Performance via text message

Once again, I find myself inspired by the brilliant mind of Tim Etchells.

From the Guardian theatre blog, where they're thinking back on their favorite theatre moments of 2010:

I spent almost a month enthralled by An SMS; Tim Etchells's exquisitely constructed imaginary performance for the Norfolk & Norwich festival. Encountered entirely through text message, the project was composed of a series of absurd movements in which half-familiar scenes flickered into life and then spiralled out of control. Snowstorms grew too thick, a clown fight exploded into an ecstatic riot, a children's choir sang for days on end, slowly collapsing to the floor one by one. What made this project truly wonderful however was the way that these imagined events were slowly drip-fed into our own lives over such an extended period. As time passed, this beautiful, hysterical parade of events was written ever-more thoroughly over our own everyday experience, at points the two converging with breathtaking synchronicity.

 Incredible.

Wrapping Up

When I say this, it feels like a confession, but here we go: it is really nice to be done with Everyone Who Looks Like You for a little while. Knowing that we will be doing it again (San Francisco! June 2011!) make the whole thing feel like a nice pause, rather than an interminable hold. I've loved touring and I enjoyed performing in Portland (especially this last weekend with great crowds and the wilds of fire alarms), but it is exhausting. The yelling, the tantrums, the nightly emotional roller coaster. I'm ready for a break.

Breaks don't last too long at h2m, however. Erin continues to rehearse and build My Mind Is Like An Open Meadow (I'm very excited about a new scene involving names of cats) and the rest of the team dips toes back into the world of Uncanny Valley, gently at the moment and more vigorously in February.

Until then, it's hot springs and hot toddies for me. Happy Holidays, ya'll.

Portland: Thoughts, Press, TV

It's been a change of pace performing Everyone Who Looks Like You at home in Portland: going home each night (instead of crashing somewhere), then getting up to do it again (instead of driving home). We've been talking a lot about the differences in audiences from night to night. At a post-show talk-back yesterday Jonathan said we "are like tourists to the audience each night." I like that. At this point, having been doing this show in more-or-less the same form for nearly a year, I really feel that the audience lets us know the show is, and every night that is is a little different. Comedy, tragedy, heartfelt, tear-jerker, somewhere in between. Five more times. Whew....

In other news, we got a review from the Portland Mercury. Read it all about it.

In other other news, we were on TV yesterday! We had a very nice time talking with Joe from KGW NewsChannel 8. Watch it all here.