Updates & Labels

UPDATE: 1/16/07
RIDE THIS BEAST WITH US!
You can follow the evolution of our latest show TALE END from page to stage. Just click the Tale End label and through blog posts and the occasional video you'll get an insider's view of what happens. Think of it as a "Making Of" as it's happening.

Just follow the Labels below to where you want to go!

I am blown away...

You know, there comes a time when you work so hard on something that you love it and you think it's the best thing in the whole wide world! And then you release it into the world and it dies instantly. "Tale End" did not die... in fact there was a continual buzz about the show as our audience member walked away from the theater completely befuddled. :-)

We did our jobs!

I am venue managing one of the other venues so I am usually there when I am not performing and people actually sought me out at the other venue to congratulate me on an amazing show. Friends were gushing about the show and about how I must feel being a part of something so wonderful! LOL!!! I am in shock.

I know the show is good, I know H totally rocks on stage and saves my butt all the time up there, but having never received a favorable review I was a little scared that I would pull the performance down. But with the support of the Rogue and H, M, and SM... my confidence was spot on and I feel that we took the audience (both shows, regardless of the technical difficulties) for the promised ride.

If you haven't seen it, please come see our show! I've been interviewed now by 3 different people about the show and I am still in shock!

Thank you!!! Thank you for coming to see the show and thank you for supporting us!!!!

Ciao!

Final Touch

There comes a time in every rehearsal process when you have to get in front of an audience... we are now at that point. There are things that an audience brings to the show as a whole and the actors feel each audience out and the show evolves.

We are so close to that blissful beauty we've been aiming for and the audience will be the icing on the cake. H and I have played so much that we've turned this beast into a belle and now it's time for the ball.

H, M, ST... Rogue on my friends, Rogue on!

Ciao! ;-)

Pick Ups

Tonight we are getting back together to run our fabulous piece. I am very excited as I have missed this show. Pick up rehearsals are always a little rocky and tonight will be without exception I am sure. But with rehearsals scheduled leading up to our opening at the Rogue, I am not worried.

M has been hard at work putting together the Rogue website and if you are browsing there, stop by our show Tale End and leave a comment, review, kudos, or get info about our show times and location. :-)

See ya tonight!

Ciao!

Stand-by

The previews went so unbelievably well... I am completely over whelmed by the response. For those of you that took time out of your schedules to come see this, I am forever grateful! Thank you! For those that couldn't make it, do not let the Rogue pass you by...

H, M & ST... you guys have been such a great support I cannot begin to place words on how much I appreciate the support and the atmosphere you all have provided to allow me to explore and grow. You all helped me do what I am able to do on stage and there is nothing that can compare to the gifts you all have given me.

In this down time I am prepared to focus on the details. The precise emotions, motions and reactions that will tighten up this piece and help find the beauty it can truly become. I love this work and I love working on this piece! I love how it has challenged me and that is the standard that is now set for any role I go after from this point on. To be challenged as an actor and as a person and to be able to portray a character as a real life human being is the ultimate experience.

Thank you to all who have supported us along the way, and thank you to those who will come and support us at the Rogue!

Ciao!

Ms. Snow

A Plague on You Murphy!

I think I APJ passed along Murphy to the Turtle Dove Theater for last night's rehearsal.

Dialogue?? Ah, the playwright's a whack with all his wordy lines and pesky adjectives! Let's cut 5 pages is one quick motion! Whack! Ooops, sorry dude!

Yeah it was one of THOSE rehearsals. This is not a bad sign though. In every show I have done, there has been one completely horrible rehearsal and that's it. It's like the actors go through so much pain in how they are brutalizing the script that they fix the mistakes with a night of sleep and it never happens again.

I condensed two lines that caused the 5 page skip and yet H and I (we couldn't call line for the first time last night) pushed through it and actually got all the ideas across. H totally bailed me out on stage and for that I am forever grateful! Zonather showed up to rehearsal and wasn't completely mortified, actually he knew what these types of rehearsals are and I appreciate his humor.

We also shot some stuff for the next video. Yes we haven't forgotten about those and I can tell you one is coming for your viewing pleasure very soon! ;-)

Here's to the next step in the rehearsal process and to kicking Murphy in the butt!

Ciao!

To Rehearse or Not To Rehearse...

That was the question after last night's first run. You know, it's amazing to me that when H and I come into rehearsal each night, there is nothing lost from the night before. We've had our warm up runs, but there was something different about last night. It's a lot like when we leave the rehearsal space we leave our work and characters there. But, when we return it's like the favorite sweater or well worn hat, it's still there and just the way we left it. Ms. Snow stays on stage and when I return to her she and I meld instantly and there's a lot of room to build and grow. She's taking me on this ride and it's a lot of fun.

Last night was the wine rehearsal and the mood was focused. I kept in my mind the thought of being precise. There are so many twists and turns that if my actions and reactions are not crisp, there's something lost. Now, in saying that there is a line to be drawn. I cannot lock myself into looking a certain way, acting a certain way or even move in a certain way. That was a part of the discovery last night. The nice thing about NOT having blocking is that H and I aren't locked into a position on stage. There is the automatic atmosphere to play and really make it our own. I love that he still throws something new at me while in rehearsal!

I really feel like we have a show that is performance caliber and I am very excited to have the previews next weekend.

But for now... I'm celebrating this weekend!

Ciao!

