The Big New York Writer Author Dude



Timothy McDonald (courtesy of Google)

     So today the cast of The Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley cast had three performances. We had been looking forward to today for a couple months because of our special guest. Our director, Jacob, invited founder of iTheatrics and Music Theatre International (MTI), Timothy McDonald to come check us out.
     Our director made sure everything was perfect. The night before we had a rehearsal (we hadn't had one in a while because we had been performing already for weeks) and we went over our harmonies. This morning my whole Twitter feed was filled with tweets about Mr. McDonald coming ( #RockHisSocks ), and motivational stuff like that. Like we needed motivation! Him coming was motivation alone.
    So he flew in from New York that morning and caught our early show. We saw him as we did our meet and greet with the elementary school kids. He was pretty nice, from what I saw at least. I didn't talk to him but he talked to parts of the cast. He also wore cool Tom's. I'm pretty sure a guy with Tom's like that couldn't possibly be that bad.
     So soon we went back into our dressing rooms and began to prepare for the next show. Belle, our stage manager, came into ours and asked what we thought of the "Big New York Writer Author Dude". The younger girls giggled at Belle's new nickname for the usually respected writer.
     We did the next show, our meet and greet, and then, while still in costume mind you, went to go sit in the first two rows of the empty house. Mr. McDonald stood on the stage and commended us on our performances. We all wore smiles too big for our faces and Jacob shined with pride. I sat in the front row near the center (and in perfect view of those Tom's). I was seated next to Cris when McDonald complimented him and let me tell you, I thought I was bad when Taylor Lautner rips his shirt off in the Twilight Saga but Cris was ten times that. He (and I could tell) tried hard to hide it, but on the inside he was freaking out.
     McDonald also mentioned half a line of music from the show and the whole cast finished it for him. He responded with "I wrote it. I don't have to remember it." and we all laughed. The real funny part was when he complemented Belle on her stage managing skills. Belle blushed and we all looked at her thinking "Mhhhmmm...Is he still the Big New York Writer Author Dude, Belle?". After he mentioned working on James and the Giant Peach and we all ooooh-ed and ahhhh-ed at the mere idea. Needless to say we were all bummed to see him go.
     Belle ushered (more like herded) us into the dressing room and we asked her, "So did you like the Big New York Writer Author Dude?" and she responded with "Yes, Mr. McDonald was a very pleasant man." Okay, I see how it is Belle, a little sweet talk and suddenly he's a "very pleasant man".    

The Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley pt.4

    Tonight was opening night down at the Harbor Playhouse for the Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley Jr. We had quite a crowd show up too. Our show started at 7:30 in the evening but we all got there at 3:00 to do a last minute rehearsal.
     By the time we were saying "Thank you 20!" (non thespian translation (NTT): the show opens in 20 minutes so stop screwing around!) we all felt the adrenaline.
     All the girls had on stage makeup, and for those of you that have never seen anybody with stage makeup on up close,  let's just say Snooki doesn't have anything on us! The stage lights make your face look like a white circle so you need lots of makeup just to have a face at all.
     Our director has a nice tradition going on at the playhouse. During our magic circle (NTT: when all of the actors huddle up for a pre-show pep talk) he leads us in a prayer as we all hold hands. His prayer was so nice and inspiring that most people's eyes began to water. He said in the time he has been working with us (for the past three months) we have surpassed his expectations. When he said that each and every one of us are stars I squeezed Rebecca's hand and she squeezed mine back.
     When Belle, our stage manager, called for places (NTT: get your butt to where you start the show) I got onto the top wagon (NTT: tower with wheels) with Brant (Napoleon) and Adri (O'Jay D'Art). We just looked at each other and engulfed each other in a huge group hug.
     As the majestic grand (NTT: big red curtain that hides the stage) began to rise and our opening song began to play I could taste the excitement. Needless to say we all killed it. The whole performance was excellent and the whole cast had so much fun.
     For the meet and greet we go into the lobby but this time there was a surprise for us. The walls were decorated with little paper Flat Stanley's, there was a snack buffet, and pictures of the cast we on the wall with their Flat Stanley.
     Our show runs weekends (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) until April 1. Come and feel some of the magic that this show is all about.

***Click here to buy tickets to come see us!***

The Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley pt. 2

Katie "acting casual" as Belle comes and checks up on us
in the dressing room before rehearsal.

