Monday 24 September 2012

Week Twenty Six: Pre-emptive Nostaglia

We are now getting into the habit of sitting about compiling lists of things we'll miss when this fantastic job is over. Terrible really, but we are all so aware of the speed with which the last few weeks are flying past us, as the time has shot past us since April the second, with barely a how do you do and things always speed up as the end draws near! Yet in an odd way, this job has become so massive in our lives, some folk speak of never having worked anywhere else- and I'm not talking about our baby debutante Jess, but  old & almost middle-aged ( yes, you heard me ) folk  like Mr Hannon who certainly had a full and busy career before heading to Keswick!  I think he might even do rather well in future.. So to sum up, this job can do funny things to a person's brain and definitely messes up a person's grasp on time. Perhaps it's all the cheese consumed late at night,  as Beth Barton so rightly points out in Dry Rot, "Shouldn't eat cheese last thing!"  if you want  to remain lucid. Then there's all that ale and fine wine, home made cakes and especially the addictive Hermans going round.
Hermans for the uninitiated are  live culture sour-dough cakes that you share with others, passing the living gloop around in little tupperware boxes and feeding for days before dividing it up to pass on and baking one lot into a lovely cake. People have taken to customising their contributions with choc chips and goji berries ( healthy and bad for you at the same time), apples & cinnamon, blueberries & bananas. I tell you it's a good job we dash about like mad things on stage and up and down the odd mountain from time to time or we'd all be fat as a December turkey. 
             It turns out that there are some very talented people in this company when it comes to baking and all manner of cookery. How could we forget James Duke's breath-taking truffles and that lemon tart still warm from the oven? Then there are Jess's mighty chilli and  baked sweet potato dinners,  followed by Zoe's chocolate biscuit cake,  also Chris'  moreish fish pie, Jamie Oliver style and a cheeky lemon syllabub to follow? Ridiculous high living that conjures up an image of wildly overpaid thesps frolicking about mostly for their own delight.
             I'm not about to be so vulgar as to mention our salaries here at TbtL but suffice to say it's better than many in the business. Nowhere near what someone might be paid to work in IT or retail, and we have to manage our own accounts and tax bills. That takes a bit of getting used to at the beginning of our careers, but you soon get the hang of filing away a chunk of your pay to give to the taxman after Christmas. Yes, nice seasonal timing that! Not only have you got to budget for Christmas but you have to put aside a big old chunk for HMRC. Boo.  I can't believe I am talking about tax on this blog. I think the  wet weather has started getting to my brain! If that's an Indian summer out there, it must mean Southern Indian style monsoon. Twelve hours of non-stop rain and counting.  No flood warning in place yet, but my little spot  by the river is looking  closer to the churning brown waters than it did yesterday!
 We've been diverted by the post-show discussions for all the shows, where the audience can talk with the cast and director about anything interesting about the production in question. It can also mean a few slightly cringe-worthy moments when an audience member plunges in with some clearly much thought out probing question, but without pausing to say that they enjoyed the show. For example, one man described a show as 'over the top' and wanted to know why everyone was 'o. t. t'.! This obviously sounds rather critical to an actor's ears. Some time later to clear up any confusion, one of the cast asked whether the man had enjoyed the performance and the poor chap fell over himself to express that he had.  Honestly, we sometimes forget how nervous people can get when about to speak in front of strangers and how those nerves push good manners & propriety out of their minds!
An especially lively debate followed Roma & the Flanellettes, as the theatre's new play for the 2012 season; a good turn out of about 30 resulted in much discussion of the issues raised by the play and the writer was put through his paces to describe how he wrote the play. The response to this play has been incredible and houses nice and full. We've just got ourselves another great review to help sell what tickets remain. Will this show have a life beyond TbtL?
 Things at least to keep us busy in the dry indoors include more new writing for some of us to read before a workshop day on Thursday; lots of books bought at some of the excellent charity shops in town; a matinee on Wednesday and 'gis a job' letters & emails to send out in the hope of landing something nice to follow on from this job. You never know in this business; jobs can appear from anywhere. I remember the first job I did, playing a little boy who finds a red balloon in the play of the same name, was the thing  many people would mention when I met them several years after the job ended. We would all like to jog some producer's memory a little sooner than that, but most theatre jobs will be already cast for anything starting before December 2012 and so we're all hunting down other forms of gainful employment to keep busy and afloat. We're a resourceful bunch, most of us all with other strings to our bows, ranging from teaching, nannying, fitness coach tour guides & through to  garden designer.
I can't go without a hushed mention of our end of season party, in which folk get up to all sorts of tribute high jinks and sketches sending up key people and plays.. what will it be and who will do what? Watch this space!
 I see that the rain has changed direction, now heading from right to left, so at least that makes a nice change.. apparently strong winds are next. Indian summer my ****!

