Is Not that Strange? (30 DPC: Day 20)

"I do love nothing in the world so well as you; is not that strange?" -William Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing, Act 4 Scene 1

Day 20: a photograph of your most prized possession

Before I begin to delve into the story of today's photographs (and it is a lovely story, if I may say so myself) I want to take moment to thank you, dear reader. As of two days ago I officially reached over a thousand page views. That is insane- thank you all so very very much for thinking my musings here to be worthy of your time in what surely are your very busy lives! 

Alright, enough freaking out. To the story.

Today's pictures are of my most treasured gift and possession; my director's chair. 

As aforementioned in this blog post, in high school I ran a theatre company for two years with some incredibly talented people. My proudest accomplishment with this company (and in theatre in general, really) was directing William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. I am quite the Shakespeare geek- have been since I was twelve and in A Comedy of Errors. Directing was something I had always wanted to do and in the fall of my junior year I made this dream a reality. 

 

It was the biggest project I have ever undertaken and it was essentially my life for three months. But they were some of the best three months of my life- and some of the hardest. Learning what it means to be a good leader meant making huge personal sacrifices in my own life for the sake of the best show possible. I poured everything I had into that show- my time, my tears, my effort, and my creative energy. When we had three sold out shows and, more important to me, a cast incredibly cemented together and with amazing focus, I knew all those months had absolutely paid off. 

The whole cast after giving me the chair! :)

Why is why when, at the curtain call of the final show my cast called me forward to present me with two bouquets of sunflowers and a director's chair, I stood in front of a sold out theatre crying like a blubbering fool, immensely humbled and awed and so proud.

The whole cast signed the chair, and Justine (who played Margaret) embroidered my name and did the incredible sunflower detail. Sunflowers, my absolute favorite kind of flowers, had littered the stage and set because we'd set the story in an Italian garden. The = ♥ is a reference to something I used to use when taking notes during rehearsals/full runs. When a cast member delivered a line a certain way or did something with their character that I really liked I would scribble an equals sign with heart to remind myself to praise their good work during notes. It became something of a badge of honor in the cast. Months later when I sat in on a rehearsal taking notes for another production I doled out a few equals hearts and a member of that show yelped with glee, declaring that to be a "huge compliment!" Really, it was just Lizzie shorthand, but it was so sweet that it kind of caught on.

Covering the arms and legs of the chair (though perhaps fading now) are quotes from the show, lines from our favorite warm-up games, and thank you notes. I love this chair. It is seriously the most thoughtful and kind gift I have ever received. Sitting in it always reminds me that we are all capable and that, while theatre is not as much of a priority in my life anymore, it once was something that dually gave me great joy and made me grow into being a better leader. 

And, because I want to and because I think you'll have a little kick out of it, here are some of my favorite photographs from the show: 

 

During the final dress rehearsal the cast played a prank on my by all coming out in each other's costumes for the final scene. It was HILARIOUS and the fact that they did the whole scene without even so much as a blink in the direction of their outrageous attire told me they were ready for opening night. 

Alright, dear reader. Thank you for your kind support and a special thank you to all of you who participated in Day of Silence yesterday!

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current jam: "moskau" dschingius khan (it. is. so. catchy.)

best thing in my life right now: WAFFLE CARNIVAL (foryougracie)

days until departure: 46

The 30 Day Photo Challenge: Day 11

Day 10: A Picture (or two) from your weekend:

So, obviously, this weekend was full of playmaking and theatre-doing in Michael Lew's one-act, The Moustache Guys. Here are a few select pictures from the show (much obliged to Project: Theatre for taking these!)

The show, a farce on the Free Masons, masculinity, and society in general, centers around one woman, Ali, who has gone undercover to a meeting of the International Order of the Moustache Guys to find her actually-moustache-less husband, Paul. The Moustache Guys are a clandestine brotherhood who revel in dancing to Enya, yelling obscenities at one another, and engaging in interactive moustache poetry. Basically, it was the funniest show I've ever been a part of!

