Author Topic: MORALE: Excitement  (Read 3124 times)

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Melugin

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MORALE: Excitement
« on: Mar 31, 2006, 03:36 am »
Sometimes we get discouraged about shows. especially when a purely usually popular show is loosing money, or no one is coming to see it, or you're just bumed about the show, or something around those lines. What do you do to get more excited about it?

-liz
« Last Edit: Jun 08, 2009, 11:14 pm by PSMKay »
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Mac Calder

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Excitement
« Reply #1 on: Mar 31, 2006, 07:07 am »
I usually talk to a few people from the audience after the show if I can when I am feeling low about it. I usually schedule 10-15 minutes directly after the show so that I can get vibes from them - actors often like to hear what the audience thinks as well. It certainly keeps me enthusiastic for the show - things like what we can change, who was great etc.

I had a really bum show. Our sole audience was basically cast members families and friends because frankly, we had no budget for promotion, and the subject matter was quite deep and serious. It was hard to keep going with it, because I really believed in the message - it was about AID's and acting responsibly to stem it's spread. I had a very close friend recently diagnosed after she was raped and was doing the show for jack all money (during a tight time in my lifet), and I felt that this message that was close to my heart should be shouted from the rooftops, and it was so discouraging that hardly anyone showed up. In the end I approached management and asked for 10 tickets at a reduced price and gave them to random people on the street on the condition that they came to the show and talked to me afterwards. When they appreciated it, I got the strength to keep doing the show. Obviously, I would only do that on a show that I was really passionate about - mainstream shows don't fall into that category.

Just listen to the audience. Sometimes it backfires and you hear "Well that was the biggest load of crap I have ever seen", but usually you hear some nice things.

jensparkingonly

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Excitement
« Reply #2 on: Apr 02, 2006, 04:21 am »
The more shows that I have worked on the more I realize that the excitement I feel during tech up through opening doesn't always last. There are times when I am just going to work and doing my job. Whether its due to content, audience response, exhaustion, my bond with the cast or crew, or for some other reason the *mojo* just isn't there.  And these slower times make me appreciate even more the times that are exciting and the shows where everything is buzzing.

Ways I cope with uninspiring shows:
- I find things to look forward to outside of the show...dinner.drinks with friends, bike ride, bubble bath, or a good book.
-I imagine working one of those 9-5 jobs where I have to wear a dress and heels and sit behind a desk doing the same thing all day long. Then I remind myself that I don't do that.
-I bake everyone chocolate chip cookies or brownies.
-I look for positive notes (I call them "Gold Star Moments") to give the actors and encourage them to continue doing the good things they are doing. (The actors may feel the same doldrums you are feeling and a giving them a gold star goes a long way to encouraging both of you.)
-I avoid all the show media until it has closed. That way I won't get depressed about what the critics have written. And if it was a good show, it becomes a treat to read them after closing.
-I buy myself some bright flowers and keep them by my book.

Hope this helps you.
Jen Matthews
Stage Manager, AEA
jensparkingonly@hotmail.com

"In art we are once again able to do all the things we have forgotten: we are able to walk on water; we speak to the angels who call us; we  move, unfettered, among the stars." -ML

 

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