A (Tues)day in the Life of Pericles . . .

Hello all! I suppose introductions are in order before we depart on this epic blogging journey.

My name is Kristin Loughry. I am going into my junior year at Ithaca College in upstate New York. I'm originally from the Boston area. I enjoy pina coladas and getting caught in the rain, though I hate Jimmy Buffett. (Good thing that song is by Rupert Holmes, then, says your older-than-dirt editor.) I have never lived in California before. I came out here because a) they offered and b) I thought it would be fun. And boy, how right I was! I am one of four stage management interns here at Cal Shakes this summer. I was assigned to work on Pericles. Now that Pericles has closed and my summer is far from over, I've had some time to reflect on my experience thusfar and take advantage of new opportunities Cal Shakes is putting before me.

In future entries, I shall regale you with tales of tech, conservatory camp and the infamous intern apartment. But for now, while it is fresh in my mind, I'll take you on a super condensed version of my life during the run in Pericles.

Oh, and I also promise the future entries won't be this long. They probably will include stories from Pericles, however. But only because I love Pericles. A lot. Maybe a little bit too much.

7:30 AM - Wake up! Wonder why you are awake so early. Remember you have a SMAT (student matinee) at 11 AM. Make scrambled eggs with oregano because it's the only spice you have.

8:30 AM - Attempt to leave the apartment. Realize you forgot something. Repeat three times.

9:30 AM - Arrive at the Bruns! Conquer the hill.

9:35 AM - Apply sunscreen. Liberally.

9:40 AM - Sweep the carpets on stage. Curse carpet for being difficult to sweep. Whistle (or hum, as the case may be) while you work.

9:45 AM - Crawl around on the carpets checking for staples. Remove staples with a screw driver and replace with screws.

10:10 AM - Watch as the knights make funny faces during dance call and certain actors do fight call without pants.

10:20 AM - Fold the oceans. Again. And again. And again.

10:25 AM - Move Ellie the elephant. Curse Ellie for being huge and made of steel.

10:30 AM - House open and Actor's half hour break. Make yourself a bagel.

10:45 AM - Get dressed for show. Find Petey the Parrot (as pictured above) and complete your ensemble. Put on more sunscreen because you're already burning.

11 AM - Places for the SMAT! Make sure the actors put shoes on so that they don't get third -degree burns on the bottoms of their feet.

11:05 AM - Kill a bee for Pericles.

11:20 AM - Be serenaded by our melodious bovine neighbors. Curse the cows for being cranky. Swear to cook some beef when you get home.

11:30 AM - Escape the heat in the air-conditioned dressing rooms for all of Pentapolis.

12:20 PM - Intermission!

12:35 PM - Start Act II. Cue the actors with an otter pop in hand.

12:36 PM - Hold otter pops for people that are onstage.

12:52 PM - Find out that there is something sharp onstage that the actors have been stepping on. Find out its been there since Act I. Warn everyone as to where it is and keep Band-aids handy.

1:30 PM - Curtain call! Begin resetting for the top of the show.

1:35 PM - Go watch the Q & A session with the kids. Note all adorable questions.

1:50 PM - Retire to the green room. Pass out on the couch.

5 PM - Wake up! Continue to be in a nap coma.

5:15 PM - Vacuum the runners. And the escape stairs. And the trap room. Empty the shop vac twice during all this vacuuming because there's so much sand everywhere.

6:15 PM - Check the area of stage where there was a sharp thing. After an exhaustive search, find nothing. Determine that someone is on crack. Re-sweep the carpets. Continue checking for and removing staples.

6:45 PM - Stomp about stage like a possessed woman with a screw gun, re-securing pieces of floor.

6:55 PM - Move Ellie again. Wonder why she's so freakin' huge.

7:00 PM - House open! Run up to catering and grab the "Chris Kelly Burrito."

7:15 PM - Witness the debauchery of the 80s dance party in the women's dressing room. Sing along to Laura Branigan's "Gloria."

7:30 PM - Places! Listen to the House Speech from backstage. Chant PEET'S COFFEE AND TEA with the patrons. Watch Sarah Nealis kiss part of the set.

7:34 PM - Do the Antioch Dance.

7:40 PM - Continue to curse the cows as they get louder when the sun goes down. Watch farmers chase them across the hills.

8:00 PM - Re-tie Cindy-Lou-Who, the dead hooker used in the brothel.

8:50 PM - Intermission. Call your best friend. Tell them that even though you were supposed to call them today, you will have to call them tomorrow because by the time the show is done it'll be 1 AM on the east coast and they have to work in the morning. Become frustrated with time differences.

9:05 PM - Places for Act II!

9:10 PM - Sneak up to the booth to watch the Leonine/Marina scene. Snag some hot chocolate. Sneak back down to spot some pirates.

9:15 PM - Catch Cindy-Lou-Who as she comes flying off the deck.

9:25 PM - Stargaze as Lysimachus is swayed by Marina's virtue.

9:45 PM - Play hide-and-seek with Gower as you try to cue him for an entrance.

9:50 PM - Hand off lanterns to temple-goers. Nearly kill yourself getting the lantern into the hand of a Pericles, who is traveling 90 MPH after a quick change.

10:01 PM - Do the "catching lanterns" dance. Try not to get made fun of.

10:05 PM - Put everything away, tarp up the boxes, big props and green room couches.

10:10 PM - Hang out and unwind with the cast. Shoot the shit, play some poker, and have impromptu dance parties long after the patrons go home.

11:42 PM - Arrive home. Start eating Nutella with a spoon straight out of the jar. Avoid judgmental gazes from your roommates.

11:45 PM - Make t-shirts for the entire cast and crew. This project takes several days. Be woeful that "Kristin's Craft Corner" has taken over the apartment.

11:55 PM - Watch too many episodes of Heroes with your roommate. Wake everyone up when you both vocalize every plot twist.

2:00 AM - Pack up the craft corner, hit the shower and pass out. Think about going to work again tomorrow and smile as you go to sleep. Smile extra wide when you remember that you don't have a SMAT and can therefore sleep in.

Congrats! You've made it to the end of our journey. Next week, we can all look forward to more stories and short blog entries.

XoXo - Kristin Loughry, SM intern.