Be Thankful for This Moment
Posted by Anne Adams on 3/08/2008
You’re on the Steppenwolf mainstage. You’re on the Steppenwolf mainstage. ANNE- YOU’RE ON THE STEPPENWOLF MAINSTAGE!!! This is the thought that has been running through my mind on repeat ever since I started rehearsals for Carter’s Way.
Right now I am writing this blog in my dressing room. Across the way Ora is doing her hair and I can hear K. Todd’s mischievous laugh down the hall. Calvin, Curtis and Michael are having a dance off to some James Brown song and I can still hear James whistling his saxophone solo even with his door closed. It’s the night of the 5th preview and I am hopeful, scared, excited and tickled pink. We just got notes from Eric (who is by far one of the most patient, generous, and collaborative directors I have ever worked with) and he just gave me the most helpful note of my entire process: “Anne, remember Eunice’s sense of humor and joy-she is hopeful that life is and can be beautiful. This is a woman who lives from one moment to the next, she lives life spontaneously.” With that one note I finally start to understand where Eunice is coming from-what she’s fighting for, and how much courage she actually possesses. I see the potential of where I can take her story and I am truly thankful.
Ever since I moved to Chicago back in 2003, all I have ever wanted was to act on the Steppenwolf stage. I mean it; all I have ever wanted. For me, it doesn’t get any better than this. I know how lucky I am and I plan to SAVOR every moment of this experience. EVERY #*&%ING SINGLE MOMENT. And on that note, Malcolm, our stage manager, just called 5 minutes to places. Here we go…
March 8th, 2008 at 2:24 pm
Just about every moment in our lives is filled with music. So often we rush ourselves to the next beat, the next phrase, the next song. The process of this production is reminding me to listen to all the sounds from the whirling Chicago wind, my girlfriend’s sleeping breath and to my sister’s intoxicating laughter.
Thank you Anne and everyone for bringing your music to this piece. Let’s play!
March 8th, 2008 at 5:28 pm
and boy Anne do you deserve it! i can’t wait to see you shine. i’m so proud of you.
March 10th, 2008 at 6:49 am
Carter’s Way was wonderful. I was thoroughly entertained. Not very often
do you get a good solid mix of music and singing and acting (were the
actors really playing those instruments?). However,
lose the monologue at the end!
It so ruined the impact of the final scene.
After the final line, “we wait”, fade to black and let the audience applaud.
Unless there’s really good reason to keep the monologue in, let it go.
Thanks, Michael Hayden
March 10th, 2008 at 11:22 pm
For Michael Pogue: Exactly! If we can’t start to see when our lives are blessed then what is the point? I think it takes courage to live life with such awareness when things are going good. Too many times I go through life in a haze until something bad happens to wake me back up until a thought occurred to me: LIFE IS SHORT. We have to allow our selves to be radiant and truly happy once in a while. Like the happiness I get when I see you tearing up that bass!
For Justin Palmer: Thank you Justin! Remember that talk we had at Starbucks about 3 months ago? The one where we knew that we might have to work really hard for what we want? That things were probably never going to be handed over to us, but that deep down we liked being the underdog because we knew that some day it was going to make us work even harder and eventually drive us towards the dreams that we always wanted to achieve? Justin look at us! Look at us! How much we’ve both grown even from that talk three months ago. What an exciting time in our lives!
March 12th, 2008 at 3:30 pm
this is SO exciting, annie!
and i’m especially excited FOR YOU!
a lot sure can happen in 3 months.
March 20th, 2008 at 4:19 am
I was directed to go to blog.steppenwolf.org to voice my concerns with the “Carter’s Way” performance. I was present in the audience on Tuesday night, and for how much you said that you seemed to understand the character of Eunice, i really didn’t feel your performance. In a play, it is the characters job to take the audience to a different place, have the audience absolutely engrossed in a story. Every other character seemed to do that for me but Eunice. It seemed that everything that came out of her mouth was scripted (which it was, but it’s not meant to seem like it). Facial expressions were DEAD. Every other actor in the show was absolutely believable, i felt as if there really were living through the issues that the play addressed. Because the other actor seemed to be way more fine tuned than Eunice’s character, it made the lack of her acting ability more noticeable. She stuck out like a sore thumb and made me cringe every time she was on stage. I spent 60 dollars on a show at the Steppenwolf that was ruined by a character that was terribly miscast. This is the Steppenwolf theater, i was very disappointed by the lack of acting that this character put fourth.
March 20th, 2008 at 3:26 pm
I’m sorry to say I agree with the previous post. I understand that the performance I saw was at the beginning of the run and therefore the little kinks and nerves that come with any performance might not have been ironed out. However, I couldn’t help but feel disappointed by Eunice. Miss Adams has wonderful pipes, there’s no denying it, but I didn’t connect with her character in the least. This may be due to lack of development at the writing stage (I kept asking myself why Oriole would be so enamored of her), or perhaps I just came on one of those nights where energy is down. I do hope that through the run, Miss Adams can find the simmering vivacity that is so evident in her fellow actors that would help make Eunice more believable.
March 29th, 2008 at 7:44 pm
i disagree with the two above comments. Though Anne Adams still has some ways to progress, I thought her performance was good and believable. I, personally, could relate to her character fairly well and I thought she had great appeal. I must admit the writing of her character wasn’t the best, but you work with what you get and I thought Miss Adams did a good job with that. I also hope that others who leave comments in the future would be courteous enough to leave some constructive critism as to how the actor might improve if you were dissatisfied with their performance. It’s nicer to give some changes that you think the actor can make if you think their performance left something to be desired.
April 7th, 2008 at 9:21 pm
As an audience member, I cannot help but play director on the inside, which is where I think that urge should stay–on the inside. I cannot, and should not, direct another actor. And perhaps that means I should not critique a performance either. I don’t know. If I came across as rude, I do apologize and offer encouragement to Miss Adams. Putting yourself onstage to be ruthlessly examined by the masses is a brave thing to do. Miss Adams, I do hope you “break a leg” for the rest of your run. (Well now, that sounds rather odd…)