Who is Hattie??
Hattie is the name of my character in
Kiss me Kate. She is the Garderobierin, or dresser, to the star of the show, Kate. To people at the theater who perform onstage, the job of a dresser is very clear. However, for those who don't spend a lot of time onstage in costumes, the job of a dresser might seem a little hazy, so let me explain.
In
Kiss me Kate I wear the same costume throughout the whole show, but my 11 colleagues all have at least three costumes each. That means three completely different outfits, shoes, nylons, accessories, jewelry, etc. So just for
Kiss me Kate, our dresser (my good friend Verena) has 34 different costumes (including mine) to lay out, put on, take off, hang up, etc. during the show. And with some costume changes, the singers don't have a lot of time in between scenes, meaning someone needs to be there to help us change as quickly and efficiently as possible. Then after each performance, all the costumes need to be re-hung and all nylons and sometimes the costumes themselves must be washed, meaning Verena is also responsible for all the cleaning, pressing, and re-hanging.
In addition to
Kiss me Kate, we are currently in production for
La Boheme,
Frau Luna, and
Jesus Christ Superstar, in which we all have at least 2 costumes to wear. More clearly put, that is approximately 72 costumes for those three shows, in addition to the 34 for Kiss me Kate, bringing the grand total to 106 different costumes that our dresser is responsible for. That's no small task!
If 106 costumes and certain time constraints weren't enough to deal with, we in the chorus sometimes physically can't get in or out of our costumes without assistance due to the various snaps, buttons, hooks, or zippers that may be out of our reach. So Verena has to make the rounds of the dressing room every time we have a costume change. Then once we are all changed she keeps watch by the door as we move toward the stage to make sure we haven't forgotten our various accessories like hats and gloves.
It might seem like 106 costumes is an unbelievable amount of clothing to keep track of. But to assist Verena and to ensure that every singer has the right outfit at the right time, she has a very large chart for each show. It is laid out on a grid with each singer's name and then each scene in the show. So, Verena can scan the graph vertically during each scene and see who has a costume change when. And once the show has been in production for a couple weeks, she can also time out the costume changes to be even more prepared.
All in all it is a very amazing feat to keep all of us performers clothed. And just imagine, getting dressed for a show is the last step in the costuming process, which can sometimes last for months at a time from the concept and design process through to the sewing, altering, and fitting process. Although my part is pretty small and I sing and dance more as Hattie in
Kiss me Kate than help the star get dressed and changed, I am very aware that without the dresser, there would be no star.
Labels: Theater Life
Happy Thanksgiving!
Yes, I know I'm a day late. But today (Friday) was the closest day to Thanksgiving that I could cook for the choir ladies. I just got home from our performance of La Boheme, which is a good "eating show," meaning we have enough time between scenes onstage that we can have a real feast in our dressing room without being bothered by silly things like having to go out onstage a lot. :)
When I was growing up and would do something naughty, my Mother would usually say something along the lines of "When you are older I hope you have ten children that act just like you!" In hindsight I think a better punishment would have been to make me prepare Thanksgiving dinner for 14 people. Alone. With no dishwasher. Oy. After two days of shopping, washing, chopping, slicing, washing, peeling, dicing, cooking, and washing, I'm pretty tired. But the end result was SO tasty...
The first course was smoked salmon that my parents brought from Washington. This was served on fancy melba toast squares.
Then came the real carbohydrate fest. I made two kinds of cranberry-apple stuffing (one was vegetarian: no turkey broth) using freshly baked sunflower seed bread from one of the local bakeries and dried cranberries that I boiled back to their plump, delicious glory. I also made roasted sweet potatoes cooked in a sauce of maple syrup, orange juice, butter, cinnamon and tarragon. Oh my, that was lovely. And to be very American, I baked some traditional corn muffins (with lots of corn kernels inside--yummy!) to round out my carbohydrate main course.
For dessert the only real option (well, besides pumpkin pie) was one of my lattice-work apple pies. I took a picture of it last night just after I took it out of the oven. Thank you Betty Crocker, for making such an easy, delicious recipe!
The real stress factor in preparing this meal for my colleagues wasn't really the recipes, the shopping, or even the washing up. It was important for me to have more than enough food, because from what I've seen in our dressing room, quantity is just as important as quality. Each recipe I made said it would serve 16-18, which was pretty much my ballpark for our choir ladies. ;) And thank goodness, there were actually leftovers, which we will be snacking on tomorrow during our rehearsal and performance.
The other stressful aspect of a dinner like this is that you have to transport all of it somewhere else, and then let it sit for about 30 minutes before everyone's dressed, make-up, and ready to eat. So timing and transportation were really big issues for me. I made the apple pie the day before, and the corn muffins in the early afternoon. But the stuffing and sweet-potatoes I had to prep beforehand and then bake at the right time so that everything would be done on time, but still be warm when we wanted to finally eat. It all worked out, though, and everyone got to enjoy hot, delicious American food.
