Fiddlers on the Roof (December 9, 2006)

The preparations on the morning of the dinner were the same as always: put up signs, make copies, set up the live video feed to the cast room so that the cast can actually know what's going on inside the gym, and move props such as the stubborn sewing machine to their proper places. The night before we had stayed at the school until 3:00 AM doing other things like this.

I spent an inordinate amount of time being made up by my friends Caroline and Jhyrve--they took considerable delight in using my face as their palette, and the result was spectacular, unlike some of the test runs. The point was to actually make me look older than my daughter, who in real life is a year or two older than me.

The first show was high pressure for me, what with all the relatives attending it. Fortunately, the major mistakes in that one were not mine, though I did flub the third verse of "Do You Love Me?" Even so, Lucas, my stage husband, and I extracted a great response from the audience.

There were some glaring problems in that show. Our poor accompanist played the introduction to "Sunrise, Sunset" for about four minutes while we waited for the bride to show up. In a scene involving the sewing machine, two characters didn't show up at all, which was exciting. The grand one to take all, however, was the very last scene. We hadn't practiced it, and we had everything out of order. At one point, I found myself alone on the stage, facing the audience. For about 20 seconds I continued to pretend to pack, hoping someone would show up, then I started to make up lines.

Second show was way better. After a meal and a review of how we could fix things, we came into it better equipped to face the audience, which was a record number of people. There was a little mishap during the dream sequence in which Frumah-Sarah crashed into a table and landed in a woman's lap, but no one was hurt, and we replayed the scene. For that last scene, a major character didn't show up and we were still grossly out of sequence, but it still turned out a lot better than the first. When all is said and done, it's the fiddler that saves that scene.

When Lucas and I exited the gym at the end of the show, we cheered with the rest of the cast. It was over! There was much celebration as we cleaned up. Months of hard work, preparation, negotiating, and insanity were finally over. In a way, I was also sad. It was my last music dinner as a member of the cast. It's been a good run--Ragtime, Les Miserables, Beauty and the Beast, and Fiddler on the Roof. I've enjoyed every single one, and I'm grateful for everyone who's worked hard to make them possible and everyone who's traveled long distances to see them.

That was the Dinner. Last night was the school Christmas program, which also went very well. I look forward to seeing many of you over this holiday season--may it be cheery, bright, and full of joy!