It's about time for me to run another update of those charming middle school hellions and their play.
Since before Christmas, it's not been my favourite thing. I was pretty much dreading having to go to rehearsal each day.
Yesterday, however, I had a Sunday night rehearsal. They'd had all day to do whatever they wanted and showed up to rehearse. I even had all but two of them (the cast has dwindled from fourteen to eight), which is some kind of record. All of them even had costume pieces in some form to try on.
It went well. I discovered that two of the kids I least expected to be able to memorise their lines are almost there, and the two I figured best able to do it are all confidence but no significant results.
If you were reading back when I started talking about auditions, recall to your mind the incredibly sweet and shy girl who warbled her way through most of Amazing Grace. She was originally a really insignificant part, but with losing cast members, she's become one of the leads. She started memorising her lines only two weeks ago, and knows them better than anyone in the cast, including people with fewer lines than she has.
To say I am incredibly glad the other girls quit is an understatement. The work she's put in is amazing, and she never would've gotten the chance until it came down to the wire, because she doesn't look like she'd be particularly talented. My only fear is that she'll freak out in front of an audience and bomb.
Of course, saying that last night's rehearsal went well, today's was pretty much awful. They didn't want to be there. It was Monday and they all either needed a snack or a nap (and in some cases, both). We went from three to five thirty, and they were decently behaved for probably the first half hour. That's when I learned they have lunch at, like, eleven and all of them expect to eat the minute they get home. Nice how it takes me to the last day of afterschool rehearsal to work that out.
I've still got a lot of work to do, but the kids are pretty decent all on their own. I'm going to post some pictures. I had one of those parent release forms that asked them to sign if they DIDN'T want their child photographed (this is going in my portfolio), and half of them didn't read the directions. I think only one of them was geniune, and that was the Iranian Girl... So, no pictures of the Princess, I'm afraid.