The Day Before

Actually, it's now technically the day of... oh well. The important thing is that tonight was our last chance to accomplish miracles, fall apart completely, and/or at least run the show from top to bottom. Oddly, none of that happened. As is so frequently the case at the 13th hour with the North Star Players, we managed to get both a great deal and nothing at all done. It is at these times when everything could potentially descend into unbridled, frustrated chaos from whence we would never return.

But the thing is, we're going to be fine. I gave a pep talk tonight that I believe to be deeply true about the power and skill of our little theater troupe. I told the students, as they peered at me through frazzled eyes which almost popped with self-exasperation as well as loathing for their castmates and me brought on by hours and days of endless rehearsing in close quarters, that tomorrow the show would be fine. As you stare out through a red haze of panic, I told them, as the adrenaline rushes you through the entire show, you will mostly be unaware of anything other than each terrifying and exhilerating moment. The second the show is over, you will scream for joy, and half an hour later you'll be enthusiastically picking it all apart, bemoaning the errors and resolving to repair them in the following productions. You will revel in your fantastic saves and strokes of brilliance. I accept that there may be one or two show-stopping mistakes, either from the poor techies who never really got a chance to rehearse all the cues, or the poor actors who are stressed to the max, and that despite these great mishaps, the show will exceed both the performers' and audience's expectations and that we will bounce back from this vaguely rocky start to present 3 more fabulous and thrilling performances. Hey, now that I've said it aloud, maybe we'll skip right over the rocky start and just open with a resounding bang!

The point is, it is at these times of greatest doubt, fear, and dread that the beauty of live theater becomes clear. Each moment is unique and is shared with you, your castmates, and your audience; and there is nothing which cannot be made glorious if approached with the right attitude. The training and discipline which you have honed for months will propel you through danger and inspire both your audience and your castmates, not to mention yourself. When you are at your most panicked you may be at your most cunning, and there is every opportunity to do amazing work.

I left this evening's sometimes delightful, sometimes infuriating rehearsal with a calm heart and a relatively light step; the Players have talent, they are committed to each other and to this project, and they will flourish in their work and their play. I look forward to tomorrow and I am sure that they will surprise me with their genius. They do so every year.