Feeling Wanted

Okay, so in the past 3 days I have auditioned for Drama 3 Directing Scenes, Theater in Motion, and NatCaf.

I got callbacks for 3 different directors for the directing scenes! One was the same day as the NatCaf auditions. It was a lot of fun and had a pretty cool concept involving movement and thought and physical embodiment of both. Funky, right? The other two callbacks were tonight. Also tons of fun! Decisions on final casts will be made in the next few days. FINGERS CROSSED!

As for Theater in Motion….I somehow managed to get a callback for one of the choreographers! I can’t believe this is happening. The callback is tomorrow night and I can’t think about it without getting extremely nervous and self-conscious. Everyone I’ve talked to, though, says Ester (the choreographer) is an absolute sweetheart and is excellent at directing. I would actually really love to have the opportunity to be a part of the process and do something totally out of my comfort zone. Wish me luck!

I kind of gave up on my hopes for NatCaf. After Bill crossed me off his list, things didn’t look good for me. I kept checking my email though just in case. While I was in the library trying to print, I opened up my email again to find a very simple invitation to CALL BACKS FOR NATCAF ON WEDNESDAY! Oh my god!!! I almost cried right there in the library. Thank you thank you thank you NatCaf!

I can hardly believe any of this right now. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d be cast for anything while I was here on exchange. I’d take drama classes and go see shows and that would be it. But in one weekend I put myself out there a thousand times over just to see what would come of it, and some of the craziest things have happened. I had nothing to lose by just going for it and I can’t believe how lucky I am right now.

It’s been really nice to finally feel like myself out here. Even maybe a better version of myself. I am beginning to feel welcomed here and I want to thank everyone who chose to take a chance on me. I will try not to let you down J

Weekend of Auditions Part 3

Sunday morning was the final day of Communtiy Engagement training. Once again we assembled in the Eden Grove Blue Lecture Theater for some lessons in creativity and isiXhosa phrases, followed by a site specific Q & A.

I signed up to volunteer twice a week at Jabez, a facility that provides care for people living with HIV/AIDs. My first day is Thursday. Can’t wait!

Very soon after training concluded, I took the fastest shower of my life and ran over for NatCaf auditions. My nerves were growing weary of the constant auditioning, but I was determined to have a blast at NatCaf auditions.

When I first arrived outside the dept. I saw a ton of people hanging around waiting for auditions. Many of the waiting people were either the choreographers from my horrendous audition yesterday or dancers who had done a much better job than I had. What do you call the opposite of a confidence boost?

As it turned out, there were auditions for another movement-esque based show at the same time as NatCaf. When the group separated and went to their respective venues, I was relieved to find that actually a smaller, less intimidating group of people had assembled for NatCaf than I originally thought. And only one of them had witnessed my humiliation the day before.

The audition that followed was one of the best auditions I’ve ever had in my life! We played games that they do in their show and just laughed and laughed with/at one another. There were two more members of NatCaf who hadn’t been at the show on Thursday. They were both hilarious and so much fun to work with. The more we did, the more confident I felt. Current members of NatCaf played with us and every now and then one of them would congratulate me on my performance in a sketch. I honestly didn’t want the games to end.

At the end of the audition they told us they would inform us soon about callbacks and before we left they just wanted to know who wouldn’t be around for the following year. Apparently, most of the current members are graduating, so they are hoping to build up the troupe with members who can help sustain it. My heart sank when I heard this. A member of the troupe I know from class, Kelsey, spoke for me, announcing that as I was one exchange I wouldn’t be around. Bill, one of the members that hadn’t performed on Thursday, stared me down like I had eaten his last Reese’s cup. Utter betrayal was painted across his face. He was teasing me, but also he was genuinely frustrated that I wouldn’t be returning next year. Finally he said indignantly, “I put you on my list!!!” Sure enough, he had loose leaf in his hands with a couple scribbled notes. I watched as he crossed off my name.

I totally understand if they choose not to add me to the troupe just because I can’t contribute beyond this semester. I’ll be disappointed, but it makes sense. BUT! I at least I can say I was on the list. I had a lot of fun and it was an extremely validating experience to say the least.

I've been watching Whose Line is it Anyway Youtube clips non-stop ever since.

Weekend of Auditions Part 2

Saturday began brighter and earlier than I would have liked. Before I leave South Africa, I will actually sleep in.

At quarter after 8, I met Gillian and Caitie in Courtney-Latimer for breakfast before our training session for Community Engagement.

We spent the morning in the Blue Lecture Theater in the Eden Grove administrative building learning about the goals and policies of the Rhodes University Community Engagement (RUCE) program. There are so many places to volunteer. You can work with preschoolers, with the elderly, students with special needs, high school students, and people of all ages living with HIV/AIDs. The RUCE program has a lot of willing partners in need of enthusiastic volunteers. We were given a break midway through the information session to get tea and meet some representatives from the various volunteer venues. We did some workshops and scenario problem solving, as well. By lunch, we were a bit mentally drained and starving. The meet lasagna was a welcome meal. Potential recipe to try: carrots and pineapple salad. Actually not that bad.

