Into The Woods

Sweet daughter Rachel is in yet another performance over the next two weekends. She is Little Red (Riding Hood) of Into the Woods fame. She has been absolutely thrilled with doing this show with this group. It's a new group to her (although her father and I are familiar with it, having seen a few of their shows over the years) and much more professional in many ways than what she's dealt with before. It has been excellent experience for her.

It has also been excellent albeit bittersweet experience for me. You see, although Rachel will turn 19 next month, she still doesn't have her driver's license. So she needs someone to drive her to and from rehearsals. We have made quite the team over the last couple of months, and have spent a lot of time in the car. The theater is just far enough away that it doesn't make sense for me to drop her off and go back home. So I've brought projects: papers to grade, craft projects, lessons to plan. It's worked for us.

Over time, I've become more involved in the show. I helped make the sets, some of the costumes, and some of the props. It's been fun. Now I'm going to get to do something I haven't done since I was something like 16-years-old. I'm the spotlight operator for the show.

I won't say it was a put-upon job. I am secretly kind of excited about it. It's a job that depends on paying attention to the script (and to the stage manager's cues) but also has an artistic sort of bent to it as well. Obviously, I'm not really good at it. I just hope I don't totally screw up during the actual shows.

This will probably be the last show I have to shuttle the girl around for. She keeps saying she's going to get her license this spring. But, in the meantime, we've had a great many laughs and I'm even learning new skills. I joked with Friend Husband that it will be something to put on my Linked In profile (which is currently collecting dust with nothing in it).

Show opens tomorrow night. Wish us luck!