Well, dear friends and Spackleites, your wait has ended! I have remembered that this blog exists, and have returned from my period of secluded dormancy to give Ankur something to read again.
So what's going on with me, you might ask? (At least, I assume that since you're reading a blog about my "adventures" you would ask. If you're not actually that interested then I question what you're doing here.) Here's a brief rundown:
Remember that producing thing I'm doing with Annie on Broadway? Yeah, well, I'm still doing it. To say that it's going slowly would be a grotesque understatement. However, it is still going. I haven't given up yet, and I still believe that my remaining confidence is based at least in part in the belief that I can succeed, and not simply in mindless optimism. Pittsburgh investors are conservative, and they need to be convinced that investing with a Broadway production won't lose them their shirt. The whole "lifestyle investment" pitch doesn't seem to be sticking here, at least with the people I've talked to. So suffice it to say that I'm learning a lot, and that really makes it quite worthwhile.
A bulk of my time and energy, and nearly all of my emotional commitment has, for the past 3 months, been devoted to my work on Riverview Jr./Sr. High School's production of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. It was an incredible experience.
By way of back story, I graduated from Riverview in 2005, and spent the entirety of my 6 years there (did you catch that it's a Jr./Sr. High School?) in the musical program. I started off as a wee 7th grader in My Fair Lady, playing George the Bartender (the only 7th grader with lines!). That was followed by The Professor in South Pacific, Brother Simeon in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Sky Masterson in Guys and Dolls, Lord Evelyn Oakleigh in Anything Goes, and culminated with Curly McClain in Oklahoma!. These shows form the bedrock of my theatrical life, the foundation upon which I have built everything that followed. My participation really helped to shape me into who I am today, and I will always cherish the memories.
The program has been lead by two of my very favorite people since 2000 (so my first year in the musical coincided with their first year as well): John Paul Bertucci and Michele Bartos. They are like family to me, and for the past 13 years of DiClaudio family involvement in the Riverview musicals they have been a steady and important presence in my life. When I found myself back in Pittsburgh (or Oakmont, to be precise) back in November, luck would have it that the day after my return my family went out and left me on my own for the morning, and my mom told me that callbacks for the musical were taking place and that I should stop by and say hello. I did just that (and I imagine that kids were all wondering who the hell this random guy was), and ended up staying through casting that afternoon, and even gave a few diffident suggestions here or there based on what I had seen. And that was it - I was hooked. I should have recognized at that point that my ability to stay away was severely compromised.
After a week or two of basically obsessing over helping out with the musical (my theatrical itch on full out "must-have-or-will-combust" mode), I emailed the directors and offered my services, should they desire them. You see, I had performed in Forum at CMU with S'n'S in 2008, playing Pseudolus (one of my dream roles), and so I'd be happy to bring my experiences to Riverview's show, if they were interested. Essentially, I invited myself to the party. To my everlasting joy (and for which I will be eternally grateful) they said ok. At that point I don't think any of us had any idea what my level of involvement would be, but it was assumed that I would drop by rehearsals every now and then and help out as an acting/vocal coach where needed.
Needless to say, I was really excited. I started attending rehearsals pretty much daily, and slowly but surely become more and more deeply integrated into the team. Long story short, I ended up being formally added to the directing staff as "Directing Consultant" (though I described myself as an Assistant Director - which I think emphasized my appropriately subordinate role more than the rather lofty title I was graciously granted).
Quickly, and predictably, Forum consumed my life. I spent more or less every waking moment thinking about it, and about how I could help to make it better, and how I could inspire the cast to perform that most difficult type of drama, the comedy. It took some time for me to gain the trust of the kids in the cast, but I think my near constant presence, my willingness to make a fool of myself for their entertainment, and the fact that I was so damned enthusiastic and happy to be with them eventually won them over. I hope. I could just be imagining that.
Anyway, as is always the case with these kinds of productions, time has a disobliging habit of speeding up, and before I knew it, our 3-month rehearsal process (during which I feel I had gained a lot of really great new friends - despite the fact that many of them were between 7 and 14 years my junior) had ended and we were performing already. And in the flashiest of flashes, our run of 1 preview and 5 performances ended last night.
I'm extremely happy to report that the show was an utter and magnificent success. I believe Forum is an incredibly difficult piece of theater for high school actors to pull off convincingly, and the fine performers of Riverview did it to a level of skill that I believe is truly remarkable. I've seen a lot of high school theater in my day, but seldom have I experienced anything to compare with the performance they gave. In particular, our Pseudolus, Hero, and Hysterium were outstanding, as were the rest of the leads and the entire company of 34 brilliant performers.
I think Forum will go down as one of the absolute best shows Riverview has (or will) ever produced. And as a veteran of two shows that won Gene Kelly Awards for Best Musical (Guys and Dolls in 2003 and Oklahoma! in 2005) I believe I have the credentials to objectively place Forum easily in the top three. And I have high hopes for us at this year's Kellys, the nominations for which will be announced on May 7th.
So that's that. The show has come and gone, and I'm now sinking further and further into Post-Production Depression. I already miss my new friends, I mourn for the seniors that are graduating and leaving the program, and I am in the process of planning out my life so that I can live in the Oakmont area and become a permanent part of the musical program at Riverview.
Well folks, there you have it. Now that I have so muc time on my hands, it's very possible that I'll update more. On the other hand, I'll have so little to do now that I doubt I'll have anything interesting to say, so I guess I'll see you when I see you! Until then,
Keep calm and carry on.
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