Lotus in Tampa: Mission Accomplished
Update: February 25, 2003
So the curtain has risen and fallen three times in the Blake theater, thereby closing another chapter in the saga of Lotus Blooming in a Sea of Fire.
Actually, we didn't have a curtain. But isn't it a lovely image?
The show was a big success. Many thanks to all who gave so much support to the show and to me, sending your encouraging e-mails, in some cases traveling many thousands of miles to be there, or even just reading these little missives I send out.
For the first time ever, audiences experienced Lotus as they were meant to. They saw it fully realized on stage: as I have said before, Eric Davis' staging was truly stunning, and cannot be adequately described in words (but we'll have a video); the students' acting rose to a whole new level in our final week, and through them the show came alive.
I can't say enough about these students. As I sit in Berkeley writing this, coping with my post-show withdrawal, I know this enormous pit in my stomach aches not for the ending of the show itself, but for them. Before I arrived in January, this production was mainly a golden opportunity to revise the show and see it staged. But I can't deny that, for me, these past two months were all about hanging out with a bunch of crazy and amazing high school kids, watching in awe as they pulled together to create this beautiful thing. As great as it was to see my ideas come to life, the beauty that really overwhelmed and inspired me came straight from them.
Another thing: the audience finally heard the words, and more importantly, *understood* them (or so I was told). Since the main criticism of the show after the Dartmouth production was that it was difficult to follow, this was a big and very satisfying accomplishment. Many months of revising, combined with excellent staging and good wireless mics, seemed to pay off.
Audio and video recordings (DVD!) of the show are in progress; I will be back in touch when they become available. In the meantime, CDs and videos of the Dartmouth production are still available from me.
So now it is back to teaching guitar and playing with Stand Up Eight out here in the Bay Area, and as sad as I am to have left Blake, I am very excited to return to my home base. Of course, Eric and I have already begun discussing our next project...
Thanks for reading!
Michael T Roberts aka Mr. Roberts aka Mickey T Ro