Crunch Time

It’s getting to be about that time.  It’s the time when all the moving parts are coming together, when costumes, set, sound, and purpose unite and we finally get to see what it is we’re making here.  This past Saturday was a big day for A Resting Place.  It was the first (and only) time the cast worked with all the production elements at once.  Yes, it was very (very) windy, yes, it was very sunny, yes, we spent six hours outdoors running through the show adjusting to all these production elements in tandem with all the environmental ones.  And yes, it was great fun and brought us that much closer to opening night.

© H. Scott Heist 12 / splintercottage.com

It’s funny to think that the rehearsal process began just six short weeks ago.  When we started this project, and knew how large it was going to be and how frequently the venues changed from performance to performance, it was difficult to imagine how it would all come together.  We started by rehearsing small pieces in one hour rehearsal blocks.  It was like creating patches that would eventually come together into a quilt.  Little by little, we’d add a prop here, a costume piece there, connect a few scenes, and throw in some music.  Every step of the way made me go, “okay, I see what we’re getting at.”

Well, now I can safely say, “okay, I see what we have.”  I’ve always been mystified by the power of the theatre.  Every time you start a new project, the goals feel unreachable for the first stretch, begin to seem possible by the middle, and then one day, as if by magic, it all just comes together.  It was this trust in theatre itself that helped me to power through these last few weeks, and I have never respected the magic of the theatre as much as I do right now.

One of the crazy things I always consider when I’m thinking about the Civil War Era is that it was a mere four years long.  In four years our country completely transformed itself.  We lost and won so much during that time.  In six weeks we have also transformed ourselves, and won far more than we lost.  Knowing this, it gives me new appreciation for what is possible in a short amount of time.  It is my wish to share this appreciation with others, and remind us all there is always time to build something together.