Our production of Fuddy Meers opened this past Saturday. But in preparation for opening night, a few last minute details had to be taken care of first.

We spent Wednesday painting the set and searching for yet-to-be-found props. Where does one find a steering wheel? We need a kitchen sink and a rolling refrigerator? I especially like the way we painted the inadvertently sexual flowers on the bedroom walls (sorry Rosa!). After not having enough time to finish the job, we met again early Friday morning to make sure everything was complete. I then went back to the theatre Friday night (at 11pm!) to finally tech the show. That’s right, the night before we opened. I was there until 3am with two amazing helpers climbing ladders, hanging lights, fixing wires, replacing bulbs, moving sets, taping filters, patching dimmers, and focusing spots. Didn’t have time to design the lighting scheme, though. I had to come back early the next day to do that. I set a company record for the fastest lighting design ever and we raced through a shaky cue-to-cue just hours before the audience was to come through the doors. Sure, I was nervous for the actors, but I was more nervous for myself having to tech the whole show without ever having done a tech rehearsal. But there was no time to worry about that. Programs needed to be folded, sound effects needed to be equalized, tickets needed to be counted, and I had to go to the bathroom. No time!

But it all worked out fine in the end. The cast and crew were amazing, driven by the nervous energy that typically lights a fire under your ass on opening night. Performances were inspired, the set looked gorgeous, makeup and costumes were spot on, the lights and sound were flawless, and the sold-out audience (overbooked, actually) appeared to genuinely enjoy the show. The evening wasn’t perfect by any means but, as the director, it’s my job to point out when actors are two inches too far downstage or when cues aren’t picked up at the rapid-fire pace that I demand. There was definite room for improvement but I was happy. Shitting myself from all the nerves and stress, but happy.

Sunday night’s performance was technically better than Saturday’s but there were fewer people in the audience to appreciate it. And we might have lacked a bit of that opening-night spark. But again, it was wonderful. My cast and crew not only made real a dream of mine, but they made it better. I’m looking forward to taking it up a notch for next weekend, blowing them all away in our final three performances, and going out with a bang. Quality photos to be taken next week (thanks Piers!).

Jan used to be a competitive gymnast. When I met her, she had a killer belly.

52 months ago

I enjoyed that belly for many years. I eventually decided to marry that belly.

40 months ago

Then something went terribly terribly wrong. I don’t know if it was the beer or the Pringles, but as soon as we were married, Jan just let herself go. The belly had changed.

30 months ago

Thankfully, Jan saw the error of her ways and quickly worked to remedy the situation. After what seemed to be 9 months of Bad Belly Days, we were back to Washboard City.

15 months ago

It is therefore with a heavy heart that I am forced to admit in this public forum that my wife has once again fallen off the wagon. Blame the Pringles if you will. I blame myself.

1 month ago

This roller coaster must come to an end. I am tired of waking up and not recognizing the woman asleep beside me. Emily is ashamed to show her face at school. That is why I have called for this recent lapse of big-bellyness to be righted. We have the best medical practitioners working around the clock to solve this problem. Please include us in your prayers so that our suffering will come to an end by February 27, 2009.

It’s a boy!

We had our final dress rehearsal today for Fuddy Meers. I need a vacation.

Don’t get me wrong. It’ll be fine. But, as with every show I’ve ever directed/produced, I invariably lose more sleep and weight during the last four weeks before opening night than is medically advisable.

The show will be great. I can’t remember the last time I was so eager so to see a production be performed in front of an audience! I think everyone is really going to like this one. Not that they didn’t like the others, but this show is much more accessible than our usual fare. Sure, it’s got its share of violence, mental disorders, drugs, stroke victims, and bacon, but it’s much less offensive than the shows I usually choose. I’m looking at you, Durang.

Here is a lovely write-up of our show from this month’s Barcelona Metropolitan magazine:

click here for the full article

I took tons of photos this past week of our set construction/final dress rehearsals. Here are a few goodies:

click here for the full slideshow

We open on Saturday and the first show is almost guaranteed to sell out. That’s in five days from today. Now all that’s left is to paint the sets, find some missing props and costumes, locate our makeup person, glue the gun back together, print the program, design the lighting, and have the actors learn their lines. Get your tickets now! You won’t want to miss this.

