Suffering from what I call "theatredox"

[dancer-sm]

I am currently experiencing what I call theatredox, which is the feeling of having nothing to do in between shows. Since finishing our musical I have felt like I have absolutely nothing to do since I am not at rehearsals every afternoon. I was wondering what you all do when you finish a show and are waiting for another one to start.

dancer-sm

[iamchristuffin]

Sleep, replenish my kit, see some daylight, cook a meal, wear clothes of a non-black origin. Things I haven't been able to do during the run!

Chris
x

[missliz]

I've been in that for a couple weeks! I cleaned out my closet and my apartment, cooked a lot, saw friends (on proper weekend nights!), and took a WEEK to spend time with my family. (Though that was longer than intended....NYC blizzard was trying to tell me something!)

[brdwayluver]

Going through it right now, unfortunately this time I was actually sick   Usually I clean.  My household life tends to acquire a lot of things while I am working on a show.  I clean off my desk, clean my house, try and see my friends and go do something active not theater related.  You need to take the opportunity to reboot your brain and little.

[Tempest]

I'm also getting on the cleaning bandwagon, here.  In theory, I have a husband.  In theory, he knows how to do housework.  In theory, he does it when I'm working show+day job.  We all know what happens to theories once they get put into practice!

I also try to catch up on my non-theatre to-dos.  Write my pen-pals, work on a few sewing projects, get some car repairs done and enjoy working one job at 30 hours a week as opposed to two at nearly 80 hours!

Oh, and stop eating in my car.  I eat in my car SO MUCH when I'm on a show, I try not to do it at all when I'm not on a show.

[cserendipity]

Laundry... sleep... clean off the DVR/catch up on my favorite tv shows that have not survived the DVR because i've been been out of touch with reality for too long (thanks hulu!)... enjoy home-cooked meals... spend time with my boyfriend, friends, family, and kitty. 

and like tempest_gypsy... relish in the fact that I'm only working one job!


(but if said period of time is rather lengthy... then i'll indulge in some video games... find some fun craft project... see a show i'm not working on... travel somewhere fun... etc.)

[dallas10086]

I'm also getting on the cleaning bandwagon, here.  In theory, I have a husband.  In theory, he knows how to do housework.  In theory, he does it when I'm working show+day job.  We all know what happens to theories once they get put into practice!

Good God isn't that true! I tend to get blinders when I'm in production, and he knows this, but still I find that bills haven't been paid on-time, the garbage can is overflowing and the lil' one's toys are everywhere.

[masque]

I'm going through that right now and it's starting to drive me crazy. I'm about to start ripping through the house and cleaning everything. I'm signed up as a substitute teacher at the local elementary school, so that gives me something to do every now and then. Subbing helps, but it can be frustrating at the same time. As a sub I just don't have enough control to make me happy. I've started looking into getting a position on a cruise ship in the entertainment department. I don't feel as if I have enough experience to SM for six months, but a position as an ASM or something similar would be great. I knew I would miss SMing in between shows, but I didn't realize it would be this bad. I find myself spending time making lists of things I want for my next show (office supplies, kit supplies, forms, etc). I had no idea when I started SMing how much I would love it and miss it.

[SMLois]

I think I was more productive in the first three days after Seussical closed than I had been during the entire run. I read 3 books, watched 15 episodes of TV shows (I'm working on Alias Season 4 and The West Wing Season 2), had four meal dates with friends I hadn't seen enough of, cooked real food, cleaned my house, cleaned out the fridge, did a giant amount of laundry, and slept whenever I felt like it.  It was a great feeling.

That said, I'm excited today to be leaving town because I find I never really take a break unless I get out of town.  As long as I am at home it is far too tempting to volunteer, to see theatre, and to talk theatre with folks.  When i leave town and visit friends or family, the visits are mostly theatre free and a good chance to rest.

[yomanda]

Definitely clean...and catch up on things I let slide during the show...do what I can to get ready for the next show (community theater - runs are typically 4 days and we put out 8-10 shows a year)...try to see my friends/family who aren't involved in the theater...attend a small group at my church (it's amazing the things that become impossible when you do not have evenings free)...exercise!...find new recipes...and for now, plan my wedding! 

[BeckyGG]

I'm finally having a little downtime (that I thought I was going to get in October!) and am using it to catch-up on reading, organize my apartment and get back to a regular karate schedule.

So far, I've been impressed with my productivity while still taking a little "me" time!

[lsears]

I always try to set aside one day where I stay in and do nothing but rest.  I sleep in, keep my phone off, try to stay off the computer, play with the dog, eat whatever's in the fridge, read, watch tv, something to give my brain permission to drift.  Then the next day I'm tired of doing nothing and am ready to be productive - clean, empty the inboxs of my various email accounts, I get started cooking up the pile of recipes that I've gathered, try to see friends.  I call it 'being a person'.

[BeccaTheSM]

I call it 'being a person'.

I agree. I read -- my latest choice was the entire Harry Potter series, and now I'm working on Julie Andrews' "Home: A Memoir of My Early Years". (And I recommend it for anyone involved in theatre, especially if you enjoy musical theatre).

As with most, I cook real food, get real sleep, have real conversations (not the usual 'get to the point so I can keep working on this show' conversations), go for real outings with my real friends (not that my theatre friends aren't real friends).

[bex]

I love doing tourist-y things like going to museums or seeing some historical something-or-other, or just checking out local sights.  I've been in unfamiliar cities doing internships for a while now, so going to the National Mall in DC or Sun Studio in Memphis or the local farmer's market in Granville were wonderful distractions during time off.

[Balletdork]

I had the 1st significant lay off of my life this summer- 10weeks! I decided that since I had the time I'd travel cross country, both directions... get married, and get my stepson married. I also managed to watch a lot of cable and entirely replant the front facade of my house! So well that we won our town's beautification award! Ah.... I had an awesome lay-off!