Oh, and Lilah's home!

And I found the thermo-vision button on my Photobooth.  hee hee

Ugh.

One of my teachers wants me to journal for his Acting class and I can't make myself do it.  Like, we're talking I have a Dramaturgy project about kabuki theatre and samurais pretty near done a week ahead of schedule, but I can't make myself journal about touchy-feely acting exercises?

What's that about?  Any ideas?  George?

it begins again...

I came back to Mankato today.  Surprisingly, it really bummed me out.  I'm not really sure why.  Maybe I've forgotten what the place feels like with everyone here after my enchanting little stay this summer.  Maybe I wasn't really ready to leave Duluth or Ben this week.  Maybe I just need my mom to drop off my cat so it can feel like home again.  Whatever it is, to combat the blues, here are some of my favorite moments this summer.  They include perfect days on the shores of Lake Superior, Kate & Joey at our favorite Thai place, Ben getting eaten by a shark the day we visited the zoo, hanging with Cory after he played with John Lee Hooker Jr. at BluesFest (for 8000 people!)

and Lex's pirate-themed 4th birthday party.  There are more great moments and maybe I'll have to add another post to get them all, but in the meantime... 

it's almost ovah!

I am a week away from summer being done.  

And I'm really okay with that.

Pics of my adventures post-Music Man will be delivered as soon...

It was a nice day today.

Today I treated Minneapolis like a newcomer.  Well, first, I had breakfast and coffee with Ben at our regular place (where they see us walk in and begin making our order without asking...that's always nice and comforting, huh?).  But after that!  Ben had a concert with friends to attend and I found myself on my own with nothing to do.  I called many old friends, even a cousin, to find someone to hang out with, or dinner or a movie or something.  When none of this worked out, I got sad and thought how different this summer was than last, when the social group was ever-present.  Then the Revolution inside of me said, "Dammit Nikki!  Get your groove back!  You don't need people to have a good time!  You're an artist!"  And then I said, Thank you, Revolution, fuck yes.

First I went to the Playwrights Center to see a reading of a new play imported from Japan.  First of all, Minneapolis is the playwriting center of the country and I do theatre.  How silly is it that I have never been there?!  Even sillier, it was in an area of the city that I had never been in.  I have no excuse for not having been to a section of this city.  I used to get up every Saturday in Boston and explore a new area of the city.  It occurred to me today, while I was parking in this foreign neighborhood, that I had not given my own dear city the same treatment.  Shame on me.  So this reading (a staged reading is another thing that I have never attended...and I call myself a director) had amazing actors (all Equity), stunning direction (amazing resume from this guy) and I ended up sitting next to the playwright and talking with him.  Another really exciting thing is that this is the second weekend of readings and there are three readings a day of five different plays...and all of the shows are sold out.  Beautiful!  It made me tear up a little.  

After the play, I noticed this grocery store called Seward Community Cooperative.  I stopped in and discovered this place is the pre-Whole Foods.  All of the food is home grown and where it was grown is listed below the price.  The place sells MN goods for the most part and it's just lovely.  Also...it was virtually silent in there.  Have you ever been in a silent grocery store?  I have no conclusion to come to from its silence, but it made me very aware of how different this shopping experience was than others.  

Next, I had been driving by this huge bookstore for months on Washington called The Open Book and had always wondered about it. Today I finally went in.  Not only is it an eclectic collection of literature, there's a book gallery, showcasing old books, the makings of books, etc.  It was really cool...and again, silent.  The second instance of dead silence in a public place made me think that silence was more for my benefit than an absence of action in these establishments.  Time to appreciate it, perhaps?