     Some call it Spring Break, we (the cast of Flat Stanley) call it Tech Week.
     As mentioned in my earlier post Belle, our stage manager, stepped up her game even more and now lurks in the shadows ready to pounce on any actor that steps out of line. Nothing big yet but all of us are being very careful. It's a running joke when Belle comes into the dressing room, where we all chill out before rehearsal starts, to say "BELLE IS HERE! ACT CASUAL!", pose and smile huge smiles. Of course Belle just laughs.
    Our show opens on Friday and everything is coming together swimmingly. Our set pieces should be done today, everyone has their lines, dances are staring to look polished and we even have custom animations and a green screen projected behind us onstage.
     We spend three to five hours a day there at the Harbor Playhouse and it's starting to pay off.

Our six year old Sneak Thief waiting for her cue

     Our version of Flat Stanley has no adult actors. Our youngest is six years old and she plays the sneak theif. Our oldest is seventeen and she plays Nurse Betty. You would think all these kids would mess it up and be unprofessional, but they all know exactly what they are doing. The six year old has been in more plays than I have. Yes, I'm being completely serious.

The Musical Adventures of Flat Stnaley pt. 1

Adri (left) and Rebecca (right) backstage at boot camp

     At my local theater we are doing The Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley. The play, Flat Stanley is based on the book by Jeff Brown and Stanley Lambchop thinks his life is too boring. So one night Stanley wishes on a falling star and the next morning wakes up completely two dimensional. So Stanley gets mailed all over the world and has fantastic adventures. I play Mona Lisa and Stanley meets me in Paris and saves me from the Sneak Thief.
Saturday was Flat Stanley Boot Camp which lasted for almost eight hours. It involved dancing, running scenes, getting fitted for costumes, pizza and lots of laughs.
     Our morning consisted mostly of dancing and we ran the actual show a couple times. At around one we took a pizza break and when looking for a place to sit and eat in the lobby I saw my friend Adri siting in silence with our stage manager, Belle. Now, I only knew of Belle because she is so good at what she does and is awfully intimidating when she comes backstage to check on us. It's like some of these kids have no off switch but she comes over and they practically shut down. So I figured that she and Adri (who is a wild loose cannon and doesn't care what anyone thinks) might make lunch....entertaining.
     So as I sat down I noticed that there was absolutely no conversation. I looked at Adri, who I have known for a while and she said nothing. I looked at Belle but the silence didn't seem to bother her. So it was all up to little ol' me to strike up conversation.
     "What's it like being a stage manager, Belle?" I asked. Suddenly it was hard to believe that just a few minutes ago this girl was being quiet. Belle told us funny stories about all eleven shows she has teched for. She has the ability to listen in on your mic even when it's "off" ( WE DIDN'T KNOW  THIS!!!) and she has caught people singing, talking to themselves, flushing the toilet and even play "Never Have I Ever". Belle said one guy playing that game had licked the stage floor. Ummm what? This girl who was always serious, reserved, and quiet actually had a great sense of humor.
     Once the conversation came to a lull I could tell Belle had warmed up to us because she asked us "Are you guys excited for Tech Week?". For all you non thespians; Tech Week is the week before a show opens and it is when you either really shine or seriously fail. It's when the director is at his wits end and if you piss him off he will kick you out and recast in a second. Adri and I were both very excited and nervous, so we asked Belle what she thought.
     This is when I really got surprised. Belle said "Yeah I can't wait to yell at the actors." We both looked at her as if she had just said she lived on the moon and her hair was purple. Belle explained that Tech Week is when her stage manager abilities really kick in. The director cannot be backstage taking care of drama between actors, missing props, or anything that doesn't directly affect the show. That's Belle's job. So she asked us if any conflict between actors was going on. Of course Adri and I both just shook our heads.
     After lunch, costume fittings and some more run throughs, I was backstage waiting for my cue with Rebecca. That day people were working in the shop on set pieces for Flat Stanley. Rebecca and I both spotted this cute guy working on a set piece. As we were being fangirls our friend Brant came and asked what was up. We pointed out the boy and Brant said "You know he's probably here doing community service, right? Because he committed a crime..." Of course we ignored him.
     We went to go talk to to Shop-Guy, got his real name (that I won't put on here) and asked him if he was going to tech for Flat Stanley. His exact response was:
     "Actually I'm just here for community service."
     Rebecca and I froze.
     "Well, what happened?" I asked after a beat.
     "Oh you know. One thing lead to another..."
     After that incredibly vague response, Rebecca and I practically ran screaming back to Brant. Brant said that obviously Shop-Guy was a rapist. Rebecca concluded that maybe, just maybe, she has a thing for bad boys.




Brant and I continued to slap her.