Eeeeeeek! Engagement pictures!

Our engagement pictures are totally here!!

A friend of mine took them for us. We were a bit rushed because we didn't have much time. The pictures were taken on the set of Barefoot in the Park, and we had to get out before they set up for the show! Nevertheless, they're pretty cute.

Hopefully we can take some more pictures together. Not only because it's fun, but because P needs to practice making picture-faces!! He's still adorable, and I love him to death...but boy needs to learn how to smile properly for a picture.

I thought I would post some of my favorites here. :)

(See what I mean about him making awkward faces?)


(I wanted the vintage fridge. But we borrowed the appliances from Tennessee Rep. And they were HEAVY! I know...I helped carry them to the truck.)

It's the most dreadful time of the year

That's right, kiddos. It's audition time.

Not too many people were reading this during the Barefoot in the Park Panic Session of '07, but believe me, it was epic. (If you really want to put yourself through it, click on "audition" or "Barefoot in the Park" in the taglist...but you're warned ahead of time). I stress like nothing else during auditions.

The past couple years the theater department functioned on two major principles: small shows and precasting. So they would pick a show with six people in it and say, "We'll give this part to that girl and that part to this guy and I'm sure we can use this girl somewhere..." and that would be it. Auditions were a mere formality. And unfortunately for me, I didn't have a theater scholarship starting out, so I was not often selected for parts...especially since one girl who was a scholarship student was of a similar build and similar look and similar personality. Every time we auditioned, the role would go to her. It was frustrating, and it hurt, especially since the girl had one of the personalities where she would insult you without verbally insulting you. Does that make sense? She was very sneaky about it, but no matter what she said to me- even when she said something nice- the way she said it made me feel about two inches tall. I hated being around her, because I always felt like I was the most pathetic, unlikeable, untalented person in the world, and that she hung out with me simply because she felt obligated to, because the girl she decided was her best friend started out as my best friend.

(*phew* Whether that makes any sense or not, it was stressful.)

In any case, with all the changes in the department, I have a lot more hope. Which is good, because I really want to play Adelaide in Guys and Dolls. I could play her really, really well. She's right in my vocal range, she's a character part rather than a straight-up ingenue, and I understand her character.

Besides, it's my turn. It really is my turn. The older girls in the department have had leads- Betty and Ruth in Marigolds, Andromache and Hecuba in Trojan Women, Ethel and Corie in Barefoot in the Park, the Narrator in Joseph. I've never had a big part. I've had small character parts that I've worked hard at and rocked out, like Janice and Mrs. Paddy, but that's about it. And the younger girls have two, three, four years to go, with plenty of chances to play their perfect parts. Every time I audition, I either get a small part or I'm told "Don't worry, you're talented, just work hard and you'll get it next time." There is no next time. This is the last time. It's my turn to shine.

And to make me feel better (and hopefully stifle the panic-driven adrenaline spikes), I'm going to list things.

-Mike the Almighty Director is very balanced in casting...or at least more balanced in casting than the old regime was. He's not one to constantly place the same people in the leads over and over again.

-MTAD knows that this is my last semester, that I'm a hard worker, and that I really want a part. He also knows how broken-up I was over not getting a part in Barefoot, and hopefully that will play into things.

-Ashley, Kirby, and Becca aren't auditioning.

-Chelsea and Courtney were narrators for Joseph, and they're more ingenues than character actresses, which means they would probably get considered more for Sarah Brown.

-MTAD isn't asking the non-majors and -minors (like the music department people) to prepare a monologue, which most likely means that they will be used in only singing parts and ensemble. Besides, Adelaide is a character part and requires more acting than a classically trained voice.

-I would be shocked if an incoming freshman got a part. Seriously. They would have to KNOCK IT OUT OF THE PARK to get a lead right off the bat.

-I'm short. Which means if it comes down to me and a taller girl, and the guy is average height, they may very well go with me. (That happened in high school).

And finally:

-I am working so, so, so hard. I work out every day. I picked a socko-boffo song and a hilarious monologue that are perfect to show that I'm right for Adelaide. I'm going to talk to MTAD about how I can improve my audition, and what he's looking for from me. I've been belting every day.

I want this part so bad. So, so, so, incredibly bad.

I am going to update every day this month!

This is a short post. I apologize for the stream of consciousness that is about to ensue.

Things have been crazy. I NEED TO WORK OUT. I've only worked out once this week, and I can feel it. It bothers me.

I lost Bubbette the Bubba Keg for a while. Panic! Then I found her in the physics lab. All was well.

I am officially, formally, a theater major/English minor. I shall graduate next semester!

My little sister is a cutie.

I miss the Great Movie Ride.

I need to get off the computer so I can call P back. He sounded sad.

I need to work on my Script Analysis project. Boo hiss.

