All rightay. Here you will find (in this order): Videos, Reviews, and a few of my thoughts about the production experience.
1.) Video footages:
- The group singing the title number, "Hair."
2.) Reviews:
3.) Thoughts:
I feel like being in HAIR was certainly something I needed to experience at some point in my career, and I'm glad that it happened when it did, in the place that it did, with the people that it did. I learned a great deal about character development - what's healthy, what's dangerous, what needs to be part of the process, and what can take you too deep. Throughout the process I continually longed for some guidance and direction that could have "brought me back" from the hard places we discovered in the show. This is a work about peace - not in the cliche "peace signs on my Abercrombie and Fitch shoulder bag" way. It truly is about finding peace in your own way and by opening your eyes to the resources around you to obtain peace within ourselves, peace with one another, peace with the world. Every time I sang or talked about the stereotypical ideals and traditions of "hippies" I realized that they were just like those that the religious groups who admonished them claimed to believe: treat each other well, treat the planet well, don't resort to violence, be generous with what you have, praise God/Nature through music/art/poetry. This is the mindset that Jeanie thought in. It was the mindset of the Tribe she called her family.
Post-production has been really good for me. I haven't crashed as hard as I did after past productions... I've quickly gotten back into a rhythm at both jobs, back to my normal workout routine, and back to the simplicity of my walks and bicycle rides instead of the train/motorcycle/bumming rides/wondering how I'll get to the next thing. The weather in California this time of year is divine. I'm fully stoked on it.
The support I felt throughout the production experience is indescribable. Of course I had my family behind me - I couldn't believe how my parent bots made it possible for Mama Vance to fly out and see the show. Tristen saw the show three times. There were nights when the community really turned out to be supportive... But aside from that, and probably more crucial in a production like this was the support from the Tribe. I was initially very surprised to find myself so easily embraced by my cast-mates, because most of them had worked together in previous productions and I thought I might have to fight to prove myself to them. Not so. We really did become a family. I felt a real relationship with each cast member individually, and then felt the satisfying weight of belonging within the Tribe. I was so grateful to generous partners onstage. I was so thrilled when I saw my colleagues succeeding, and so humbled by lessons I learned from them.
I was thrilled to find that my sight-reading skills haven't diminished like I thought they might in the months since graduation, and learning the music came really easily once I had a score in hand. (Yes, it's thought of as simple stuff - but we didn't just start singing it like they do on the Original Cast Recording, despite having been sent that to "learn" the music beforehand. We plunked notes and made revisions and did the work) It definitely felt good to have a score again :)
I will (selfishly?) add that from the beginning I committed myself to grow from this intellectually, and I kept that resolve for the entire process. I researched every single reference in my script that I couldn't explain thoroughly right off the bat, and even those that I thought I could. I learned SO MUCH about the time period, the music, the clothing, the political views, the nightmarish draft process... It's worth investigating on your own, if you have a chance (and if you've made it this far into the post, proving that you can read lots of words in sequence... you're well on your way) and the motivation to dig up some world history.
The only way I can describe the feeling I walked away with is probably scary, but might get it across... I feel like a junkie who finally got her fix. Truly. I needed to do a musical so badly. It had been FAR too long (my last staged musical production was the Bacchae Rock Opera thing at the U of U Fall 2009) and I had been literally starving for it. Validation is sweet. Once again it confirmed that this is my genre, this is my time to pursue it, and it is 100% realistic for me to have a career path in this field. I have the talent, the drive, and the patience to manifest it.
I deeply believe that we can have whatever we want... we just can't decide when. But I've committed myself to work on my craft in whatever capacity, whether it be a community theater project or alone at the Palace - and when it's time, I'll be ready :)
Peace.
AV