Ms. Snow

We've Reached the Hump

as it's rehearsal #6 and there are only 4 rehearsals left. Eeep!

This show continues to surprise me in that there are new things to be discovered. New actions and reactions to be found. H and I are continuing to develop and there are a lot of discoveries along the way. This path has taken us down a journey that only we can define...

I love this show. I have never had a show where I can completely just be and not worry about the director telling me that I am wrong. That is so refreshing. Luckily I am not finding different paths, but instead finding depths in the path that I never knew could exist. I can over play, and then I can emote with control and that's the line I am finding now.

With these words and I finding new reactions with what H is throwing at me. I love the dynamic he is bringing and I am finding that I have the strength to rise to it, rise to the challenge he brings... I can only hope I am throwing as much back, and I think I am. It's definitely time to play!

For those that are going to be an audience member... get ready for a ride!

Happy Trails!

Ms. Snow

WOW!!!

Wow! I have to say it again!

Tonight was amazing! Our first run through "off book" was a little rocky, but that's par for the course. Once lines become more fluid, movement becomes more natural and props/costumes added in allows for a batter rehearsal.

Our first audience tonight added that extra element to make the process that much more real! I am so happy to have the input and the laughs and the reaction to our show. This is such a good piece and I really love this show! Thank you to those that came to help us play!

H: You are amazing! I love watching you play and I am amazed by the layers you are bringing to this role!

M: You are my mentor and my inspiration! Thank you for writing this show and sitting through my butchering. I will get your words right!

I have found her passion, I have found her soul... now it's time for her to play!!!

XOXO,

Ms. Snow

Hunter's View

well, we've finished the first week of rehearsal and i have to say that i'm very impressed. the script is tight and as full of yummies as i originally thought, the prophet is an absolute delight, and ms. snow is kicking some serious ass. and speaking thereof, i love an actor who does her homework!!!!

it's such a treat to share a space with people who are committed to the work, who are committed to creating an atmosphere conducive to the work, and who are committed to creating the best work that we can. we all blah blah blah talk about it...we're doing it. thank you, thank you, and a third time, thank you.

the soup is pretty damned good, too. and the absinthe...well...what can you really say?

i'm eager to see what the next week will bring. if we've started this strongly...well...let's just say that it feels...in a word...Wonderful.

etonne-moi
h

No Blocking???

We don't need no stinkin' blocking!!!!!

In all of the shows I have worked on, the director has had a specific idea of where each character should be and when. Usually in the first week of rehearsal I was scribbling down { X US chair } or { DS X to US couch } in the margins of my script. After looking back at my old scripts there are a lot of scribbles and notes on blocking or character and it looks very jumbled and messy.

I look at my script for "Tale End" and all I see are my notes on the lines or character. There is no blocking, and I love it!

Night 2 of rehearsals commenced and all the work we did on night 1 was still there (THANK GOD I DIDN'T FORGET!!!) and the mood was set to move on. We plowed through the next 20 pages of dialogue and covered some major ground (and I mean MAJOR!). The nice thing about not being stuck to a specific path is that we could allow the words to prompt out movement. The hard thing is standing still and playing the tough choices.

This show has some very obvious character choices, and then there's the temptation to play the obvious because it feels safer. This is not a safe show and I am challenged to stand my ground and play the tough choices. I am looking forward to the challenge!

Thank you M for a wonderful script and for holding the whip and cracking it at me when I want to play it safe.

H: Thank you for working with me again! I continue to learn so much from you and I love seeing the work you are bringing to this role! This is an awesome show and you are perfectly cast!

Ms. Snow

OK, last night's rehearsal...

... gave me a boner.

That's all I'm going to say about that.

...from Marcel

Total Recall...

...at least emotionally.

I am an actor that find emotions I have experienced already and used them to color the lines I am saying. I might not be experiencing the same emotions my character is, but I can find a way to play the emotion realistically.

Through memorizing the lines and working on the different layers to the character, assigning different emotions to each line is important. Be water, as an actor friend of mine says, and play what is going on at the time it is going on. You have to trust the character's reactions to be real.

I am thankful that M knows me well enough to be able to remind me of the emotions I should be recalling. This journey will be rough, but I'm not scared!

Lovingly,
Ms. Snow

Let Me Introduce Myself...

from Ms. Snow:

I am playing Ms. White.

I had the opportunity to see the beginnings of this piece when Marcel first started writing it, and if I had known it was going to turn into this... I might have ran away screaming! :-) No... not really, but I never saw it going where it went. M, you are a genius!

This show is really different from the other plays I have worked on because it requires me to not act. Now, I know what you are thinking... isn't doing a play basically acting? Yes and no. In order to be believable on stage I have to be 100% committed to the thoughts I (as the character) am protraying. This is a lot of fun, but it is also very scary! :-) I'll get into that more at a later time...

I am very excited about working with Marcel and Hunter on this project. Hunter and I have performed in some other shows pervious to this one and I am excited to go through the process with him again. Marcel, this is the first time I am working with him as a director and it's awesome! He is all about the process right now, finding objectives, not motivation... forward motion and playing the truth. He asks questions and it makes me think and find the deeper levels to Ms. White. It's a lot of fun!

Last night we had our final read through before we start memorizing and rehearsing seriously. Hunter threw some interesting readings my way and Marcel would give me a different thought to read with in certain areas... I almost feel for the audience, they are in for one hell of a ride!

I'll see you all very soon!

Ms. White