The Journey

It all started two months ago at the first production meeting for Scarborough Music Theatre’s South Pacific. The amazing South Pacific director and choreographer of Sweeney, Dot, turned to me after the meeting was over and said “So, why haven’t you booked your Sweeney audition yet?” Of course, I hadn’t originally planned on auditioning because I didn’t think I had what it took to be in a musical as awesome as Sweeney. Instead, all I could think to say was: “Well, I was waiting for just the right moment.” That’s when I knew I had two options: face the scorn of a disappointed Dot, or suck it up and go audition.

A couple weeks passed and I arrived at my audition prepared with a song I mostly knew, and the same monologue I had used for every audition since I was thirteen. I was nervous. Very, very nervous. This was the largest role I had auditioned for since I was ten. I don't remember many specifics about the audition, but I gave a respectable performance. Somehow, by the end of the night I had managed to leave a good impression with the audition panel, because for the first time in eight years, I had a callback. I was pleasantly surprised.

Then, at the callbacks, I was surprised once more. I was one of perhaps three men they had called for the role of Anthony. The others up for the role were, quite frankly, amazing. I could not believe that I had landed a callback alongside such talented actors. The callback sides went quickly and we were done in about a half hour. I was so nervous that night that I was up until one in the morning just thinking about every possible outcome.

The next day I checked my voicemail at lunch, and there was an urgent-sounding message from the producer with only two words: “Call me.” At this point I knew it would either be really good news or really bad news. So, I called her and she said to me, “We would like to offer you the role of Anthony–” I’m sure she said more, but at that point all I could think was ‘Holy crap. Am I actually hearing this?" and before I knew it, I had said yes.

Rehearsals started a few weeks after that fateful day. I was nervous on the first day of rehearsal. I already knew many of the people in the cast, but this was a large role, and for the first time in a while, one that didn't require any technical skills. The process had begun. I worked on what we’d rehearsed day and night. I rehearsed everywhere; in class, on the bus, in the shower, you name it. I was like a Sweeney junkie, I just had to get my fix. I’m pretty sure I was starting to annoy several of my classmates with my unrelenting 'I feel you Johanna's.

Then something terrible happened: winter break. I wasn't called for any rehearsals over the break. I felt like I was going to die. At first I convinced myself that everything was fine, that I would just keep reviewing the material. But as the days drew on I felt a growing sense of longing for a rehearsal with the full cast. At one point it got so bad that I nearly started listening to the Broadway recording to get my fix. Fortunately the break from rehearsals was only thirteen days long, so I was back before I knew it, no longer fighting the urge to listen to the soundtrack.

Act two was what we rehearsed next. Rehearsals went very well. We covered a lot of ground in a fairly short period of time, and I felt really good about what we had. We had a run-through of the second act, then the following rehearsal we stitched together the entire show. After that there were a mere two rehearsals until we loaded the show into the theatre.

Which brings us to today, January 27: load-in day. A very long and tiring day, given that we started moving set pieces on the truck at 9:30 in the morning, and finished our stumble-through of the show at about 10:00 at night, but it was a very productive day. There were many things that needed to be done and we finished a lot of them.

I’m proud to be working with such a dedicated cast and crew. There are so many talented people and each brings something different to the table. All I can say is that we’re going to have one amazing show when we open next week; I’m really looking forward to opening night. Yet at the same time I’m wishing that we could keep rehearsing forever because I know that once we open, closing night will be just a blink of an eye away. Closing a stunning show with a wonderfully talented team, leaving you with only photographs and memories, is simultaneously one of the best and one of the toughest feelings in the world. I will never forget my experiences with this phenomenal team.

An update:
Since writing this on Sunday, we have had a rehearsal on Monday and a quite productive lighting hang/focus day on Tuesday. I'm looking forward to tonight's rehearsal, and I'm especially excited for the sitzprobe on Sunday.