Monday, August 17, 2009

Clippy's log - page 24

12/8 7:20pm. Can we just get on with the show? Doing nothing is stressful. Neither of the boys have anything to do apart from changing the set at interval, so Rosuav procures a couple of seats. In the stalls, no less. For free. Midga decides to stay backstage just in case.

7:30pm. We're starting, thank goodness. The audience seems a bit flat, hope it picks up a bit.

8:45pm. Set change - and it goes very smoothly. This positive factor seems completely lost on certain member(s) of the crew, who, as Rosuav puts it in the very most charitable possible way, don't handle stress very well. I'm not as nice, I think if he can't handle the heat he should get out of the kitchen. Midga is worse, he doesn't want to see or work with this person ever again. OK, not certain members of the crew, one member in particular. That slipped out.

10:30pm. The show is over. Thunderous applause and lots of laughter - it picked up straight after interval. Adjudication is positive and it's clean up time. Midga washes yellow jelly out of plastic champagne glasses. This, of course, will feature in Rosuav's saga. Rosuav starts taking down the set. As usual there's lots of time spent waiting for something to happen, lots of contradiction about whether secondhand screws are to be saved, and lots of work where being of equal height and able to communicate in ultra brief are valuable. The boys fit the bill perfectly.

11:15pm. Festival club! Our cabaret has already started, not sure what happened to the idea of having everyone help clean up the theatre. Still, more bodies would probably have only got in the way. Unlike two years ago, Midga decides to drink. This is the only cast party we get, and people tend to unwind and talk a lot more in these conditions. Leading actresses with heaps of experience, telling all the amusing show stories they can think of. Fun.

1am. The club closes up and we have to go home. Rosuav is nowhere to be seen, so Midga assumes he went home already. Woohoo, we get to walk home with Jackie! She's living in the halls too.

1:20am. Home to hot chocolate and emails.

1:45am. Rosuav comes home! He apparently had gone with Elise and didn't see Midga and me standing near the bar. He's heading for bed, but he leaves Traal and the remaining theatre lollies out. Looney Tunes!

3:30am. Jodi comes online! Time for a mixed serious-fun chat. There's no Skybe rendition of pillow fighting but talking about what's on the stove is a good substitute.

5:05am. Jodi tells Midga to go to bed.

13/8 1pm. What am I doing in the kitchen? Where are the boys? They must be still asleep.

1:45pm. Midga walks in and eats some cornflakes. This is as bad as the early days of jet-lag.

3:30pm. Emails, lollies, forums, Pirates, Goons - this is a de-stressing day. Suddenly in comes a blowfly - the first I've seen since arriving in England. The hunt lasts about five minutes. SLAP. That's 1000 summer flies killed - hey wait, this IS summer! There just aren't many flies around!

4:27pm. Time to go gunzelling. Let's find out where the limestone trains come from.

5:40pm. Limestone trains come from a long way away. Maybe next time it would be a good idea to do some research on Google Earth first. Anyway, we found some more bridges to photograph, and a path beside the railway from which to photograph Sprinters from a new angle. Home for dinner and then the Gondoliers!

7:20pm. No seats left? NONE? Wow. Just as we're deciding not to bother a couple of ladies come up with tickets they no longer need - so we get to sit in the Upper Circle (just below our usual place in the Gallery) and Rosuav is in the Stalls.

7:35pm. Ian Smith comes out and announces there's been a hold-up (as in bushrangers - although he pronounces it "Dick Turpin") on the main road from Derby. The audience, accustomed to his opening speeches, laugh uproariously, but apparently it's true. So he waffles for a while to give the Derbyites time to arrive.

10:45pm. Festival Club. Rosuav has worked out he can type with Traal's lid nearly closed to avoid incurring the wrath of the FOH staff so I go with Midga to reserve a table near a powerpoint. Too late, taken already.

11pm. Rosuav comes in. He's (predictably) not happy we couldn't get his powerpoint. Nothing we can do.

11:15pm. Community singing, fun but not easy. Gondoliers has lots of chorus work in four part harmony and counterpoint.

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