Today, I had two separate rehearsals for Musical Theatre Workshop. 2 back to back rehearsals for Parade. If you don't know Parade, who are you? But, since you probably do know it, you know that "All the Wasted Time" is one of the most amazing and heart-wrenching duets ever put on stage. Well, I had the immense pleasure (and emotional distress) of working on that one song with two separate partners for a majority of my afternoon. It wasn't fair.
Then, I had an hour off before my evening rehearsal for 100 Saints You Should Know. We're on to Act Two now, which is crazy. The first scene in Act Two has a pretty pivotal moment and, coincidentally, the young man playing Matthew in 100 Saints is also one of the assigned students playing Leo in my Parade scene. So, he and I went through this emotional trauma together today, which is pretty great.
Anyway, as I went through my day, it was easy to bring up the fact that I was bouncing between three rehearsals. I wasn't going to get much of a break and tackling three heavy projects had me craving a comedy. But, I realized, thankfully early on in the day, that I had two choices. I could either allow the rehearsals to weigh me down, or I could accept them as life giving. After all, that's why we do this whole "art" thing, right? Artists create and "work" because it is one of the things the Lord has tailor made to breathe life into them. So, I chose to celebrate. I know that I will likely face a season in which I'll be dying for even one rehearsal. When that time comes, the Lord will provide me with other life giving outlets, aside from his infinite and perfect goodness, of course. For now, I'm wrapping up my time in college and I get to work on projects consistently. It is easy to look at a packed schedule and complain, but the truth is, I love what I do. I'm glad I got to do it all day. Still, I had to choose to operate under that understanding.
The result was HOURS of inspired and worthwhile work. I left all three rehearsals having accomplished everything and I had set out to accomplish and my actors made beautiful discoveries and some really truthful moments. As a director, I get to set the tone of the rehearsal I enter and by recognizing what a GIFT it is to work on these projects today, the morale was high and the reward was evident.
It's not always easy to make that choice. I've had my fair share of rehearsals run by an exhausted version of myself. But, I look forward to facing that temptation in the future and remembering what a productive and worthwhile day I had today.
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