Opening Night

So it's been over a week since my show, Dykes on Broadway, premiered at Hillside Community Church in El Cerrito. I didn't write it or anything, but I do have a leading role in this one-act lesbian musical comedy. A second act has been written, but not yet produced. Anyway, we're booked for two more shows in San Francisco in June, at CounterPULSE, a performance space at 9th and Mission.

Certainly the premiere was a success - the space was sold out; the audience laughed a lot, and gave us a standing ovation at the conclusion. Two videos and many photos were taken, and I've seen half of one of the videos and most of the photos. The fact that I can bear to watch myself in them all may say more about my growth in self-acceptance than the quality of my performance, but I also got a lot of rave reviews from friends and strangers alike. If I say so myself, I do know how to project my voice and I have excellent diction when I remember.

I blanked momentarily on part of a line, but made up a word for the blank and moved on. So my memory was basically up to the task, to my great relief.

My nerves also managed fairly well. I get most anxious in the period immediately before a public performance. I distracted myself from it for most of the time by reminding my castmates to take deep breaths when they seemed frazzled, and in demonstrating the technique I managed to take several good breaths for myself. Then, when I just had to be alone, I found a swing out in the backyard of the church and worked a sudoku puzzle to the accompaniment of birdsong and managed quite nicely.

After the show, I was brimming with adrenaline. Fortunately, there was a dance afterwards in the same space, and I worked the adrenaline off by dancing on and off the floor. Then exhaustion set in, and memory problems of another sort - I left my jacket in two different restaurants and my purse in someone else's home during the 24-hour period surrounding the show. Got everything back safely, though.

Now I'm trying to dig into other areas - editing the synagogue newsletter, getting my income tax information to the accountant, getting back into yoga classes, and working on my nutrition and budget. In the meanwhile, though, I'll be out of town this coming weekend at a women's music camp called WoMaMu, which I'm finally attending after much urging from a pal at work. Haven't played guitar in a long time. Wonder how long I can play before my fingertips get sore.

And in my spare time, whenever I don't have an appointment in the morning, I delight in turning over in bed and going back to sleep until 10 or 11 am.