It really is theatre!

Today is the first day of rehearsal for the first show of the season.   My first show at the Arden.  That is exciting.  So in between my roofing repair, toilet paper ordering (why can I NEVER get away from that) and million piece mailing....there is actually theatre. Now that is exciting.

The show is Next to Normal, a show that was originally done in Washington and then moved to Broadway.   It has also won a Pulitzer.  Its a show that I got to see in Miami and in the midst of some real dreck at a theatre to remain nameless, it was quite good.  So I am excited.  Hey, Tara -- you should come see this one and we can compare!

We got to meet the cast and designers and see a design presentation from the set/video designer.  The show will have a large video component.  The show is about a woman who is bi polar and the video looks like it will be a very cool way to give the set -- and show -- a real sense of how she's feeling at different times. In her head, if you will.  I'm psyched!  The model looked really cool.  Yeah for real theatre-like activities!!!

Back to the real world of general management.  I'm off to the ever-present Actor House to meet someone who will haul out all the crap from our attic so we can repair the roof.  Life is glamorous, isn't it.  But at least there's theatre!

Happy birthday, Gene Kelly!

Today is Gene Kelly's birthday.  It's his fault I was almost late for work today. I was ready to zip into the Dunkin Donuts or a quick cup of coffee and there was a story on NPR about Kelly's birthday.  I loved Gene Kelly and I was pulled in from the first bars of the story.  Typical NPR they didn't start with the easy stuff but rather his last film, Les Girls with Mitzi Gaynor.  Here's how Susan Stamberg described the dance -- and what got me sitting my car for while when I should have been heading to work. 

"About three minutes into the dance, Gaynor is sitting at a bar, and Kelly, after scooting across the floor on one knee — that's after skidding across a table on his bottom — leaps to the top of the bar on one foot, slides down the bar on his right side, then grounds himself again for the rest of the duet."  

You gotta love someone who makes an entrance.

I loved those movies.  Singin' in the Rain, An American in Paris. Can you even imagine a movie like them today?  I can dream.

Happy birthday, Gene. You made a difference in the world.  You certainly made us all smile.

The thing about starting over

The thing about starting over, is, well, starting over.  Everything is new.  There are the big things.  New city, new job.  At least this time around there is a level of familiarity for me.  While I haven't lived here for quite some time, I have at least visited.  And there is that growing up here thing.  Its amazing how much street cred that gives me when I tell folks that I moved back, "I grew up here, you know."  I guess after living in transient cities like Washington, DC and Miami, I'm just not used a community with deep roots.  Then there is the new job. Big learning curve but again, a certain familiarity with a theatre unlike diving headfirst into the medical "pool."

But it's the little things.  Doctors, hair dressers, dentists, pharmacies, favorite supermarkets, neighborhood hangouts, how to get places.  These are the things that make starting over both daunting and exciting.

Finding new doctors is just a pain, no pun intended.  Its a pain in the butt and a process I would just assume be done with already.  But I'm old and I'm gently falling apart and I need a couple of different doctors.  Maybe I will use some combination of a poll of folks at work and Yelp reviews to picky my next lucky medical professionals.  Suggestions?

Lucky for me I had found a new hairdresser in Miami about six months before I left, who "updated" my look.   That was her polite way of saying,  "Girl! You are an hot outdated mess!"  The folks here just need to follow her lead.  I found someone around the block from the theatre -- which means close to my new apartment -- and had good reviews on Yelp.  I went with it.  She was fine...  fine enough to be one less starting over thing for a little while.

When I was in Florida I really missed Trader Joe's.  But I'm sorry TJ, I've been cheating on you.  Ever since I was introduced to my first Wegman's, I feel like I have a new love.  It doesn't hurt that there's a Wegman's very close to my sister's house.  This too will change when I move into the city.

I even found a new book club. Now this is going to be a tough one.  I loved my book club in Miami.  That is where I found my friends.  These new folks were nice enough and the conversation was good.  We met in a bar so my Miami friends would have approved  I will give it a fair try. Those are some darn big shoes to fill but I promise to be open and fair.  Okay, at least open.

