My final farewell...

This day marks the beginning of the end. We have three more performances left and then Grease will go away. I have loved playing Doody and I have loved being a part of this tremendous cast. Thanks to everyone who came to see the show and signed our yearbook. Thanks for really getting in the spirit and wearing your name tags to the "reunion", but most of all, thanks for the applause and the appreciation of what Grease was meant to be. Stay tuned... I'm sure I'll be blogging about another show soon (wink wink).

Once again, thank you to my fellow cast members for making this such a wonderful experience. Let's face it... none of us do this for the money (if we did, we'd be eating the contaminated IAMS dog food that they just recalled) and most of us have day jobs. We do it for the joy and if you're really lucky, you make some friends (and get some crushes... and maybe more [shout out to Izzy on that last one]) along the way. I know how hard it is to show up on a Thursday, after a really crappy work week and muster the energy and enthusiasm it takes to get up there and do such a rambunctious show. To be honest, if you all weren't such great people, I'm not sure I could have done it. Doing this show has given me tremendous joy and I owe it all to the other 15 or so of you that made this one one of my truly favorite shows I have ever done. I took a long break from doing this (some of you know why and some don't) but I credit Newline and the people I have met there with the feeling that I have now... the feeling that no one will ever prevent me from doing what I love again; and for that I am truly grateful.

I need to go take my anti-depressant medicine now. Signing off.

Sincerely,
Doody

Sadly, week 2 has come and gone...

I am already getting depressed at the thought of this show ending. I
realized that when we were all in our big pile at the end of the show
Saturday night.

So to my fellow cast members in general: I'm so glad I met all of
you. Some of you I have known for awhile and have just never done a
show with you and some I just met during our first rehearsal. Many of
you I would count as friends now and many of you I will see again
soon. As always, a few people have become very dear to me and I will
miss them terribly (you know who you are), but even those of you that
I have not had the opportunity to get to know as well - you are all
so talented and I am grateful for the chance to have worked with you
on this great show.

Isabelle - Thank you for becoming my theater wife during this show.
I'm sure Sarah won't mind that you stepped into that role.

Matt - We are definitely going to be hang-out buddies. I am so glad I
got the opportunity to finally get to know you.

Jeff W - Sorry for all the shit I give you. It comes out of love
(LOL). Seriously, you are very talented and I wish you luck with
Orange Girls and I sincerely hope to work with you again in the future.

Jeff P. - YAY! We finally got to do a show together. You are
definitely a teen angel... and a very talented one at that.

Beth - Stiff my ass! Just remember I am right across the street if
you ever need a lunch buddy.

Joe - You can't leave! You are one of the few people who appreciate
my "coat hanger" jokes.

B.C. - Your true identity is safe with me. You are the coolest
greaser in the "world".

Kine' - You are amazing. I love hearing you sing every night. Thanks
for making me feel like I'm funny!

Lainie - I can't imagine how tough this was with a new child and all
but you do a magnificent job. I hope to get to work with you again.

Katie - I loved watching you erase all pieces of Katie out of Jan.
The Twinkie in the hair thing made me laugh!

Mara - What kind of nurse wears such whory nail polish? (hee hee) You really look great up there... wild hair and all.

Chris - I am so sorry you broke your arm. What a freaking trooper. If
I am at Six Flags I'll be sure to catch you at Miss Kitty's.

Erin - I wish you luck on everything you do. I admire you for really
making the conscious decision to follow your art where ever it takes
you.

Cindy - Sorry you didn't get to dance in the show, but you play a
great ball buster!

Brendan - Not bad for your first musical my man. I know you were
nervous but you do a great job!

AND FINALLY:

Scott Miller - Thank you again for giving me the opportunity to
perform. It never ceases to amaze me how your vision really makes
every show one I can be proud to say I was in. Not only that, but I
am glad to have gotten to be your friend. I have very few close
confidants in this world and I am proud to call you one of them.

Enough moosh for now. We still have two more weekends!

Second Week and Counting...

Tonight starts the second week of the run. I am still not feeling 100% but I feel 1000% better than I did Saturday. So far the reviews have been pretty good. I think Scott prepared them all for what they were going to see and no one came in expecting to see the movie version. The audience has been a little strange in that they are all very "quiet". They laugh, but they do it quietly. They react, but they do it quietly. As long as they enjoy themselves, that's all that matters.

It's funny how during rehearsals you think "I can't wait until the show starts so I can have some days off to rest", but when the run arrives and you have those off days, you really miss the people you are doing the show with. I really can't wait to see everyone tonight and find out how their week was and joke around with everyone (except Korinko... what a dick! [hee hee]). I am having cast withdrawals.

Ooooo... we had our first cast party Saturday. Thanks to our host Jeff Wright (your house is disturbingly clean). I won't give all the juicy details, but lets just say, both Matt and I were seriously disturbed at some of the events of the evening.

I will try to tell more as the run goes on. If you haven't seen the show yet, get your tickets fast, we are starting to sell out (especially Saturdays) early in the week.

Where's My Teen Angel?

