Sherri says:
"Today on stage I shut them down. I simply worked it into the scene, or moved over to them and blocked them from the audience's view. Then I talked to a couple of them afterward, telling them that I needed their help to keep whoever was talking quiet.. I told them that I believed it wasn't THEM, but that they MUST be beside whoever was talking and playfighting so I was counting on them to be the bigger person and stop the misbehaving.we'll see how it goes. :)"
This is brilliant! It's called taking the bull by the horns. I'm not sure it ever would have occurred to me, but I've never been quite that hard-pressed.
Good going, Sherri! I hope it works. At very least, you have shown yourself a force to be reckoned with, and that's often worth its weight when dealing with recalcitrant children.
Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI'm kind of hoping that one of their mothers tries to have it out with me. he he... I'm sure heads will roll if that happens. (I'm not altogether sure WHO'S head .. but it'd be interesting anyway.) wait.. should I have written 'whose?' why is basic grammar escaping me?!?! It's been a long two weeks.
3 days off now. Thank heaven!
Have fun!
ReplyDeleteOne of my jobs will be closed from Dec 15 till after the first. Good thing the other one will still be going!
Three days off is one thing, but two weeks can be killer!
well, we've been back at it for two nights this week and it's been ... *sigh* ... I've been horrible. I'm sick now - some sort of infection either in my ear or my sinuses and I'm foggy, nauseous and my mouth is as dry as leftover baked potato. I forgot a line, again, but this time I really didn't care very much. Every child in the play rushed up to me during and after the show to trumpet my failure. Finally I told one, "I know I missed a line, but the next person who says that to me dies."
ReplyDeleteThe children are also wired to the point that injuries are starting to happen pre-show: The run up and down the aisles and climb over the seats, balance on railings and scream at the top of their lungs. Last night the stage manager and her friend stood center stage for 20 straight minutes singing the same french folk-song over and over and over.
Hopefully my doctor's appointment today will get me some medicine that makes it all easier to live through. My poor daughter, I wish I could be excited about this for her sake. I feel like a terrible mother, a fraud as an actress and the grinch who stole Christmas all rolled into one.
Don't let the turkeys get you down. It sounds like an absolute nightmare, and I would make a point to never work with that company again. Do they do any sort of Post Mortem?
ReplyDeleteBy 'post mortem' do you mean that there are some companies who actually sit down afterwards and analyze what could have been done better?!? I've never heard of that but it's a great idea.
ReplyDeleteI'm feeling pretty much "over it" at this point. I dont' really try anymore, I just do my best work-arounds. Much to my surprise, the audiences are loving it, anyway, which is the important thing I guess. My sanity can take a back seat to the applause "for the kids' sakes" :)
thanks for your kindness throughout this process. it's been much needed and very much appreciated.
Yep, we do that. The Board does, anyway. We send out a little survey to the cast and crew, asking for input, and sombody on the board takes out all the names and we discuss the experience.
ReplyDelete