Day Off!

As a resident of Cleveland I get into the Zoo for free on Mondays. Guess who has Mondays off? Oh ya, me. I was discussing my plans before the show yesterday and the wardrobe supervisor Candace said she was going to the zoo today too so I should come with her.

I actually crashed on her date. Candace was taking her 3 year old nephew.

He seemed apprehensive at first but he eventually warmed up to me. We had a good time. The Cleveland Zoo is spread out and a little random. Does it make sense to anyone else that the monkeys and the fish are in the same building? The day was cut short when it started pouring rain, but nobody was out any money and we saw almost everything.

The kangaroos were my favorite.

I spent some time at my apartment cleaning and relaxing and then took off again for the Indians game.

You'll never believe this, but they won.

I love these two. They are so willing to join me in my escapades.

Such a fun filled day. Having a wonderful time doesn't have to break the bank. I spent like $10.50 total today on the ticket and a hot dog. That makes everything that happened today even better.

Another Opening Night

I just got home from my first opening night as a Production Assistant. I did it! The show went off well.

It is about a two hour production (two 55 min acts). At one point there are 2 pages of script where technically nothing is happening. The rest of the time, at least someone is doing something. I've had a great time organizing what is happening, when, where, how, and who. It is definitely a fun show.

Fun Things in this show:

• All large props (ladders, tables, chairs, door) are on wheels and get pushed out several times with actors riding them.
• The huge fog machine.
• Pulling a stuffed poodle across the stage by a string.
• I get to fire a gun backstage.

Mostly, I love that there is no time to get bored.

After opening night there is a party for all CPH employees. It was fun to see everyone and hold my head high that the show worked out.

Top Moments of the Night:

• Having the big boss look at me and say, "Lizzie, thank you. It turned out great" and hugging me.
• Standing backstage during the show, taking in my view of the actors onstage with the costume and deck crew backstage, and feeling a wave of appreciation come over me.
• Looking at my phone and realizing I'd been at the party for 2 hours talking and having a good time. (I usually leave a lot earlier)

Sometimes I complain about it. I rarely know where I'll be in the near future, I have odd hours, I'm far away from my family, and there are moments of high stress. But mostly, I just love it.

I would like it on record that I went through the whole process from first rehearsal to opening night without breaking down in tears. It's been said that everyone is allowed one good cry per production. I didn't need mine this time around.

Living arrangements

It is my place.

No I don't own it, but the contract is in my name, and my money is paying the rent. Because I'm not sharing it with anybody, my word is the final word. I get to choose the furniture, the pictures, the color, and what channel the TV is on. This feels great.

Having a calm, quiet, and personal space to come home to each night after working in the theater environment is huge. This is going to work out wonderfully.

Here is a tour of my apartment:

By car I am between 5 and 10 minutes from work. There are a lot of lights.

By bike its about 15 minutes.

I haven't walked yet, but I imagine around 45 minutes.

From downtown? About a 15 minute walk.

Katie and I had such a fun shopping spree in ikea to buy everything so that it would fit in my car for the drive and I could build it once I got here. She also helped me choose which pictures to hang up, and gave me ideas for how to organize it all. Thanks Katie!

A Comedy Tonight!

The show I'm working on right now is called The 39 Steps. It is based on the Hitchcock movie, but the play is a comedy. The rehearsal process has been pretty awesome. At least 5 times a day we all get sidetracked/knocked off task for like 10 minutes because everyone in the room is laughing so hard.

This is the teaser for the show when it was on Broadway:

Is this real? Am I really getting paid for this?

Exciting opportunities.

One of my "goals" while I'm here is to go to a game of each major team here in Cleveland. They have the Browns, Indians, and Cavaliers. Last week I got a group together and we all went to the Browns last pre season game. It was a little last minute to pull it together, but it was the only game I could go to. Every one of their home games are at 1:00 on Sundays.

We all met up and walked (yes, walked. That's how close I live to downtown Cleveland) to the stadium. I was so excited!

As you can see, we were really high up, but we each paid $11.50. I think it was a great deal.

At first it was really hot, but when the sun went down it was absolutely perfect. At one point I caught myself thinking, "I am perfectly content right now". I love moments like that.

(Maureen, Chris, Andrew, Ben, me)

The 5 of us work for 3 different entertainment companies in town, but we all know each other from Porthouse (the theater I worked at the summer of 2008). Andrew is the guy in the middle who I didn't know well but will be moving down the hall from me in a few days.

After the game (THE BROWNS WON!) there were fireworks. Watching fireworks with Chris was so much fun. He kept up a running commentary, my favorite quote being, "wow, I love that one. I could watch that one all night long."

They really were great fireworks. I saw things I'd never seen before.

In all, it was an amazing night. Chris and Maureen later said, "experiencing things like that with you is like experiencing them for the first time all over again because you are so excited."

Guilty.