The early bird catches the improv, the music, and the atmosphere

[hahathor.livejournal.com]

[Largely adapted from cthulhia's post on the subject]

The Big Broadcast will have people milling about in character by 7:15. (matinee: 1:15)
The script starts around 7:45. (matinee: ~1:45)
There's at least one ENSMB song before the official start at 8. (matinee: 2)

The usherettes, "cigarette girls" & assorted offstage cast not only look the part, but will be interacting with audience members and each other. I will be in character as Leda Leaper, the Daily Advertiser's gossip columnist. My costume as Leda is amazing - I got an astounding hat from Boston Costume, and Sylvine (who is French, and therefore more stylish than I can ever hope to be) has lent me a dress that makes my rack look even better than it normally does. I know, that seems impossible, but it's true! And the usherettes and cigarette girls look even hotter than I do. And don't even get me started on the house marm! w00t!

If last night's "rehearsal" is any indication, they're also going to run out of vintage candy, and slightly out of period "candy cigarettes", fast. Arrive early, be sure to buy something from them and interact with them in character.

[Mods: There are a lot of people in this community involved with this show, and we're all really excited about it - apologies in advance if it seems like spam; we'll stop if you tell us to, but if you don't we're liable to post a lot - please don't take it ill]

Comments

[thismightbejess.livejournal.com]

Handsome Chuck informed me that ENSMB loves it when people spontaneously dance to their music... so naturally, I asked Mr. Cyrano if it would be acceptable for audience members to dance to the warm-up song (possibly with our smoking hot cigarette girls and usherettes... or even that Leda Leaper reporter) in the aisles. He agreed, as long as the dancers are mindful of other audience members, and don't cause too much of a ruckus!

[spatch]

"...so what you're saying is that you'd like to make plans for spontaneous dancing."
"Yes! Oh, I'm so glad you know what I'm talking about!"
"Let's not go that far."

They would've had a hard time with flash mobs in 1938, I'm sure.

[ron_newman]

I'm glad you posted this, as it means I need to change my plans to go somewhere else at 6:30 and enter the Somerville Theatre around 7:45. Will the late-arriving audience be disappointed to find that they've missed part of the show?

depends on the audience member

[cthulhia]

If by late-arriving you mean "by listed start time", then probably not. You'll still get a full show, and some of the house actors may still be around for intermission.

The "scripted" parts include a period take on the usual messages about exits, trash bins & cell phones. And the sort of chaos that happens before a live show is "ON AIR". So, stuff to immediately immerse you into the story the moment you enter the theater.

The ENSMB original "warm-up" song is quite good .. but... that happens close enough to the posted opening time that most folks would at least be in earshot by that point.

Re: depends on the audience member

[ron_newman]

I don't want to miss any of this, so my new plan is to arrive at 7.

Re: depends on the audience member

[spatch]

To be honest (and I can be, considering I'm the one who planned the darn thing) the material in the pre-show is enjoyable and entertaining, but if you were to show up at 8:00 on the dot as the "broadcast" itself begins you wouldn't feel left out or as if you were missing any special pieces of exposition. I wanted to make sure the activity on stage reflected the immersive atmosphere we've got in the lobby and the house before the show start, but I also wanted to make sure there was nothing crucial presented during this pre-show time that "on-timers" would miss.

Duzzat make sense?