Men were deceivers ever,
One foot in sea, and one on shore,
To one thing constant never.
Then sigh not so, but let them go,
And be you blithe and bonny,
Converting all your sounds of woe
Into hey nonny nonny."
-Much Ado About Nothing, Act 2 Scene iii
Summer is in full swing in Monmouth, and the season is open! Last Friday we brought Much Ado About Nothing to the stage in swinging style, but that was far from the only event of last week. It started off with a bang as I received a visit from my good friend Katja from Berlin. She arrived that Saturday in time to catch the Black Fly Follies. It was so great to see her, and to spend some time with her in my country (for a change), and to show her the sights and sounds of New England. She was also able to show me some of them, as she was staying at a local bed and breakfast called the Annabessacook Farm. I joined her there for dinner that Sunday night and boy am I glad I did!
The Annabessacook Farm is owned by Craig & Job, two lovely gentlemen who farm the place and also create an incredibly warm, relaxing atmosphere for their guests. They also set a wondrous table, and after Katja gave me a tour of the farm (goats, sheep, chickens, pigs, lots of veggies) we went inside for what turned out to be a deceptively simple, delicious meal. We started off with an appetizer of home-made (organic) goat cheese, made entirely from ingredients on the farm. Their milking goat, named Con Leche (natsch!) produces a gallon of milk each day, which they use to create cheese and other delicacies. It was easily the freshest cheese I'd ever had, and one of the best. We devoured a small wheel of it and as we were relishing that, Craig brought out another and said that dinner would be ready soon. So much goodness!
The entire farm is organic, and Craig (who among other talents is a chef, a writer and a board member of TAM) uses everything on the farm, letting nothing go to waste. No chemical fertilizers or foreign agents of any kind. Just home-grown goodness. That night he served up hearty collard greens he had grown himself, black rice seasoned to perfection, and easily the best salmon I had ever had. Ever. Between Katja and Job (orig. from Holland), Craig, Ian and I, we had a delightful dinner together and plenty of conversation. The evening was a comfort for mind, body, and soul. If anybody is interested in coming to Monmouth this summer, I can recommend the Annabessacook Farm B&B without hesitation. Thanks again Craig & Job!
Monday brought the fourth of July, our nation's birthday and the first decent weather of the last ten days. We lucked out, not only with the weather but also with the fact that Dave & Donna Shaw were hosting our 4th of July party at their beautiful home this year. It was a holiday party as most of us can only dream of: a gorgeous house on a hilltop, overlooking the lake with beachfront access. Canoes, kayaks, a motorboat and kneeboards, even a jetski. If there was a summery pastime, we were partaking. And of course the spread was majestic: burgers and sausage and hot dogs and an endless array of salads. Desserts and drinks and great conversations, exactly what we needed on our day off.
We even managed to get Clenton Hollinger on a jetski. This was after he proclaimed at the top of the summer he would not set foot in the lake; seemed to unsanitary. Imagine our surprise when we saw he and Allison speeding away on the jetski. We've come a long way baby.
Also imagine our dismay when we saw the jetski capsized in the middle of the Lake and Clenton, unable to reboard the machine, having to be rescued by the motor boat! Ah well, it was a glorious two minutes. Baby steps, as they say.
But the party continued, and after six hours or so, not a one of us were able to eat any more food or swim any more, so we decided to head over to Winthrop for the fireworks. They were lovely and I think we gave Katja the full American experience that day, before she had to head back to Berlin last Tuesday. Thanks again Dave & Donna for a wonderful day, you're the best!
Tuesday it was back to work! We had our 10 out of 12 technical rehearsal for Much Ado About Nothing, which went quite smoothly. In fact all of rehearsals that week went remarkably smoothly. We were basically just running the show by Wednesday, which is about twenty-four hours earlier than we ever get a show together with this short of a rehearsal period. But the pieces fell into place and we were all pretty confident going into our preview last Thursday night. It was of course different having an audience in the room (in this case a large contingent of high school students, who were great!) and we started adjusting to the laughs and inserting pauses accordingly.
Friday brought opening night of the 42nd season at the Theater at Monmouth. In accordance with tradition, one of our youngest company members, Ian Kramer, recited Hamlet's welcome to the players and did so masterfully. Directly afterward, Dave tapped the staff three times on stage to officially open his last season as producing director, and the show began. Despite the seemingly smooth tech process and a solid preview, the premiere was anything but gentle. There were a lot more laughs thanks to our savvy opening-night audience (who, it may be said, have a facility and appreciation for Shakespeare that may not have been shared by the high schoolers the night before) which meant we were adjusting our performance accordingly. All that extra energy also led to some flubs; like when one of the watch's billy clubs flew end over end into the audience and Bill Van Horn chided the nearest audience member without missing a beat. Or when a Benedick entrance was missed, due to a scramble of line-memorizing for our next play, as well as faulty speakers in the dressing room which made the action on stage hard to hear.
In these moments and others our opening night audience got a taste of live theatre at its best: raw, exciting, and a little improvised. But at the same time, its this direct communication with the audience, the small slip-ups and interactive moments, that the audiences are coming to see in the first place. All's well that ends well of course, and at the reception after the show our audience and our colleagues toasted a job well done, and the newly opened season.
Something else I noticed while rehearsing this play, is that some of the texts were borrowed for the lyrics of one of my favorite songs of the year. "Sigh No More" by Mumford & Sons, is the lead track off of their wildly successful debut album of the same name. Almost all of the text of that particular song come from the play Much Ado About Nothing, a fact I never realized until we were rehearsing it. My love for this band has grown even more, which I did not think was possible. And as happenstance would fashion it, Miss Janet McWilliams happened to make another compilation video of the last ten days, and set it to this very song. Check it out here, and enjoy.We are currently in the thick of rehearsals for Room Service, our second play which opens this Friday! More on that and many other fine deviations when we catch up next week.
"For man is a giddy thing, and this is my conclusion,"
BBell
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