My first character (pictured above) was the "Second-in-Command Pirate"

Stroking the whiskers of Robert E. Lee and Ulysses Grant as neophytes to the Order with the fabulous Jojo and Miriam! 

My second character, the Air Conditioner Repairman. 

My dear friend, Stodd, directed the show and she did a phenomenal job with it (thanks dearest!). Her vision for the show was made plain from the first rehearsal, which gave us actors such drive to make it the best possible performance. The cast was comprised of some hilarious ladies (did I mention we were all women? compounding the humor 100-fold?) and the crew was marvelous!

My final character, the Tammany Hall Boss, back to reclaim leadership of the Moustache Guys, with the talented Christina as the Kung Fu Master! 

It's a rarer gift than people realize when a cast is synthesized into one cohesive, collaborative, supportive, and creative group. This show definitely had that, and I was so happy to share in the fun and to not take myself too seriously with these talented women!

Photo by the marvelous MARIO/Steph!

Thank you friends! I had a blast! And a special thanks to the beautiful seniors involved with the production- you will be so sorely missed next year!

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current jam: "born this way" lady gaga (duh!)

best thing in my life right now: obviously, the post-show glow from moustache guys! which is also a little sad, though!

days until departure: 62

The 30 Day Photo Challenge: Day 7

Day 7: Something I never leave my abode without:

CHAPSTICK.

Seriously, I have this chronic addiction. I once emptied my purse in this vlog and found that I had something like four or five tubes/containers of chapstick.


And the thing is, they all serve different chapstick purposes. Pictured here is my personal favorite, Blistex, which is the most intense (and therefore more frequently used). I use Chapstick brand when I want to be on the go; Neosporin overnight before I go to bed; and tubed Blistex for on-the-go-but-its-really-windy-out. 


So, basically, I'm a freak. But you knew that already.


IN OTHER NEWS I have been very, very busy lately (thus the brevity in my blogs). I had several midterms and papers due last week and the flow of homework and reading has not ceased. I am not complaining, though, because I want to soak in every academic moment here at college! And, as it just so happens, I'm going to declare my major pretty soon (expect a blog post later on that).


In other realms of my life, I've been hard at work on my radio show. Last week I had the great pleasure of interviewing my Religion professor, Dr. John Grayson. What a treat! He talked about meeting Bishop Tutu, Winnie Mandela, and Rosa Parks (!!) and was so genial and lovely to chat with. This week I'll be interviewing my friend from NC, Mary Day Saou, a photographer and Worship Leader. While the show itself is only two hours on a Saturday, preparing for it involves actively listening to all of my guest's music at least twice through, researching artists I don't know already, and writing the script. So about five hours of preparation goes into each two-hour slot. 


AND FINALLY, I'm in a play! It's a goofy one-act entitled "The Moustache Guys" which has been quite enjoyable to work on. In high school I did a ton of theatre, especially because I was on the Board of Directors for a student-run company, One Song Productions. I directed, acted, tech'd, costume designed, sang, danced, and produced for something like twenty plays. When I got to college I was pretty burned out on theatre, not out of spite, but just because I had other interests I wanted to pursue. But last semester I auditioned for Project: Theatre's annual production of The Vagina Monologues. It was ideal because of the short time commitment, and because I love the show. From there I was recruited to do "Moustache Guys" and I'm so glad I auditioned! The show itself goes up tomorrow night and will have a matinee on Sunday afternoon. 


I'm so grateful for all theatre taught me in high school. From the stage, and the people involved, I learned so much about self-presentation, speaking in public, and confidence. My radio show is very much a product of what I gleaned dually from running a production company (it's a LOT of work) and from the pressure of performing in front of audiences of  about a 1000 people (yay Arts Schools!). 


So that's what I've been up to. How about you?


OH P.S. Happy Belated Birthday, Vincent Van Gogh! There goes that whole vlog I made for your birthday, because, well, I forgot it was yesterday... (*headdesk*)


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current jam: "the king of spain" tallest man on earth
best thing in my life right now: my job interview is this afternoon! and the weekend is nearly nigh!
days until departure: 66