Free at Last!

22 November 2012

Happy Thanksgiving to one and all!  So the show is over.  My last performance was Tuesday night, and the residual feelings are bittersweet.  On one hand, I am sad that I will not be seeing my new friends very often after having spent the majority of the last month with them.  Pretty much every single day, in fact.  On the other hand, I am thrilled to finally have my life back!  I may or may not have teared up a bit with joy when I walked home with the Hubby after school yesterday.  Not to the train station, not to the bus stop, not to the taxi stand, but HOME!  To my warm and cozy apartment.  I celebrated by promptly falling asleep on the couch, waking up long enough only to eat the delicious bon juk (rice porridge) that my sweet man had gone to pick up from a nearby restaurant while I was napping and then to watch an episode or two of The Walking Dead.  Nothing like flesh eating zombies to help you relax after weeks of a grueling rehearsal schedule.

My participation in the play itself was definitely an experience I would not trade for anything. I met a lot of really fantastic people and undertook a role I have always wanted to play, all while dealing with the incredibly challenging language barrier and inevitable cultural differences.  I will say that I was thoroughly impressed with the dedicated work ethic of the company members, many of whom spent two long days at the theatre building the set from scratch and hanging lights themselves.  It was truly a collaborative effort.

This is what happens when I only understand about 1/16th of what is being said in the rehearsal room at any given time, and you leave me alone with a Falstaff fat suit, and a random witch's hat.

Lord Stanley, Murderer 2, Clarence, Archbishop

Margaret, Clarence, Elizabeth, Anne (foreign cast)

My self-appointed Korean "dad."  He has claimed me as his daughter, and thanks to him, I know how to say "Sit down," "father," and "hurry up" in Korean.

Margaret (Korean cast) and Me

Elizabeth, Margaret, Richard III, Anne

All the Boys and Me; it was a HUGE cast

Hopefully now, I will be able to get back to traveling again and experiencing more of Korea than the inside of the bullet train.  I must say, though, that I have nabbing an unreserved seat on said train down to a science.  The commuter ticket I used all throughout the last month did not, in fact, offer me an assigned seat on each train.  There are, however, precisely two auditorium-style fold-up seats in between each car in the area where passengers ride who have "standing room only" tickets.  If you go up to the platform about ten to fifteen minutes before the train arrives and stand at the number on the platform that matches a corresponding car on the train, when the train stops, you will be positioned right in front of the train door.  When the door opens and the exiting passengers leave the train, you will be the first one to enter through the aforementioned door, thus allowing you to claim one of the unreserved seats by placing your bag on the seat and stepping aside to allow other passengers to enter the train.  Chances are there will be at least one seat available, and if you're lucky, the other seat will not be occupied by a vociferous businessman, slightly swaying from imbibing a bit too much soju, who insists on shouting at some poor soul on the other end of his cell phone conversation, all while staring at you for an immeasurable amount of time while you try to inconspicuously read a book.  Again...if you're lucky.  And if you're really lucky, this garrulous individual or someone equally engaging will be there, giving you fodder for memories to relish for years on end.