I'm serving dessert for Barefoot in the Park tomorrow. Yummy.

I got the script for Beau Jest today. FUNNY! I want to be Sarah.

I swept with a broom that looked like a VERY LARGE PAINTBRUSH.

Erin Randolph and Ryan Malone are two of the most funniest people ever.

Today is Nick's birthday!

I feel old.

I really need to get off the computer.

I've been writing a new story, leaving poor Beatrice to flounder on her own.

I am GETTING OFF THE COMPUTER.

Good night, all.

Working like a maniac...but it's so much fun!

Sewing sewing sewing sewing...my Thanksgiving break will be spent in quality time with my sister's sewing machine. (His name is Corbin Blue...and while I love my little Zac Efron Singer machine, Corbin is sooo much nicer!)

I have to make:
Alterations to the four costume pieces for the scene I'm directing for Shorts!

Meg's outfit from Hercules

A pinafore for my Alice in Wonderland costume

Ariel's blue dress from The Little Mermaid

A petticoat for a Cinderella costume

A blue knit dress for the December 5th show

A floral corduroy jumper for the December 6th show

And I might also make an Aladdin costume. And a Hercules costume. But at least I get to sew, which I haven't gotten to do much of lately, so this should tide me over till I'm home for Christmas. But yeah. I will probably blog more on my sewing blog than here, but I'll try to post some here too.

And in other news...

I didn't get the Barefoot role. Hence the hiatus. I had to sulk and get it out of my system. I still don't really want to talk about it, because I got majorly screwed over (and that's not just me being sulky), but hopefully I'll be completely over it soon.

P is working 23 hours this week. I will see him...well, much less than 23 hours. But hey, he'll get money, and we can save money for the whole "we're-getting-married" thing.

Speaking of which, our registry is up and booming! We're still adding stuff, but we're off to a good start. So far we're registered at Bed, Bath, and Beyond and Target, but we're also registered here. The site lets you register for items anywhere on the internet...which means my Corelle dishes are up there. And if Santa doesn't bring me my dream bicycle for Christmas...it's so going on the registry. I can dream, can't I?

But in any case...I have sewing to do and Arrested Development to watch.

Also...Lora, I'm so glad someone reads this. It makes me feel my life is not completely futile. ^_^

Audition Purgatory: Day #7...or is it #8?

I think it's day #8...

I don't really want to talk about callbacks. I looked fantastic, if I do say so myself (if you go here you can see my amazing outfit), and I think I did well with the improv, and I felt like I did a great job with the cold reading...but Mike the Almighty only had me read once. Either I was just a train wreck, or the one reading was so strong that he didn't need to see me again. Let me tell you, those are two wildly different options, and I don't know how it's going to go down. I was a bit of a wreck afterwards (read: broke down and sobbed), but Erin consoled me, and Shannon (who is an ACU person and knows MTAD really well) said that she felt the strongest auditioners for the role of Ethel were me and Becca. So I have no idea. Really, no idea at all.

If we can get ahold of Ash, we're duking out the cast list with Mike the Almighty Director tomorrow. Maybe I'll get to know then if I have a part...I certainly hope so.

On the theatrical upside, we did our first run-through of act 2 for Shorts. MTAD was very pleased with my work and my actors and only had a few minor notes for me. And...I do have to say that mine was the strongest of the three scenes for the 2nd act. Scene #1 is good, but the blocking is very flat, and Scene #3 is so talky that the actors kept getting lost...and the scene lasted an hour.

Now in other news...to get my mind off the drama that is theater...

I spent about two, three years writing a book. I finished it this summer with a grand total of 360 handwritten pages. I typed it up...and then I forgot about it. So now I'm trying to edit it so I can finally let my friends read and critique it. Some of them are chomping at the bit, so I should probably finish it soon.

...and now I've run out of non-theater things to talk about.

Crap.

Is it Friday at 5pm yet?

Audition Purgatory: Callbacks

In nine hours, I will be in the University Theater for callbacks.

I'm freaking out.

I feel better about this than the auditions, simply because I know what I'm going into. And I know that Mike thinks I'm a decent enough actress to deserve a callback, and that's really encouraging. But still! Callbacks!

What's even more encouraging is that apparently no one wants to play the mom. Everyone wants to be the ingenue. Seeing as how I really want to be Ethel, that gives me an edge. Also, Paul mentions that Ethel is "small and dainty." Small? That's not me at....oh, wait, I'm five feet tall. This is fabulous.

Seriously, though, I can't wait until this is over. But it won't be over until the cast list is announced, and who knows when Mike the Almighty Director will do that?

Ugh. Someone please shoot me.

