My First Time

The sun is out in a blue sky for the first time in weeks, and the sparkling snow is a sight to behold! The ice fishermen are back on the lake behind the house, and the cardinals and finches and sparrows and the lone mourning dove are causing a ruckus, fighting over the feeders outside my window. A beautiful winter day.

Tonight is our final dress rehearsal, and our first time with an audience! We should have a fairly full house of local high school and college students, as well and friends and family of cast and crew. I’m pretty excited, and more than a little nervous. My hands have been clammy all day, my one “tell” of nerves. They’ll dry up once we’re up and running, but my poor Figaro, who will have to kiss them in our first scene! Nothing says “romance” like clammy hands...

Yesterday it really sunk in that I’m doing all of this - this role, this opera - for the first time. That while I’m struggling to remember all my lines and develop my character and her relationships with the others, I will get to do it all again someday. When the curtain comes down Saturday night, it’s not *really* over; all the hard work will pay off again in future productions. (I say all this assuming and hoping that I’ll get hired to sing another Susanna!) So I can relax a little. Sure, I want to get as many things “just right” as possible, but this role will grow with me for years.

In order to get as much right this time around, however, I’ve developed a bit of a routine. In the past few run-through rehearsals, when ever I come offstage for more than two minutes, I go to my dressing room and make notes of the things I missed or messed up. There are certain lines that for some reason will not stick in my head! I fell asleep last night reciting one of them over and over: “Voliamo ed informar d’ogni avventura…” I will not miss that one tonight! I then review those notes, and the ones from previous nights, before going on the next time. I had more time offstage than I thought, plenty of time to recollect myself and refocus, should I get out of the zone.

I’ll try to write more tomorrow night, after a day off spent with friends and doing a bit of rehearsing for the UofM recording. Off to study a bit before dinner and the show!!