What I See as I Listen
Nope. Not a photo of my actors at all. I have taken to not really watching them, unless I'm shooting a pic, but looking at my feet, off into space, at a small detail in the background, as they speak. I'm listening, mumbling lines under my breath, remembering when the words were private, a defense case to be brought to the courtroom, an internal monologue, a diary entry, a poem written late at night, a writing session at my computer, a slip of a thought as I rode the train to Bridgeport, an idea.

I am not a public person. Sure, I'll forget my boundaries and say or reveal things I shouldn't, but that's more about being socially inept than about being an exhibitionist. In fact, being around people too long gives me the willies, especially in large groups. So the fact that I've chosen theater as one of my media is peculiar, I suppose. But as a writer, you spend so much time all alone, that to collaborate, to have other skills come in and morph what you've done--it's essentially like raising a kid with your whole family. Of course, other things I write, like poems and stories, are a completely private ritual. Theater lives, though. And changes.


Ayla with PKD as Kevin does a line, Ayla calls in sick to work

Rehearsal
Went well. We were in a new space, the Kehler Liddel Gallery and, unfortunately, I again managed to find a space with horrible heating. Seriously, I wonder if I am a repellent for heat. The size of the space is perfect. It has parking. There's a bar across the street for angsty writer posing and no one got lost trying to get there. But the heat just couldn't warm us. It sucks. And we got a CD stuck in the computer we weren't really supposed to be touching, but luckily Matt, who loaned us the space, said it was a "known problem." Thank goodness.

We're still running at 48 minutes. I am at the point where I can't change anything but want to. I want to cut all sorts of lines everywhere. Of course, it might just end up being really short, but I have definitely gotten the one-woman show thing out of my system for awhile. It'll be back, since that's where I started writing, the technique I learned on. But right now, I'm ready for a lot of dialogue, a present setting (as opposed to a memory play) and no characters with seven lines. I'm itching to write. I have an idea, or actually, a lot of ideas. But we'll see which one takes, sticks.

I'm going to need something bigger than this. Not that this isn't a big deal, but mostly only to me. It doesn't allow for a lot of creative acting (and that's the playwright's job, too, to give good scenes, shows that actors want to be in). It's a one-act. It's running three nights, with two other plays. I mean, I guess I got a little reality check last night. This is only part of the beginning. I just need to focus on working. I need to focus on this a lot more than I have. I need to get involved, work with theaters (which is fine, because I love doing this stuff). I really, really wish someone wrote a guide for these things. I like step-by-step process. I can follow that.