Showmance

One weekend down! Full houses all three shows!

Being in front of an audience is awesome. I am making the most of my "face in the crowd" status and amping up the crazy whenever I see a window. My stage "husband" actually told me I should tone it down because I'm pulling focus from the leads. Um, not likely.

I got a really nice compliment from a gal in the lobby the other night. She said she couldn't take her eyes off me. Yes, those were her words. And really, isn't that what every actor wants to hear? I'll take it!

Being backstage with 42 people has been challenging. While we're getting accustomed to our little inch of changing space and learning where to keep our stuff so it doesn't get trodden or moved, small skirmishes have broken out--mostly amongst the teens and children. Granted, the kids have it worse because they're actually in a circus tent behind the theater, where they swelter or freeze, depending. I'm grateful for my indoor inch.

There's been a lot of laughter and bawdy talk. I've learned some, ahem, terminology that I might have been better off not knowing, having avoided it until now. But the adults are getting along well enough that we've gone out together four times already. Friday night, when we filled five tables at The Red Fox Room, was especially fun.

By yesterday afternoon, I could see everyone was a little dead behind the eyes. Not onstage, mind you. During intermission, and after, when we were cleaning up. Last night, I felt like I was hallucinating a little bit while ready Jarrah a story. And I still didn't sleep well--curse you, time change! This first week makes me feel narcoleptic.

Now I have a few days off to recover. And while I know I could use the rest, there's a part of me that's already sad to realize we have only one more weekend before we scatter to the winds. It's hard to break up a family, however new. The term "showmance" comes to mind. I know it usually refers to a sudden and artificial intimacy of a romantic nature between two people, but I think it can happen to an entire cast, too. We've been up in each others' faces a lot, and right now we have a big, looming thing in common. It's weird to think that very soon that will simply not be true anymore.