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Hi, I'm Ellen (aka Stage Elf)~welcome to my website & blog about what I love best~the theater! I hope you will find something here that will encourage you to go see a show~big, small, play, musical, on Broadway, off Broadway, off off Broadway, in your neighborhood, in your backyard~just go!
A stage is the perfect setting for a story...
Every story begins somewhere...mine began at Marymount Junior School in Arlington, VA....I was 5 years old and someone hung a giant poster board fried egg on me and sent me up on stage with the rest of the first grade to sing in French about breakfast...or at least I think it was breakfast; our teacher was dressed as a chef with a pillow for her belly. And when we were through, the audience of parents-with-saintly-patience applauded. I fell in love. Not with eggs; I never did like eggs much. Nope, I fell in love with the stage.
In particular, I thank Marymount for involving every child in every production, whether said child was destined for the stage or concert hall. And for hiring Mrs. Romito to be my fifth grade teacher. She, a Shakespearean actress by trade, decided that the school would stage The Little Prince. Every grade participated and I was given the great honor of playing the title role. I inhabited that character; the rose was my rose, the fox was my friend (and actually, really my friend...she was played by a close friend from my class!). I had long, difficult monologues to memorize and I had to cry on stage. And I will never, ever forget that night. It was magic.
My parents took us to the theatre too...one of my earliest stage memories is of a production of "The Hither and Thither of Danny Dither" at Arena Stage. How could you not remember a show with a title like that?? I am still able to conjure the dark, in-the-square theatre, and feeling as if magic was happening right before my eyes...
Did I mention I was also an avid ballerina at Marymount? That particular dream fell victim to an un-cooperating physique.
And then it happened: after acting and dancing at every possible opportunity-from the backyard to school stages- with a thud, I developed a permanent case of stage fright.
So, I turned my love of being on stage to a love of being in front of any stage on which the magic of theater is happening. Backstage works too. So, no matter where I have lived and traveled over the years: Washington, DC, Los Angeles, Melbourne, Australia, Charlottesville, VA, I find my home with the arts. Theater and dance get priority; but concerts, readings, street performances are not far behind. When I have been far from the familiar, far from old friends, or just with some free time, theaters are a sort of "home" for me...places that extend open invitations to come be a part of the family that is created by each audience and each cast at each performance.
The curtains (both actual and suggested) rise on wonderful theater everywhere; probably any given day/night of the year. If I could, I think I’d be at all of them. Due to the current laws of physics, that seems impossible, but believe me, I’ve tried :).
Here is one of my favorite quotes about theater:
“You need three things in the theater - the play, the actors and the audience, - and each must give something”
Kenneth Haigh
So go to the theater, give something of yourself (besides just the money you gave for the ticket :)), and hopefully, at the least, you will break even...but at the best, you may know wealth beyond measure. By the way, there is always the possibility you won't enjoy the show you see. If that's the case, try to use the experience to help in choosing the next one. I have heard people say (and seen it happen) that they left a show at intermission because "they didn't like it." While that is always your option, please, please try to resist the urge. Many shows are quite different and/or better in their later acts. Sometimes an actor that you will love won't even appear until Act II; or the playwright just found her/his stride after Act I. It is true that you may discover that a show seems to "offend" you, or be difficult or painful to watch. I have had all of those things happen. But if you challenge yourself to see it through, you will gain an insight into a perspective different than your own-or you might find it's not so different than yours, it's just expressed a little differently.
As the quote above makes clear, you are a full one-third of your theater experience - give it your all :)!!*
*DISCLAIMER: I love the experience of live theater. I have very eclectic tastes and will generally try to find something to like about most of what I see. You probably won't read many "pans" of shows from me. I have way too much experience with the wildly-differing opinions of those I know who go to the theater, to not think that there might be an audience out there for much of what I see, whether I liked it or not. Some of my favorite theater outings have been at huge blockbuster, star-heavy shows (both adored and reviled in equal measure by people I know); and others have been at small, intimate, special shows that didn't last long, but provided me with a lovely experience. Please trust your instincts. If a show seems appealing to you, GO! If you don't enjoy it as much as you thought, well, then you have more information for the next time you choose...but please make sure there's a next time!! And if you're concerned about not liking a show, but want to try it out, look for discount options first...
