BERGDORF AND BROADWAY

As I mentioned, I recently jetted off to NYC with my mom and sister for my sister's spring break, and especially to go see Les Miserables on Broadway with Ramin Karimloo.  Of course, that was only the beginning of it!  And I must start off by saying just how frickin' COLD it was!  Cold is an understatement.  It was bloody freezing.  The wind was the worst part.  Ugh.  Spring clearly has not sprung in NYC - I've been spoilt by this Florida weather!

IT WAS MY JERRY SPRINGER MOMENT

  

Well, after using today as a day of recovery, I'm here to post about the show I just wrapped up this weekend.  We had our final performances of Jerry Springer: The Opera this past weekend, Thursday through Sunday.  It was one hell of a weekend, I'll say that much!  We would do a performance, then go out and celebrate with a drink and maybe a bite to eat at The Whiskey Bar, which was kind of our show's default post-show location for going out - excellent whiskey choices and a great burger!  Honestly, one of the reasons I love working in theatre is socializing with all the company after a rehearsal or performance.  I got to know some people a lot better, and had some really good times.  Going out after an evening performance did mean that I got home and to bed at ridiculous hours, but to be honest, I wouldn't have it any other way.  It's all about the experiences, ya know?  And there's plenty of time for sleep this week.

JERRY SPRINGER: THE OPERA

A week and a half later and I'm back!  Dude, this past 10 days had been so full of activity, I don't even know where to start. That's a lie.  I'll start with the thing that's been 98% of that activity - Jerry Springer: The Opera for Balagan Theatre.  I've been Assistant Stage Managing this show for the past month or so and immediately after the 1st of the year (literally, the next day), we began our tech week.  The hours, the load of work that everyone involved has done, and the amount we've accomplished in such a short time has been absolutely insane.

FRIGHT NIGHT

(both versions of above photo © Helena Miscioscia)

 So this past Thursday was Halloween, and as I have mentioned, it was fairly low key because I essentially celebrated my Halloween in a big way quite early this year at the Globe's end of season party!

A LITTLE EXCITING, AND MORE THAN A LITTLE SAD

The sad news:  This was my last week at the Globe.  I'm officially done working there.  The end of season has arrived, and the past two days have been filled with Globe time, watching the closing performances of three shows, and the fourth and final one later this afternoon.  Friday was my last official day working, and while I still have some duties to carry out between shows, this weekend is mainly about enjoying the final bit of time there, watching a lot of great theatre, hanging out with work friends, and tonight, partying it up Fright Night style in the theatre with everyone else from the entire season.

THE STANDARD FOR DEDICATION HAS BEEN SET

I just got back to jolly old England today from four days in Florida.  Long story, but basically I did a lot of awesome stuff last weekend that I was all ready and excited to share this week when on Tuesday I had to book a last minute trip to Florida.  Less than 24 hours later I was on a plane, and I only just got back this afternoon.  And unfortunately the internet at my mom's house in Florida sucks (read: it's nonexistent), so here I am with one of two awesome things I did last weekend pre-jetsetting.

If you follow me on Twitter or Instagram (msmelaniemarie), you will already know that I spent all of Saturday the 24th in Barnet watching all three Henry VI plays put on by the Globe's touring company.  You will also know that it rained.  All.. day.. long.  Thank goodness for ponchos because I had my Hunter wellies on (lifesavers and possibly one of the best investments I've ever made) and a nice rain jacket I borrowed, but in the rain watching three full length plays from about noon to near 11pm, even they wouldn't have sufficed by themselves.  I was fortunate enough to snag a poncho (one of those clear ridiculous things that my toddler cousin apparently said made me look like an astronaut) and it saved me because I could just cross my legs under it like a nice little person tent and all the rain just sloughed right off.  Brilliant.  I still won't ever be seen wearing a poncho like that around in public if it rains because please, I'm from Seattle and also it looks really ridiculous.  But I will use it for any other future outdoor shows in the rain.  Or festivals.  Brilliant for festivals.

