The cold weather followed us to Providence, Rhode Island, as we prepared for a four-week run at the Providence Performing Arts Center during a very busy holiday season. I was really excited to get there because it meant that my Christmas vacation was right around the corner and I was going to get to spend some time with my family and friends -- because of all this, Providence seemed like a whirlwind!
I did love the house of the Providence Performing Arts Center. Theatres with beautiful velvet red chairs and golden accents like old movie theatres are my favorites to perform in. The intimacy of the house and the reserved nature of the audiences sometimes played against each other. Many times we, as performers, were concerned that the audiences might not be connecting with our characters...until the final moments of the performance. Immediately at curtain call, the audiences were quick to reassure us that they had, in fact, enjoyed the show!
Despite its beauty, the Providence Performing Arts Center was a difficult house to play for many reasons, but what stands out has to be the house's faulty plumbing. On more than one occasion, our unlucky -- but resilient -- physical therapist, Natalie Kinghorn, experienced the misfortune of having a pipe burst above her and all her equipment. I will spare you the details and just reiterate that this was indeed a difficult house to play.
When we weren’t dodging the smell of sewer water, we were navigating our spatially-challenged dressing rooms or trying not to freeze in the gondolas since they were inconveniently located off the loading docks. Luckily, space heaters were eventually provided.
BTW, If you go to Providence, make sure you find that Haven Bros. truck and order a milkshake -- it’s a must!
Before going to the road on this tour, I had decided to take on the task of planning my 10-year high school class reunion. Once I was actually on the road, I quickly realized that I had maybe bitten off more than I could chew. But it was too late to stop now, so on top of celebrating the holidays I had a lovely time organizing and attending the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts Class of 1999 Ten-Year Reunion (see photo below), as well as my sister's wedding!
Courtney Jones worked at NYCPAS as Assistant to the Director for two years before embarking on the national tour of “WICKED” as an ensemble cast member. She is a graduate of SUNY Purchase College and has danced professionally in New York City with Jennifer Muller/The Works, among others. This is her 11th blog from the road (click "blogging from the road" in our tag cloud [right column] to see all her blogs!).
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