Well, we did it – in only three weeks of rehearsal, including all the tech rehearsals and dress rehearsals. That ain’t much, my friends. What everyone involved with this production has worked together to create is nothing less than extraordinary.
I am very proud of my work on A Raisin in the Sun. Even more than that, I am terribly proud of the cast. They are doing such powerful work on that stage.
The director has said that he thinks A Raisin in the Sun is part of a trilogy of great American plays that he would categorize as A Dream Deferred. The other two plays that are part of the trilogy are A Glass Menagerie and Death of a Salesman. I think he’s right. There’s an element of heartbreak in all three, of dreams that never quite come true. The title of the play is taken from a poem by Langston Hughes:
Harlem
(A Dream Deferred)
What happens to a dream
deferred?
Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore–
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over–
like a syrupy sweet?
Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?
—–Langston Hughes
The performance last night was powerful and gripping, tragic and funny. The cast party was great fun. I will truly miss everyone here. This is the push-pull of theater life. You leave home, travel to another town, meet new people. bond with them as you work together 8 – 10 hours a day or more…and then you leave. Both Don and I understand all too well the re-entry that has to happen when we return home. Part of you is home and happy to be there and part of you is still back there at the theater in that other town. It takes a few days.
My roommates have been terrific and I am so glad I had the chance to get to know them. Even with the lack of privacy that comes with sharing an apartment, we managed to bond and I’m happy to have the opportunity to get to know them.
I leave later in the day for the airport. Cross your fingers that all flights are on time!
I’ve entitled this: Dog Waiting To Be Let In.
Let’s change the subject for a moment.
I’ve been toying with an idea. My love of reading, books, bookstores and everything literary is well-known to all of the readers of this blog. I’ve been reviewing books for TLC Book Tours for at least four years. It’s been a challenge to craft an informative book review that, I hope, gives a strong sense of the novel without revealing too many details. It’s also been a challenge to write a review that is fair and honest and balanced. I like that kind of challenge.
I’ve learned a lot in the last four years.
Along the way, I’ve been contacted by publishers and authors who want me to review their books. I’ve mostly turned those offers down because of my commitment to TLC Book Tours. But now, with my Kindle, I am able to request and get galleys of new books because I am a blogger who reviews books. That’s very exciting to me!
So…here’s the question. Should I start another blog that is devoted to reading and books and reviews and bookstores and interesting facts about all of the above? I’d still review TLC Books here on MHC. But another blog would allow me the opportunity to explore all things reading in more depth, as well as provide a home for reviews of other books.
This blog is about so many different things and I like it that way. So I’ve been careful not to overwhelm it with too many posts on one subject. I try to vary the subject matter.
But a book blog? That would free me up to write about books about three or four times a week.
What are your thoughts? (I’m rather excited about this idea.)
Happy Sunday.
