So the reading of my short play, LEAVING MY <3 IN SF, went well last night. I was also very pleased with, not only the actors, but also the person who directed it. After it was read, he came up to me and as always, gave me some really good notes. And I whole-heartedly agreed with him. The version that was presented was a total 180 from the original script, but I felt was better just because in this version, and in the end that's what mattered.
The thing that I learned from the reading:
- don’t let Cora get off the hook too easy. makes the ending just… end. the climax was just a blip instead of a Holy Shnikeys
- when there’s a reading of multiple authors, I just can’t help but feeling competitve. “Why wasn’t my play as funny as theirs?”
- want to expand the Wife’s character to establish her role
Getting back to the second point about being competitive, it was just inevitable. Being in that situation where you’re piece of art is on display with other artists, you want to see how your piece compares to others. And you have the judge right there, the audience. And the biggest barometer is laughter. It’s all about the sense of instant gratification. The upside of having experienced this instant gratification is that I don’t really seek it that much. Of course there are those lines that were written down with the wonder of, “is anyone going to laugh during this line?” But what I’m trying to say is that I HAVE to be concentrated on my play and not worry about if the previous or next person’s play garnered that instant gratification. In the end, it’s my voice and subject that I’m trying to push forward.
All in all, I was pretty happy how everything went last night. Like everytime I see a live theater performance of any kind, it just inspires me to keep writing. And that’s a very good thing!