The life and times of the secret geek!: a day in the life of a thespian

Yeah yeah, I know 'thespian' means the same as actor, or theatrical person; I just put it because it sounded better. This post is not (as you'd expect from the title) about any particular day, just about my acting, singing, dancing and other miscellaneous thespian activities.

First, before I get into any of it, may I say that I LOVE drama :) any aspect of it just makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside - you know the feeling - so please don't judge me... each to their own :')

I suppose my fondness of acting has always been there; I'm not going to begin with some cliché about how it all kicked off after I saw some fantastical production, because it just didn't. I've always loved performing, but joining a drama group (CATS - Carr-nival* Academy of Theatre Skills) really put me in the right direction for love of theatre. I joined, I think, when I was 8 or 9, so 6 or 7 years ago - and that was a major point in my life. My first proper show was Alice in Wonderland, a musical, when I was 10. I played the King, and for the first time, I experienced the buzz, the adrenaline rush of performing to the hundreds, the fear of hoping you don't fluff your lines, forget words to a song, mixed with the feel of a weight being lifted off your shoulders: no more lines to learn, no more rehearsals.

I perform with CATS to this day, 7 years of musicals, plays and cabaret shows - acing and singing in all levels of importance; from singing in the chorus, to getting parts, to getting title roles (just the other day, I played Old Mother Hubbard, the panto dame, in the play of the same name). Drama gave me confidence, and I know this sounds weird, but t gives me a purpose - I have no idea what I would do without the stage.

August 2009: This was a special month, as it was the first time i ever stepped into the 2act rehearsal room - a church hall in Barnsley - but little did I know that this hall would feel like home for months and years to come. 2act is run, produced and directed by the same guy who runs CATS (Simon Carr, whom I would compare to my father, as he is such a big influence on my life), and one day after Saturday morning CATS rehearsals, I overheard Simon and Tommy (Tommy Roberts, one of my best friends, and one of the nicest people I have ever met) talking about a play 2act were due to produce in October 09. They needed a guy, as there was only one male - Tommy. They noticed I was there, and asked whether i would be available to do it. I agreed, and although I was never meant to stay on at 2act, the next show, was a milestone in 2act - they had obtained the licence to perform Les Miserable (google it), and once again, were short of guys.

I auditioned, and got a part in the chorus. I was not downhearted, I just wanted to be in this fabulous show. After we successfully performed it in February '10, I kept turning up to Friday 2act rehearsals, and it was agreed with Simon that I could stay in 2act. Many shows later, I had the opportunity in August 2010 to join a "scare attraction" company with my fellow '2act'ers. Scare Attractions are walkthrough areas, usually themed with live actors, lights, sound, smoke and smells. The whole point of a Scare Attraction is, you guessed it, to scare the customers. GNG Entertainment was needing actors for an up and coming scare attraction; Titled 'Deranged', the theme was phobias, and it was containing childhood fears, from Gas Masked Strangers, to Evil Clowns, Grotesque Dolls, Insanity, and the fear of the unknown. I played the clown, and in a Circus themed room, containing hay bales, and 'severed' limbs hung from balloons, mine was one of the most talked about areas.

Following the success of Deranged came HybridX. This was another scare attraction, set in the main hall of MAGNA, and running for 11 days solid, 10am to 8pm. HybridX, or just simply Hybrid as we affectionately called it was mindblowing. At the end of a busy day (500+ people a day), you never knew whether you were going to laugh or cry. The hours were gruelling, the temperature varying from below to just above 0, and the sheer "headacheness" (I was working in a room topless - i was a zombie - so I was freezing, three strobe lights, pounding techno music, and more disco smoke than air) could make you thankful for the invention of beds. Home was MAGNA, or the "Dominions Genetic Modifications and Research Facility" as it was called in the storyline. It was amazing, although the experience made me hate one word. Reset. This code word was to tell actors that another group or batch of customers was coming through, and you had to reset positions. The word was hell, and I never want to hear it again! Hybrid was a time full of both joy and excitement, but also of cold, tiredness, and aspirin.

After Hybrid, I had 5 performances of 3 shows in the run up to Christmas: 1 performance of the Wizard of Oz with 2act, 1 performance of What the Dickens! with 2act, and 3 performances of Old Mother Hubbard with CATS. Being a middle aged, overweight, welsh woman for 3 days was, well, an experience! I had to improvise (as many people, including myself, forgot lines), and most of the time they were funnier than scripted lines, I had to control the audience (Oh no you didn't! Shut up.), and I had to wear make-up, tights, fake boobs, wigs, and a couple of dresses. You'll not find me wearing make-up again...! It was so hard to get on, and harder to get off... I was in the bathroom, at home for about an hour, trying in vain to get the tonne of mascara, lippy, and foundation off. That annoyed me muchly, but it was worth it!

Upcoming productions include: Jekyll and Hyde, Clockwork Orange, Barricade and Beyond, Metamorphosis, and Spring Awakening. I am looking forward to all, but mostly spring awakening!!

I'll leave you with some clips, but otherwise...

thanks for reading
thesecretgeek