It surprised me that these dishes that I consider so common were totally new to everyone in the choir. All the ladies were stuffing virgins, which I find totally amazing. And the idea of corn muffins and sweet potatoes was such a novelty to all of them, that it no longer shocked me at how difficult it was to find ingredients like sweet potatoes, corn meal, and cranberries. Anyway, the dinner was great, everyone is full and happy, and I'm taking the rest of the night off. Oh, what's that? I think my bathtub is calling my name...
La Boheme in Bayreuth
Yesterday we took our production of La Boheme to the pretty city of Bayreuth. Pretty cold, that is. Apparently this region of Germany is also called "Little Siberia" because of the low temperatures compared to cities around with a slightly lower alititude. After arriving in Bayreuth, we dropped off our stuff and headed into downtown to find some dinner before the show started. Since it was already dark and we didn't have a lot of time, I didn't get to see a lot, but I did see enough nice architecture and good shopping that a return trip is definitely now on my to-do list.
I also realized that I haven't taken pictures of any of my costumes this season. How dreadful of me! This is kind of a "before" picture as I put my makeup on for the choir's big entrance in the second act.
I think the combination of hair, makeup and costume is pretty frightening, but the costume lady was also kind of scary and she wanted me to look like a punker chick. The other people in the chorus are dressed in an array of styles, from evening wear to Christmas-themed costumes. Since La Boheme is set at Christmastime, I think our director wanted to show that all sorts of people like to go out on Christmas Eve. And I guess nothing fills an audience's heart more than seeing punkers partying with Santa look-alikes. In any case, the chorus sings behind a pearly beaded curtain most of the time, so I think a lot of this effect is lost, but I still think I make one unforgettable walking setpiece.
The backstage and side stage of a theater is really cool. There are tons of ropes, ties, brackets, clamps, cords, and all sorts of other cool stuff that our technicians need to for the different sets, props, furniture, etc. This is a picture of the side stage in Bayreuth. All those lines you see are for the various flies (flys?). Each rope is connected to a corresponding pocket of ceiling where the technicians can store stage and set pieces vertically. If you stare up into the fly area from stage, it's usually a crazy mix of sets in lots of shapes, textures and colors.
This is my second costume for La Boheme. In the third act the women come out dressed as Turkish housewives who are crossing the train tracks and being controlled by some officers. Since we're onstage for approximately 12 seconds in this act, a photo is probably necessary to even prove that I was onstage at all. No, I take that back. I actually carry a bicycle across the tracks after the lead officer lets us pass, which makes me stand out a little. :)
So tomorrow is Thanksgiving day and I have to work. Not only that, my chorister coworkers have the day off, meaning I won't be celebrating a traditional Thanksgiving like my American friends and family. However, I did volunteer to cook a Thanksgiving-esque dinner for the choir ladies for Friday night's performance of La Boheme. After offering I immediately began to freak out, especially after realizing that I have never prepared a holiday meal before, and definitely not one for 13 women, 4 of whom are vegetarian. So, since German ovens are tiny compared to the US and large, frozen birdies are non-existent at the grocery stores, I scrapped the idea of turkey and decided to plan a menu around my favorite Thanksgiving carbohydrates. My plan is to lay out smoked salmon (thanks Mom and Dad!!) with some crackers and maybe some kind of spread as the appetizer. Then as the main dish I'm going to serve some hearty stuffing and a sweet potato dish. Then for dessert I will make a lattice-work apple pie. Hopefully everything will turn out okay, but I'm about to download all my needed recipes from BettyCrocker.com, so I'm not too worried. Betty's never let me down before. :)
Labels: Costumes, Theater Life
Quit your bitching...and your boasting.
One thing I have learned as a newcomer to the theater is, for your own safety and sanity, you should try and keep your mouth shut as much as possible when it is not being used for singing. (As an unrelated side note, I have actually learned how to say "shut your mouth!" several different ways in German since moving to Coburg.) As a general rule, any kind of untimely or excessive bitching or boasting will not be taken kindly by coworkers, and result in either a direct confrontation by said coworker, or gossip about you and your attitude behind your back. For instance, this morning I overheard two singers backstage complaining about a new tenor at the theater who has been trying to play director (because he apparently already knows everything since arriving here two months ago) and tell other singers what to do during this production, which is a big no-no.
