Off Book

Rehearsals continue for Neil Simon’s Plaza Suite at McKinney Repertory Theater. The first performance (March 5) is only a few weeks away, and we’re starting to do full run-throughs with the entire cast. Since the play is a group of 3 independent acts, we haven’t had much interaction with the rest of the cast — until now. It’s fun having everyone together and being able to enjoy the performances of the other fantastic actors in the play.

We had our first “off book” rehearsal this evening, which means that all lines must be memorized and no scripts can be used on stage. It seems that these are always the worst rehearsals as it’s terribly difficult to keep your energy level up and stay in character while trying to recall a line. You lose the momentum of the scene and have to work hard to get it back. So, we muddled through our acts and managed to get in a few laughs as we completely botched some of the lines. Thankfully, we have a patient director who has a good sense of humor!

We’ll do it all over again tomorrow night, and I’m hoping my lines will become more permanently etched into my brain so I can concentrate more on acting and less on memory recall!

Below are a few rehearsal pictures I captured with my mobile phone:

Rehearsing in MPAC’s Noble Hall. Gary was standing in for “Sam” from Act I.

Getting ready to practice on the main stage.

Our awesome director doing what she does best…directing!