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Something quick - a nice nod

I've got several terribly thoughtful, terribly long blog posts in the works, but wanted to post something quick that merits your attention and, yes, ACTION!

My new adaptation of "The Beggar's Opera" (remember that old thing??) got a nice nod today, by being announced as one of the five finalist nominations for "Outstanding Achievement in Classical Music" for the 2010 Portland Music Awards. Our competition: contempo chamber outfit Fear No Music, All-Classical radio hostess Christa Wessel, and - oddly - the hometown big-league symphony team and their own maestro (nominated separately, which makes zero sense).

What does this nomination do for me, personally? Well, it's a nice jolt for the artistic ego, and also truly flattering to be recognized by my peers in this way (and in such august company!). Anywho, the important thing to remember is to click online ASAP and vote vote VOTE for "Beggar's Opera" under the Classical Music category!

(photo above: "Beggar's Opera" rehearsal at the Someday Lounge - also up for Outstanding Small Music Venue - show 'em some love!!)

Beggar's Opera debrief - take 1

Too often, I just move right along.

I've been so accustomed, for so long in life, to finish one mammoth endeavor and then - all too quickly - scooting right along to the next. No pause, no breath, no debrief. But I'm 30 years old now (this happened late last month - horror!), and with this sage age and newly entered decade comes a desire for reflection and consideration.

In other words: I spent a year of my life writing this fracking brand new music-theatre work called "The Beggar's Opera," so I should probably spend some time reflecting on what I learned - about myself, about music, about theatre, about developing a new work - in the process. Tonight's blog will be the first of a few in which I brain-dump and debrief and sort through the detritus.

For tonight, I'll start with bullet points in each of several categories:

WHAT WAS DIFFICULT:
*Getting started. Urging the characters to speak.
*Writing dialogue. Fuck that was hard.
*Cutting material - songs, solos, dialogue - once we had already presented it, even in draft form, to the cast.
*Pacing my self and meting out my time and energy over the course of the writing and re-writing process.

WHAT SURPRISED ME MOST:
*Getting in to rehearsal and discovering that much of it actually worked. And then being surprised by what did not work, both in rehearsal and performance.
*Honestly, the enthusiastic reviews. More on that in another post.
*How natural and good I became, through the course of writing the work, at writing song lyrics. I'm a much stronger lyric than book writer - I'll admit it. But people's guttural, emotional responses to the lyrics - audience members quoting specific song lyrics that stayed with them, for example - caught me off guard.

WHAT I FOUND GRATIFYING:
*The collaboration with composer/music director Michael Herrman, which involved very little bickering and plenty of shared sacrifice and love. What a dream team!
*The amazing cast of thirteen and band of six who brought utter commitment and abundant passion to the process and to each performance.
*Summoning the huge amount of strength and calm leadership it took each and every day to guide this ship. There were moments when I felt like an utter failure; a fraud. There were moments when I was practically levitating from the excitement and energy in the room. But ultimately I found it gratifying that I survived, period!

* * * * *

More on much of this in a subsequent post. Even putting this much out into the world feels good tonight...

Herr Direktor

Herr Direktor.

(photo of SMB in full direktor-mode at The Woods, by superlative violinist Paloma Griffin)

Here I stand

I am here.

I am recovering from two extaordinary weekends of "The Beggar's Opera" performances. My head hurts and my eyes hurt. We got good notices - one very good from David Stabler in the Oregonian - which is nice.

Today I feel quite calm. Am enjoying this.

Insanity!!

"The Beggar's Opera" opens in 53 hours.

So. Things are nutty.

There are great previews of the show in today's Oregonian here; at Bob Hicks' ArtScatter here; and with Bob Kingston's Dramma per Musica here, here and here.

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