I'm Well, thank you.

It's Load in week for Well, which means by Sunday we'll be in Tech. Well... why not.

I'd like to invite everyone to try getting through an hour or two of the day without using the word "well". It's not easy. I gave up trying last Fall but I suppose I'll have to live with the witty wordplay being attempted around here for at least a few more weeks.

I took a couple of photos of the lighting hang going on today, but have not yet found much inspiration for a post based just on the craft of stage lighting. I'm still sharing the pix.

Well plays with theatrical conventions, in many ways, and often challenges them. In this production you see the set and you see the stage, both onstage and off. Sometimes the lights are just lights, and sometimes they're scenery. The same happens with the set and costumes, even the "actors"; A, B,C and D. You get to figure out what's what, when and where, why and with whom; it's all part of the unexpected fun and explosive emotion of this play. Have I mentioned that this is the show you should drag your mother to? Or you could invite her to buy the tickets - even better. My mom and sis just got their invites.

Persephone is now fully cast and I'm sure marketing will be getting that word out shortly. Our stage manager, David Lurie, should be getting settled in his apartment right about now as he starts pre-production work tomorrow. Hard to believe but we'll have another cast in rehearsal in just a week. We'll be back in the South End soon; so get ready for some company Speakeasy!

I had a great time at the REPA (Regional Entertainment Production and Administration) Job Fair on Saturday. This great event is sponsored by StageSource, NETC, and USITT New England. I met a new bunch of theatrical neighbors and saw some old, long-lost friends.

A number of people there told me how much they enjoy the blog. So comment already! Or at least ask a question or two. PLEASE! I've almost got Michael Maso interested in posting occasionally... help us convince him how much fun that would be.

I digress.

Thanks to Jeff Poulos and crew for inviting me to participate in a panel discussion with fellow Production Manager Paul Melone (Speakeasy), Costume Designer Rafael Jaen (Emerson), and Lighting Designers Jeff Adelberg and Scott Clyve. We chatted strategy for portfolio presentation, networking, and interviewing with a nice crowd of at least 33. The panel discussion titled "Get Your Foot in the Door" was moderated by BC's design prof Crystal Tiala.

I get to play on a panel again next month in Phoenix when production managers from across the country descend upon the annual USITT conference to share our collective wisdom with students on the same topic. We also get to chat with each other, talk shop about our shared triumphs and woes in the world of regional theatre, dish up our mutual colleagues (be nice to your production managers), explore the theatre scene in Phoenix, and investigate the latest technological wonders on the exposition hall floor. I'll post a pic or two if I can tear myself away from the mojitos at the rooftop pool bar. Do you have any suggestions about what to do with a few free hours in Phoenix? Let me know - click on "Join the Conversation" below and give me your advice.