After lunch I made myself go to the dance auditions. (Reminder….I DON’T DANCE) I showed up outside the movement room, looking and feeling totally out of place and silently cursing Sandi’s persuasive powers for making me sign up in the first place. The audition times had been split into two groups. One for first and second years and one for third years and honors students. Technically I’m a third year, but experience wise I’m probably lower than a first year. So of course…there I was with all these nimble thin muscular experienced scary beautiful dancer people things, about to enter my first dance audition ever that wasn’t for a high school musical number.

We file into the Movement Room – a large rectangular room with a low ceiling, hardwood floors, a dance bar, and giant mirrors to show you exactly how ridiculous you look – where we are greeted by 6 choreographers. Each introduces his or her piece and says about how many people they want. 3 of the girls are looking for a variety of things, including awkward movers (bingo). The one guy – a bit on the scrawny side, but deceptively muscular – basically said he was looking for upwards of 15 people who could commit to getting super buff for a very demanding performance (oh! OH! Pick me!.....NOT) and the last choreographer I just know I’ll never work with. She is a exactly what you think of when you hear the word dancer. She was drop dead gorgeous. Every muscle toned and poised for any degree of movement, wearing loose sweat pants and a sports bra. And of course a shock of a wild dark mane of black hair magically incapable of getting in her face. I should have walked out right then.

Let the derping begin. First they warmed us up. (aka…tried to kill us) I could barely keep up with techniques they had probably learned their first year and subsequently have done every day since. Knowing I was going to be awkward and embarrassed the whole time I was there, I decided to go ahead and try to start embracing it early on.

Next they taught us a quick (VERY QUICK) routine which we then performed in groups of three so they could devote their full attention to mentally mocking us a few at a time. The learning process went very quickly. I figured it out faster than I thought I would, but I over thought it and messed up the counting when it came time to actually do it. To make sure I sucked, they made us do the routine twice in a row.

Next we were sent upstairs to the Upper Studio where we were meant to view the available “inspiration material” and come up with an original piece incorporating a couple moves from the routine we’d just butchered. After discussing the pros and cons of leaving the auditions with myself, I decided just to go for it and come up with some I could actually do to show I wasn’t a total spaz and to have a bit of fun putting together a little piece that showed a bit of who I am.

Next thing I knew, I was back downstairs standing in front of the choreographers struggling to remember steps I had come up with in dead silence.

Finally they asked us to just dance however we wanted to a randomly played track from Muscle Man’s ipod and to sing if we could.

Sore beyond belief and completely mortified with myself for submitting myself to such humiliation, I was released from the audition.

Well, now I can say I have been to a dance audition. And I don’t even dance!

Take some chances. It could be horrible. It could be great. You can always say you tried. 

Weekend of Auditions Part 1

Friday, August 2^nd (again sorry for the delayed posting) began with another lovely brunch at Red Café. I can’t afford for this to a routine trip, but oh how I wish I could. Caitie, Gillian, Patrick and I wandered down High Street to the café around 8 AM. Unfortunately, most things in Grahamstown don’t open until at least 8:30. Worth the wait.

The moment the door opened we climbed the stairs to our beloved eatery. Patrick and I shared a pot of Rooibos chai tea – pretty much tasted like regular chai. When Mary arrived later she got a rooibos shake, though, which was to die for.

I had promised Elri I would help her with a rehearsal for Red (an upcoming show in the dept. Are we sensing a theme?) at 10:30, so at 10 or so we begrudgingly left the café.

BUT when I got to the theater, Elri was nowhere to be found. There are a lot of venues for rehearsal and the like in the department building, so I tried the ones I knew of. By 10:40 though I was starting to second guess myself, and of course, I didn’t have Elri’s number. Naturally, I wandered around looking bewildered and lost – a skill I have been fine tuning since I arrived. My wonderful friend, Keegan, who is actually in Red, said he would message Elri for me and let me know what she responded. To kill time until Elri responded I resumed my aimless bewildered wandering. I eventually ran into my friend Sandi next to the bulletin boards that adorn the halls of the department. Somehow (I suspect witchcraft was used) she convinced me to sign up for Theatre in Motion auditions that were taking place the following day.

Let me make this very clear…I don’t dance. I did one hip hop class with my Girl Scout troupe many years ago and nearly a year of synchronized swimming in 3^rd grade and I don’t even think that counts. I don’t dance. Theatre in Motion is the final performance for the Honours Choreography course….aka….DANCING. Interesting life choice, Rachel.

I decided to return to my res after not hearing anything from Elri. On my way home, she called me to apologize for forgetting to tell me the rehearsal had been cancelled, and that was the end of that.

A couple hours later, though, I was back at the Drama department for auditions for the Drama 3 Directors prac. As part of their grade this term, the directors for this prac are responsible for choosing, casting, directing, and presenting a 5 minute scene, I believe from an absurdist piece of their choosing.

 The experience was nerve racking. We had to perform one-minute monologues in front of the 11 directors and all the other people auditioning. I think I was well received (?)…there were a lot of really great performances. I spent the rest of the day floating from the residual high that I get after I audition for anything. Gillian and I speculated and gossiped about the process and our anxiety over whether or not we’d be chosen. Time will tell.

