Sunday, April 7, 2013

The Show Is Over, Say Hello

My daughter just completed six performances of Guys and Dolls with Polaris Productions, a theater company dedicated to giving kids the opportunity to experience performing and working together as a theater community. The months leading up to this weekend have been a blur of rehearsals and the accompanying logistics, and I am happy to report that the days and weeks and schedules were well worth it, both for my daughter and for us. We enjoyed a weekend of shows, and she was positively gleeful (until, of course, it was over, and she had to return to the reality of homework and the prospect of no more rehearsals with her new community of friends).
 

What I do for a living (and what I didn't do for most of a year) is not so different--working with a team to create something that gets applause, live or otherwise. Sometimes, things go perfectly. Often, things go wrong--a forgotten line or a scenic piece that won't work quite smoothly--but the team works beyond what doesn't work--works together to make that magic that gets the applause. There may be solo moments of glory, but the excitement lies largely in the team effort.
 

I can see why my daughter is sad to see this ending. For these few months, she stretched her own abilities and got to work with other kid (and adult) performers and a creative and technical team that pulled off a full weekend of fantastic shows. I know from experience how hard it will be to find that again. Thankfully, I also know from experience that it can be found--maybe not the same, but still good--so I'm not worried. She'll be back at rehearsals and back on a stage before we know it.

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