RMSSTA2016

This weekend I participated in the "Rocky Mountain Summer Stock Theatre Auditions" up at UVU. It was something that I had never done before, but I caught wind of it on Facebook so I decided to sign up and give it a try. 

After I signed up, I sat down and researched all of the different companies that were coming and learned more about them. I had looked at all the theaters before hand but hadn't actually done a lot of research. Wish I had. Turns out, only 2 or 3 of the 13 companies going were of any interest to me. One of them was The Neil Simon Festival which is here in town. It would be awesome to find something here in town. And sure, there's always the possibility of USF, but I kind of doubt I'm on the radar for that because I'm not a classical BFA so I won't really be pushed for the internship. and I sort of didn't have a great audition so I don't see why they would want to hire me. And then there's the monetary reality of it all...

PAUSE 

My husband, Kollin, and I work for a company here in town as onsite managers for a storage facility. It's a great little gig because it comes with an apartment and I still get like $300 a month on top of that for only working 2 days a week. It's perfect for us right now! But if I get hired this summer, it sort of puts a kink in things. 

First of all, my boss isn't very keen on the idea of Kollin working in the office for the summer. He wants a "feminine touch to the office" so I was hired and Kollin does maintenance and stuff. But Kollin worked in the office last summer because I was in Lake Powell when we were hired. But my boss doesn't want Kollin in the office this summer. 

Second of all, if my boss wasn't willing to let Kollin work in the office, we would have to move. Which we really don't want to do at the moment. Which means we would be paying rent. 

Which brings us to our second point. If we have to move because I get hired this summer and decide that I want to perform, I would have to be making AT LEAST $900 a month. The reason being: if we moved, we would want to find a nice place like the one we are in now (I refuse to live in the basement ever again) because we like the space and the "newness" and the modern appliances and everything. Apartments like that are $550+ a month in Cedar City. And we don't have money for that in our current financial situation. So I would have to be pulling in quite a bit to even make it plausible. 

So, I sort of decided that I didn't want to do anything this summer. I decided that it was sort of more of a hassle than I wanted to deal with, especially because we can't afford to have to move. Plus, this summer our ward is going on a family trek, my family is going to Tahoe, and Kollin wants to go to Disneyland with our tax return. And I want to do all of those things. I really want to spend the summer with Kollin doing fun things and learning how to scuba dive and go on adventures. So I really decided that it would be ok if I didn't get hired anywhere. 

PLAY

I went to auditions, and performed my pieces. The set up was like nothing I had been a part of before. We were divided by number into groups of 25-30 ish and were pulled, group by group, into a waiting room behind the stage at the Noorda Theatre (which is such a crappy space...it eats sound sooo badly). We would file onto the stage one at a time and introduce ourselves and our number, and then we had 90 seconds to perform in front of all 13 companies. At this point, I was going because I had already paid $35 to register so I thought it would be a good experience 

But when I got there, I learned that the Carriage House Theatre from Canada, was there and that they were doing "Beauty and the Beast" and I got really excited and suddenly I really wanted to perform this summer. But my audition wasn't geared towards B and B at all, so I figured I wouldn't get an callback. 

About 30 minutes after my group had all finished, our callbacks were posted to the website. I was called back for Brigham's Playhouse (in St. George), The Neil Simon Festival (in Cedar City), Jake's Chaparral (in Kanab), Pickleville Playhouse (in Bear Lake) and Mack's Inn (in Montana or Wyoming or something like that). But not Carriage House Theatre. Which I was actually bummed out over but also I knew I wouldn't get a callback for them because my song didn't fit. And then Carly and Alec told me that they had called back some weird people and I didn't feel bad anymore. But so help me! I will play Belle someday!!! haha ;) 

Anyhow. 

I decided to go to the callback for Brigham's Playhouse, and the Neil Simon Festival since both of those were close to home and held the possibility of still being able to work in the office and keep my job/apartment. I refused to go to Jake's after the experience a peer of mine had last summer with them; Mack's Inn was simply too far away with not nearly enough money to make it worth it; Pickleville is coming to SUU this Thursday so they told us to just go to the audition then. But I don't really want to work for them either. They are doing "Hairspray" and a "Juandito Bandito" which...I'm not a fan of. Plus they are forever away, and I wouldn't make nearly enough to make it worth it. So I don't think I'm going to go. 

Brigham's Playhouse is doing a very strange season, but they are close enough that I could work still and live at home after the rehearsal process was complete and we were into performances. And the director seemed really kind and seemed to really like me. But he still has about 3 weeks worth of auditions before he casts his season. 

Neil Simon Festival called me back and had me read for the ditsy, mediocre character in "Hank Williams" which I do not want to be here. I don't want to be in another western this summer. But Richard Bugg (my professor and the guy who runs it) wasn't there, so I'm thinking of auditioning for them again when he IS there (when they hold auditions at SUU). 

Brigham's pays about $150 more than Neil Simon does, but Neil Simon isn't 45 minutes away from me...

Either way, it all depends on whether or not my boss is willing to work with us. Which I think he wants to because he doesn't want to have to hire and train someone else. 

To be honest though, I really don't know if I want to perform this summer or not. I really want to travel and go on adventures and write in my journal and go hiking and just have fun this summer with my husband. Plus I kind of want a break. I haven't really stopped since Fiddler last February...I went from Fiddler to Lake Powell to Hamlet to Next to Normal (true I was only a body double, but it was still rehearsals and late nights), to Toyland to Minutes to Rent to Merrily (the independent project I'm working on with Alec and Carly for our Edge project). I don't know if I want to jump right into anything. Especially if I get cast in the fall musical...which I hope I do. 

RMSSTA was an awesome experience. It was an opportunity to put my name out there even if I didn't make as big of an impression as I wanted to. I was happy that I auditioned even though I don't know what I will be able to do this summer. 

<3: CourtneyRae<3