The Blog de Bex: January 2007

Yes, all Stage Management acquaintances look away now, I am once more entering the 'other side' and becoming a turn for the next 4 months - well except for the next 3 weeks when I'm on a ship as a technician - but after that (unless Stratford calls) I shall be a fully payed up cast member of Wythall Theatre Company.

We had the final auditions on Monday, and after a conversation with Anne about whether I was sure I could deal with various members of the company (including my Dad) man-handling me AGAIN, I was cast as Irene, in the play 'The Dresser'. Every play I've been in with them I get man-handled - and it can't get any worse than having to flirt (albeit in a farcical way) with my own father in the last one - at least in this one it's not MEANT to be taken that way! (at least not if you're following the plot.....)

The cast and all details are here The play is by Ronald Harwood and is based on his experiences as dresser to Donald Wolfit. It is funny, dark and incredibly poignant in places and should provide a great acting challenge as well as great evening's viewing :)

Today I got my flight details through for next week and for my return flight (which is incredibly reassuring!) and over the weekend the final photos were taken of the house and we had our first viewing (before the house is even on the market). So all in all I am feeling just a little more settled - only a little - but it beats banging my head against the desk ;)

I've had some good times watching new DVD's over the last few days. Finished Series 4 of ELR (inc. extras) and also Series 1 of 'My Family'. Am starting Series 2 of 'My Family' and then Series 5 if ELR .... it's not like I'm bored.....honestly.... I mean I only picked one of the coldest days of the year to wash all the outside windows, the conservatory, the drive and both cars...no,no....it's not getting to me at all.....*goes to fetch own butterfly net*

I've been procrastinating over this post for about the last week, but having just written an email saying I'm about to do this I guess I better get on with it. - It's very long - I'd get a cup of tea and a snack if I were you!

Yes, I am now officially the wrong side of 25 (or the right depending on how you like your glass, but right now it feels like the lesser side!) which probably hasn't helped my mental situation with the whole 'I really should get some sort of plan together' thing.

This gets a bit confusing - now if it's confusing for you (even after I've worked it all out!) imagine what poor little fuzzed head was like ;)

So I started to think about this year, and what I wanted to do/achieve. I had planned to go back on a ship for most of the year, SAVE the money (for real this time) and hopefully attend an acting course of some description in the next 2 years. I would miss the auditions for this year depending on my contract so I was willing to give myself leniency ;) It's something I need to have a go at - I don't want to end up regretting the fact that I didn't even try.

However the house is going on the market next week (more on that later) so I need somewhere to live. I have options - it's not as if I'm going to be homeless, but, well it kind of seemed like a good opportunity to get my own place and get on the property ladder. But that would mean the acting thing kind of going out of the window.

Then I went to WTC rehearsal. The play they are doing next (The Dresser) has a part in it that I could do. In fact I'm the only person in the company who ISN'T to young - at my own age- to play a part in it - first time that's EVER happened! :) So that was appealing.

If I decided to stay then I could get work at the Alex Theatre, and get some Temp-ing work to keep me going and I could treat as a sort of sabbatical. (esp. as I haven't had a break/holiday in 5 years).

Then I looked in 'The Stage' and there's a lot of good positions opening up just now - including one at the RSC so that was another option.

So my head was a bit of a mess trying to weigh up all the options, trying to balance the Artistic side of me with the Practical and the Sensible (a daily battle usually!).

The cruise folks had said to ring back at the beginning of January, so I rang last Monday and was assured that by the end of the week I would know what was happening. This was great, as it gave me a sort of deadline in my head of 'at the weekend I'll be able to sort everything out. That evening the director at WTC (Anne) asked me if I was available and I told her that I'd know by next week..........I guess you can tell what's coming.......

yup, TPTB hadn't decided anything - this was when my brain went into fizz mode. I decided that,"whatever, I'll make other plans and TPTB'll just have to deal"......'sound thoughts', I assured myself at 3am on Saturday morning.

