Playing the Palace and Candid Shots

[mrdreamjeans]

"Evita" is five days into tech rehearsals here in Waterbury, Connecticut at the Palace Theatre. The Palace has been closed for 17 years, but is set to reopen in November. We've added most of the tech elements to the show having added microphones, costumes and the 14-piece orchestra that will travel with us (which expands to 20 in the major markets) in the past three days.

Tonight, we'll add wigs for a couple of the women and make-up for everyone. It's not perfect; there are still many costume pieces missing such as my Aristocrat "dickie", but the show is really taking shape and Hal Prince has been very active in the process. On Friday and Saturday nights, we are doing a full orchestra dress before invited audiences.

We were surprised to hear that our dress rehearsals will be attended by 500-600 people each night. Evidently the owners of the theatre are using our run-throughs as a test run for the box office, ushers and vendors. Members of the construction crew and artisans who have renovated The Palace have been invited to attend with their families, many of them having never seen a show before, as a thank you for all of their hard work. It's been a long process to restore this historic theatre.


Proscenium of the Palace Theatre

A carpenter stopped me this morning as I entered the theatre and asked me in a gruff voice if I was part of the cast. I replied yes, after ascertaining that he had not said "Cats", but cast. He told me to break a leg. There are a lot of gumbas here in Waterbury, so I hope he meant it in the traditional way:)


Hal and Kathy

I'm asking Tim (gotmoof) to post three pictures for me from our tech week here in Waterbury. One is of the proscenium of The Palace Theatre with our set in place. Another is a candid photo of Kathy being fitted for the famous white gown for the first time; that's Hal Prince observing; the third picture is of me on the Casa Rosada balcony.

One of my fellow cast members Victoria Matlock is creating a website for "Evita" and I'll soon be able to post a link. Victoria is responsible for the picture of Kathy (It was taken on one of those phone cameras) and Joel Briel, another singer/actor (and bear), is responsible for the photos of The Palace and me.


Hey, where's MY white dress?!"

Comments

[gotmoof.livejournal.com]

I still think a picture of you wearing the Eva Dress would be a fun post!

*evil giggle*

[gotmoof.livejournal.com]

*evil grin*

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

Uh... this might be funny in theory, but it would not be funny to the person who you might digitally alter.

[bruinwi.livejournal.com]

I donno....After seeing the dress, I think he'd come off looking a bit "hippy". Beyond that, I have this dreadful image after watching "The Blue Collar Comedy Tour":

"If you're wearing a strapless dress, with a bra that isn't... you might be a redneck." What made it priceless was that Larry the Cable Guy pleaded guilty to this one by raising his hand!

Keep that costume note in mind, Neil.

[handlebear.livejournal.com]

I love nice theaters. They add some dignity to the shows that play in them. Very nice photos. Break a leg!

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

Thanks Cameron! Dignity is good. Though I am focused on the job at hand, I am following every word you've written about your mom and her health crisis. You are a splendid man and I am grateful to know you. Blessings of strength to Scott and you as you work your way through this difficult situation. Hugs...

[handlebear.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

[nlotic.livejournal.com]

Beautiful Theater, great pictures...thanks for sharing. Be extra nice to those trombone players in the 14-piece orchestra!

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

I am always nice to slidemasters:)

Wowza!!

[bearchitect.livejournal.com]

OMG! As a bear and an architect I must sincerely say 'they don't build 'em like that anymore!'... and the restored theatre isn't that bad-looking, either!!

*rim shot* Oh! Please! Thank you, thank you, I'll be here at the El Dorado Room through the weekend...

It's a beautiful restoration, must be a special feeling to know you're breaking it in with this production... looking forward to that website.

btw, you all are allowed to take pics in the house? We were FORBIDEN to do so at the opera, not even on rehearsals, we did, of course, but they were "bootlegged".
They claimed copyright infringement and all other sundry legal crap. They were afraid people may one day up and publish them on the internet through their journals, or some ludicrous stuff like that... hee hee

Re: Wowza!!

[bruinwi.livejournal.com]

The same ban holds true for "Nutcracker". Cast members waited the better part of 5 months to get the videos of the '99 performance, due to the fact that the professional dancers' and pit musicians' lawyers held up the release based on copywrite infringements(including the choreography), inclusion in the video's credits, and performance fees.

Pics during dress rehearsals were STRICTLY forbidden, except by the hired professionals (God forbid someone's flash went off in the midst of someone's grand jatte'; a split-second's distraction in mid-air could easily have disasterous consequences).

Re: Wowza!!

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

None of these photos are of the actual production. They were taken during rehearsal breaks and not during a performance which is forbidden and against Equity rules. You won't be seeing any photos of the show or cast doing the show unless I've purchased them from the official photographer, but there is nothing wrong with the kind of photos taken here:) The set of "Evita" is a big black box, so there are no drops or anything that are not part of The Palace theatre and there are no rules against filming a beautiful restoration.

Re: Wowza!!

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

ps... I have a couple of pictures of the lobby and other features of the restoration if anyone would like to see them. I also have a picture of the exterior of the building.

Re: Wowza!!

[ex-quietdanm235.livejournal.com]

I would be glad to see those additional pictures. These are great, btw! Hope your dress rehearsals go fantastically!

[ciddyguy.livejournal.com]

Neil,

I shoulda posted earlier, but better late than never eh??? :-)

Great shots. Looks like the Muffin man and that bovine are up to no good doesn't it? ;-)

Great shots btw. I saw the 3 installment of the Broadway series on PBS and now know who Hal Prince is. He's pretty good looking I might add. *whispers* (you are pretty darn good lookin' yourself too).

[crunchmd.livejournal.com]

Great shots. Thanks for sharing. How exciting to be in a Hal Prince musical and an historic theater! Way too cool.

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

As a fellow Thespian, I know you understand how exciting it is to work with a legend. I am honored to have the opportunity thanks to Larry Fuller, the choreographer.