Tuesday 18 September 2012

Week Twenty-Five: Staying In the Present

A slightly late posting this week, as the weekend was spent exploring the jolly little burgh of Saltaire, courtesy of new chums living in the area. That involved the Saltaire Fest as well and plenty of good living. A good time was indeed had by all, and we hardly got rained on the whole time. Most odd...

This week things are speeding ever more towards The End as new projects drift in from the outside world to claim peoples' time post-Keswick or P.K. A touch of a nip in the air and a decided turn to the colour of the trees and we are reminded that Autumn comes briskly on in these elevated Northern parts. It's great to watch folk start getting work for the P.K. part of the diary ( otherwise known as the rest of our lives!!), but we still have a job of work to do here and now and shows have still to be done and done well.  You know what it's like when you're sat next to a clock-watcher- ever so slightly annoying- so with actors, you have to remember to be present. You tend to get you leg pulled if you use phrases like 'being in the moment' but that is what it's all about.  Sometimes you have to take a second to remind yourself to focus on that fact and quieten the thoughts bubbling round your brain about the next stage, or NEXT STAGE as it looms ever larger in the mind. All the usual worries about paying the bills of course as well as what plans you need to make  to generate more work. We can't just sit about and wait for our agents to do all the leg work. It is a shameful indictment of the business we're in that most casting directors don't or won't come to see the shows here in Keswick. The old attitude reigns that if you're any good, you'd be working in London. That is such twisted logic I am not even sure I want to tackle it here!  On the positive, all the good folk who do come and who have come this year will know the folly of that state of mind but that is how it is and show-business is all the worse for it. A  cynical mind-set  prevails which is deadly. So many people take other peoples' word for the quality of something ( or someone) instead of making up their own minds.. It is a problem affecting many businesses these days I am sure. People are feeling increasingly time poor in their jobs and so they become less and less willing to make any time for a trip to the Lakes- or even the other side of London.  I kid you not! I know if I were a casting director I'd put this place on my list as the quality of shows is getting better and better, there are always new faces to see and you can throw in a few nice days out to boot! A no-brainer.  In a good-sized company like this, there in much opportunity for actors to help each other out, tipping people off about good jobs or recommending each other for work that's on the way somewhere. A good reason to be cheerful.
So we are now vowing to make time slow down enough outside of the theatre for us to enjoy all those things still on that lengthy list of To-Do's, whilst fitting in a few more workshops for TbtL, visits to family & friends nearby for birthdays and those jobs that need attention, like servicing cars and sorting out problems with permanent homes wherever they may be. We also have the prospect of the new cast coming in at some point; the lucky lot who will be rehearsing The Railway Children for Christmas. Sorry, I dropped the C-bomb! You can't help it in a world where things have to be planned so far ahead. It's like all those lucky blighters filming Christmas Specials for TV at the moment. It's a funny old game and no mistake. I'll be honest, I've packed away the summer clothes and have the big woolly jumpers, socks & hats on standby. I love this place but I am a Southerner and soft through and through!

Tuesday 11 September 2012

Week Twenty Four: Stop the World!

Ok this whole thing is going too fast! All of a sudden we feel a nip in the air, a few more leaves stuck to the rainy pavements and all the kids are slouching back from school in new ill-fitting uniforms. Why does time go faster when you're having fun? There's got to be a scientific equation stating as much. Professor Brian Cox should do a series about it. Yes, I know we still have two months left but the last five have flown by like very fast flying things and to add to that, with one day off a week, you start to see your remaining time here in terms of Sundays left for adventures. So we are down to single figures there. Eek!  Fact: there are simply too many things to do here, even for 'normal' folk with proper jobs. Add to that a very happy bunch of folk who get along- a rare thing indeed as I may have said before- and there is already a sense of mild unrest bubbling under, as we all count the days and wonder if we  will fit everything in. There are still the challenges of finding time to do the writing projects of Chris & George, major fell conquering- I feel things wouldn't be right without at least two of the highest peaks surmounted before we leave, Ruskin's Brantwood, trips to castles, steam trains and Saltaire Festival. Then there's still Scotland just over the border and all the treats that contains. Darn. A dream trip to Glasgow may have to wait for another time... Time to prioritise, as soon we will be running another show on the Saturday, making Sunday even more precious as a day of 'rest'.
I know, it's hard to believe, but we burn a lot of energy doing even a relatively un-energetic play. Nervous energy too, preparing to go on, as well as the actual clowning or fighting required! I suppose we should spend our Sundays tucked up on the sofa with cups of herbal tea but who in their right mind would do such a thing in a place like this? I love performing in the theatre, but my other side lives out doors in the world of garden design and to relax I've always loved a walk over hills & fields, ever since university in Sheffield, where the Peaks were a short David Blunkett bus ride away; in other words, it cost 15p to ride the seven or eight miles out to breath-taking countryside. How things- and people- change!
Our shows continue to roll on, with everyone keeping on top of the approach; no-one is complacent about yet another performance of show x or y and all think about keeping it fresh and new each time. Some actors by this stage in a contract can be a real drag to be around, grumbling about an audience that doesn't laugh as much as yesterday's, whining about being bored after 'so many' shows. It's a real mood killer all that moaning. Anyone who has had to hold down an office or shop job they didn't like to pay their bills will appreciate how hard it is to hear an actor complaining about their job in that way. I'm not saying we should never complain. If justified, complaining is a skill we all need to perfect to avoid poor service etc. But if you're moaning about having to do another show or three hundred people not being as loudly amused as the other three hundred last night, you're wasting valuable hot air!  These jobs other people would  sell their granny on eBay for, they're so rare. So counting your blessings is not only good for keeping the moaning at bay, but it ups the enjoyment factor all round! What a top year 2012 has turned out to be. And it's by no means over yet.