I like to consider myself a good co-worker and try not to complain too much (or brag too much) about anything. But tonight I became frustrated after I arrived unknowingly an hour early to my dance rehearsal. As I have written in a previous blog, our rehearsal schedule for the day is posted at 2:00 p.m. on the previous day, which is what I check very diligently. But apparently this morning the assistant director made an annoucement when I wasn't onstage and moved my evening dance rehearsal to an hour later, but didn't change the daily schedule online or at the theater. So, after several days of early morning and late night rehearsals where I have been called only to be told to sit and wait, sometimes for over an hour at a time, I was ticked after finding out I was an hour too early. Argh.
After leaving the theater and going for a long walk before my "new" rehearsal time, I came back and met a choir colleage in the dressing room before we had to get to the ballet studio. I explained to her my frustration of the endless waiting and shifting rehearsals I have had to deal with all week. She was very patient with me and listened to my rant. And then she gently put me in my place by telling me stories of stacked rehearsals for several different productions at once and the sometimes overwhelming schedule that she has faced over the twelve years she has worked at this theater. And she assured me that the waiting and confusion I've experienced this week is extremely mild compared to what I could be experiencing as a soloist here. In fact, she said, it's a luxury to sit around and wait and still be paid, in comparison to rehearsing four operas at once and singing both as a soloist and in the choir in the same production.
So after our conversation, I made myself lighten up and focus on the fact that I get paid to dance and sing every day. And sometimes also sit around and read magazines or drink tea. And most importantly, I've learned that it's best to keep my mouth shut and try not to complain about silly things like rehearsal times being changed. But I have to admit that at times like these when I just long for better communication and more organiztion, I hear my mother's voice in my head saying, "Well, those are musicians for you, Teresa. You never have been just like them, you know."
Labels: Theater Life
I am a Queen!!!
I am like royalty to my followers. They must think I'm a queen or something, the way they want to be near me all the time, hovering, bobbing and carrying on anytime I'm in the room. Sometimes I think they're like the paparazzi, but a little more intrusive. And I even have enough power as their Queen to strike any one of my followers dead with an easy clap of my hands.
No no, I have not turned into a crazed diva with my new found recognition as a soloist at the theater. I have soil gnats. Lots of them. Little, annoying, disgusting buggies that love every part of me, but especially my nose, mouth and ears. Bleah.
They somehow got into my houseplants and have decided I am their leader. According to the numerous websites I've seen for getting rid of them, soil gnats are supposed to like red wine and apple cider vinegar and fly right into conspicuously-placed bowls and drown. But not my little subjects. They actually don't go near red wine or vinegar.
Another website said I should see where most of the gnats are coming from by placing a piece of raw potato on the soil of each of my houseplants. After two days there should be scads of gnats on the potatoes, because they apparently luuuuuuv potatoes. Uh huh. My brood didn't touch the potatoes.
So the remedies I have not yet tried for ridding my apartment of these loyal subjects are sprinkling cinnamon on the soil, and also covering the soil with dry sand to keep the baby gnats from getting out and the adult gnats from laying eggs. My friend Verena said we should go get some sand from the city playground and use that, but I think I might end up with more bugs if I use that stuff. And if that doesn't work, a spray bottle with diluted lemon dish soap will also supposedly repel the little demons. But at this point I'm skeptical.
And there you have it. The life of a professional opera singer is at times really as exciting as that.
Labels: This and That
Umbrella or Sunglasses?
The weather in Coburg has gone a bit wacky. In the last few days it has been rainy, sunny, windy, calm, snowy, or a combination of all of the above. Right now the sun is streaming through my living room windows, although when I was outside with my parents a few hours ago, it was pouring down rain and we got soaking wet. I guess this is pretty typical for Coburg, though. Interesting.
My parents have been in Germany for almost two weeks and are departing tomorrow for Frankfurt, where they will enjoy a night at a swanky hotel before flying back to Seattle early Tuesday morning. They have seen a lot of the area around Coburg and we even were able to sneak away to Salzburg for two days. Mom and Dad don't speak a lot of German, but they have had wonderful success at the farmer's market downtown. They are able to communicate very well with hand signals and a mixture of German and English. Mom even was able to buy a packet of dried tarragon for some beef stew, even though the sales lady didn't speak any English and Mom couldn't translate "tarragon" into German. Not to shabby, huh??
In the midst of being part-time tourguide and translator, I've been rehearsing for
Kiss me Kate, which has its premiere on December 1st. The staging is almost complete and starting next week we will put the show on its feet with run-throughs and our first rehearsals on the main stage. We will also begin rehearsing with the orchestra, meaning all the soloists will be hooked up to microphones as well. I already have to wear a microphone in
Jesus Christ Superstar, so I'm pretty used to having several feet of cable taped to my face and neck. What I'm not necessarily used to is being a soloist with a microphone, meaning that I'll get to have a bit of a rock star moment during my solo number, complete with hearing my voice amplified through big monitors. It's a lot of fun, but also kind of scary! :)
Labels: This and That