After a weekend of haranguing myself, praying about it and actually banging my head on the desk I rang Clare, who has a fab ability (must be a teacher thing) to boil things down to the basics - or in this case 3 options:

1. Wait and go back on the ship

2. Apply for jobs and see what happens - possibly go back on ship.

3.Do WTC play, apply for RSC job - if get it then don't do play, will know soon enough not cause a problem.

Number 3 was blazing in a neon-sign-in the desert-with-a-big-hand-pointing-to-it type way.
So I wrote PLAN on a lovely yellow post-it note and scribed the 3rd option.

This was Sunday evening. Monday night I went to rehearsal, explained the situation to Anne and had fun doing the reading. Also had a nice feeling that my life was somewhat back in control.......tut,tut,tut....don't I ever learn that it's at that point in the plot when the unknown lurking in background comes crashing through the window commando style and picks up the pace again?

And the man in black, on a rope this time.......TPTB calling me at 11am the next morning with the proposal of doing a handover on 'The Celebration' with the DJ Tech at the end of Jan. Fab, I thought a couple of weeks in Egypt, nice. So I agreed and put the phone down........ 2 weeks?......nah that can't be right...
So I ring back - it wasn't right, it was supposed to be 'til the end of May Ahhhhh!

1. I can't stick that Job for that long, I'd be soooo bored.

2. The thought of Temp-ing, Casie-ing (being a casual tech) and doing the play is far more appealing

3. I'd like to be here when Clare's twins are born - my friends are terrible at organising babies to be born when I'm actually around!

But all was cool. Have sorted it so I'm doing 3 weeks and a few days just to cover and hopefully I won't miss too much rehearsal time. That still means though that I may be able to go out to a ship after May... that is unless I get the job in Stratford (which I'm sure I won't now as I've mentioned it too often - does anyone else have this phenomenon?).

So basically, it's all in God's hands - although I think he may be getting my life confused with a Rubik's cube sometimes :)

Other than that, I had a good Christmas. A busy Christmas Eve doing a reading in the morning service, playing the moody inn-keeper in the audience participation Nativity and playing the 'cello (being helped by a very talented girl about 10 years younger than me! Learned how to play a bass line for a modern song 'properly') in the youth thing. I had a great day and it was topped off with a lovely midnight service led by Alison.

Me, Jo and Vicky did our traditional Christmas things - for probably the last time *sniff* and generally a good time was had by all. Christmas day was OK and then straight back into the wonders of 'Guys and Dolls'.

That finished on the 6th of Jan (not before a fabulous evening out where I got to know a lot of the cast and crew better and generally had the best evening out I've had in about 4 years!) and then the get out lasted until 7:30am on my Birthday! huzzah, one for the memory banks ;)

Had fun Dog and house sitting for the Spencer's. Their dog is a schnauzer called Joey and he's very cute and funny - and I'm not really a dog person!

Also, they have the wonders of cable so I got to watch a lot of my favourite US sitcoms that I don't have on DVD like Home Improvement and King of Queens. 'Everybody Loves Raymond' is becoming a firm favourite of mine. Me & Alana are becoming sort of die hard fans! Play.com had them on special offer at the mo. Frasier season 5 is out and is cheapest at dvd.co.uk as is My Family.
Comedy shows and good drama serial's are the best thing to have on DVD when you work on a ship, help you escape for a bit and enable you to laugh and have a nice family feeling even if you've had a crap day. Of course Lost and 24 were the big hits of last season aboard the Thomson Celebration!

And finally....... the house should be on the market in the next couple of weeks so there's a few things that needed doing...well actually it could do with a lick of paint, but I think the next people should pick the colour themselves :) However I am in charge of de-cluttering so am busy boxing and hiding as best I can. Today, however, on possibly the windiest day of the year, I decided to cut the willow tree back. It stands on the drive and is stunning in the summer (although does hide your car quite well if you're not careful!) but needs to be cut back in the winter - it needs to be done now for the photo for the estate agents (the same exact reason that the caravan is going to the big campsite in the sky). So away I went at it with choppers and a bow saw!! - the tree that is, not the caravan.