So... I don't know who I pissed off or what I have done recently to
incur the wrath I have taken, but I obviously have done something
terrible. Last week was the worst week ever and it just kept getting
shittier. First my car gets broken into; then my brother dies; then
during Saturday night's performance I sliced my thumb open on the
damned hub cap again (note to self... take wet wipes to wipe the
blood off the hub cap); then I missed the second step when exiting
off stage and I scraped the shit out of my arm and banged up my knee;
and finally I started getting sick as we are opening the show and
Sunday I spent the whole day in bed (when I wasn't throwing up in the
bathroom).

ARRRRGGGH! So here I am at work (even though I am sick as hell
because there was no way I could miss another day) hoping that this
week proves to be much better. If only I had a teen angel like in
that Debbie Reynolds movie... or at least someone to come home to
that could kiss it and make it feel all better (poor, single me).

Oh yeah... the first review is in. Make sure to read it on the KDHX
site.

Racing towards the finish line...

After the week from hell, we had our last rehearsal tonight (Wednesday). I think energy was up and maybe nerves a bit too. Which, as Scott explained, we have to watch because we loose the “genuineness” of the show when we get hyped up.

I was so glad I could make it tonight (it looked iffy for awhile). Let me explain: Sunday, after rehearsal, I came out of the theater only to discover my car had been broken into (that’s what I get for leaving that 99 cent ice scraper in plain site). So I marched back to the Art Loft, determined to call the police and right this injustice that had fallen on me.  As I am on the cell phone with the cops the Art Loft phone rings (highly unusual). Since I was busy, Scott Miller answered and I heard him say “he is on the other line do you want to hold?” Now my mind is whirling and I am writing down the police report number. Finally I pick up the other phone to hear my Aunt tell me that my brother (somewhat estranged for many years) had died down in Texas.  I rush to my Mom’s house immediately (window broken out, hands freezing, nose running and legs numb). I comfort my Mom, call my Dad down in Texas and immediately realize that neither is any shape to handle what has to come next. I called down to the Dayton, Texas police to find out the next steps. Called the airline and booked two seats for departure on Tuesday morning and drove to the airport to sign the special vouchers for bereavement fairs.

Next day I spent the whole day with my Mom and went to rehearsal that night... OH, I had called Scott and let him know I was going to miss Tuesday’s rehearsal. Tuesday morning I woke up at 5:00 am and got packed, called my ex to come pick me up (since we couldn’t drive my car) and we went to the airport, after picking up Mom. Mom and I head straight to the funeral home when we land (P.S.  Texas is a big ole’ turd of a state... YUCK!). This morning we wake up at 4 (my mom is a freak about being late) and we headed out to the airport.  Strangely enough I saw my boss, Alex, there. He was heading to Florida. Anyway, our flight from Houston Hobby (the corn in the turd of Texas) was an hour late getting there and it became obvious that we wouldn’t make the connecting flight in Dallas.

I was right. We land in Dallas and my 60 something mother and I are running through the airport (props to mom... not bad for an old lady) and we get to the gate right as the plane is pulling away. So we got put on the next flight which would put us into St. Louis at 7:20 (rehearsal starts at 8). We arrive 10 minutes early and I change into my costume in the car and I get to rehearsal a little past 8.

So as you can see, I am tired but I was determined to not let the cast or Scott down. They’re my theater family and it was important to me to be there for them. Plus its rather cathartic to just forget about crap and be in the moment.

We open tomorrow and I can’t wait. So Mark, my performance tomorrow is for you. Sorry you couldn’t be here to see it. I wish you would have found happiness when you were alive.

Tic Toc! Tic Toc!

The pressure is on. This week will be our last week of regular
rehearsing because next week (starting Saturday) is hell week.
Saturday we will show up at the theater and basically we will be
there every day until the following Sunday. Its exciting but
frightening at the same time. Whenever hell week arrives, you know
there's no going back and every choice you've made up until now
better be the right one.

Thats really all I have to say right now, I'm sure more will come
this week. Wish us luck!

My First Grease Injury...

So last night while doing "Greased Lightening", I slashed my thumb open on the hubcap. I wasn't aware of how deep it was until I got home and started cleaning it out. I'm gonna scar (now I have to come up with some cool back-story of where the scar came from... I'm thinking I should say it happened while I was rebuilding my carburetor). Since it was my first injury, maybe I'll save the band-aid (thank you Jeff W. for tracking one down) in my Memory Chest. For those that don't know what a Memory Chest is, I'll explain:

Greg (G.P. - he's so pretentious) Hunsaker is our technical director. The other night we were out at the Moolah and Greg started opening up to the group and talked about his Memory Chest (he claims he said Memory Trunk, but I'm sure he said chest) that he keeps full of items from his sorted little past. At first I was going to let it go, but then, like there was chum in the water, I attacked. The pleasure here is that Greg is the gayest straight man I know. I'm sure he writes in his journal every night while he sips his tea and looks at articles from his Memory Chest. And after the single tear falls down his cheek becuase he found his "GREGGY" name tag from the store where he managed the Women's Clothing Department [I know... how gay is that?], he wanks off to the latest edition of JUGGS (or whatever filthy dirty stuff he looks at... or perhaps he uses Martha Stewart Living [love ya Greg]).

Other than the life-threatening injury I sustained, and the near loss of an appendage (Jeff Wright saved my life... MY HERO!), rehearsal was good. We had to grease back our hair for the first time and even though my hair is long, it's not long enough yet. I still have 2.5 weeks and, if nothing else, I'm sure I can fake it (if I had a nickel for every time I have said that). More later.