Sunday, November 1, 2009

“We have to put the beard back on the goat!”

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I think I’m going to start titling my posts with a quote of the day. Specifically, a quote that you would probably not hear in any other context.

Our puppets (along with many of our props and set pieces) aren’t as durable as they should probably be for a touring production, and a show or two ago, Signora Goat’s beard fell off during her big solo. She (We call her Signora, but in the script she is sometimes a he and sometimes a she, so no one really knows. I’m sure that was a deliberate choice on the part of the playwright.) was a little embarrassed, and apologized to the rest of us about throwing off the rhythm of the show, but we assured her that little mistakes happen to everyone, and she was still the star.

At the moment we’re in Durango, a pretty nifty city in Colorado near the border of New Mexico. It reminds me a lot of Ashland – much charm, few chains. A saloon with live bluegrass on Sundays.

The altitude here is quite a bit greater than what we’re used to, made evident onstage by all the panting and light-headedness. Adjusting to differences in weather and venue size/layout hasn’t been a challenge, but adjusting to changing altitude has been quite difficult.

Also more difficult than changing venue-size is changing audience size/enthusiasm. The second show in Gilbert, AZ and this show in Durango have been public performances, rather than for field-trippers, and it really shows in the crowd turnout. This theatre is around 600 seats, and I’d say not more than 200 were full. Gilbert was probably 900 seats, less than a third of which were full for the second show. It’s harder to be energetic when you’re not receiving as much from the audience, but we manage. One of the biggest things I’m learning as an actor is how to keep myself at the same level regardless of circumstances.


Celebrating a birthday out of town is kind of a downer, but it’s not without its perks. Most importantly, the fact that it gets to be drawn out over about a week! On the day itself the cast and I had a travel-size pizza party in the hotel. A couple days later I got to eat cake with my family in Phoenix, then meet some relatives in Durango, and soon I’ll be back home to celebrate with my friends and family.

Halloween also turned out alright. I got to play guitar for a bit, pet a dog and some cats, and witness Tim and Martha’s second group of trick-or-treaters since they’ve lived there. Tim drove me back into town that night. We’re staying at a really nice place (really though, everything is nice compared to La Quinta), and I had some time last night to walk around and admire the costumes and belligerent drunks on Main St. A worthwhile experience.

We’re meeting for dinner soon, so I should wrap up. It will be my first time trying Himalayan food, and hopefully we’ll make it to the saloon for some bluegrass afterward.

Happy November!

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