Putting It All Together

The day started like any other.

We went to lunch at a fine Greek restaurant. The waitress with a New York accent said, “Take a few minutes to decide while I grab your pita.” I fell on the floor laughing. Naomi kicked me in the head.

After lunch, back to work. We’ve got about 9 weeks until Showtime. Our friend Lori has been a big help in getting us introduced to some press people. There are some good possibilities for stories and reviews. That’s exactly what we need.

Besides rehearsing several days a week, I’m designing the web site, CD packaging, flyers, posters, programs (we’re calling our programs “Paybills instead of “Playbills” — clever, hugh!) and scenery. Naomi is proofing and editing all the copy. The CD is being mastered as we speak. As soon as I get it back, we’ll get it out to a manufacturer for replication. When the CDs come in, some get sent to CD Baby (our online distributor). That’s where people get the CDs from when they order online. Also, CD Baby gets it onto digital distribution sites like iTunes.

For the scenery, I’m keeping it simple. One 6 by 9 foot backdrop with the show’s logo and all the logos from the various companies I’ve done music for. We found a printer near the theater that will take the art work that I created on the computer—love that Mac. Apple featured me in a story on their website—then the printer will blow it up and print it on canvas.

Meanwhile, Naomi and Stu are gathering up info on all the local newspapers for stories and listings. There’s a timetable for getting these things to the papers. That’s Naomi’s job. She’s spent the last couple of weeks putting together a program for us to follow.

I’ve pretty much got the show memorized. Easy enough to perform in my studio with no one watching. It’s always another thing when there are distractions like lights in your eyes and humans in the audience. We’ll have one day to load in and set up. That means lights have to be put up, seats, wall covering, stage, lobby items (ticket booth, concession) all have to be set up. And I’ll have time for one rehearsal with the lighting technician.

That’s it. The next day — it’s Showtime!

BTW, I know I said in the first post that this show needs to be able to be set up in about an hour or two. It's amazing how things grow. As we progress, more ideas keep popping up to make the show better. And it all adds to rehearsal and set up time.

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