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| Last Stop, Tampa Theatre The Tampa Theatre production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show has been barreling towards us since the August auditions. Even faster than usual it seems, due to having less rehearsal time than years past. We had about 6 auditions in the actual theatre and 1 in the theatre home of the weekly cast, Interchangeable Parts. The 6 real rehearsals went smooth as sandpaper, and just as sweet. Tempers were a bit higher than usual it seemed. My own opinion is that it was due to the lack of time to throw the show together. The rehearsal down at I.P.’s home was just a joke. Picture if you will, learning how to dance in your living room, then being asked to perform in a fishbowl. You now know why I feel the ‘rough draft rehearsal’ is totally pointless. Especially from a props point of view. During the Tampa show, we are on the run for 85% of the show. During the rehearsal, we were sitting, watching the show, giving side stage directions to the performers. Since the performers are used to a totally different stage, as are the props crew, there was a lot of improvising going on to make this stadium-sized show fit into a high school auditorium. Yeah, we pulled it off, yeah it looked ok … it is just my opinion that having that rehearsal actually does more harm than good. It doesn’t give the props crew a chance to practice anything except how to walk slow, it doesn’t give the performers much to do other than dodging all the other performers that would normally have room to be out of their way. This Thursday, we are having our final dress rehearsal. I am petrified. So far, my rehearsal injuries have been getting progressively worse as the weeks go on, so I assume that at the end of the final show, I will just collapse in a dead heap. I am just hoping that I make it thru the shows. I think Brian and/or Kristie just might kill me if I injured myself to the point I couldn’t crew. The final dress rehearsal is the one where we get the movie print and actually perform to the film. It is the acid test. I hope no one gets killed. Friday night, we have our first live performance. God help us all … Saturday night we have another live performance. That is 3, count ‘em T-H-R-E-E performances, in three days. Do you have any idea how our feet are going to feel?! I will personally be lucky if they don’t make a deal with my left leg and disappear in the middle of the night. I do know one thing. I need psychiatric help. After the physical pain that I went thru last year, I had promised myself I would never crew again. Apparently I forgot, instead going to the other extreme and vying heavily for the same position. Boy am I an idiot. However, I know another thing as well. I know that I am never doing crew again. My body can’t handle it … I am a big wimp. However, I still want to be in the show, or a part of the show. Kinda like all the people who come in and watch the rehearsals but don't actually do anything. (Editor’s Note : For being such a nice story, she had to put this bitch/rant in. At least she didn’t dedicate an entire page to it!) Is it just me who thinks it is slightly hypocritical for other people to be allowed to have guests at rehearsal for whatever reason and I bring someone once and I get my shit jumped in? It wasn’t even a situation where I thought he might want to watch, Joel was there because I forgot that I couldn’t take him over at Scott’s in mid-transport. He stayed for moral support because he knew how badly I wanted to quit due to stress and pain. Oh well, I always knew that there were teacher’s pets and they will always be catered to … I also know I am not truly one of them. (Editor’s Note : Thank goodness, she’s done. Please don’t encourage her!) So I have decided that I want to start performing again. I have yet to decide which part I will be busting major ass to master this coming year, but I know that I want to be on stage again … not just back stage. Well, enough of this, I am so nervous and tired and queasy already just thinking about the show. Wish me luck! Hell, wish us all luck!
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