Wednesday, July 25, 2018

Where Is The Stage?




Back in the ancient times, the era my children always thought I was born in, when someone asked "Where's the stage?" it meant the stagecoach coming into town. I must have watched too many old westerns but never heard the word coach following the word stage. As far back as I can remember I always wanted to know where the stage was or what I could turn into a stage.

Perhaps The Little Rascals were a bad influence with all those little productions they would put together.  I must have been about eight and my little brother, Kenny, six years old.  We would make up little acts, put a few benches and chairs on the driveway in front of the garage door and put on a show for the neighborhood children.  What we actually did has long since faded from memory but kids always showed up to watch.

Because I was such a tomboy Mother put me in tap and ballet so perhaps I could walk more like a lady. Then there were the classical piano lessons and recitals with frilly dresses. In grade school I never passed up a class play even though I got to play exciting parts like being a hollyhock in the second grade. My doll got a better part than I did as it was baby Jesus every year in the Christmas play.



Junior high brought the talent shows into my life.  I can remember embarrassing my older brother one year by doing Al Jolson in black face and another year wearing a sailor suit and doing Honey Bun from "South Pacific."  I think that was about the time he started telling everyone I was not his sister. But in junior high I also got involved in speech, drama and debate so there were endless opportunities to perform. Then I can't forget taking roller skating lessons at Muskogee's Stardust Skating Arena and getting involved in two roller skating shows.



In high school there were as many classes in speech, drama and debate as there were in math and science.  There were endless opportunities for speech tournaments and plays all four years capping off with Muskogee Central High's first musical, "Bye, Bye, Birdie".  This was also the years of folk music and hootenannies so naturally I grabbed up a guitar and joined in the weekly hootenannies in the park.  

Do I sound a little stage struck?  It was so bad that by the time Mother decided I should go to a nice normal girl's school and turn into a nice normal lady that the only reason I really went was because Stephens College was very heavy into theater and dance.  Two days of classes in theater with girls from New York in their flowing capes and tights terrified me and constituted a quick major change to television, radio and film production. Time to put the thought of starring on Broadway  away and move on.

When I married the "then husband" I did a pretty good job of staying away from any stage and even gave up roller skating until two little boys came along.  All children should learn to skate - right?  All children should have the chance to perform in plays and talent shows even if their school does not offer them - right?  All during the boys' years in school I sort of became a director of talent shows and summertime plays. How could the "then husband" argue with affording the boys the same opportunities I had growing up?




Without realizing it things got much worse through the years, all of which I will write about in my blog "How Lucky I Am To Be Born A Baby Boomer"/ "Things I Should Have Known".  There was learning to ice skate at 40 and then skating in an ice show and on a precision team for five years, "The Irving Opry", "The Irving City Limits", "Have Music, Will Travel", "The Wynnewood Follies" and numerous street fairs and festivals. Finally I found the Ardmore Little Theater two years ago.



Truthfully my first audition at the theater two years ago made me feel like those theater classes at Stephens but this time I didn't run away. My blogs have been sketchy for the last six weeks as I have not had the mental capacity to reminiscence about what happened in 1979 while trying to learn a lot of songs and how to play the spoons especially when I didn't even know people played the spoons. The next audition will be better and even though there are not a lot of parts for a member of the "72 Young Club" I am having more fun than anyone should have. 

Thank you Marshell, my "now husband", for fixing his own dinner for six weeks, being totally supportive even though I will have put 1,640 miles on the Tesla before the play is over and listening to the noise of drums, spoons or tap shoes.  I have a feeling I can drive anyone crazy but he is a prince and just hangs in there.






Back to the real world next week if I ever really knew what that was.  I am sure there is some cliffhanger I left dangling in the last story.




No comments:

Post a Comment

She's Back

  I knew it had been a long time since I added to my rather lengthy story but was surprised that it had been since May of last year.  Many r...