Whoah. Today's choreography was intense. But so much fun! Both my brain and body were so tired, even before we were done for the day. We learned the choreography (or shall I say stickography) for "I'll Make a Man" - the scene in which Shang whips the other soldiers into shape. Mulan is of course at this point pretending to be one of the guys, so I'm totally in the thick of this. We are doing these super cool martial arts moves with our bow staffs - basically long bamboo sticks. Also, I get to work on my tai chi moves again in this one, but they're a little more difficult compared to the opening number. I was sweating about halfway through working on them because tai chi is much like yoga in that it creates in internal heat in the body with little movement. It may look easy, but it's all about using strong and controlled movements and connecting to your breath. A lot to think about; you don't realize what an incredible workout it is until you pause and it feels like you were just running around when in reality you barely moved a few feet! Again, I wish my Waigong could see this! Although, he might have a few words to say about my form. :) I'm getting there! It's definitely something I'll be practicing every day, plus the stickography (at home it will be broomography ;) ).
The other awesome part about today came after rehearsal. The Alliance Theatre periodically does staged readings of new plays, and tonight I attended one with a fellow castmate. There was a talkback afterwards, where the audience can give the playwright feedback or pick his/her brain about certain choices in the script, etc. This was a neat experience. I was a little too shy to say anything - maybe next time! But I really enjoyed the story and had a few good laughs.
Anyhoodle, after THAT they had a party at a local restaurant/bar so that people could meet and talk with the playwright some more, or just socialize with other theater people. I got to talk with some of the actors that participated in the reading, met some new people, and even connected with a fellow vegan! It was a super fun time. As with any profession, it never hurts to go out and meet other people involved in the arts and network a little. Heck - the main reason I got to audition for Mulan was because I happened to know the right person. So it never hurts to schmooze it up! :)
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