Lines

Every actor has a way of learning his lines that works best for him. For me, it's a combination of the working in rehearsal (the repetition of reading the lines while writing down the blocking) and recording my scenes to a CD I can listen to on the way there. Outside of rehearsal, I'm not one for book study. In fact, I frequently type my scenes so that I can print and carry only what I immediately need. This could be considered a third method of studying lines, but it also serves to protect the condition of my book. There's nothing quite as sad to me -- a long-time book lover -- as the torn and dog-eared look of a worn rehearsal script.

So it's interesting now to be working on two short, original, unpublished scripts which I've printed from files e-mailed to me. Certainly, there is no need to re-type the lines. And recording them to CD this morning was a quick process.

In one script, I play one of two women in a presidential/personal debate. Although I carry half the line load, that ain't much in a 10-page play. In the second script, I play two small parts in flashbacks to the lead's last job interview (her interviewer) and her school days (her teacher). This play is twice as long, at 20 pages, but I'm on only two of them. Recording both on one disc, I have roughly 10 minutes of listening time. I think -- I know -- that's a record. If not for one play, then certainly for two!

What's interesting about that, then, is that these two pieces, these ten minutes of cumulative stage time, will be more "important" than any full-length piece I've done in San Diego. And I'll get paid for both. Forgetting for a moment the comparison of local, wet-ink scripts to those which have been published, that's quite a deal!

Meanwhile, with two shows competing for my rehearsal time, planning a trip home to see my dentist would seem daunting. As luck would have it, though, Director #1 will rehearse only on Tuesdays and Director #2 will be traveling for a week. Syncing my trip with hers is only a matter of familial communication. Which is not to say "easy."

It seems likely that I'll be flying to Tennessee on a Wednesday, visiting a dentist and picking up new headshots during the week, visiting friends and family on the weekend (Riverbend, anyone?), and flying home on a Monday to make the next Tuesday rehearsal; but it's all a matter of Frequent Flyer miles, my father's travel agenda, and all the other little considerations (airport pickup, a vehicle to drive) that make travel interesting.

If it all comes together, I'll also be rummaging through my storage again, this time looking for a particular prompt script from the Barn era. A script which, should the opportunity arise, I'd consider directing. No, I haven't pursued that idea at all. But I haven't forgotten it, either.

Of course, I'll have to pack plenty of crossword puzzles for the flight in. Because with only 10-minutes to upload to the iPod, I'll be finished listening to my lines before I've even passed through airport security!