Peeling off the Front

So it’s come to the stage where I begin to relinquish creative control of this endeavor. By no means am I receding, fading to the background where only my random outbursts and shouts of protest will carry over the din of the epic project I’ve set in motion. But as far as the script and dramaturgy are concerned, my role as playwright is no longer necessary to rehearsal. Thus it is fitting that Mary and Ryan will only be able to rehearse this week in the morning—which of course I will be unable to attend due to my unwavering devotion to my life’s work: strollers. No, wait. It’s all about the Hamiltons, baby.

But, yes, while I put my duties to the performance on the back burner, I must crank up the heat as producer—and keep my eye on the big picture. And before I rehash my thoughts on the idea of creative control and the collaborative nature of theatre as an art, I shall refer you to my earlier posts. But, at this current stage, these sentiments seem never more apt.

Last night’s rehearsal began with Ryan and I fiddling with the technicalities of effective voice recording (with coverage of Paris-Roubaix—the “Hell of the North”—playing in the background, of course.) We seem to have worked out the kinks for a section of the script where he will actually converse with himself. However, we did not record the full thing—but we’ve laid the groundwork.

Soon Mary arrived, and we enjoyed a little wine and Easter candy while Ryan pedaled. We (like I’m actually doing any work at these things besides reading voiceover lines) pushed toward the end and actually ran through the final sections of the play—among these my favorite passages, and the most personal. And there we have it. I changed a word or two, shared my thoughts on transitions, and took a few notes. And now, it’s not even necessary that I do all that this week.

Directing, memorizing, blocking, finding nuances and motivation…not my thing. Riding at the head of the echelon, I wound up the tempo, cutting through the wind of inertia, and gave this stampeding project momentum. Now, I’ve peeled off so that others may come to the fore and carry on the labor. But this is team; the burden of the effort will be shared; we will cycle through, taking our turn and carrying it up to the finish.

(is it just me, or did these posts used to be a lot funnier? what happened?)