December 30th and 31st: Initial Blocking, The Company and Tour Schedule

Hello everyone!  I'm already snap happy, so there are some photos from the day thus far!  I'll introduce company members as their pictures pop up :)  We're getting through the initial blocking for the first 1/3 of the script today, and I've finished mine for now.  Basically, I've got a little bit of time to kill until I have to run it again!  

It's nice to be in a professional setting.  Everyone is very focused and patient.  Students seem to complain more about all of the down time and waiting-- not the students on this tour, mind you.  

Waiting is just a part of the process, and I'm thankful to be here, so it bugs me when people complain.

  Luckily there is none of that so far.  Actually, down

 time is where a lot of good work happens!  I've been doing a bit of character work today, so part of my blog will focus on that.  I always enjoy reading into other another actor's process, so if it strikes your fancy please enjoy.  If not, I've put all that stuff towards the bottom :)

The picture to the left is me (duh) on Mrs. Dubose's front porch!  As you can see, the set is quite minimal and a bit abstract.  I love it, it makes load in and construction go super fast (we got it put together the first time in under two hours -- I hear the average is four).  The door is a suggestion of the setting, and I find it's quite beautiful.  It fits what I imagined to be Mrs. Dubose's aesthetic, I am enamored with it!  I think my glee is showing.  

Here's Martha and I!  Martha is brilliantly playing Miss Stephanie, the town gossip.  I'm so pleased to be working with so many of my close friends.  Not only are they wonderful people, they are some of the most talented actors I have ever known.  Martha has been a source of love and inspiration to me for the past four years now, and is one of my closest friends.  I think it is amazingly appropriate and a stroke of dumb luck that we are both ending our college educations on the same show!  

Martha, Jim and Aaron (who I will probably be calling "Bartz" for the remainder of this blog).

Bartz (see) made the comment that this looks like a manger scene.  That would make Jim the baby Jesus.  Anyone familiar with Jim will see the hilarity in this.  

Bartz is playing the Sheriff Heck Tate and is another one of my close friends from undergrad.  This is my millionth time working with this son-of-a-bitch, and I'm not tired of it yet.  

Jim is the hairy one in the middle, and one of the funniest, committed and talented people I know, and will probably ever know.  And he smells. He's playing Bob Ewell.  We're very lucky to have him.

Here's a little preview of our lives backstage...Martha is giving birth to Jackson. 

This is probably the kind of behavior that keeps so many people coming back to this schizophrenic career path.   Jackson is a gem as well, we've been working together since our very first semester -- four and a half years now.  I know I have said this about everyone so far, but Jackson has impressed me since the first day I saw him perform, and does so continually.  He's also the nicest guy you'll ever hope to meet.  He's playing Judge Taylor/Walter Cunningham and some other supplementary offstage voices...as well as the creature springing forth from Martha's "Jackson Hole" (It's a city in Wyoming. Holla to Hannah.)

This little cutie pie is Marie, and as you can probably guess from her charmingly impish form and quintessential tom-boy overalls, she's playing Jean-Louise "Scout" Finch.  This will be Marie's second national tour with the Rep, which means she is never going to graduate.  Marie is the sunniest person in the whole friggin' world and has a penchant for playing young children, primarily boys.  A big congratulations goes to her for finally getting cast within her gender!  

As far as I'm concerned she was born to play this role, and she's doing a beautiful job so far.

  

Marie, you look a little gangsta in this picture.  Martha says more like a little...um...we'll pretend she said butch.  

This begs the question...at what age does a young girl go from being a called a "tom-boy" to "butch"?  Scout is 9, and Marie is 22, so we'll take the median age of 15 and a half and call her a "softball player".  (Sorry Briana. All in good fun!)

Jackson and Martha are reviewing some of the things we learned in stage combat.  I like to pretend that they're preparing for the epic fight scene between Miss Stephanie and Judge Taylor.

Here's a tour schedule for those interested!  See if we'll be in a city near you!  (Also, let me know if you'd like to go and I'll try and get you a comp ticket!)

If you click on it you can see a readable version. 

My friend Briana and I figured out that after this tour, there are only going to be 5 or 6 states that I haven't been to!  This job is so friggin' awesome!

Here's Martha giving Marie crap about her coveralls.  I just think it's funny she's wearing a child's size.  

At this point, I think I'm going to save character blogging for another day.  This is sufficient for the day, I think.

I want to wish a warm Happy New Year to everyone, as well as a warm Happy 23rd birthday to Martha!  

Stay safe and warm, wherever you are!  Here's to a wonderful 2008, and the hopes for a wonderful 2009!  Keep sending me those addresses!  (My email is lilygladstone@gmail.com if you don't want it displayed!)

Lily