Only Update When it Snows...

The beautiful Trinity Church and its graveyard covered in snow. As seen from my temp job's conference room window.

Sorry guys, I've been neglectful again... But, I swear, I've had a good reason! I've actually been pretty busy rehearsing for the TWO SHOWS I'm currently in! Yeah, that's right, TWO. The 10-minute show I'm doing with a friend of mine as a fundraiser for his theatre group has a one night only performance on Friday 2/25 with eight 10-minute shows performing and three different bands filling the time during pre- and post-show and in the transitions between shows. We had our first rehearsal for that one last night and it's gonna be a hoot. It's a ridiculous script and super short (only 11 pages), plus I don't enter until page 6, so I'm almost off-book already... And by the end of tonight's rehearsal, I should actually be off-book.

Martyr'd Signs is going well, too. We just finished our third week of rehearsals yesterday and Noelle, the director, has decided that she is going to cast the show at the end of next week! I am very excited to start working on a specific character and start memorizing. Because the show is an adaptation of Titus, we also get our first look at the script (as it is now) next Wednesday and, to be honest, what I've seen so far is crazy weird but good, so I can't wait to see the whole trajectory. She's splicing in lines from other Shakespeare shows and adding made-up scenes to really delve into the female characters (Lavinia and Tamora), allowing the audience to see them as more than just the stock archetypes they tend to read as in the original text (Lavinia as the innocent ingenue and Tamora as the evil seductress). It will be a good time and, so far, I'm really enjoying the women I'm working with.

On Monday we got to start looking at some basic stage combat and holy crap! I forgot how much I love that! I got to play with a broadsword for the first time (you know, the big two-handers the men usually get to use in period pieces) and do a little hand-to-hand. It's funny, too, because the last time I played with swords was for Midsummer (Theseus and Hippolyta entered with a sword fight--rapiers, though, not broadswords) almost THREE YEARS AGO. Since then, I've moved to NY and really devoted myself to my yoga practice, which has made learning (or re-learning) some of the stage combat sequences SO MUCH EASIER. It's amazing how much my brain has changed with a regular practice and the constant sequencing and resequencing for my classes. Suddenly, precise body movements, feet and hand positions are not only more important to me, but easier to remember and execute. My body movements are much more fluid,, AND I'm so much stronger than I used to be. Yay yoga! Makes me wanna try a dance class and see if I feel more confident in all areas of movement.

So, today, it's snowing! I mean, thank god the chick at rehearsal last night said something about the possibility of snow today, otherwise, when I walked into my living room to do my morning yoga and saw it really coming down, I would have been in absolute SHOCK. It's 31 right now and it's supposed to turn to rain as the temp heats up this afternoon, but it is beautiful, and I'm glad we got one more snow before the early spring really kicks off. The temperature change even from yesterday morning until now has been crazy. I was in my leather jacket and converse all day yesterday. And didn't even break out the hat and gloves until I left rehearsal around 630pm last night. On Monday night it was so warm (around 60), I had to open my window before I went to sleep. What a strange winter...

My walk to work. In the snow. So bizarre.