A little "WHtM" Update...

The day is getting closer. Rehearsals are soon to start. And "Whatever Happened to Me" will soon see an audience!

Our first rehearsal is Sunday, June 8. It's actually a "read-through", which is kind of funny since the cast has had their scripts for a week now and should already be familiar with them.

But just because rehearsals don't start until Sunday, don't think I haven't been a beehive of activity.

Casting...

I've already met with all of my cast members and, barring any people suddenly leaving the show, it looks like we have a good cast.

My only source of panic right now is Tim Clostio. (Yes, Tim. It's public chastisement time.) Tim is playing the Heckler and he has yet to call me back to confirm he can do it... and he said he'd call by Thursday. That was yesterday and now I'm starting to panic. If I don't hear from him soon, I'm driving down to San Diego and killing him!

Props, etc...

I've been working on getting all the props together. This show is going to have in excess of 20 props. Over 20 props for a staged reading? Think I'm getting a little ambitious? But the way I've worked these out, it shouldn't be a burden on the actors. Most of the props are set dressing, only used for a few minutes. (Two props - a couple of big pillows - are being included to save a couple of actor's butts...)

PR...

Creating a flyer for the show has been no problem. It reads:

His wife has left him, his father is a stranger, and now James Newman has a new roommate - his 21-year old self...
Whatever Happened to Me?
This Father's Day, the future lies in the past...

Catchy, ain't it?

Now, I've already included Tim in the cast list... so he'd better do this!!!!! (Yes. I'm freaking out a little.)

Blocking...

I've been working on the blocking all week long. I'm trying to keep it simple (the old "KISS" rule) but there are times when I get... a bit... wild.

See, here's the thing. The last show I directed was "Improvisation", a farce by Eugene Ionesco. In it, I had the characters moving about maniacally to reflect the play's sense of insanity.

... and I kind of like that.

So, I've decided to ignore that whole "learn the rules so you can break the rules" theory and move right to breaking the rules. As with my writing, I won't know if it works until it's in front of people - but as I told Steve last night, if the actor's don't get it, that's a good sign the audience won't either.

And, so, I've got just a couple of days to go before the first rehearsal. I'm confident that, if everything works out (TIM, Call!!!), we should have a pretty good reading on our hands.

Don't forget! The Chance Theater in Anaheim. June 15. 8pm.