Welcome back to another weekly update! This week, I spent time expanding my environment – that is, taking an atmosphere I was already familiar with and adding new things to it.
A Struggle From This Week
This week, I started rehearsals for the play I’m in. So far, my castmates and I are getting along pretty well. However, with the majority of them being younger and new to theater, they aren’t as practiced in the art of backstage etiquette. Every time I had to go backstage with my play siblings, they were talking and laughing loudly and playing with props from the last show. It got to a point where they were really distracted and none of us could hear our cues, plus it was interfering with rehearsal onstage.
Since I was the oldest one backstage, I felt I needed to take responsibility for the kids’ actions. I tried to teach them the rules as gently and firmly as I could, but since I have “babyface” (my words, not theirs, though this is the reason) they weren’t inclined to listen. That was hard for me – being in a place where it was supposed to be calm and adhere to a set of guidelines and having it all go wrong.
However, what I managed to teach myself was to just let go – I had done what I could and the directors already knew how I behaved. As difficult as it was to be backstage in those moments, I couldn’t control the kids, and so it was best to just let natural consequences or someone else handle the situation. My sole task was to follow along with the script and listen for my cues. Hopefully the kids would learn to model that.
Despite the disturbances, I really enjoy being around my castmates. They’re really funny and energetic and it’s so fun hanging out with them! I hope they learn that it’s perfectly okay to joke and have fun backstage as long as it doesn’t interfere with the show. Plus, this was only the first rehearsal, so in all likelihood, we’ll only improve!
A Win From This Week
Most weekends, my boyfriend brings me to his dorm to hang out for a day. While it was really difficult at first to adjust to the fact that my partner was in a different school (it’s a trigger from the past,) I’ve learned to separate the present from what happened before and enjoy my surroundings when I’m there.
On Saturday, we went out to the dorm as usual, then packed some stuff and went to take a walk around campus. We walked in the forest and lay in a little park area for a bit, then started to make our way back. As we sauntered back towards the residential buildings, we realized we were getting hungry. My boyfriend (who tends to stick to what’s familiar) had an inclination towards adventure, so we went to explore a new hall. We found cool hallways and corridors, game rooms, shops, and even a mini movie theater! It was awesome! We also discovered a Subway inside the building, so we stopped and had our lunch there. While there were a few people in and out, the place was generally pretty empty, so it felt great to have it to ourselves. We had a nice lunch before heading back to the dorm. I’m so glad we found a new place to add to our hang out map!