Opening Night in Raleigh, NC

Tonight we opened, officially, in Raleigh, NC. The day has been a very busy one! We had a 10:15 bus call for an 11:00 company meeting followed by sound check and a full dress rehearsal that began at 1:00. Following this we had a brief notes session and then Cay and I ate dinner before having to be back at the theatre at 6:00 for a 7:00 curtain time.

After the show we went to the opening night party where we celebrated another beginning in the continuing event we know and love as "ANNIE." It was nice to be able to gather together as cast, crew, and musicians and simply enjoy one another. After three very stressful weeks of preparation this was a moment for us to relax just a little and celebrate our success in simply being at this place.

This opening was very different from last year. It was exciting but in a different way. This year it wasn't "new" but it was "welcoming." It felt a little like coming home after being away for 5 months. The neighborhood had changed, familiar faces had moved on and been replaced by new ones, but it was still "home."

I continue to grow as a performer. With every performance I discover something new. Sometimes it is a word that I hadn't noticed before. Sometimes it is a moment, or a breath, or a look. With each new discovery I marvel at this magical thing we call theatre. Unlike movies which are always the same and often dull with time and age, live theatre continues to grow and change and live and breathe. It is affected by everything around it; actors, stagehands, directors, audiences, communities, economics, politics, and so much more. All of life affects our little world of theatre. I believe it is "Annie's" ability to exist in all and any of these worlds that in some small way accounts for its success and longevity. I doubt that "Annie" will ever go "out of style" or be put on the shelf, never to see the light of stage again.

It is this "life" that draws me to this wonderful musical. I don't think I will ever get tired of walking onstage as "Oliver Warbucks." It is simply too much fun and too full of joy to ever become a drag.

So on this opening night I look forward to 14 months of opening nights and the magic that occurs when audiences enter the theatre and the lights go up on "ANNIE!"