Looking at life from rehearsals

Here's looking at interest, and real passion, in capital letters.

I got home from rehearsal, read some emails, showered, got quite hungry and man, it was 1am already -- so when my phone rang I was surprised and thought it must be J who is travelling.

It was another J from rehearsal, she rang up to run through some singing lines with me so that she could spend the next day at home perfecting it. Apparently she went to the rehearsal earlier with `sore eyes' and her eyes got her an MC (medical certificate) to be off work the next day. Now I know one other person who'd practise at home at 1am after a 3-hour evening rehearsal, plus she had a full day at work before going to rehearsal.

You would call it Passion, wouldn't you?

BTW she really had eye infection.

Another one from rehearsal whined before the rehearsal about heavy rehearsal schedule that is keeping him away from his band practise, he also has a full time college schedule to pull off....I don't know whether that justified him bringing the wrong score to rehearsal, and failed to inform stage manager of his absence from rehearsal the evening before....not forgetting the lack of initiative to work on what he missed.

He asked me if I have a day job besides the part in the musical.

No, I said.

Does it make my effort and contribution in the production any less worthy because I don't come rushing to rehearsals from an office job?

Does it mean a lot more to the production when someone brave traffic from office to rehearsals?

I have the reputation to be early at rehearsals, first to learn all my lines...etc and until recently I think it's an obscenity to be the teacher's pet (in this case, stage manager's or director's pet) and to be known for discipline and punctuality instead of talent. But I have changed the way I see myself, I have no right to deny myself of doing what comes naturally to me -- it's to live whole-heartedly each production I take part in. I will stop apologizing to myself for being passionate about each and every theatre production I part take in.

Speaking of attitude...there will always be actors who are great justifiers...in most productions I have been in. They can justify everything under the sun, why they are always late (work, bosses, traffic, car, unforeseen meetings, kids, pets, plants, church, laundry...), why they still haven't memorize their lines (work, bosses, stage manager, computer down, fever, etc), why they can't sing proper today (sore throat, ill, tired....) and list does on.

While we know that you reap what you sow, sometimes we forget to be responsible for our actions. Excuses will remain as excuses....

Before I bore you with more self-righteous (we all are) talk....I better start making sure today I arrive at rehearsal before time Again :)