Looking back

It has been a few days since the show has closed and it is a great time to look back and reflect on the process. I never thought I would be a director. I know directing a one-act in the bigger picture of life is not a big deal, but for me it was unexpected. Last year I decided to take the directing series at OSU and have the opportunity to direct my first one-act. My experience was not my favorite, because I was so busy with another show, but I still liked directing. Since then, and in combination with this experience, I have developed the beginnings of my directing style.

I have found that I am not the kind of director that gets very nervous. I don't get nervous watching my show or having others watch it. I also don't get nervous when something goes wrong on stage in front of an audience. When something goes wrong it can actually be quite entertaining because I can sit back and watch the actors' lives flash before their eyes. I really hope I have given them the preparation for this to not happen, but sometimes it does. After seeing a show more than 10 times the mistakes are sometimes the best part, for me, not the actors or audience. It is the beauty of live entertainment! The most entertaining mistake to watch on stage was the Saturday night performance of Cheep! Cheep!. When the lights came up on the "Ball-in-Cup" scene, it was an instant disaster as the ball in the cup fell off the counter. On to the floor it rolled with the actor's face saying "oh my god, what am I going to do". Now for those of you who have not scene the show, there are three cups with a ball in it. A person has to guess which cup has the ball in it to win. The cups usually stay on the counter but this time it fell! Without being able to describe how perfect the cover was by an actor on stage, the whole situation was so great the audience gave an applause just for the brilliance. The audience loved it! It kept me laughing in my seat for the rest of the show.

Besides the mistakes, there were some wonderful moments. I saw something different in every show every night. I saw actors grow in their performances and interact with their audience. The process from beginning to end was well worth it. I did not think directing would be the direction I would go, but I am sure glad I took this path and was given the opportunity.