In particular, I thank Marymount for involving every child in every production, whether said child was destined for the stage or concert hall. And for hiring Mrs. Romito to be my fifth grade teacher. She, a Shakespearean actress by trade, decided that the school would stage The Little Prince. Every grade participated and I was given the great honor of playing the title role. I inhabited that character; the rose was my rose, the fox was my friend (and actually, really my friend...she was played by a close friend from my class!). I had long, difficult monologues to memorize and I had to cry on stage. And I will never, ever forget that night. It was magic.
My parents took us to the theatre too...one of my earliest stage memories is of a production of "The Hither and Thither of Danny Dither" at Arena Stage. How could you not remember a show with a title like that?? I am still able to conjure the dark, in-the-square theatre, and feeling as if magic was happening right before my eyes...
Did I mention I was also an avid ballerina at Marymount? That particular dream fell victim to an un-cooperating physique.
And then it happened: after acting and dancing at every possible opportunity-from the backyard to school stages- with a thud, I developed a permanent case of stage fright.
So, I turned my love of being on stage to a love of being in front of any stage on which the magic of theater is happening. Backstage works too. So, no matter where I have lived and traveled over the years: Washington, DC, Los Angeles, Melbourne, Australia, Charlottesville, VA, I find my home with the arts. Theater and dance get priority; but concerts, readings, street performances are not far behind. When I have been far from the familiar, far from old friends, or just with some free time, theaters are a sort of "home" for me...places that extend open invitations to come be a part of the family that is created by each audience and each cast at each performance.
The curtains (both actual and suggested) rise on wonderful theater everywhere; probably any given day/night of the year. If I could, I think I’d be at all of them. Due to the current laws of physics, that seems impossible, but believe me, I’ve tried :).
Here is one of my favorite quotes about theater:
“You need three things in the theater - the play, the actors and the audience, - and each must give something”
Kenneth Haigh
So go to the theater, give something of yourself (besides just the money you gave for the ticket :)), and hopefully, at the least, you will break even...but at the best, you may know wealth beyond measure. By the way, there is always the possibility you won't enjoy the show you see. If that's the case, try to use the experience to help in choosing the next one. I have heard people say (and seen it happen) that they left a show at intermission because "they didn't like it." While that is always your option, please, please try to resist the urge. Many shows are quite different and/or better in their later acts. Sometimes an actor that you will love won't even appear until Act II; or the playwright just found her/his stride after Act I. It is true that you may discover that a show seems to "offend" you, or be difficult or painful to watch. I have had all of those things happen. But if you challenge yourself to see it through, you will gain an insight into a perspective different than your own-or you might find it's not so different than yours, it's just expressed a little differently.
As the quote above makes clear, you are a full one-third of your theater experience - give it your all :)!!*
*DISCLAIMER: I love the experience of live theater. I have very eclectic tastes and will generally try to find something to like about most of what I see. You probably won't read many "pans" of shows from me. I have way too much experience with the wildly-differing opinions of those I know who go to the theater, to not think that there might be an audience out there for much of what I see, whether I liked it or not. Some of my favorite theater outings have been at huge blockbuster, star-heavy shows (both adored and reviled in equal measure by people I know); and others have been at small, intimate, special shows that didn't last long, but provided me with a lovely experience. Please trust your instincts. If a show seems appealing to you, GO! If you don't enjoy it as much as you thought, well, then you have more information for the next time you choose...but please make sure there's a next time!! And if you're concerned about not liking a show, but want to try it out, look for discount options first...
