After two long weeks of tech, a few challenging meetings about money, a last minute injury to a favorite crew member, an even more last minute rehearsal to train someone to take the place of said favorite crew member, and a miraculously smooth run through on Friday morning (all things considered)... we finally began previews for THE TIN PAN ALLEY RAG last night - to an almost full house and a very responsive crowd.
I was so proud of the show - the first musical at my theatre (and a huge one at that!). I was proud of the cast and how well they performed, even without the benefit of having a final dress rehearsal and really focusing on their story instead of the audience. I was proud of the crew and how well they ran the extremely complicated backstage tracks, even while having a new person back there who'd only ran it for the first time only hours before the show. I was proud of the director and the designers and the author for their positive outlook, even in light of the stressful past few days. I was proud of the music director and the second piano player who seemed to play those rags with ease and enjoyment, even while being removed from the stage in a dressing room / pit and watching the show via video monitors. And I was particularly proud of our management team - stage managers who work quickly and efficiently under great deals of pressure; and a company manager who is truly a godsend, keeping a smile on his face in all kinds of complicated situations and always thinking of ways to make things better.
When the final, swelling, beautiful song was sung - I found myself smiling and tearing up - my heart bursting with all those wonderful emotions. Or perhaps all the exhaustion! Either way - it was a lovely first preview.
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