Next up: Laundry! I successfully did a glamorous load of laundry in my res, using powder detergent for the first time. Come at me!!

In the evening, a bunch of us went to the rugby game at the great field. They blasted American pop songs throughout the entire game. The atmosphere was so exciting even if I still don’t understand the game.

Afterwards, Caitie, Gillian and I, went to a Japanese (?) restaurant called Twing for cocktail hour and some udon noodles. We sat in the upper part of the restaurant that looked over the parking lot for the shopping center. The giant letters of KFC shone brightly below us. We had some super girl drinks and a lot of super girly girl talk. I love those girls <3

It was long day full of things I could never have imagined myself doing just a few months ago. 

Naturally Caffeinated White Wine Red Espresso

Thursday August First

Sorry all! I’m getting a bit behind in my posts. Think back in your life, if you will, all the way to Thursday, the first of the month.  

Noteworthy moments of said day:

I started my day with Sisa at Under the Arch. I’ve sort of developed a very indulgent habit during the academic week. When I have an awkward break between classes, I fill it with quick shopping trips. One of my favorite pass times is apparently frivolous spending and coffee drinking. As a result, I am steadily working my way through the menu at Under the Arch. Horlicks shall never be tried again; mochaccinos most certainly will be revisited. So after history today, with an hour to spare, I found myself outside Sisa’s little shop. Today’s beverage adventure: Red Espresso.

The line was kind of long when I first arrived at the arch, but the most spectacular phenomenon was taking place. The line of people stopped a few feet from the door to the 4’x 4’ space of the actual coffee shop. Each customer got to go in and order individually – sort of church confessional style. One by one we each got to have a little coffee appointment with Sisa.  

Red Espresso: Freshly pressed Rooibos leaves grown in South Africa, prepared a bit like a cappuccino (steamed milk etc but no coffee), with a dash of cinnamon, topped with a decorative/delicious spiral of honey that cuts through the foam. Heaven.

After Drama 3, my friend Elri (a really quite spectacular girl in my Drama class and my dining hall. She’s incredibly smart, kind, and very active on campus. On house comm for her res, involved in the drama dept. and an important member of Wine Tasting Soc) offered me a lift back over to my res for lunch. For the second time since arriving in South Africa… I rode on the wrong side of the road (and on the wrong side of the car). I almost lost my mind when she took the first left hand turn. I also silently took notes, knowing I would probably be driving a rental car for various road trips in the near future.

I found myself on the wrong side of the road once again after lunch, but this time in Roxanne’s car on the way to Checkers for a quick errand. Shout out to Roxanne and Claudia – two of the sweetest most beautiful girls I have met here. They live in the res next door to mine (subsequently we eat in the same dining hall) and have gone out of their way on several occasions to be sweet and welcoming to the exchange students. I don’t know if you guys will ever read this post, but on behalf of all exchange students, thank you for your unfaltering kindness. I have made it a personal goal to approach exchange students I encounter when I return home the same way you have so graciously treated us.

Anyway! Moving along. That night, I, along with many other exchange students, found ourselves in a large classroom in the Geography building for…WINE TASTING! We signed in and sat down at a long table, set with various wine glasses. At the front of the room was about 30 bottles of wine, wrapped in newspapers, their labels concealed for the blind tasting event. We jumped right into it with a white wine that was pretty tasty. <<<<That description is the extent of my wine tasting expertise. I have a lot to learn. I’m looking forward to going back.

The theme of the meeting was good wine on a budget. For each wine we sampled we were meant to identify/describe the color, the smell and the taste. We then rated it out of 10 and guessed how expensive it was.

Sadly, I couldn’t stay for the entire event because I wanted to go an improv show, my friend Ryan had advertised in my Drama lecture the day before. In high spirits (PUN!) Gillian, Patrick, and I wandered with a new wine tasting buddy over to the Union building for the NatCaf (“Naturally Caffeinated”) show.

Upstairs, we walked through wrought iron gates (similar to those gates in subways) to a large on campus bar with hardwood floors. On the far wall was the bar itself. In the middle of the room, picnic tables were arranged end to end, forming a semicircle around a large black platform. A lot of people were already assembled, and we grabbed some of the last available seats at the picnic table farthest from where we’d entered.

After a few moments of waiting a member of the improv troupe hopped on the stage. He reminded me so much of Wayne Brady, both in a personality and physical appearance, it’s not even funny. Except it was. He was hilarious. In fact, the entire show was. After “Wayne” did his intro, 6 more members of NatCaf hopped on stage and sat in chairs, waiting for further instructions.

The hour long show consisted of a lot of theater improv games, very similar to Whose Line is it Anyway. My only complaints were that sometimes it was hard to hear the troupe members and a few times we missed out on what were apparently hilarious jokes because they either used jargon we didn’t know or referenced specific Rhodes/Grahamstown–isms. We’ll catch on though. So glad we went! Oh and there are auditions for the troupe on Sunday! Wish me luck!

Just a typical Thursday at Rhodes!!