Finish line in sight, turn back!

Hello readers,

This trip has gone so fast and the end is now in sight, hence the title. Today is Friday that leaves tomorrow before our flight home . The play workshopping is coming along at an astounding rate. In fact we have just finished our third full run through. Tomorrow we get to practice at the theatre, and then we perform. I wish we had another week or two here, not just because I like it so much, but because I want to get this wonderful play I have the honor of being in into a finished and polished state, worthy if the price of a ticket. We saw an amazing piece of theatre night before last in the theatre we'll be doing our staged reading in. It was devised, but on a level way above what we did. It was a life on WWI, about six young soldiers from Bristol who all were in a boys choir when they were young. It was very moving and the impact of the violence and futility of war hit us full in the face without the actors ever enacting a single battle scene. I'm now harboring dreams of coming back to Britain to do theatre after I get some film work under my belt.

Last we attended the youth festival dance gala. It was a mixed basket when it came to talent but full steam ahead on the enthusiasm. A dance troupe of Azerbaijanis where on their game. They danced around the stage in perfect sync, their legs tapping and kicking at high speed, and conviction and pride radiating from them like the sun. A group from Israel did 6, I repeat 6, seperate numbers. They unfortunately weren't great. Not terrible, but their choreography was pedestrian and the dancers weren't trained or rehearsed as much as they could have been. A ballet group from the Czech  republic were elegant beyond belief, and though their dance was long, we were hooked the entire time. All in all it was a fun time.

It's our second to last night, and I'm about to go join everyone down stairs for group hangout and dinner. I'm missing my parents and my creature comforts, but I also don't want to leave. I've worked with people here I wish I could keep working with to an even higher level of theatre. There are people who I would like to think are friends, who I don't know when I will see again. I have to have faith that the universe will cross our paths again. I have loved the buzz of being in a city with a heart and mind completely different from any city I've ever lived in. I will miss the beauitful countryside, and accents. Going home feels like the end of the adventure, when the adventure feels like it's only just begun. But I have to remember that life is an adventure if you make it that way, and I will continue doing what I love, whether in California or Scotland. I return home with renewed purpose in my chosen profession.

I've got to go. I'll let you know how the show goes.

Sincerely,

Drama Queen

Monday morning I wake up tired

Hello lovely readers,

Sorry I've been absent. I haven't had wifi for the past two days so I couldn't reach you.

The performance Saturday went swimmingly. We worked hard and were very proud of what we achieved, but none the less we breathed a sigh of relief when it was all over. Yesterday, Sunday, we had a quite rigorous day considering it was our free day. We did all thouroughly Scottish things. In he morning we took a train to the small fishing town of Stonehaven. We hiked to the ruins of castle Dunnotar on a cliff overlooking the sea. It was a beauitful hike and an awe inspiring castle. Then we had some wonderful ice cream in the village and got back on the train home so we could get ready to go to a ceilidh[kay-lee]. A ceilidh is a Scottish dance, an event not a singular dance. Since the dance hall they usually had was under construction and most of the the youth theatre/dance/music groups showed up, we were packed quite snugly into a large domed tent. The crowding did make it a bit of a Scottish jig mosh pit, but nothing could detract from the pure joy of the dancing. I've never had so much fun at a dance in my life. I shared two of the single partner dances with my chaperones, which was good because they could teach me the steps. I danced with strangers and my group, and at the final dance, strip the willow, I danced with half the people in the tent as one by one partners moved down the rows, alternating linking arms with their partners and then who ever was next in line and swing them around. The band was wonderful and the violin seemed to get right down in to my blood. I twirled, waltzed, spun, jumped, and swung round till I was out of breath and still eager for more. The dances flew by and before I knew it it was almost midnight and we we stumbling out of the tent and back to our bus. At this point in the evening is was loudly lamenting not being Scottish, because I can tell you that any country that has a ceilidh as part of its traditions is a place I want to be.

We woke up this morning, tired and sore from hiking and dancing, and went to our first day of working on the script. We finally got to meet the play write and did several read throughs with her, discussing the changes and additions needed. It's a very interesting topic and what we have so far is very good, so I'm eager to see the new pages she's promised us. However, sitting down at a table reading for several hours after a week of days filled with movement meant we were sluggish and tired, especially after last night. Tomorrow will be more active as we start staging the scenes.

We came back and I spent the evening trying to get clean clothes from the finicky dormitory washer and dryer.

I'll include some photos from Sunday.

Until tomorrow hopefully.

Sincerely,

Drama Queen

The point of the photo is the castle in the distance not the couple

Dunnotar

Chelsea freaking out over how beauitful it is.

It rained intermittently while we were wandering around

Sleep, theatre, eat, repeat

Hey there hi there ho there,

Sorry for the absence. We've been devising a piece for the past three days that goes up tomorrow. I've just finished writing a monologue today that I have to do tomorrow to close the show, so I've been a bit pressed. I'm loving it though. The theatre company we've been working with has really impressed me. I have so much respect for the woman whose been directing us and were doing such interesting work. I'm really pleased with the piece and that I will have some of my own work in it. It's about identity, conformity, and individualism. Fairly trodden ground I know but I think we do some interesting things with it. We've got some dance, some scenes with symbolic balloons, a great scene reminiscent of Orwell's 1984, and a few monologues. I'm excited.

Wednesday was just another day of working in this piece, but in the evening we went to a BBQ at one of the Scottish girls(Sophie) house. Everyone had a good time and the food was good. I'm not much of a party animal but good food is good food.

Thursday was more devising followed by some shopping and then a deliciousness company meal at a pizza restaurant that did gluten free crust on any pizza! I'm finding more gluten free options in Scotland than America. Along with the accent, people, multitude of theatre, and beauitful scenery I'm tempted to break up with America and move in with Scotland.

Today we had to get up an hour early to meet with Domenique and discuss the script and it's rewrites. I'm too tired to go into script details now but it's the story of a small island that has no government representation and is attempting to rebel. I couldn't belive it when Domenique asked me to play Cromarty, one of the mains characters and the island representative. I was beaming inside all morning. Then we set to work, pulling tight on the ropes of our piece and finally pulling the pieces together. This evening we saw a fantastic show by a youth theatre company called Our Scotland. A somewhat musical comedy dedicated to their love of their homeland. We were in stitches for most of it.

Well I was up late last night writing my monologue and tonight memorizing it so I must go. Included are some photos of the park right next to the theatre where we had a picnic.

Sincerely,

Drama Queen

Schappenin(spelling unknown)

Gotta keep this short and sweet as I need to sleep.

Today we lost Oliver briefly but found him. Today our class was a modern dance class which made me enormously happy. Most of my American group have all done musicals together and like to burst into song. I can sing but I mostly only sing at home and I haven't been in their shows. I was glad to have something I felt truly comfortable and good at. Modern dance is my jam. We had three hours of that followed by two hours of devising, which is creating a theatre piece. After we got out of class we and the scots went for fish and chips. To my amazement they had gluten free fish n chips. After sorting out a 16 person bill we walked to the beach. From the beach back to our dorms. There in the games room we met a group of young Scottish actors playing ping pong. They were from all over Scotland but two of them were from Glasgow and after listening to our accent they set about teaching us Glaswegian slang. The title of this post is something they taught us. It means what's happening. They were fantastic but we we're exhausted from walking back and forth across Aberdeen and had to go to bed. 

I'm including some photos. 

Sincerely,

Drama Queen