as they are all required to do I think) from an American Musical and she chose WEST SIDE STORY, so we are working on scenes from that, and she has chosen such talented classmates to help her! We worked for several hours and made some good progress...her recital is on November 11th. This is fun, to watch these students grow so beautifully, and to be able to help them in any way.
Our Dining Room renovation is underway and we feel so good about it: fresh plaster and new paint do wonders....(that reminds me: I have to get a manicure and pedicure soon!) The walss will soon be a beautiful ruby red color, and when we find the right ceiling light, it will be a peaceful and elegant room. Perfect for Thanksgiving!
Post a Comment