theater — Page 23

Our Town

October 20, 2014 at 8:32 am by Claudia

long wharf

Our Town was wonderful.

It was heartwarming, heartbreaking, poignant, funny, life-affirming, universal. The cast was uniformly excellent, including my husband, who astounds me each and every time I see him onstage. The perfect Dr. Gibbs.

The two young actors who played George and Emily were simply amazing. They broke my heart. I got to meet everyone backstage after the show and I’m sure I gushed – couldn’t help it. As always, theater is a small world. The young woman who played Emily is close friends with the young woman who plays Ophelia in Hamlet. The woman who plays the Stage Manager is very close to the woman who plays Gertrude in Hamlet. I love that about theater.

Our Town is sometimes thought of as that play everyone has seen or done, or the play that was done when you were in high school, or an old-fashioned play that doesn’t resonate today. I beg to differ: It’s one of the greatest American plays ever written. Simple, yet complex. About a small town, but about every town, every city, every place. Heartbreakingly profound. Brilliantly written by the incredible Thornton Wilder.

I confess, I hadn’t read it in years and I told Don I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen a full production, so the whole experience was deeply powerful for me. Luckily, I had my kleenex in hand for the last act, because I needed it. For those of you who haven’t read or seen Our Town, I will just say that the last act takes place in a cemetery. Thoughts of my mother, my brother and all those dear to me who have made their transition couldn’t help but come to the surface. Oh my goodness, it’s so moving.

I’m proud of my husband. His work is always excellent and he makes it look easy. Believe me – it isn’t.

We drove back here to Hartford after the show and a little girl got to see her dad. She did a few little jumps of joy, which tells you how happy she was to see him. We all took a walk in the park. I made some scrambled eggs and toast. We sat on the sofa and cuddled for a wee bit. Then the Hill-Sparks family hit the hay. We’re both more than a bit sleep deprived, so this will be a low-key day, just hanging out and enjoying our little family being back together after six weeks apart.

I got to New Haven with just enough time to spare to run into IKEA (which is just down the road from the theater) and get a new Ektorp slipcover for my blogging chair. It isn’t a great fit, but it does the trick until the day comes (will it ever?) when I have enough money to get the chair reupholstered. Since I’ve had it for about 15 years, and it’s quite old, I’m not holding my breath. I also bought a mug for Don to use while he’s here because the mugs supplied by the theater are too small and the handles are way too small for Don’s fingers. I would love to have had the time to look at all the displays but I was on a mission and I had only 20 minutes to power walk through the endless aisles to find what I needed.

Today we were jarred awake at 6:30 by the endless sounds of trucks backing up. More crane work. There has been construction work right next to Don’s building the whole time he’s been in New Haven, so we both feel inundated with constant noise. Really? They need to start work at 6:30 am? In Don’s case, he was woken one night at 1 am by trucks unloading and voices shouting. Are you kidding me?

Which begs the question: What happened to basic civility? Don’t bother, I already know the answer. It’s becoming a thing of the past.

Ending on a positive note: Don is here!

(Book Review today on Just Let Me Finish This Page: a wonderful satire, Lost for Words. Stop by!)

Happy Monday.

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On My Way Home & A Question

June 29, 2014 at 9:30 am by Claudia

lastday-poster

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.

lastday-theater

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!

lastday-house

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.

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Presenting: Miss Scout as The Lamb with the Party Hat

November 19, 2013 at 8:57 am by Claudia

I have a dear friend who is an actor. His first name is Noble. (Isn’t that lovely?) I met Noble while coaching The Tempest a couple of years ago and, lucky for me, he was also in the cast of Macbeth and La Dispute. In one of those ‘small world’ things I love, it turns out Noble and his wife Tina live in our neck of the woods.

I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know Tina these last few months. We’ve had some wonderful conversations. She is also a reader of this blog. Tina is a woman of many talents, not the least of which is her amazing ability to concoct and construct wildly wonderful costume designs for doggies.

Miss Scout has been the most recent recipient of one of her her magical designs.

You see, Scout confided in Tina.

“Why is this darned lamb the symbol of Mom’s blog? It’s on the header. It’s on her watermark. I’m sick of seeing it everywhere. Now that friggin’ lamb is even staring at me from the wall of our living room. Enough, already!”

Tina, being the compassionate person she is, heard Scout’s cry for help.

So, Tina decided that Scout should have her very own Lamb with the Party Hat costume. She brought it over to the house on Sunday. I died when I saw it on Scout.

Oh. My. Goodness.

Yesterday, I attempted to wrestle Scout into her costume once again for some pictures. I wasn’t able to completely close all the velcro seams, Tina, so forgive me if some of Scout’s hair is popping out in places it should not be popping out.

scout1

Oh my. Look at the intense look of concentration on her face. What an actress!

scout2

Here you can see her ‘transforming’ into The Lamb with the Party Hat.

scout3

And now, the transformation is complete. Scout IS The Lamb with the Party Hat.

As you can see, Scoutie’s version of The Lamb with the Party Hat has it’s own heart-shaped marking on the side.

She makes the role her own, doesn’t she? Always imbuing it with her mark, her particular take on the character.

scout4

She has two party hats and that’s one more than the lamb has.

“See?” says Scout. “I’m just as cool as that lamb. In fact, I’m prettier.”

scout5

Sans costume, with Party Hat.

scout6

I die. Too, too adorable for words.

I don’t know how Tina does it. She usually makes these costumes for much smaller dogs and she estimated Scout’s size from pictures on the blog. The fabric is soft and wonderful, it’s lined, there are velcro closings, openings for Scout’s ears, and even an opening for her leash.

Ssshhh, don’t tell her I said this, but I also sense that Scout was feeling more than mildly competitive with her father. I mean, he gets to wear costumes all the time. And as you well know, Scout feels she is also a part of the theatrical world. Heaven knows, she is a bit of a diva.

Thank you, thank you, dear Tina. You have helped Scout through a difficult time. She has worked through her resentment of the Lamb and she has ‘triumphed ‘ (Scout’s words).

I’m already itching to put it on her again.

Happy Tuesday.

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Our Town

On My Way Home & A Question

Presenting: Miss Scout as The Lamb with the Party Hat

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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