Pity the Jeremy

I haven't taken the time to blog for a while because I've been crazy busy (quel surprise). In case you're wondering why I've been so busy, of even if you're not, here you go:

School started. I hate it. I have the worst case of senioritis known to man. I'm down to only taking classes that I HAVE to take, which include two education classes (both deathly boring), and three theatre classes (all three of which I love so far) in order to keep my scholarship. As much as I love my theatre classes this semester, which are fun classes that aren't required for my major, I just want to be done with school. 10 years ago this very minute, I was a senior in high school. That's too bloody long to go without graduating college.

Going into fall semester, I was worried that I was going to get stuck doing the French farce. I had already agreed to do music for Nosferatu for my production hours, but didn't have anything lined up for my scholarship. Since I can read French and speak it somewhat, I figured that's what I'd be doing. The first day of school, however, I found out that the farce had been cancelled, and Chess had been moved up. I freaked out. I had wanted to be involved with Chess, but knew I couldn't because it was scheduled for April, when I'm supposed to be student teaching. Right away, I asked Dave Tinney if he was planning to MD himself or if he needed one. He seemed genuinely excited and asked if I was interested. I told him I was, and we both planned to talk to the department chair, Terry. By the time I got in to see Terry, I think Dave had already talked to him, and he said that it was a great way for me to get my scholarship hours. Woot! I was dying to do Chess, and I've been dying to actually work with Dave.

The fall auditions were held a couple weeks ago, and Dave asked me to sit in on them. I was shocked. However, the one person on the faculty that I expected to give me crap for being there did. He said he was joking, but I'm not sure he was...

Anyway, after auditions, Dave wouldn't even post a callback list without asking my opinions first. After callbacks last Monday, he went through every single person with me. It was awesome. I'm used to being respected like that at every other theatre I work for, but this is the first time at school that I've felt like an important member of a production team and not just a lowly student. We haven't had a single rehearsal yet, and I already love working with Dave.

We got the show cast, and there's already crap going around because we cast a BYU student in a lead role. Normally, I would be pissed, too, but since I sat through all the auditions, I know for a fact that no guy in our department could have sung the part. In auditions, I tested them all on "Anthem" which goes up to a G. Most of the guys struggled with the high range. For the part we cast a BYU guy, he sings up to a D above that. I can see why sometimes professors get a bad rap for casting decisions. No matter what you do, people will find a reason to be unhappy. (Including myself. *cough, Ah, Wilderness, cough*)

We don't start rehearsals for weeks, so after we got Chess cast, I started going back to Seussical rehearsals. Seussical has been a really rough show for me to do because of events that went down last time. I actually tried to get out of the show before it started because the past got dug up and I knew it would be too hard to handle. I said I would stay with the show if they could not find another MD, and after about 5 turned them down, I was back on the project. I'm actually glad I stayed with it. I've been a typical MD on this show: showed up at the beginning, taught all of the music, disappeared for a while, and then went back to polish. (Some MDs around here don't even go back after they teach it, and it makes me frustrated to no end.) The cast is much better than I feared they would be after me leaving them for a month, and it's turning out to be a really good show. I'm also dealing with rehearsals better than I thought I would, which I'm going to credit to the fact that I prayed my guts out about it when the whole process started.

That's the bulk of what's been going on. The rest of my time has been spent doing homework, teaching piano, two whole afternoons of youth theatre every week, staying up late enjoying my new HD-DVR (Psych and Mad Men in HD = Happy Jeremy), watching Psych DVDs until I fall asleep every night, and trying to have some kind of social life (translation, I've seen Teri and Kimber once, Emily and Heidi once, Matt once....I think that's about it). Oh, and of course Church stuff.

So that's it. If you don't hear from me until April, don't panic. Know that I probably love you, like you greatly, or at least tolerate you, and I'll call you as soon as I graduate.

And right now, I have to go memorize a scene that I'm performing in class tomorrow with the mask that I made this afternoon.

TTFN!

PS - The title of this blog is a reference to something, and if you get it, you rock.