And so goodbye to another show. I’ve had a short-term covering position and graduated from Board Op to stage duties – hence all my windy tweets. I’ve done a lot of vacuuming. I’m telling you, hoovering a West End theatre stage puts cleaning your own abode into context. I’ve excelled at flying in a curtain, moving props between actors, and operating sound effects (usually on cue hem-hem). Much as I love lighting, I love being in the wings with the actors even more. The company on this show (“it’ll run and run”) have been one of the funniest set of people I have worked with. Many a performance I have been reduced to gasping for breath (silently) laughing in the wings. I have to say that now I have left teaching and gone into the theatre, I find I am laughing more. It’s as if I have lost a burden of stress I was carrying around as a teacher. Well let’s face it – I was under huge pressure and sad to say, although I miss being with the children, I don’t miss teaching one jot. I rarely think about it. And anyway, actors are grown-ups who still have the playfulness of children in them, so the theatre is not much different to the classroom.
I’ve only been on the show a couple of months but I have really felt at home and had a great time playing a little part in its history. I am writing this at home an hour into the show, and I am feeling a little lost.
Now I’ve three weeks of no work/pay and then I hope to have something at the beginning of September. Fingers crossed. I’ll have a break in between. I want to concentrate on my creative writing so I am going to get off social media temporarily.
So I say goodbye feeling sad and happy; I like the transient nature of theatre. I like it’s nightly routine and I like moving on to a fresh start. Farewell to another production that will remain locked in my heart.
