Wrapping Up, Looking Back (Final Buried Child Post)

Nothing else topped opening night.  It was a whirlwind of a weekend, with too many things and emotions going on at once...which I suppose, when you're still learning the process, is what a play is supposed to be like.  Friday was our hardest show, with the cast trying desperately to catch energy we never seemed to have that evening, and on Saturday we started to get our momentum back.  Sunday was a matinee and strike.  My family and some friends came again to that performance, for which I am glad the cast did great and the cup I threw in act 3 actually broke in an epic fashion (which it did not on Friday and Saturday, rendering me extremely and unreasonably dissapointed).  Strike (the dismantling of the set) went extremely well (compared to the last show I participated in) and all in all we were done and ready to unwind by 7pm.  Nate and I never made it to the cast party due to an extremely bad rainstorm, so we ended up relaxing with a movie and popcorn at his house.

I am happy to have my evenings and time back to call my own.  I'm so behind on things in my personal life and schoolwork.  I learned that while I get things done under pressure, I don't exactly do so with as much grace and patience as I would like.  I hate that doing a show can strain pre-existing friendships and bring out the worst in people (kind of like weddings).  But I love that process of being tested as an artist and person, and I'm extremely proud of the work and dedication I saw from everyone involved. 

(First two photos by Duy Do, third photo by Mark Jennys)

Through the process of putting on "Buried Child", "I Hate Hamlet" (last years play), and other recent events, Barnstormers has become a totally different organization from what it was when I started attending CCBC.  It's now something in which students can learn and create theatre without any faculty involvement.  It's such an exciting group accomplishtment to be recognized as such!  I hope it grows and develops in new and beneficial ways when I leave it.

The theatre department at school is in the process of picking next season's shows.  If all goes ideally, Carl will be directing a musical and I plan on trying out!  With this being my last semester as president of Barnstormers, I am planning on significantly scaling back my involvement in extra-curricular activities in the fall.  Taking on too much at once turns me into someone I don't like, and slows down my progress towards a degree.  I'm very excited about a new focus and new experiences!

(And now my blog will make its return to non-theatre aspects of life.  :-p)