New and Improv'd

Okay, so it's been a little more than a week since my last post and the time has come to just write something. Got it. Here it is.

On Monday the 26th, I faced my demons and performed a monologue audition. Poor turnout that evening prompted additional auditions on Tuesday, during which actors would only be asked to cold read. Had I known, I might have waited to be among them, but as it was I had already earned my callback: my first from a monologue. The pride of that first, however, is probably all I'll have to show for the process after callbacks this evening. Sources close to the director (and a slip of the director's own tongue) suggest that the role I most want has been pre-cast, and that the week interim between auditions and this callback has been spent calling in actors who did not audition at all. Whether I will remain in consideration among those actors will be seen tonight.

Catching my breath after the dread monologue last Monday, I gave another audition that night at the playhouse where Orrick was reading for Inherit the Wind. Though really a vehicle for male actors, it does offer a few small female roles. I gave a good read in a weak field and went away fully expecting to be called back. Sure enough, I was.

In an e-mail, I was informed that the director was thrilled with his great cast and would be holding callbacks for support roles and townspeople the following week. These roles were described as "walk on parts that do not need a lot of rehearsing... if you want to start out in acting or feel that your not ready for a major part then this is your chance." Not ready for a major part? My chance? If, after 20-plus years on stage, I'm getting those offers now, my career is running in the wrong direction! My inner Diva joked with Orrick, hautily: "Did they not READ my resume?!? I've done Simon! I've done Cooney! I've won awards! Don't they know who I am?"

This is tongue in cheek, dahling. Please.

Perhaps I was too hasty -- it was a poor communique that didn't make clear where they were drawing the "supporting role" line -- but I declined the callback. Not that there's anything wrong with being the second Bible-thumper from the left, but I do have hopes of finding something somewhat meatier to play in the coming months. We'll see how that plan pans out this evening....

In yet another theatre, we have begun our rehearsals (if they can be called that) for the improv fund raiser that will be staged on April first. We met once to watch a tape of the previous year's performance, then met again to attempt the games (or structures) ourselves. Some games are right up my alley while others scare the daylights out of me, but we will have at least 3 more meetings in which to familiarize ourselves with the format before we see an audience.

To prepare, I've been searching the web for tips and pointers. Cutting and pasting into a Word document any valuable info that I ran across online, I finally ran across someone who had done the same thing for his own improv group and posted his results, with notes from performances, as a file ready for download. As the Improv Handbook is distributed in Beerware™, I owe Dave Hitt a refreshing beverage should I ever meet him in the real world. Thanks Dave!

Here's to the kind of theatre where you can't possibly know your lines and it's okay to bump into the furniture. Cheers!