Preview Week to OPENING NIGHT!!!

Tags:


Whew! What a week! Totally tiring, but totally worth it! :) Here's the first part: previews into opening!

After our day off following tech week and our first previews, we were back to rehearsals with an added bonus: a performance every night! So not only were we now rehearsing for the majority of the day (usually starting at noon), but now we could present our hard work to an audience every night! As stated before in the earlier post, being in front of an audience is one of my favorite feelings EVER, so I enjoyed every time I got to work my flag out on that stage ;)

Usually for the rehearsals, the interns were required for finishing the curtain call and insert the--wait for it--MEGAMIX! The series of bowing needs to be perfectly timed to the music, so it took a lot of time to finish and polish the Finale Ultimo =) The interns were backstage singing their hearts out the whole time :D

So preview week is really important to the show because it gives us a sense of what is working and what is not. Since Hello, Dolly! is not a new show, we only work on polishing and fixing the little things. All of the major parts of the show are already worked out before we start previews (usually), so rehearsal is only 5 hours instead of the usual 8. There are always exceptions though, so my description of the process may not be totally accurate for every production :) Once previews are over, however, and we officially open the show, there are no more rehearsals except for a couple of brush-ups in the weeks to come.

Soon it was Opening Night!!! Since we still hadn't "opened", there was rehearsal in the morning before the dinner break before our 7:30 call! It was a nice two and a half hour break before I started putting in my pincurls!! I like getting ready 15 minutes before the half hour call, to ensure I'm all ready to get into my costume/wig at It Takes a Woman. All of a sudden, we were at Places, and the interns made their way to the booth... It's super exciting to know that you're about to be part of the OPENING of a 5TH AVE SHOW!! At least, I think it's pretty cool ;-)

After the first number, everything was going smoothly for me backstage, and as far as I could tell it was a pretty good show! The audience was AWESOME, typical of Opening Nights, which gives the actors so much more energy (from my experience). Then it was that time again for me to get my little blonde self out onstage and enjoy that parade!!! It was like the first preview all over again. It's different on opening nights, once you feel the audience cheering you on and the general excitement of all the people that it takes to put on a professional production.

During the curtain call (MEGAMIX!), my parents (according to them) gave me a standing ovation and the audience went wild! They loved the show, I think... :) Then it was a mad rush to get out of costume and into party dresses! I got ready in RECORD time, and it was off to Rock Bottom across the street for the partay!

I've been to a few Opening Night parties, so it was cool that at THIS one I was one of the cast members! My family insisted on being introduced to just about everybody... Well I had some fun times catching up with the fam (which I felt I hadn't seen in a veeery long time :P) and hanging with the interns, all glammed up and soaking in the glory of the Opening Night party! :D

Soooo I hoped you enjoyed my journey from rehearsal to opening of my first professional show in Seattle! My life...as a Covergirl. I mean, Performance Intern. o_O Stay tuned for more stories from backstage =)

FOR TICKETS: Visit this website, call (206) 625.1900, or go to the Box Office at the theatre between Union and University...on 5th Ave. =D

TOTAL (goal=150): 138 HOURS
By Myrna Conn on March 16, 2009 9:22 PM | | Comments (0)


Leave a comment