From there, I went to dance show called A Woman's Choice, choreographed by former JAZZDANCE dancers, one of whom is a teacher of mine form Zenon.  Again I was in an area I had never been to before, despite living about five minutes away from it for the last year at Ben's.  Upon entering I ran into an old college friend who I hadn't seen in five years.  Apparently I hadn't gone to the show by myself afterall.  We caught up and it was great fun.  The show put a fire into about getting back to the studio something fierce.  It also made me appreciate the technical staff and support that I have been so spoiled with for most of my theater "career".  I shall never under-value a sound technician again!  Nor will I ever think I'm a hack choreographer again.  I also realized that, for a girl whose first and longest love has been dance, I sure don't go to a lot of dance shows.  But you know what?  The whole time watching, I just kept wishing there were more plots in the pieces, more facial connection to the movement, and more abandonment of spirit--in short, I wanted more theatre in the show.  So I am in the right field afterall.  Not that I've ever really doubted that.

And now I'm at home waiting for Ben to get home, excited that I just had my day and he just had his...and really curious about what other treasures there are in this city that I've overlooked by habit.  Hoping for new adventures...

My summer so far...

Reunions with Lex, the boys, and old friends (who haven't changed at all) Nickie and Laura are other highlights of the summer so far.  I don't have the pics Jed took of our Superior time, but hopefully it's coming...

summer musings...

I am in Mankato right now for another few days.  These past days here have been just lovely.  Surprising, huh?  I have labeled this place as Purgatory for the last year, but maybe it's not the place but the school time rigors that create that feeling.  Or maybe I have no business coining such a tormenting name to this time of my life.  A few realizations:

1.  When I am here, I have the buzz within to accomplish everything I can.  I love how that feels.

2.  My apartment is a total sanctuary of peace and calm.  I don't need to listen to music, watch movies, talk on the phone, or produce any other kinds of noise to co-habitate with.  Whatever is going on in my head is enough.  It isn't exactly clarity, but it definitely isn't noise.  

3.  I have really missed my cat.  Lilah is an angel and definitely the calm, safe place I go to when needed.

4.  The process of The Music Man has been amazingly easy and fun.  The Hustolian Method that I have been having such issues with all year, is actually a man during the summer.  He chills out when he works with kids, when he isn't teaching a million classes, or pushing his agenda and pressure on us.  He has been completely supportive and openly positive about my work.  It's bizarre.  I really like him right now...and I never thought I'd feel that way. 

5.  I have gotten together with a few people around here for coffee, and we have a hard time talking as people and not mutual beings frustrated with the system.  I am currently in the midst of giving up gossip and am hoping to bring them with me.

6.  I really dig this life of just doing theater.  To a lot of people the schedule I'm keeping sounds intense and stressful, but it has honestly been rejuvenating.  I've done four shows in 6 weeks and have 3 more to go with a possible side job of creative proportions added in there as well.  I can't think of a better way to rest.  Is that nuts?

Much love...

Summer arrives!

Ben and I are going mini-golfing right now!  Because it is so amazing outside and we both have a day off and I think maybe everything is going to be great!

Happy summer all!

Back by the lake...

I am back in Duluth and back to work at last! I have really missed working. I guess I am my dad's daughter afterall. I have 20 5-6 year olds every morning for three hours to teach a play to in five days and perform for their parents on the fifth day. Then every afternoon I have 35 7-12 year olds for three hours to teach a musical to with my good friend Little Kate. We get three weeks to do this so it's not as overwhelming. 5 year olds however... wow. They are so much harder than teaching college kids, I cannot even tell you. Way more rewarding than teaching general ed college kids too, but damn, am I exhausted! No stamina whatsoever in comparison to those little monkeys. I thought that a 8 hour work day would be vacation compared to what I had been doing all year, but honestly, I really think that working with 55 kids every day is way harder than earning a Master of Fine Arts.

And that, my friends, is what we call perspective.

A Lex quote...

Upon entering his home when I had not seen him in awhile:

LEX: Nikki Nikki Nikki! (hugs) You are here to play with me because I am your favorite person ever and I have a poo in my pants--should we go take care of that?

All in one breath, just like that.

And take care of that poo, we did.