I remember when I was a little girl, I once asked my mother why on earth, if childbirth hurt so incredibly much, would a woman ever willingly go through it more than once? She replied that even though the process was painful, once you saw your baby for the first time, all that pain was forgotten, and all that mattered was the new life you held in your arms.
For me, tech week (also known as hell week) is like that.* For those that don't know, tech week is when we take the actors, the stage, the props, the set, the set changes, the lighting, the sound, the costumes, etc. and mash them all together in the span of a few days. It's a week full of long nights and frayed nerves. It's painful. It can still be fun to see all the puzzle pieces start to fit together, but it's stressful and hard too. But then, on opening night, when you finally officially present that work to the world, all of that pain slips away, and all that's left is the wonderful piece of art into which you've put your sweat and tears (and sometimes blood). One of the best feelings that I have ever experienced is watching my actors bow during curtain call on opening night. I am full of love and pride for them and all who were involved making that little piece of magic.
This last week was (technically still is) my tech week for Journey to the West, and, let me tell you, it lived up to the hell week name. The load-in that was supposed to take one day, took two. The cues weren't written by the first night we were supposed to run, so we didn't (did a quick change rehearsal instead). During our first run on stage, an actor fell while trying to get offstage. The same actress was in the emergency room the next night (for something unrelated to her fall). And those are just the highlights. But, then, last night, it all came together, like it always does. I saw the light at the end of the tunnel, and I simply can not wait to show this gorgeous play to our audiences. It's going to be brilliant.
I wish I had pictures of the production to show, but I don't have any time to take them. If our lighting designer allows me, I may post one or two of the 600 plus pictures he took. But, in the mean time, I DO have knitting pictures!
As promised, here is the picture of my finished Ameliorate mitts that I made for my friend. These are the first pair of mitts I have made, and I'm really happy with them! (I'm also pretty happy with the picture, although I'm open to constructive criticism on how to make it better.)
*Please note that I in no way mean to degrade childbirth by comparing it to theater. This is simply the best metaphor I could think of.
For me, tech week (also known as hell week) is like that.* For those that don't know, tech week is when we take the actors, the stage, the props, the set, the set changes, the lighting, the sound, the costumes, etc. and mash them all together in the span of a few days. It's a week full of long nights and frayed nerves. It's painful. It can still be fun to see all the puzzle pieces start to fit together, but it's stressful and hard too. But then, on opening night, when you finally officially present that work to the world, all of that pain slips away, and all that's left is the wonderful piece of art into which you've put your sweat and tears (and sometimes blood). One of the best feelings that I have ever experienced is watching my actors bow during curtain call on opening night. I am full of love and pride for them and all who were involved making that little piece of magic.
This last week was (technically still is) my tech week for Journey to the West, and, let me tell you, it lived up to the hell week name. The load-in that was supposed to take one day, took two. The cues weren't written by the first night we were supposed to run, so we didn't (did a quick change rehearsal instead). During our first run on stage, an actor fell while trying to get offstage. The same actress was in the emergency room the next night (for something unrelated to her fall). And those are just the highlights. But, then, last night, it all came together, like it always does. I saw the light at the end of the tunnel, and I simply can not wait to show this gorgeous play to our audiences. It's going to be brilliant.
I wish I had pictures of the production to show, but I don't have any time to take them. If our lighting designer allows me, I may post one or two of the 600 plus pictures he took. But, in the mean time, I DO have knitting pictures!
As promised, here is the picture of my finished Ameliorate mitts that I made for my friend. These are the first pair of mitts I have made, and I'm really happy with them! (I'm also pretty happy with the picture, although I'm open to constructive criticism on how to make it better.)
My Superhero Socks for Sarah, on the other hand, are in time-out. I was trucking along all the way past the heel, when I decided I should make sure they were going to be big enough. Sarah's foot was available for testing, and the sock failed. Way too small. I looked at the measurements in the pattern (probably should have done that before) and realized the Small (the size I usually knit for Sarah) was going to be way too small - fancy that. I can't bring myself to rip them out yet, so time-out it is.
In the meantime, I cast on for the September SKA Sockdown (the mirrored challenge) with Pointelle. I haven't had much any time to knit this week, but I did make surprisingly good progress with the time that I had on Labor Day.
This is my first time knitting lace this complex, so I decided to give the KnitCompanion app a try. If you haven't checked this thing out, and you have an iPad or Android tablet, you are missing out. It has helped me immeasurably with reading this chart. I don't think I would be doing near this well without it.
I'm not sure I'll actually finish these socks in time to complete the challenge, what with starting rehearsals for Spring Awakening on Monday and still doing shows for Journey to the West on the weekends. But, they're a joy to work on when I do have time!
Alright, this is another long winded post (I guess we should all just get used to that). I'm off to go prepare for our final rehearsal night. If you're still reading, I hope you have a lovely weekend!
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