in digestion

Every commentator gets their chance to have a post-show wrap-up. They're used for sporting events, fashion functions, and political debates. They come in many shapes, sizes, and hues, but they are all the opportunity for one voice to suggest the overall meaning, quality, or key points. They are the conclusion paragraph to the proverbial high school essay.

Monday night, my play's debriefing was held at the theatre.

My stage manager went back to wearing her Presidential cap, as she, my show's sexy, second in command, and I sat awaiting the arrival of anyone else. The next show's set is in stark contrast to mine, with an empty black stage save an over-sized desk. The lighting was harsh and dropped shadows on Mrs. President, who chose to sit behind the desk instead of any of the other ninety-eight seats in the building.

The technical director of the theatre showed up after we had already begun our discussion. I am not sure if it was a discussion, in the clearest terms, though. A cast member and friend of mine suggested it be less debriefing and more dissertation.

Given all of the battles I faced during the production of this show, whether from outside forces, the theatre itself, or any of the other folks in the room, the four pages of notes I prepared were all intended to steer directly clear of anything that could be construed as personal attack. I have come to discover that the timing of this show was poor, the conflicts of most of the theatre's Board members was notable, and I decided to let it slide that many were having an off three months when it comes to offering aide, support, and common courtesy.

So, I had pages of thoughts, observations, and suggestions that I - as a seasoned director at this theatre - felt could help other productions this season and in the future. Many of these were echoed by the technical director, who also happened to be my key set doctor on the show. Was the response of our supposed esteemed-so-nominated-for-a-local-leader-award President to jot these things down to give them their due, consider them, or even table them for the following night's Board meeting? You can probably discern the answer from the phrasing of the question that the answer is a big fat NO.

No, let's not sit back and digest it more. Let's not take any of the perspective of one who has just been to war to help better arm the troops in the future. We'll go ahead and simply get defensive, proving that this meeting was scheduled in hopes to receive endless streams of accolades and praise for how smoothly everything is running compared to year's past. The fact of the matter is that the disorganized, pseudo-leader-free days functioned in similar fashion, albeit two differences: fewer rules and fewer people wearing big titles.