Crazy For Stage Managing

Audition forms ready to go!

At the beginning of May I had plans for my summer: take lots of trips, spend lazy days in a coffee shop working on lesson plans, do a lot of reading...normal stuff for a teacher.

Then I got a text message.

I was asked if I would be willing to stage manage our summer musical, Crazy For You. I didn't say no, but I tried really hard to have them to say no to me (right down to having to miss a performance...). However, the fates aligned and I have found myself working on a musical.

We have a crazy big directing team for this one: the director, Dell; the musical director, David; the choreographer, Shannon; the assistant choreographer, Kelsey; the stage manager, me; and I requested an assistant stage manager, Riley, because of my conflicts (plus new blood in the theatre is a good thing!).

I read the show about a week before auditions and it seemed as though every other sentence was 'dance break.' I LOVE my community theatre people, but serious dancers most of them are not and when I watched the Papermill Playhouse production I saw that serious dancing this was! However, I knew if anyone could pull off this level of dancing it was Shannon. And if anyone could pull off these complex Gershwin tunes it was David. And if anyone could tie all of this together and involve a bunch of people who are eager to be on stage it was Dell.

I'd be lying if I said I was excited for the first night of auditions. I was nervous and anxious and, frankly, terrified of casting the show.

But the talent of Ardmore once again blew my mind.

By the end of night one we felt in a really good place to cast the show.

Night two was even better.

After a brief meeting we had a cast list! I think it took longer to type the cast list than it did to cast the show!

And once again we were off to the races on a show that will undoubtedly leave its mark on Ardmore, Oklahoma...