Taking a Break

West and Wewaxation

Uncle P has had a rough year (and an even rougher Fall). Last weekend I broke my toe; caught some sort of bug and then had a very hectic and rather exhausting week at the day-job. I'm tired, folks. So I've decided to take a small break from blogging (since I can't seem to get one anywhere else) for the rest of this year. I'm sure my small band of loyal of loyal readers will understand. That's not to say I won't pop in and rant if I find something that inspires me to do so. I hope I do. I may tweet (@Caliban761) and will certainly be on Facebook. And I will be scheduling a few auto-posts here and there. But I need to give up something for a bit, and right now, it's Caliban's Revenge. 

I want to get through the holidays as painlessly as possible and while I'll be spending most of Christmas week with my amazing sister and the BIL in Florida, I'm still in recovery mode and need some time to get re-energized and re-inspired.

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season, no matter holidays you do or don't celebrate. Take time for yourselves (and buy something to give yourself for Christmas - a tradition Mom started in our house while I was still in high school). Be good to one another and tell the people you love that you love them, every chance you get. 

See you in 2014.

More, eventually.
Prospero

You have read this article A Break / Caliban's Revenge / Florida / Holidays / My BIL / My Sister / On Blogging / Tired / Uncle P with the title Tired. You can bookmark this page URL https://tammycross.blogspot.com/2013/12/taking-break.html. Thanks!

A Break

So, after almost 5 years of writing Caliban's Revenge, I think I may have run out of things to talk about.

No, not really. But with everything that's been going on these past few weeks (Mom's health; a new relationship; etc.), I think I simply may be just too tired to write about anything.

I'm not going away. I refuse to go away. But I need a little break, I think.

I don't know how long that break will be. A few days? A few weeks? A few months? I have no idea. I just know I need to take a break. My lack of new posts in the past few days is certainly an indicator of my need for a break. 

Hopefully, I'll come back recharged and excited to blog again. Hopefully, I'll have done some work on other, long-gestating writing projects I've been putting off for too long. Hopefully, Army of the Dead will have it's KickStarter page up and running.

I love that you read my nonsense and hope you don't forget about me while I'm gone - no matter how long that is (I'm hoping not very long). Keep watching this space. I WILL be back. I promise.

To hold you over, my favorite new music video, "Head Hung Low" by Father Tiger:

More, eventually.

Brian

I'm Tired

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A Quickie

Corny Collins: "It's Hairspray!" (click Corny's pompadour to embiggem)

I'm uploading pictures tonight, so I thought the very least I could was to give you another teaser.

Since everyone has already posted them on Facebook, I'm going to post a whole album of Hairspray pictures tomorrow. We rehearsed tonight and I'm tired and lazy and still not recovered from a rather grueling (though in the end, worth it) hell week. 

I do hope there's a picture of me riding the hot dog cart in my second costume and wig.

If you're so inclined, you can read our only local review (so far) here. The reviewer seemed to either forget or ignore JTMF but she liked the show, so I'll give her a pass. I promise to stop talking about it, soon (don't worry, Jeffrey will take it's place in a few weeks). Anyway - I'm off to finish downloading the rest of the pictures.

More, anon.

Prospero

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The Good Kind of Tired

Pictured kneeling from left, are Shannon Brueckner, Sabella Lichtman and Nicole Erkoboni. Standing, from left are Chris DiTullio, Meredith Bleemer, Ben Menahem, Ethan Daniel Levy, Dan Johnson, Alexandra Baldwin, Parker Harris and Julia Procaccino.

That's Corny Collins (c) and the Council Kids in a publicity still from Hairspray, about which you all must be sick to death by now. Uncle P was deliberately kept out of publicity photos, but I promise to post some of me and the rest of the cast in our full costumes, wigs and make-ups next Sunday, after the show. I'll be taking tons of pictures next weekend.

That having been said, I am both exceedingly pleased and happily surprised by the by the show's abject success! We've played to three sold-out and one near-capacity audiences and have had three full house standing ovations. The audiences are loving it; the cast is loving each other and the entire team couldn't be more happy. What was a sometimes difficult rehearsal-process resulted in a not-to-be-missed production of a fun, silly, toe-tapping musical that has left four very happy audiences in its wake.And while I may be bragging just a little bit, I'll risk having pride in being a part of yet another amazing theatrical experience.

Needless to say, after what amounts to seven full performances (we had two yesterday), I am very tired, and very sore. Given my recent absence of something else that could cause those symptoms (TMI??), the joy of performing and the rush from applause is better than any drug I can imagine.

If, like my buddy Sean* (who brought me some beautiful and exceptionally fragrant flowers), you want to see me singing and dancing in dresses and heels (and face it, you know you do), you have three more chances next Saturday and Sunday. Word on the street says that Saturday evening is very close to being sold out, though you might find limited-view seats for both the Saturday and Sunday matinees.

*Sean was an early follower who share's Uncle P's taste in men and is very sweet man who I met for the first time this weekend. You can link his very popular blog by clicking the link to 'Just a Jeep Guy' on the left.  (While very little of what Sean posts is NSFW, some of the links he shares, are). He, I and two of my friends from college (Alex and Gail) whom I hadn't seen for 25 years, shared a delightful dinner between shows on Saturday. I only wish I could have spent more time with all of them. All three shared their enthusiasm for the show, as has everyone (friends, co-workers and complete strangers) I've talked to, including the people I know will tell me the truth.

