This week-end we had the awe inspiring, pride filled opportunity to watch Sydney in her last high school play/musical. Every other year our school does a musical, the next a play. This years' musical was Cinderella. No Sydney was not Cinderella but the Wicked Stepmother. Her sisters claim she has had a lot of practice being loud and "mean" at home....I think they provided a lot of opportunity and example for her to learn from......
If you have had the "pleasure" of a child practicing for months on end for a play, you will totally understand when I say, "it was time to get the show on the road." Long rehearsals, no family time, constant running back and forth to school, drama all the time from a stressed out, worn out teenager who is filling out college paperwork and taking some college courses and maintaining high school homework...does not always leave room for the most pleasant few months.
The stress this week was a dress rehearsal where the costumes did not fit almost the entire cast...they were done professionally...they are supposed to receive refunds....a matinee for the elementary students where Sydney scared some of them and now they won't come near her at school....how they recognize her is one for the books, she looks nothing like herself. I digress but let me say, I greatly dislike the week of performance.
On Friday we all went to watch opening night, we had seen Sydney in makeup and hair so that wasn't a surprise, what did knock all 10 of her family on their collective butts was when she sang. H O L Y S M O K E S! The girl can sing! How could any of us live around her for 18 years and not know what kind of voice she packs in that 5' body? Yes, we go to choir concerts, swing choir events but those are group efforts. For someone who is pretty quiet except when driving her point across to her brothers....WOW! I won't soon forget sitting in the auditorium listening to her first song and looking over at Alison and Rachel, beside me and seeing the same look on their faces of what I'm sure was on my face. I also now understand why those elementary kids are afraid of her....she plays one very scary step-mother.
Afterwards, the cast go out front to meet the audience and while there a lady brought two of her daughters up to Sydney. She said they wanted to talk to her but were scared. Sydney got down on the floor and tried to make them comfortable but with full make up and costume it was still a bit hard for them to realize that she wasn't the person up on stage and wasn't going to hit them with a broom like she had Cinderella.
The last little bit I'd like to share is the reactions of Lucas and Eli. You have to understand that over the past several months they have sat through rehearsals with Sydney until we pick them up after work. Usually it was about 15 minutes a few times a week. In those 15 minutes, they learned dialogue and the songs, if an understudy had been needed they could have stepped in. They can tell you almost any line in the play and sing all the songs at high volume whenever the mood strikes.....can't say as I will miss some of them as they grate on the nerves after 150,000 recitations.
During the play, while watching Sydney on stage, I could see the boys in the row in front of us. They were on the edge of their seats, laughing, clapping and generally 100% engrossed. It made me think of last years' play and the first time they had experienced something like it. They were scared, didn't like black out, couldn't sit still, overstimulated by the crowd and didn't get two steps from us.
This year was about as opposite as you can get. Comfortable and engaged. They both asked to go to the restroom. Why is this important? They KNEW where it was, weren't afraid to navigate the crowd and asked at appropriate times....then during the play they were laughing and clapping...totally understanding what was happening...that didn't happen a year ago. The very best part of watching them was when Eli took Sydney a bouquet of flowers up onto the stage, hugged her and turned around and smiled at the crowd. The kid just did something that was so far beyond him last year that I can't do it justice. It was another one of those moments where as a parent you think..."wow, would you look at that...just look at them go!"
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