I digress a bit.  The focus obviously is the Henry VI plays - parts 1, 2, and 3.  They were bloody brilliant.  And I do mean bloody.  There was quite a bit of stage gore - beheadings, stabbings, etc.  But brilliant as well because not only did the company do a fabulous job of performing through wind, rain, and a power outage after dark, but they did it with such enthusiasm and talent.  The performances were all live-streamed online as well.  I don't know if a copy exists, but hey, go take a look around because all I can say is that the shows had to have been excellent for nearly 200 people of all ages (teens to grannies, no joke) to stay through the entire thing from start to finish.  In the rain.  On a Saturday.  When they could have been watching live-stream from indoors.  If you ask me, the standard has been set.

CAMBRIDGE

Nearly a week and a half ago now (I know, I'm a slacker... I prefer the term "procrastinator" though, because hey, I'm getting it done aren't I?), I went to Cambridge.  The Globe actually has a few touring companies, one of which is King Lear, and they were doing their last outdoor performances in the Master's Garden of the Corpus Christi College at Cambridge.  So, of course, with the weather being so nice in England as of late, I booked myself a train ticket and spent the day in Cambridge.

...WE ARE SUCH STUFF AS DREAMS ARE MADE ON, AND OUR LITTLE LIVES ARE ROUNDED WITH A SLEEP

That is one of my favorite quotes - spoken by Prospero in Shakespeare's The Tempest.  Today I read an article on Thought Catalog, based on this quote, which made me think really hard about it, questioning the meaning.  Something about the article bothered me.  Not only the fact that the quote itself was quoted incorrectly, or that the author skated over not knowing where it came from, but just the overall interpretation of the meaning.

This line is one that is frequently misquoted, and as a result, people spew out all kinds of varying meanings that they find.  This is all very typical, and some of these things are actually quite valid, but they aren't based off of Shakespeare's actual words, just varied ways of paraphrasing.  When finding the meaning of Shakespeare's actual text, it is essential to get the words right.  Another common misinterpretation is in the word "dream" itself - a dream like you have at night (as is meant by Shakespeare in this line), and a dream as in an aspiration.  This dual meaning of the word "dream" contributes to the misunderstanding and misinterpretation of the line in the article.  But what irked me most about the article on Thought Catalog [TC] was that, despite the line being misquoted, the intended message of the words didn't really change, and the meaning that the article took from it is, I believe, not the intended message.  So let me share my view on the meaning of this fairest quote.

I believe that it means we are the dream, as opposed to the ones dreaming.  It is a metaphor - our lives are a dream.  Both dreams, and our lives, are rounded with a sleep.  Besides that given circumstance, the subtext of the words is relaying how our lives, and the fact that we are alive and existing at all, are themselves the type of fantastical and incredible content that is in a dream.  As the TC article says, we are lucky:

"We are lucky to be able to dream, to see even a tenth of what we dream for become some sort of reality."

"We live in a world where a few things are certain: the existence of love, and the existence of our ability..."

Though the author is saying these things in a different context, it does align with the intended message.  We are lucky to be capable of dreaming in any sense of the word.  We are lucky to be capable of love.  And as he also says, the fact that we as individuals do play a part in the lives of others, the dreams of others.

Our lives are the dream simply for the incredible fact that we are breathing, thinking, walking, loving, living creatures with the sheer ability to do any of these things and more.

I'll leave it with Prospero's line in more of its entirety:

"Our revels now are ended: These our actors,
(As I foretold you) were all spirits, and
Are melted into air, into thin air,
And like the baseless fabric of this vision
The cloud-capp'd towers, the gorgeous palaces,
The solemn temples, the great Globe it self,
Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve,
And like this insubstantial pageant faded
Leave not a rack behind: we are such stuff
As dreams are made on; and our little life
Is rounded with a sleep."

I really do want to know what people think.

What meaning do you take from these words?

GABRIEL

(All photos from the Shakespeare's Globe Facebook album)

Last night was Press Night for Gabriel at the Globe - the big night!  Gabriel has been the show that we've been working primarily on while I've been here, and the sheer size of the project and all that entails was the main reason I was invited to come intern.  But before that leads to some news I have, I just want to try to put into writing how incredibly proud I am of this production.