Audition Purgatory: Day #5...and other news

I am starting to feel better about callbacks. Why? Because I called up my friend Anth and he coached me. He didn't think he did much...but he did a lot. I have a better feel of the lines and the character, and I'm going to ask Mike the Almighty Director if I can try a bit of a Jersey accent, just to shake things up. Plus I'm going to see if Caleb and/or Sawyer can read with me today or tomorrow, since the former is up for Paul and the latter is up for Velasco. Hopefully that'll help even more.

I feel like I should talk about something else. My mind may be taken up with callbacks, that doesn't mean my blog should too.

...I just don't know what to talk about.

Audition Purgatory: Day #3

Callbacks for Enchanted Attic went down last night. They went really well, although I think the improv actually did more to cast them than the cold readings. There were some great surprises too- one girl in particular. I'm going to wait until after everyone's cast before I discuss them...not that anyone who auditioned reads this blog, but just to be safe.

Of course, I won't be able to know who has which part until Mike the Almighty Director holds his callbacks on Monday...so I won't know if I have a part until right before Thanksgiving. Augh.

However, there is one thing I realized. There are, I think, seven girls called back for the role of Ethel. I am one of them. Four of those girls were called back for Enchanted Attic, three of them have been lined up for parts and we're probably going to get them. That leaves four girls still in the running.

Contestant #1: A fantastic actress, but she's also called back for Corie and we think she'll get the part.

Contestant #2: Another amazing actress, but she's younger and has an accent.

Contestant #3: Terrific musical theater actress...not so good at straight theater. My personal thought is that since she was so good as the Narrator in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Mike the Almighty Director wanted to see her read. She's called back for Corie and the mom, but I know she can't play old.

And Contestant #4 is me.

Honestly, I feel like it's between me and Contestant #1, but I really feel she'll get the part of Corie. Everyone's money is on her. And I've played a lot of older characters, so I feel I have at least a bit of an edge. Plus, I called a friend of mine and he's going to coach me this weekend on the two callback scenes.

I hope I get the part.

Audition Purgatory: Day #2

Callbacks have been posted! I am now in the running to play Ethel in Barefoot in the Park. Terrifying and exciting all at the same time. I know the two guys called back for Velasco, and I know the two guys called back for Paul really well, so I have hope that I'll do a good job relating. What scares me is that Mike, the all-powerful director, has already matched up who he wants to read together. Will I get to read four times with all four guys? Or will he have me read just once, thank me politely, and get my pity you're-a-senior-and-I-feel-obligated callback over with?

There is so much drama in theater, and it's not even on the stage.

From the other end of the table, callbacks for Enchanted Attic are tonight...which I am conducting with Ash and Deb. It's going to be fun- cold readings and improv. My favorite kind of audition, honestly. Cold readings put everyone on the same level (except for the smart overachievers like me who read it beforehand and practice, but the director doesn't know that!) and I can do improv pretty well. I wish I had a callback for Enchanted Attic instead...it's such a cute show and so much less pressure, but you takes what you can gets.

P and I are trying to pick our china patterns. Over Thanksgiving break we're going to have a big registry day, but we're still surfing around the 'nets for cool things. Who loves Kate Spade dishes? I love Kate Spade dishes.

Kate Spade June Lace

Kate Spade Library

Kate Spade Primrose

What do you think? We certainly can't decide...

Audition Purgatory: Day #1

Auditions went down last night...from 6:30-10:00. Freaking forever. What made it worse was that I knew I was going last. So I had to watch every single competitor perform before me, knowing we were all up for the same parts. Granted, they were also auditioning for Enchanted Attic, which I'm not auditioning for, but still. There's only two female parts in Barefoot in the Park, and I want one of them. Most likely the mother, since that's what I'm built for.

When it actually came time for my monologues, I really think I did well. I did a piece from "Heads" by Jon Jory and a piece from "Plaza Suite," also by Neil Simon. I wanted to demonstrate I could be a mother and deliver Simon's lines.

I think I did well. I kinda peeked a little and I think I have a callback. Think, hope, pray...yeah. I want a callback really badly.

Audtions on both sides of the table

I really don't know how to feel about this...mixed emotions...nervousness, excitement...

I hate auditions.

So it's a lot hatred, I guess.

See, from 6:30 to 10:00 I will be in the University Theater with my grown up clothes and my expressionless director face, watching actors come in and pour out their monologues. I will then write unintentionally scathing remarks like "too cutesy," "doesn't understand the part," and "NO" on my pages, and then decide whether or not they are worthy to get a callback for my play.

But then at 10pm, it will be my turn to stammer out some monologues and pray I'm deemed worthy.

Yeah, I really hate auditions.

We're casting for two plays- Enchanted Attic and Barefoot in the Park. I'm one of the directors for Enchanted Attic, but I really want to be in Barefoot. Who knows how this'll go? I'm pretty nervous, but I've got my monologues. So we'll just see.