Yesterday was our cue to cue.  For those who don’t know, a cue to cue is the ultimate tech rehearsal, where all of the lighting and scenic cues are set.  Reid opened rehearsal but quoting the title of a chapter in an acting book he’d read: “The Cue to Cue- It’s Not About You.”  He went on to explain that the whole show is about the actors, but the cue to cue is not; it’s about the lights and the sets and the props.  

This is the heaviest lighting show we’ve done at North.  We rented about $10,000 worth of professional lighting equipment, including two intelligent moving lights and ten color scrolling lights.  Although we were at school till 9:30 last night, the lighting does look absolutely incredible.  Thanks to our technical director Joseph DiGennero, student crew members Brandon Tansey and Josh Becker, and a professional light designer, each scene is brilliantly and colorfully lit.  

There is a lot of down time for the actors during the cue to cue.  When you’re onstage, you just stand there and occasionally run through some motions.  When you’re offstage, you’re offstage for a very long time.  Most of the time was spent eating.  Theatre kids eat a LOT, and that’s an understatement.  The trunk of my car has actually become somewhat of a mini-supermarket so that I can feed myself and my friends.  Although eating is always a fun activity, my favorite part of yesterday was writing a song with a bunch of cast members.  I brought my guitar to rehearsal yesterday (I always bring it to the cue to cue) and at around 8:00 a bunch of us decided to write a song about our experience with the musical.  It was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had at rehearsal and I think it helped us not only survive the rest of the night, but bond as a cast.       

Because rehearsal ran so late last night, everyone was beat today.  Therefore, our run through was severely lacking in the energy department.  It was a little disappointing for me because I really want Berthe to blow everyone away, every time they see the number.  Today definitely wasn’t one of my better performances.  We have two more rehearsals until opening night.  The number is all about energy, so my plan is to get a lot of rest between now and Friday.

If you would like to purchase tickets for Pippin, please call (845) 639-5676!