MIDNIGHT MATINEE AND A LONDON SUNRISE

Every Tuesday I look forward to grabbing a copy of that week's edition of Time Out London.  It's a simple pleasure, I know, but really, that magazine is just so handy!  Bored?  Check Time Out London and you're guaranteed to find something to do.  One of the things I had remembered reading about were these, I dunno, walking tours I guess?  Basically an organized group that would meet in the early morning hours to catch and photograph the sunrise as the group walked from Point A to Point B.  Now, I'm not about to pay to join a walking tour, especially just a photo walk, when I can grab Kelly and we can do our photo walk thang, ya know? (Don't let me ever say "thang" again.  Please.)  So I suggested we photograph the sunrise sometime.  She was game, as I knew she would be!

Now, the Globe does this thing called a Midnight Matinee.  Each of the three main shows gets one, and it's literally just a showing of the performance at midnight.  I wasn't about to miss out on it, especially since this one was Midsummer Night's Dream, and how perfect is that to see on a warm summer's night at Shakespeare's Globe at midnight?  Pretty damn perfect!  So what we ended up doing Friday night was catching the midnight matinee of Dream, then sticking around for the after-party in the theatre (which apparently went until half past ten next morning!), before heading out to walk along the Southbank towards Westminster, taking in the dawn and the peaceful serenity and emptiness that is so uncommon in that area.  It was truly magical.

A TYPICAL DAY AT WORK

This is a post I meant to do on Saturday, but due to internet issues and general business, I haven't been able to upload it all until now.  But my friends and family have been asking about the job, so here you go Mom, Dad, and everyone else!  This documents my day last Friday, specifically, though really it's all so surreal and awesome that it may as well be every day, and every day since has proven this to be true.  (For example, today I passed by and spoke with Billy Boyd who played Pippin in Lord of the Rings and is currently at the Globe rehearsing for Macbeth, AND Joss Whedon was at work this morning being interviewed by the Globe about the new Much Ado film.  See what I mean?)

I wake up each day and walk to the East Putney tube stop, and hop onto the District line directly to Mansion House stop, just north of the Thames.

From there, I cross Southwark Bridge and it's down onto the bankside to walk to the Globe.  I cross past the front entrance and the riverside part of the theatre...

 ... to Stage Door, where I go in for work.  :)  It's so surreal to punch in the access code for the gate, walk into stage door, tap in with my pass, and head up to the theatre offices.  It's also insane how many times I'm going to be using the word "surreal" in this post, but there's no other way to put it, so bare with me as I repeatedly use it.

 During this first week I've mostly just gotten acquainted with all the different aspects of the job - gotten a tour, met everyone in the office (they're all so nice and incredibly fun), read through the union contracts for the people we hire so I can be familiar with them, read through the script of the new show, Gabriel, that will start rehearsal on Tuesday, downloaded the music for the show and burned CDs, done some photocopying, and learned how to make the tea in the office (maybe the most vital bit of information, that).  I also had a chance to pop down into the theatre to see The Tempest Thursday afternoon.  All I had to do was go downstairs into the courtyard, and walking into the yard of the theatre.  With my work ID on, I was just able to walk right in and watch the show.  It was weird and incredible and (here it is again) surreal.

Being American at work in England hasn't been too troublesome or made much difference except for little things.  Prime example of a nationality difference making a play at work:  I had made copies of a script for a show that is soon to begin work, and needed to hole punch them.  I looked high and low and asked a few coworkers where I might find a three hole punch, but to no avail.  A few hours later, towards the end of the day, I asked one more person, to which her response was "is that an American thing?".  I was a bit stymied, and explained what I needed, and she kindly informed me that in England they use a two hole punch and that there was one over there on the desk in the middle of the room, in front of me the whole time.  Nobody had known what I was talking about asking for three hole punches.  Sigh.

After work on Friday (the day I took all these pictures), we had a work party in the office with the cast of Henry VI: Parts 1&2 who are set to go on tour in two weeks.  There was beer, cider, Pimm's, and vast amounts of food in abundance, and it was really nice to sit back and chat with people.