Starting over is definitely an adventure.  A little less scary the second time around -- especially with family around to lean on. I'll call it "graduated adventure."  Its a concept.  Sometimes you need to throw your whole life in a blender, and sometimes you don't.

Handy Hannah - never expected that, did you?

So as I round out week four, things are finally, finally starting to settle in a little bit.  I am starting to like my job more and more.  In the beginning it was perfect on paper but only okay in person. I haven’t been this new in a very long time.  The clinic was different because I was creating it… not to mention I was really the only employee for a while. 

Here I am seriously new kid.  I spent the first week doing so much listening I could have fallen asleep four different times. Not boring, just too much passive listening.   Then I found out that they hired some guy for this job back in March and he really did fall asleep in a meeting -- a meeting he was running.  He barely lasted four weeks before they let him go.  Today marked the end of my fourth week so we kind of celebrated!  It’s getting better,  I have more to actually do rather than to just learn.  I will be learning for a while….but I can do some things too.  All of you would laugh at some of the things I am doing and will have to do.  I have never been particularly handy (understatement) now I am responsible for not one but two buildings and I will soon be the construction “monitor” for the new building recently purchased.  We begin the construction this fall.   We have a grant from the state so I will be working with them to monitor our compliance with the contract. 

Who knew!!!!  GM is responsible for everything.  No park service here to fix things like at Ford’s.  One of my peeps does “building check” every day and it includes everything from TP and towels in the bathrooms to light bulbs throughout the whole theatre and buildings.  Nicks on floors, gouges on walls, cleaning carpets, HVAC settings (there are only three or four different systems) – all this is now my domain.  The other day we reviewed the fire panel.   Good times.   

We also own a six bedroom old historic house for the actors and designers to stay in.   My first project this summer is to replace the roof – before the actors arrive at the end of August.  Whaaaat?  It’s already August 10!   Folks have told me that people have been bitching about this roof for three years.  No money to do it… but now there’s no choice so boom!  Hurry up and make a miracle.  Okay, fine.  Bring it.  Let’s see what I can do.  You should see me with these Philly guys.  I’m not in “Kansas” any more.  DC or Miami.  This is the real deal.  I am going to have to work on my Philly accent.  It’s special. 

Actors House is also part of my exercise plan.  For every roofer who came to give us an estimate, I had to tromp up to the 4^th floor and then up into the scary attic again.  Did I mention that there is no central air in this house?  It is so embarrassing to not only be out of breath but to literally be dripping sweat.  Dripping, I tell you.

This isn’t the sit-in-your-office GM job of other theatres I know.  This is something wild and woolly.  I keep joking that I should buy myself a tool belt. Okay, that might be a step too far, but you get the gist of it!

The office boasts two babies under two years old – my office mate’s little one is only four months.  There is often a dog or two running around as well.  There was rumor of an office cat before I go there – to keep the mice in check – but that was squelched, thank god.  I can totally see how kitty litter maintenance could be classified as general management.  This job is already going to push the limits of “other duties as assigned,” but kitty litter maintenance is just a step too far.

 We are going to begin construction on the new building this fall and that will surely be more than a handful – my job is to monitor construction progress and compliance.  Compliance is a word I hear often.  I am responsible… or will be, for compliance for all of our contracts.  That’s kind of cool.  For the new building, however, it’s mammoth!  We have a grant from the state of Pennsylvania and if we don’t comply with every single detail, we don’t get paid.  Hence, my new found interest in the Steel Products Protection Act.  But knowing that I am the second line of defense on marketing, development and other contracts is interesting. While the learning curve has been steep, the other side has been surprisingly good.  It has been a while since I have had to draw on some of my knowledge and experience from more than four years ago.   And even then, I had been at Ford’s so long I was tentative about the quality of my skills. It is a good feeling to know that not only is that knowledge still there, but it is good quality information.  I was good at what I did then and it is useful to me again now.  Why is that surprising?  No clue, but it’s a great feeling to reach in for something and find it really is there and actually helpful!  

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