The Forbidden Phoenix... or Albatross?
Okay, so I'm starting to think that this show is cursed. Over the seven years of development, we tried to hang on to actors and creative team members, but we lost them to other shows. I figured that once we had locked in an ideal cast, we'd be pretty much set until we opened. Then the dates of the Toronto run changed, and our lead became unavailable for that run. Sure, I could deal with an understudy. That's just the reality of production.
But I figured that once rehearsals started, there'd be no more personnel changes. Wrong!!!! If you were following my blogs, I mentioned that someone in the Pride and Prejudice cast was stabbed while trying to break up a street brawl. That cast member is also the director of a show that's supposed to start rehearsing this week. He's out of commission for six weeks, which means that the other show needs a director... and that director will be our assistant director. Wayne Paquette is hopping on a plane tomorrow to fly to Stratford and start working with the actors of the other show.
We'll be okay, but it's never good to lose a team member in mid-stream. I wish I could be with the crew to give them my support, but I'm in Calgary for Wordfest presentations. Yikes. I'll be so happy when this project is over. It's way too much stress.