From the Inside Out

We attended our first rehearsal for Hartburn Hotel tonight. After meeting the other actors and going through the schedule, we had a standard read through of the script. It was my first time to read the entire story, and I have to say that it’s pretty funny. Both the actors and the audiences are going to enjoy it. And, the director has some great ideas to make it even more fun. I love melodramas!

We have a fantastic cast with a wide variety of ages, backgrounds, and experience. I’m really excited about the opportunity, but I’m also a bit nervous because in addition to acting, I’ll also be playing the piano. It’s not something I’ve done in a live stage play before, but I think I’m up for the challenge!

After the read through, we met with the costuming director for an initial discussion about wardrobe, measurements and hair styles. Hartburn Hotel is set in an interesting time period (around the turn of the century), so the costuming is going to be great — big dresses, hats, and fancy hairdos. What fun! We even get to wear the costumes while participating in McKinney’s 4th of July parade. The McKinney Repertory Theatre has a float in the parade, and they’ve asked all actors to be on the float to help promote the show. I guess I need to start working on my “pageant” wave. LOL.

Our next rehearsal is on Tuesday. We’ve got practices scheduled four times a week (Mon, Tues, Thrs, and Sat) during the month of June, so it’s going to be a very, very busy month!

After weeks and weeks of rehearsals, the lights went up on the stage, and we prepared to entertain a live audience with our first performance of “The Prison.”

I spent most of the day getting ready for the performance, running errands and taking care of last minute duties so that everything would run smoothly once the actors arrived. We gathered at 5:45 for costuming and make-up. Here are a few shots I snapped back stage before the performance.

Gary relaxing — no worries, no pressure

Kat and Greg running lines

Our guards playing some Wii

Kim and Mary chatting before we go on stage

Jami (our masterful props manager) and her husband, Chaz

Our back stage assistants playing pool

We had a small audience tonight, but we’re expecting a much larger crowd tomorrow. It was probably a good thing that we had a smaller group since we there were a few glitches. Nothing major — probably unnoticeable by those who were in the audience — but those of us who are familiar with the play know we had a few botched lines, etc. I’m sure we’ll have the kinks worked out tomorrow and it’ll be a flawless performance for the final night!

The Prison has a powerful message about hope and forgiveness. If you haven’t seen it yet, stop by on Saturday night at Abundant Life Church in Plano. The show starts at 7:30 pm. Don’t miss it!

The City of Dallas is participating in this year’s Free Night of Theater program which campaigns to attract new audiences to live theatrical performances — absolutely free of charge.

Dallas is one of 120 communities across the country participating in this event from Thursday, October 16 through November 10, 2008. More than 3,000 free tickets to more than 26 Dallas-area theaters will be up for grabs starting at noon on Wednesday, October 1, 2008. Mark your calendar now because tickets will be passed out on a first, come first serve basis.

Tickets can only be reserved online. Each participating theater will set a reservation ticket limit for their productions. Once tickets have been reserved through the website, patrons will be able to pick up their tickets at the will-call window of the individual theater’s box office on the night of the show.

Participating Theaters in the Dallas Area are:

• African American Repertory Theater
• The MET Theatre
• Charles W. Eisemann Center
• One Thirty Productions
• The Company of Rowlett Performers
• Pocket Sandwich Theatre
• Contemporary Theatre of Dallas
• Repertory Company Theatre
• Dallas Children’s Theater
• Shakespeare Dallas
• Dallas Hub Theater
• Teatro Dallas
• Dallas Theater Center
• TeCo Theatrical Productions
• Echo Theatre
• The Black Academy of Arts and Letters
• Garland Civic Theatre
• Theatre Britain
• ICT MainStage
• Theatre Three
• Jubilee Theatre
• Uptown Players
• Lyric Stage
• WaterTower Theatre
• MBS Productions
• WingSpan Theatre Company

If you love the theater, this is your chance to check out a new show at no cost. In fact, the organizers encourage participants to go to a theater they’ve never visited before.

If you aren’t a patron of the arts, then this is a good time for you to give it a shot. At this price, there’s nothing to lose and you just might find a theater you like.

Lights…camera…action! Pirates of Patmos opened tonight, and we had an outstanding crowd. The energy from the audience was amazing; that’s what makes acting so much fun.

After a “so-so” dress rehearsal plagued with costuming issues and sick actors, I was really nervous about the performance tonight, but I’m pleased to report that everything went flawlessly. God was definitely listening to our prayers!

I couldn’t be happier about tonight’s production. We received rave reviews from the friends, family and guests who were in attendance. We posed with the kids who wanted photos with our characters and had a really fun evening.

While the play is intended to be a lighthearted and fun pirate adventure, it does have a message. It’s one that I hope people will remember long after tonight. Even though I really enjoy putting on these productions, we don’t just do them for the fun of it. Ultimately, our goal is to minister to people through drama, leaving a message of hope and redemption.

Well, it’s really late, and I have to get up early tomorrow. I’ll try to write more about the Pirates experience when I have more time. In the mean time, you can check out the new photos in the Photos section of the blog.

Thanks to everyone who came out tonight to support us.

We will do it all over again tomorrow, and I can’t wait!