what remains of me?
Brilliant season of and what remains all round, really. Variations in how much the crowd laughed at some bits (it took till opening night when we finally managed to make a scene that I'd been struggling with making funny funny) or how many people were crying by the end (and what remains is that kind of play), that awkward moment when there's a haka in our play and an All Black in the audience, but loved the whole thing, wasn't stressed out about it at all like I sometimes was during Summerfolk. Tonight the final night and I was expecting to be a bit shit because I'd had work and was tired, and while I did minorly screw up a few lines, the whole cast had this spark tonight and it was, we're told, our best run ever.
Which was all the better because Miria George, who wrote this thing, was watching, along with Hone Kouka, who directed the first three seasons of and what remains (and no one's really touched the play since).
She and one of my Summerfolk directors, who teaches and what remains in English/theater 112, were apparently laughing way too loud at every remotely funny bit all the way through, and she said afterwards that we did a great job and that I was perfect for the character. I've identified with Ila ever since I studied the play so hearing that, from the person who would know, was such an honor; I babbled at her that I loved Ila and she said she was glad I got to play her. Hone Kouka enjoyed it too and that from the show's director almost every other time it's been put on? Oh man.
I still feel like an idiot for not getting a photo with Miria but I had her sign my goggles, so that's going to be with me everywhere now.
Doing this play has seriously been such a confidence booster for my acting, though: I've also had comments on my acting in it from said Summerfolk director and a few of my castmates from that (my favorite was "you've been hiding all that talent!"). In Summerfolk I didn't have much to do and what I did have I was kind of blah at; here I pushed the story along because my character was a jerk (or in Miria's words, "so charismatic and outspoken but she still puts her foot in it"). So praise for my work here from people whose work I really admire (these were some of my Summerfolk castmates I admired the most) and who have seen me doing not so great is kind of lovely.
The other two plays in this season were Naomi in the Living Room by Christopher Durang and He Reo Aroha by Jamie McCaskill and Miria George (so she got to see two of her plays tonight!), both of which had one of my classmates from classical theater workshop last year and now site specific devising, so it was cool to see them again. Naomi was this very weird play about meeting an actually crazy mother-in-law; I think we all remember it for a faked almost!orgasm scene and the crossdressing guy (who happened to be my classmate) who walks better in heels than I do. He Reo is a love story with two actors playing four characters and they did a fantastic job of differentiating the characters just with acting, no costume changes or anything, even if I did think my classmate was playing a very flamboyant gay man when he was actually playing a girl. And one of them had never acted before!
Packout was pretty quick, even with a significantly smaller cast and crew to help out, because our sets weren't as huge (that's what happens when you have three half hour pieces of theater in one night); it even turned out pretty fun when someone chucked on music and it deteriorated into a dance party. (This part surprised me because I was getting pretty tired and stressed during Summerfolk's packout. I suppose On the Edge ending at a decent time of night had something to do with that.)
And then we had the afterparty and I wore a moustache the whole time because Naomi had some left over that they weren't using and I felt like it. This would probably be an appropriate time for #YOLO if I didn't think that meme was ridiculous.
And now I get to breathe for a bit before devising rehearsals start. This is gon' be weird.
Which was all the better because Miria George, who wrote this thing, was watching, along with Hone Kouka, who directed the first three seasons of and what remains (and no one's really touched the play since).
She and one of my Summerfolk directors, who teaches and what remains in English/theater 112, were apparently laughing way too loud at every remotely funny bit all the way through, and she said afterwards that we did a great job and that I was perfect for the character. I've identified with Ila ever since I studied the play so hearing that, from the person who would know, was such an honor; I babbled at her that I loved Ila and she said she was glad I got to play her. Hone Kouka enjoyed it too and that from the show's director almost every other time it's been put on? Oh man.
I still feel like an idiot for not getting a photo with Miria but I had her sign my goggles, so that's going to be with me everywhere now.
Doing this play has seriously been such a confidence booster for my acting, though: I've also had comments on my acting in it from said Summerfolk director and a few of my castmates from that (my favorite was "you've been hiding all that talent!"). In Summerfolk I didn't have much to do and what I did have I was kind of blah at; here I pushed the story along because my character was a jerk (or in Miria's words, "so charismatic and outspoken but she still puts her foot in it"). So praise for my work here from people whose work I really admire (these were some of my Summerfolk castmates I admired the most) and who have seen me doing not so great is kind of lovely.
The other two plays in this season were Naomi in the Living Room by Christopher Durang and He Reo Aroha by Jamie McCaskill and Miria George (so she got to see two of her plays tonight!), both of which had one of my classmates from classical theater workshop last year and now site specific devising, so it was cool to see them again. Naomi was this very weird play about meeting an actually crazy mother-in-law; I think we all remember it for a faked almost!orgasm scene and the crossdressing guy (who happened to be my classmate) who walks better in heels than I do. He Reo is a love story with two actors playing four characters and they did a fantastic job of differentiating the characters just with acting, no costume changes or anything, even if I did think my classmate was playing a very flamboyant gay man when he was actually playing a girl. And one of them had never acted before!
Packout was pretty quick, even with a significantly smaller cast and crew to help out, because our sets weren't as huge (that's what happens when you have three half hour pieces of theater in one night); it even turned out pretty fun when someone chucked on music and it deteriorated into a dance party. (This part surprised me because I was getting pretty tired and stressed during Summerfolk's packout. I suppose On the Edge ending at a decent time of night had something to do with that.)
And then we had the afterparty and I wore a moustache the whole time because Naomi had some left over that they weren't using and I felt like it. This would probably be an appropriate time for #YOLO if I didn't think that meme was ridiculous.
And now I get to breathe for a bit before devising rehearsals start. This is gon' be weird.