Girls Just Want to Have Fun

"Laughter is the closest distance between two people."

So, the other night I got together with three very funny and talented women to do some improv. We started warming up with "Snap, Clap, Stomp," which is closely related to but not to be confused with "Whoosh, Boink, Pow," a favorite of The Hamazons. The exercise forces you to stay in the moment: to watch, to listen, to be flexible and, most of all, to stay good hearted.

It was wonderful to play with women again. The room was filled with creativity and generosity. Adrienne and Kim did some "mirror" work that was astounding and Toni's "sound and motion" work had me laughing out loud. And, considering we were playing together for the first time, some very fine scene work emerged at the end of the evening. I am so pleased that we were able to work around our crazy schedules and come together. And I am really looking forward to playing again in September.

By the way, I never did hear from my old boyfriend and theater playmate, Tedd. But I have been recalling some old theater experiences, especially those that challenged my ability to stay in the moment and improvise.

Many years ago, I did a production of "Same Time, Next Year" at San Luis Obispo Little Theatre, an intimate venue with about 130 seats. The play opens with the two characters, Doris (played by Ellen Burstyn in the film) and George (played by Alan Alda), waking up in bed after a night of... well, you get the picture.

This is the way it was supposed to go: lights fade to black, John (my George) and I enter in the dark and get under the covers, lights come up as we're just "waking up." However, that is not the way things went on opening night. Yes, opening night, when all the critics were in the audience. The lights faded to black, we entered, and the lights came up while I was making my way around the end of the bed. Apparently, the director was supposed to cue the lighting technician after we were in place, but he got distracted with a patron. So, the tech did his best at estimating where we were and missed it by about five seconds. Which left me painfully exposed to the audience. Thank heavens I was wearing a slip.

After a moment of panic, I did the only thing I could think of at the time. I walked around the bed to my side, climbed under the covers, "fell asleep" for a few heartbeats, then "woke up" next to my George. We carried on as if nothing had happened and because we stayed in the moment, the audience stayed with us. We got a standing ovation at the end of the show... and I got a profound apology from the director.

As you can imagine, there are plenty of stories in my theater trunk. Tune in next week for another tale from my life on stage.

All Roads Lead to Where You Are

"No matter where you go, there you are."

So, the other day I got a note from my old friend, Gordon, whom I haven't seen in years, but we continue to keep in touch via email and Facebook. He sent me a link to a review of a play starring our mutual friend Tedd Zzenia (formerly known as Ted Samuels). Ted and I dated during my junior year of high school. He also played Petruchio to my Katherine in a scene from The Taming of the Shrew, which included the best stage slap of my entire theater career.

My relationship with Tedd ended, as did my junior year at Ulysses S. Grant. I then migrated from the San Fernando Valley to the San Bernardino Mountains to live with my father. It was an amazing summer filled with new discoveries about myself and the world. It was also an amazing year for music. The Beatles released Let It Be, broke up, then each of the Fab Four released solo albums. There was After the Gold Rush by Neil Young, Deja Vu by CSN&Y, Ladies of the Canyon by Joni Mitchell, Pearl by the magnificent Janis Joplin, Sweet Baby James by James Taylor, Tea for the Tillerman by Cat Stevens, Tumbleweed Connection by Elton John, to name just a very few.

As the summer rolled on, I knew I had to start thinking about my senior year of high school. So, my father and I drove to Lake Arrowhead to register me at Rim of the World. Yes, that was the name of my high school. As it turned out, I already had enough credits to graduate. But the powers that be required me to take one more semester of PE (who knows why), Civics and Advanced Comp. I needed two more classes to make it an official half day, so I added Cultural Anthropology and, of course, Drama.

Our senior production was the stage adaptation of Roshomon by Fay and Michael Kanin, based on the 1950 film directed by Akira Kurosawa. It sounds ambitious, but it was a surprisingly good production for a high school ensemble. I played the Wigmaker, who steals hair from the dead in order to survive, a role normally played by a man. It suited my counter culture, feminist mindset. And it was my first venture into the theatrical world of aging through body language, vocalization, hair and makeup. After we closed, I was hooked, a bona fide theater hound.

Fast forward almost 40 years... I auditioned for The Brody Theater last Saturday with my dear friend and fellow Hamazon, Sierra. It was an interesting experience, improvising with men after so many years working exclusively with women. A very different kind of energy. We both came to the conclusion that it was not a good fit for us. So, I am looking forward to playing with my gal pals later this month at IFCC.

Back to Tedd. After a little more web research, I discovered that Tedd had done a few productions at The Thorny Theater in Palm Springs, one of my old playgrounds. So, I sent them an email asking them to pass on my contact info to my old boyfriend.

Stay tuned.

Me and The Universe

"Every moment of your life is infinitely creative and the universe is endlessly bountiful. Just put forth a clear enough request, and everything your heart desires must come to you."

I love the way the Universe works. It seems that all one has to do is express one's desire - tell a friend, say a prayer, write it in your journal, create a soul collage, post it in a blog - and the Universe responds. Most of the time.

A week ago I sent off my improv resume to The Brody Theater requesting an audition and within 24 hours I had a response... and an audition. In four days, I will be on stage stretching my improv muscles in group exercises, two-person scenes, and some improv games. And it gets better.

My dear friend Sierra Faith - a very talented actress and co-founder of The Hamazons - will be auditioning with me. She is performing in the Writers/Actors Lab at the Willamette Writers Conference this Friday and decided to check out some local improv troupes while she was in town. And it gets even better.

After I posted my last blog, I got an email from Adrienne Flagg, the beautiful and talented creative director of Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center. (We worked together on IFCC's 25th anniversary bash last fall.) She said, "Fellow Princess! Come play with me!" So, we are getting together with a bunch of fabulously funny women later this month to do some improv.

O, Serendipity, you playful and adventurous spirit!

So, my search for my improv soul mate has taken on a life of its own. I have no idea where it will lead me, but my intention is to embrace what the Universe brings my way.

Stay tuned.