Last month – The free-roaming peacocks at the zoo made an obvious impression on young Emily. She wasn’t afraid of them per se, but she did give an excited jump every time we spotted one on our travels – and there were many of them. Later that night, at home after dinner, Emily was convinced that she saw a peacock in the living room. “Daddy! Peapock coming! Peapock coming!”. I played along, “Where? Is he here?”. She looked around the room and down the hall and confirmed, “No, peapock go home. Peapock in the supermarket!” We have no idea how this connection was made, but it has stuck. To this day, peacocks live in the supermarket.

Saturday night – Emily would not stay in bed. Every time Jan tucked her in and left the room, Emily would soon pop her head into the hallway and make a dash for freedom. It was very late. Jan was very tired. Her emotions got the best of her and she started to cry from frustration. Emily saw this, walked up to Jan, and earnestly said, “Please, mummy, don’t cry. Emily make it better. Emi make a chocolate cake!”, and went straight to work with her toy stove in the living room. It was almost midnight.

Today – Jan and Emily went for a walk in a nearby garden this evening. The sun had set and it was getting dark. As they were walking through the garden, Emily said, “Emi a bit scared, mummy” and smiled with the joy of the adrenaline rush. A night bird was crying from a nearby tree and Emily stopped in her tracks. “What’s this noise?” she asked. “What’s this strange noise? What’s this sound, mummy?” Jan was bowled over at the fact that Emily was able to form the same question in three different ways. Emily later admitted that she thought it was a peapock.

Jan gingerly placed Emily in her crib today for her midday nap and quietly retreated to our room for a much needed nap of her own. With head on pillow and eyes closed tight, she was just lucid enough to notice me slouch into the bed beside her. Jan rolled over to greet me and discovered that I was not there. In my place was a grinning little redhead who proudly exclaimed, “I got out!”.

Jan had dreaded this day for a long time while I foolishly couldn’t wait. I knew something was afoot last night when I spied Emily lifting her leg over the bars of her crib and, when I asked her if she was trying to escape, she insisted that she was only practicing her ballet. She lied.

Do not trust that little grin

We promptly removed the bars from her crib today and she’s now sleeping in a big girl bed as I write this. So that’s a major milestone! But it’s not the only one. Here’s a few more we’ve hit recently:

• Emily has been going to nursery school for almost two months now and has added the words salta, vine, and taula to her non-English lexicon, previously consisting of hola, adios, and agua.
• We’re very proud to tell you that Emily is one of those kids who always says please and thank you 🙂
• Goodbye nappies, hello knickers!
• The previous point also implies that we’re on the big girl potty now.
• Emily has improved upon her rendition of Twinkle Twinkle immensely, and added to her repertoire the theme from Sesame Street, The Wheels on the Bus, Itsy Bitsy Spider, and the entire alphabet – all in the last week! (the alphabet is particularly impressive)

She flies through the air with the greatest of ease

Emily was a fairy. Or a princess. Or a fairy princess. Or the tooth fairy. Luca was a devil. Or an accountant. Maya was a cat (I’m pretty sure of that one). Kata was a hostess with the mostess. And Tom’s mom said he was “a boy wearing stripes”. I think he was a victim of fashion.

Devil’s food or Angel’s food?

The gang’s all here!

Yes, we had some of Emily’s closest two-year-old friends over for a Halloween party this evening. It was pandemonium. Couch jumping, singing, shouting, tons-o-food, bed jumping, story time, flights through the air, and lots of high-pitched laughter. I spent most of the party carving out my very first jack-o-lantern from a pumpkin with unusually thick walls.

Cheese!

The shell was so thick, I couldn’t feel my wrist after cutting out just one eye and the mouth.

Carol the jack-o-lantern. She’s a beaut.

And here is some bonus video footage of some of the laughter.