…I’m happy again. At least for the moment.

Conclusion: two rehearsals with orchestra during production week is not enough. The cast need that third one. Lesson learned. Still, everyone nailed it last night — cast, crew and pit. It was a great opening. Stoney, Greg and I are fortunate indeed to be surrounded by such great students and parents. Note to all of you: no matter what some idiots in the Reflector might post, you have much to celebrate.

I’ve decided to go back tonight and tomorrow and finish this show.

I wish you all lived closer.

Fink out (to make the coffee and relax a bit)

And here we are, at hope-ening night. I hope all goes well. It should. I think it will. I’m more worried about my end of things, actually (tempos, cuts in the music, timing, etc.). There are those who might think, “Eh, it’s just a high school show.” True. Very true. It’s that — and a whooooole lot more.

As promised, I have some collected SitR trivia for your listening and dancing pleasure. There are also some photos from our final dress last night. Enjoy! I’ll see you on the other side of opening.

Singin’ in the Rain – Did You Know…?

• In 2007, the American Film Institute ranked SitR the #1 movie musical of all time, and #5 on their list of the top 100 American films ever made.
• In the iconic scene where Gene Kelly dances in the rain, audiences didn’t know at the time that he was very ill, suffering from a high fever and the flu.
• Donald O’Connor had to take a couple of days off filming after shooting the Make ‘Em Laugh scene — it took that much out of him. Then he found out that the footage had been destroyed by fire. Ever the professional, he came in and filmed the entire number again.
• Jean Hagen, who played the shrewy, nasal-voiced actress Lina Lamont, actually dubbed Debbie Reynolds’s singing voice in the movie. [In the story, Reynolds’s character sings for Hagen’s.] Weird.
• Debbie Reynolds was only 19 when she played the role of Kathy Selden. Kelly was so mean to her with regard to her somewhat limited dancing skills, he often reduced her to tears (and said later that he was surprised she ever spoke to him again after how he’d treated her). She sought dance help from none other than Fred Astaire.
• The Moses Supposes tap routine (the actual tap sounds) was dubbed in later — by a couple of women. Heh.
• The title song was actually composed for a show called Hollywood Revue of 1929 — 23 years before the film’s release. In fact, only two songs were written specifically for the movie (Make ‘Em Laugh and Moses Supposes).
• Speaking of Make ‘Em Laugh…the song is a blatant ripoff of Cole Porter’s Be a Clown. Director Stanley Donen warned against using it in the film, calling it “100 percent plagiarism,” but songwriters Arthur Freed and Nacio Herb Brown put it in anyway. Fortunately for them at the time, Porter chose not to sue. Fortunately for MGM (which filed for bankruptcy yesterday), Porter’s descendants haven’t sued, either.

There are a ton more, but alas, time’s a-wastin’. Here are some pretty pictures.

~

Well have a good day, my loyal fiends. I’m off to break legs. Tonight, I mean. Figuratively speaking.

Photos – Norwalk Reflector

OK, first: it’s coming along. We’re probably a week away from being ready. Too bad we open tomorrow. Heh heh.

KIDDING

Truly, I’m looking forward to talking about something else besides this show, but as you theater-types know, that’s been 99.9% of my existence as of late. I promise I will write about something else — next week.

Tomorrow, in honor of opening night, I will regale you with trivia that is sure to be muy interesante. Promise.

And now, a random photograph.

Happy Weirdsday.

Fink, looking for my mind…have you seen it?

Hello, are we sleeping? No. We’re flipping out at rehearsal and saying things that we are unable to remember several minutes later. I apparently accused my dancers of looking like they’re on crack, and my singers of defecating all over a melody.

*sigh*

I’m not myself these days. Good thing my students have a great collective sense of humor. They must certainly go backstage and laugh at me. At least they’re respectful and quiet during the tirades themselves.

Some cast member whispered a frustrated F-word last night. How do I know this? Because he/she whispered it into a live mic. Oops.

The good part is that the post-rant rehearsal looked much better. Tonight, the orchestra arrives – yay! The insanity will be stratospheric.

I love theater.

Fink on a stretcher

For now. Heh.

Just checking into Finkville to look at comments and clear out some spam before tackling production week. An area school calls it “hell” week; I think that’s a misnomer (and a slightly inappropriate phrase to use repeatedly around high school students, but you know…snarky hag & all). If “hell” must be defined in theater terms, it has to be initial singing, choreography and blocking rehearsals. Agreed, fellow thespians?

No, I am actually looking forward to this week. The only devilish part will be the sleeping schedule and its accompanying havoc.

I also think my fellow directors and our students would agree that Sunday the 7th is starting to look pretty good, too.

But for now, the show goes on; the boards beckon. Bring it.

FO