Old Hobbies in New Countries

One of the nice things about community theatre as a hobby is that you can meet people almost anywhere you move. By their nature, community theatres depend on lots of volunteers to keep going. And, because you have a project you are focused on, there is always something to talk about. Even the smallest company needs people to run front of house and perform onstage. All other functions can be duplicated by those people, but it does help to have designers, directors, set builders and painters, and stage managers. Generally, theatres are started because people want to act, but sometimes because people want to direct. In any case, there are usually more actors than can be used and a shortage of technical people. It isn't surprising to discover that one person does all the sound or all the lights, or even both, for a small theatre. Burnout is a real problem, so new energy is always appreciated.

For people like Andy and me who have technical skills and as much interest in the production end of things as performing, it is easy to find theatres that want us. It is usually as simple as saying, “Hey, do you need any help?” And, because we apply ourselves diligently to any project we undertake and hold ourselves to high standards, we tend to get asked back. We like to think that we are also friendly and fun to work with.

The trouble with theatre as a hobby is that it takes a lot of time. For families with kids, it is hard to be home enough with the kids and still at the theatre for rehearsals. The biggest challenge is bedtime, because young kids like to have mum or dad around at bedtime and don't like routines disturbed. But, bedtime is usually about the time rehearsals start. For me to undertake a theatrical commitment, Andy has to commit to getting home from work early several nights a week for several weeks. This is a big decision and not one to make lightly. Also, the last two weeks before performance are usually intensely busy, and require a lot of time at the theatre every day.

So, it was with trepidation and a lot of hope that Andy and I decided we would try to make it possible for me to do a show. I was needing a break from doing nothing but kid and house stuff and I was intrigued when one of the local community theatres advertised that they needed directors. I ordered the scripts of the plays in question and decided that I was interested in the scripts. Andy and I went to a show at the theatre to see if the quality was acceptable. The show, “Jeckle and Hyde” is a difficult musical and the production was not bad for community theatre. It had all of the problems that are standard for community theatres doing musicals, but the overall effect was entertaining. And that was good enough for me.

I emailed the theatre and got an interview. I had put my name in as a possible director for two shows – “Dracula” and “The Kitchen Witches” and needed to put together a proposal for both plays in a couple of weeks. For those two weeks, I spent evenings reading the plays and doing research on the Internet. I printed out images that seemed like good ideas for set and costume design and thought about characters and casting. I thought about the strengths and weaknesses of the script. The “Dracula” is a comic melodrama, which isn't quite how I prefer my Dracula, but it had some interesting twists. “The Kitchen Witches” script has a substantial weakness in that the arc of the humour is funky. There are slapstick, food fights, and audience participation in the middle of the show and the final two scenes are deeper emotionally. The humour and the emotion are character driven, so I thought that I could get a cast to keep the whole show together. Reviews of “The Kitchen Witches” made it clear that most performances focused on the physical humour and fell apart during the end of the show because the audience wasn't engaged with the overall story and the characters. Since I approach any show from the characters, it seemed like a good fit for me. Because I thought “The Kitchen Witches” would be a bigger challenge, I spent more time on it and ended up putting together a better proposal for that show, despite actually having more desire to direct “Dracula.” In any case, the interviewing committee asked me to direct “The Kitchen Witches.”

Finding the time at home to read the script and plan for rehearsals has been a challenge. Making sure that Andy and I both eat on the nights that I have rehearsal has been a challenge. Andy has been stellar about getting home early, but it has been stressful. He usually comes home, puts the kids to bed, and then works from home. The nights he doesn't have to be home, he works late to make up for it.

My mother is coming for most of the two weeks before the show opens. We will need her. Especially since I roped Andy into being my sound designer.

In some ways, I dislike having Andy design sound for a show I am directing because I we don't have the childcare to get him to rehearsal as often as he likes. Both he and I know that he could do a much better job if he were free to go to rehearsals and time scenes and understand the show as it being performed. He ends up somewhat frustrated that he can't do his best work. On the other hand, a shoddy job by Andy is better than a top-notch job by almost any other sound designer that I have worked with in community theatre. And, we can work together at home on the design elements before he gets to the theatre, which is fun. Andy and I met through a community theatre and spent a lot of time working on shows together before we had kids, so working on a show together reminds us of a more carefree and creative time. It is fun, but more importantly, it is good for our relationship.

The commitment to doing a show is huge and it is hard to manage with young kids, but there is a payoff. And that makes the difference. This process of putting together this show is so much chaos and such a challenge to schedule that I think it will be some time before I do another show – or at least before I take on a directing project. On the other hand, it is nice to know that we can do this if we choose.