Because unlike most media, theatre is a temporary art; I thought I'd share with you something I shared with the company on the production's Facebook timeline. It is heartfelt and honest:

Dear Cast and Crew: Enjoy being with this family as much as possible. Continue to share that love for each other with our remaining audiences, and we'll be guaranteed full houses and standing Os for every performance. What we have is a rare and magical thing; it's like to be sought after with every show you do. When you find that magic again (and you will), remember the joy we're sharing now and include it in the joy you share then. You guys are all extraordinary and I am so very proud to be associated with each and every one of you and this production. I love playing Edna and I love playing her with all of you! Thank you for sharing the love with me.

The show as (every show does), has its flaws but this large and diverse cast has pulled together in way I worried it never would to deliver a funny and entertaining show that our audiences are loving. And that's good enough for me. The magic of a show coming together never ceases to amaze me. It's a better high than any drug you can imagine.

Enough crowing. It's back to the real (for a little while at least) tomorrow (well, today). And I'll be forming a new temporary family when rehearsals begin for the JTMF 10th Anniversary Production of Paul Rudnick's Jeffrey in May.

More, anon.

Prospero

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I Can't Stop the Beat

So today saw the final performance of A Christmas Carol and I have to be honest, I don't think I'm going to suffer the usual post-show depression I usually experience at the end of a run. Mostly because I'm just exhausted. 

Doing a show while trying to get ready for the holidays is insane, yet there we were... it's like a strange disease or something. Only other Theatre Folk understand. I do get a break now, though. 

Rehearsals for Hairspray won't start until February and rehearsals for Jeffrey won't start until May. Hairspray will undoubtedly mark my retirement from performing in musicals. It's been eleven years since my last one (A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum) anyway, and I think it's probably a good one to go out on. Jeffrey not only marks the 10th Anniversary of the JTMF, but will be the first time D and I actually share more than a brief scene on stage together. After that, who knows what theatrical nonsense I might get up to? Maybe 2012 will finally be the year I get a composer to actually finish the score to one of the three musicals I've written. Or I just might finish one or two of the dozens of 'in-progress' screenplays on my hard drive. Or maybe I'll take a nice long break and not do anything creative for a while (like that might happen).

Whatever the New Year brings, I'm looking forward to it. And I hope you are, as well. In the meantime, please enjoy this number from Hairspray:

More, anon.
Prospero

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Getting My Bearings Back

That's me, the nut on the ground with his brains being eaten by zombie nuts (he-he - I said "zombie nuts").

This year's JTMF show was a tough one. I had an inexperienced actor who needed to be alternately coddled, yelled at and occasionally physically dragged into giving what ended up being a very fine performance; we had smaller than usual crowds and to be honest, I'm not getting any younger...

I'm very much looking forward to the upcoming 3-day weekend, if only to get some much-needed rest. Of course, I'll also be catching up on the housekeeping duties I neglected the last several weeks. My house and my car are both a mess and while my fridge is full, much of what's in there are ancient leftovers sorely in need of being deep-sixed. My tomatoes need weeding; a post out front is in desperate need of a paint job; there is a pile of bills that need paying; a graduation gift that needs to bought and a million and four other things... Of course, your list is probably just as long. Still, I'd love to say "Screw it!" and head down to Rehoboth or up to Provincetown for three days of debauchery, though how that would help me feel less tired, I'm not sure. I do have a vacation coming up at the end of July, part of which I'll be spending in Chicago, finally meeting one of my Stephens (among other things). Oh - and I'll be entering a new decade in a few weeks... Yikes! Why do I still think I'm 25?

All in all, I guess I could do worse this weekend. I could still be working in retail.

By the way, Caliban's Revenge will soon be celebrating it's 4th Anniversary (I can hardly believe it) and I have a few fun things planned, including my annual list of Movies that Need to Be Remade. I can't wait to see how this year's list differs from the very first one in 2008.

And on that note, I'll leave you with this pro Marriage Equality ad from 2008 (via):


More, anon.
Prospero

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Nothing New Tonight

 

See that cute baby sleeping there? I wish that was me. I am so tired, I could cry. So I am begging off for tonight. 

I hope you sleep as well as this cutie appears to be. I hope I will, too.

Good night! Sleep tight! Don't let the bedbugs bite! 

Ew! My mom said that to me a lot when I was a kid. 

I suppose I should leave you with something. How about this interview with Armistead Maupin and Jake Shears about the upcoming musical version of "Tales From the City?" (via): 

Now there's a show I'd go out of my way to see...

More, anon.
Prospero

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Too Pooped to Peep

I have no real explanation for my total exhaustion tonight, other than the damned Daylight Savings Time. And by the way - there isn't actually an extra hour of daylight. The day is still pretty evenly divided - it's just our perception being fooled into thinking there's an extra hour... yes, the sun sets later in the spring and summer than in the fall and winter... but still.

That hour just killed me. I spent most of my day plopped on the couch watching bad movies. I actually sat through all of Meet Dave, Eddie Murphy's 2008 Sci-Fi comedy, which was just as bad one would expect (I was especially offended by Pat Kilbane's ridiculously stereotypical gay character). Filled with lame toilet humor and jokes about culture shock we've seen a hundred times before, Meet Dave is probably the worst movie I've seen since Pluto Nash, though I haven't seen Norbit (and have no intentions of doing so).

I could talk about the earthquake and tsunami in Japan (go to The Red Cross' website to donate); the situation in North Africa and the Middle East; the price of gas; the economy in general or any number of other topics... but I just don't want to. 

My warm, cozy bed is calling and I am going to answer.

More, anon,

Prospero

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