When Lightning Strikes

Last night we rehearsed the finale of the show. It's the scene where Georg and Amalia finally tell each other how they feel. The first time we went through it, when we blocked it, it was stiff and uncomfortable. I felt out of sync with Kirk and embarrassed to be working such a personal moment in view of the rest of our cast who, although they are all darling and I'm really enjoying working with them, can be a little juvenile at times. (But who isn't?)

So, Tim had mercy on me and didn't belabor it. We left it alone for a week. But we were bound to come back to it. And we did - last night. I felt "nervous and upset" (that's a line from one of Georg's songs) but eager to get to the point where I really got into it and forgot about how nervous that scene makes me. Or, at least, learn how to harness that nervousness into Amalia's moment and use it to enhance the tension.

So, we went through the scene several times (including the kiss) with the rest of the cast so we could get the finale and bows set and then Tim made everybody leave. I'm really glad he did, too, because even though they didn't mean any harm, the little kissing noises coming from backstage were really distracting. Funny, but distracting...

Once everybody but the four of us (Tim - director, David - musical director, Kirk - Georg and me - Amalia) was gone, the room got really still. Tim started really working his magic then, making subtle changes in the blocking that really increased the tension in between the two characters until it was almost painful.

But still, I was basically moving through the lines and blocking sans emotion. Oh, I was probably convincing enough but that's not the way I operate. I have to give my whole heart or I feel dissatisfied. So, searching my little psyche for a moment of similar tension, similar uncertainty and with similar stakes, I wrapped my arms around a particular memory with J. As his face came into my mind's eye, I felt that familiar pang in my heart and I knew that I'd stumbled onto something.

The next time we went through it, my heart was in my throat and there were tears in my eyes. The atmosphere was absolutely electric. The finale became much more poignant and we were all just swept away. Boy, that sounds very fanciful... *grin*

Anyway, I know they say lightning never strikes the same place twice, but I'm counting on it hitting at least six more times - during performances. If we can do that, we'll bring the house down.

Needless to say, I came home last night totally exhausted. Wrung out is more like it. Exhilarated, yes, but also totally stomped. I gave everything I had last night and it was good.