Monday 3 September 2012

Week Twenty Two: meeting our public & exploring new possibilities

On Friday we went to lunch with a splendid bunch of people at Higham Hall, an impressive looking house in its own grounds near Bassenthwaite Lake that runs all kinds of residential courses for adults. Our hosts Jim & Eileen have been running their theatre appreciation course for 5 years; classically, they retired and wanted something to do. I think they've been overwhelmed with the interest and the amount of work that a course like this can bring and whilst looking a little exhausted by the Friday, that interest is all to their credit & the credit of Ian Forrest, who has allowed the delegates unprecedented access to the theatre, its productions and how it is all run. Volunteer actors were required to add their prespective to a week that had heard from casting directors, agents, front of house staff & the theatre's executive director as well as Ian himself, all talking about the unique way that TbtL is run. All  but two of us stepped up; Maggie Tagney quite rightly had a date with her duvet after six shows in just three days and Mr James Duke was enjoying a visit from his family which understandably a person has to make the most of when up here for all this time.
The rest of us climbed aboard a little mini bus at the theatre and jollied off to take part in a general discussion about what it is we do. After a welcome coffee with homemade biscuits, we went in to the main room for the discussion only to see a large flip-chart on which the participants had rated each of the six shows they'd seen that week. Now, we are a proud lot; proud of how much we apply ourselves to a job and invest in a production to make it the best it possibly can be, so to see a show rated a 1 on a scale of 1 to 5 by most of the delegates is hard to take to say the least. I mean, we still have to do that show for quite a while longer and it's hard as anyone knows to forget unkind words. Our brains it would seem are more aware of negative things than positive and actors can have a hard time erasing these negativities like anyone else. Like I said about reviews..If anyone is reading this from Higham Hall, please, just cover that chart up before the actors wander in! You are obviously entitled to your opinions of course but there are ways of doing these things which are less harmful. Or, allow us to defend ourselves! Aside from that, you know that everyone there is passionate about theatre- many members of amateur companies across the North- and keen supporters of the Theatre by the Lake. Some seemed especially passionate about one George Banks who went home that day with a few more fans than he arrived with as it were! It was really interesting to sit around a hear what everyone had to say about their life as an actor, as something new is always said and also to have a good chat with the participants over a good lunch. Top score went to the creator of the rice pudding, complete with chestnut brown skin on top. Naughty.
Beyond Higham Hall , comments from the good public of Keswick have been entertaining to say the least. A kind lady recommended that one actress should alter her  speech so that she said yes instead of yeah. Apparently if she did so, her career would take off! Another generous soul told the same lucky girl that she had loved the show in the studio, only to add that she hated all the main house shows, to which my colleague had to reply, "I'm in two of the main house shows!". The woman didn't seem bothered  by that!  A nice man in a local bar was impressed that Jess, playing Delie in Roma wasn't actually mentally disabled in real life... Otherwise it's amazing to note how you can be marching up a remote fell somewhere with your thoughts far from the world of theatre, only to be approached by a smiling stranger who wants to tell you what they thought of your performance in Dry Rot! Chris had to firmly explain to  one well-wisher that he hadn't played Flash Harry as the stranger thought, only to have the stranger loudly correct themselves by saying,
" Oh no! You were  the idiot!" All kindly meant I am sure...!
Sunday has passed brilliantly with a proper walk over many a fell top by a good number of us to Glaramara and down into Seatoller. Rounded off the perfect day with generous quantities of excellent chilli cooked by Jess & Zoe, fruit salad by Maggie Tags. And team 'Winner' won 'Who's in the Bag'. What more can we ask?
On now into workshop week and the possibility of an Indian Summer September... I won't hold my breath!