This has been an intense past seven days. I arrived in NYC one week ago (Nov. 30) to begin work on DirectorFest ’11. For DirectorFest, I’m directing Lisa D’Amour’s short play, My California. Everyday I find myself more and more in love with this play. After months of rehearsals in which I was supporting the work of someone else, it feels amazing to wrestle with a text and collaborate with actors on something that I chose. I have the most amazing cast. These ladies, Kelly McAndrew, Kari Nicolle, and Kate Hare, are all gracious, gorgeous, uber talented, and above all, willing to jump right in. I must sound like a kook to them in rehearsals, but they never let on. They commit whole hog to the story, and at least three times a day give me the chills.
Rehearsals began Thursday and already today was dry tech. I can’t wait until tomorrow when we have the actors on the set, in costumes, and light. I am the happiest camper of all time in the theatre. Everything else (and there is a lot of everything else in my life right now) simply fades to the background while we play, create, and make belief. It’s also quite fabulous to be working with so many women in the theatre. Our design team is most women, and my stage manager, C. Renee Harris-Alexander, keeps it 100% and I LOVE IT.
Soon I’ll see what the other directors have been up to when we bring all the shows together in two days for our dress rehearsal and opening night performance. I think this will be the one I always tell the kids about, “when I was a drama league fellow…”
…the world was full of infinite possibility.
me, Lily, Desdemona, and Amanda
Your Fall 2011 Drama League Directing Fellows