Do I wake or sleep?

I had the ducklings over last night for an Admit Impediments cocktail party--almost everyone was there (Booth was the only one missing, due to his recent bereavement) but Jason was there and since Jason is Joshua is Booth is Jason....it all worked out. Jason and Paula also brought Benjamin, who was very well-behaved and also seemed intrigued by Dada's Scotch. He's learning ;-) All kidding aside--and of course I make many jokes about the manifest nature of cocktails in my family history--I don't at all approve of kids drinking. I related a story of one of my ex-BFs, who came from a real low-rent background--we were at his brother's house and the brother had a toddler son who was running around, and every now and then stopping to drink from his dad's beer can. I was horrified. That's just not cool, you're programming that kid to be an alcoholic. Even I knew, growing up, that alcohol was an adult thing. I have no patience with parents who want to do everything with their kids, who act like friends and not parents. My parents had clear boundaries between them and my brothers and me--we were very aware that there were things that were appropriate for adults, and when we grew up, we would get to enjoy them as well.

I mostly served high-end Scotch--Susan has been giving me some great stuff lately--a single malt, a blended version and two "micro brew" Scotches that were AMAZING. The "micro brews" (not sure how else to describe them--that is, not made by a long-established company but by a trio of Scottish guys) came in "Rich and Spicy" and "Sweet and Mellow"--both were very popular. Tony brought two bottles of wine because he doesn't drink Scotch, and later on I made mojitos. For food, I served some cheeses--brie, horseradish cheddar and a big hunk of gruyere (mmmm)--and later on made several big piles of nachos.

Nick arrived first and rather early, at 4:30. I chatted with him as I raced around trying to finish cleaning the apartment. (Newsflash--my kittehs shed a LOT. Oh my Lord. Scraping the cat hair off the futon chair and the knitting bag where Tatia flops on top of the fridge was quite a fuzzy task. Thank goodness no one was allergic--actually I think Tony said he was, but he said he wasn't having any problems.) Nick brought a lovely hostess gift, the libretto for Carousel. One of my favorite R&H shows! Such a beautiful score.

Jason and Paul arrived next, Benjamin in tow, and Don and Alex came with flowers! What thoughtfulness--a lovely little bouquet of mini-sunflowers (mini-blackeyed Susans?). I put them in water and set them on top of the armoire:



Tony asked about my grandmother's wedding portrait that sits atop my armoire and I reminisced about her with him, telling him about her and my family. Of all my female cousins, physically I'm perhaps the most like Nina (small, thin, athletic build. She also loved sports). She had an interesting life--I told Tony that the demi-monde in Anything Goes was her life. She took cruises and drank champagne and threw lots of cocktail parties.

Later on Duncan and I came up with a "cast shot"--we experimented with several combinations of Scotch, Cointreau, Chambord, Jack Daniel's, vodka, etc. We settled on one, and then I changed it again, adding mint leaves, sugar, etc., and poured 7 shots, but I don't think it tasted great. I was going to bring the cast shot in for Booth but I think I'll just give him a shot of one of the micro-brew Scotches instead.

At one point I was showing off my Star Wars toys, including my "Anakin and Obi Wan Fighting on Mustafar" ornament. (God, I love that toy. I love how it's all backlit, and I LOVE that I can cue Obi Wan screaming "You were the Chosen One!" anytime I like just by pushing a button.) I also tossed down my Anakin action figure and displayed my Emperor pez dispenser, opening it up to pop out the candy and saying menacingly "you want thisssss....don't you?" Don commented approvingly on my Fox Mulder action figure as well. I just love all my toys. Paula was telling Nick (?) about my love of Star Wars and mentioned my vintage Luke Skywalker Empire tee-shirt, upon which I immediately donned it. And of course I had to pull out my "Star Wars Holiday Special" DVD.

At several points during the evening, it was demonstrated exactly how Joshua was based on Jason for the uninitiated (Nick and Tony, since neither of them knew Jason). The one I remember best was when we were talking about the "micro brew" Scotch--it's made by three guys named something like Rob, Joe and Babbo. Someone said "Manny, Moe and Jack?"--that is, the Pep Boys. Duncan commented on the frequency of Moe namings and Jason came in with "I know, like, five guys named Moe." Someone said something about "pulling five guys named Moe out of your ass" and Duncan said "that's why they're called 'Moe.'" Everyone died laughing.

Duncan pulled out his ukulele at one point and played "We Belong" and then "Calypso" by my man John Denver. I asked if he knew "The Eagle and the Hawk"--he did not and it seemed few people even knew the song at all. I cued it up on my iPod and played it--SUCH a terrific song. "I am the eagle, I live in high country/In rocky cathedrals that reach to the sky/I am the hawk and there's blood on my feathers/But time is still turning, they soon will be dry/And all of those who see me, and all who believe in me/
Share in the freedom I feel when I fly...." The whole verse is sung so high--Denver just BELTS the crap out of it, soaring up and up with no falsetto. It's amazing. The man was such a talent.

There's something kind of cinematic about making your way down the street towards the subway station in the pouring rain, fighting against the wind, avoiding the puddles...and not really noticing much or minding because your ears are filled with Mozart's Litany in B-flat Major. It's like your very own soundtrack..

Last night we had our first rehearsal for Admit Impediments. We made very efficient use of the time, getting through, working and cleaning all pages 1-20, and I blocked the two numbers as well. I always try to block as much as I can theoretically, but nothing beats actually having actors in front of you to execute it, so you can see if it works with their rhythms and acting choices.

I feel restored by last night. I really love directing--I feel so completely engaged, every artistic molecule is provoked, and I also get to exercise my perfectionist tendencies. It also helps--immensely--having good actors who understand what I'm asking and can execute it.