The process leading to...Opening Night

Another opening night has passed. And despite the number of shows you mount, each one has its own unique flavor. Some have me on edge and others feel like I am ready to tackle the world. No matter my personal level of angst of calm, the show must go on.

The process leading up to opening night can last 2-3 weeks. That schedule includes a single day off and lots of homework. Homework includes learning the lyrics, remembering the harmonies, blocking, lines, and if it is a new space that you have never worked learning where everything is. And if you have a single line or scene on a film you may have to learn the lines in the trailer on the same day that you are shooting.

And because this is a marathon not a race, you continue to audition for future projects so that work continues. Now place this on top of having a family and you realize the process includes being completely unbalanced and chaotic in the midst of sheer joy and adrenaline.

Several days during the process, once everything is set tech happens. That is when you add the lights, and everything else that is required to make the show even more fabulous. And this is the time that one must be flexible because things are going to change. That hard wired blocking may be something entirely different for so many reasons that no one person can ever keep up. So if you are seeking perfection or some idea of it, this may not be the business for you.

The night before opening and even auditions, I usually get the least amount of sleep because my brain is racing through everything that I am responsible for. And this happens each time, each year, no matter what. This feeling follows me to film and television sets too. And the adrenaline kicks in once I wake up and the rush is like no other. But after it ends, I sleep like my life depends on it.

Opening night adrenaline cannot be explained. But it is like no other. Whenever I am on the cliff of doubt. You know the one that questions why the hell you are doing this in the first place. All of those opening nights, days on the set, and new shows are an amazing reminder of why you and I keep saying yes, yes, yes!