 **Note: Almost every other day there has been a new assortment of goodies on the table in the office, even for no reason.  Monday was leftover bread and cheese and a new tray of chocolate biscuits, and today was scones with clotted cream and jam.  Point is, between this and the food I get at the house I'm staying at, I'll likely be obese by the end of the month, but rich as I won't have had to buy any food.

 Leaving work each day may be the most surreal part of the day, because I walk out to this view...

 I'll never get over walking out of work to see St. Paul's Cathedral directly across the river, and Shakespeare's Globe right next to me.

Here you can see our office from the bankside...

I know I just got here last week.  But, I don't want to leave... Ever.  Cheesy as it may sound, I don't think my heart could take it.  I'm in love with this place, and with my incredible job.  Literally awesome, head-over-heels in love.

EXCITING NEWS!!!

Jacket: New Look / Top: Zara / Jeans: Delias / Shoes: Converse

I'm leaving for London again on June 3rd to intern at Shakespeare's Globe theatre this summer!!!!

I've been waiting and waiting and waiting to be able to announce this!  It's been killing me.  But I got the formal invite to join them this morning and immediately started jumping up and down and squealing with excitement because a process that has been in the works for two months is finally confirmed and I'm moving back to London!!

I can't even type out how excited I am about this!!  I'll be interning in the Department of Music as a sort of managerial intern for them.  I can't wait, guys!!  In a month, I'll be in London!!!  AHHHHHH.

Also, on top of that, we got our grades today and somehow I managed to maintain a 3.9 GPA on top of stage managing two shows, work, and an internship.  I have no idea how I managed to do that, but yay!!!  :D

WE WON!

If you follow me on Instagram, Twitter, or pretty much any social media outlet ever, you'll already know that what I'm talking about is Avenue Q winning Suffolk University's SGA Award for Outstanding Campus Sponsored Program of the Year!!  Last night, I got all dressed up and attended a dinner and award ceremony representing Avenue Q along with some of the Performing Arts Office administrators and some of our cast from the show.  They announced us the winner, we went up onstage to accept the pretty engraved glass award, and made our brief little speech, then continued to display ridiculously huge smiles and exchange massive hugs for the rest of the night!

I can't say it enough - I am SO PROUD of this show and everyone involved!  It was definitely a different and new experience for all of us in one way or another, and everyone handled it like a rockstar, so this award is well deserved, if you ask me.  So honored to have been a part of this incredible production, and much love to the PAO and all my cast and crew!

voices for now

Remember how I mentioned I was stage managing two shows simultaneously?  Well, this is the other one - a song cycle entitled Voices For Now.  I swear, "For Now" is like the theme of the semester.  Avenue Q's big closing number is called "For Now", the opening song for the song cycle is also called "For Now" (different song), and it's even in the title of the event.

Needless to say, it's something that's been in my mind a lot recently, and you know what?  It's actually a comforting thought.  I mean, unless life is going great for you, then the thought that it's probably just for now is depressing.  But for me, I have so much I'm looking forward to, and a lot of the now in my life just seems in the way of that.  But it's really been a great reminder that everything going on right now is only for now, and eventually, I'll get to that part that I'm really looking forward to.  Don't know how yet, but who does really?

Anyway, it's our closing night tonight, then I'm all done with shows for two whole weeks (including spring break!) before I start interning as Assistant Stage Manager for the Actor Shakespeare Project's production of Pericles.

Help me!  I won't know what to do with myself!

The concept of free time is foreign to me.

welcome to Avenue Q!

Tonight was opening night of Avenue Q!  It went pretty well - a few cues on my end that needed editing but wow my cast and crew nailed it tonight!  I am honestly so proud of this show.  I am extremely grateful that I have the opportunity to be where I am, stage managing this show, because this will be my last one with the Performing Arts Office before I graduate and move on to other things in other places.  And I am so blessed to be a part of a show that is really a great piece of theatre, and so much fun!  Seriously, y'all, this show is SO much fun!

I'll let the photos speak for themselves, and also, below is a video that shows a time lapse of our awesome set being built.  Our hard-working cast and crew, combined with students from the PAO spent literally all of last weekend loading in this set and building from the ground up, and a camera set up in the balcony took a photo every 5 minutes, which was strung together to make this awesome video....