End of the Season...

This past weekend marked the end of my official "obligations" to Tri Cities Opera.  In fact, I just got an email from the artistic director with a reminder that we have "class" tomorrow night, and I chuckled as I erased it from my inbox.  Usually "class" is a waste of time that consists of a bunch of sopranos singing and getting half-hearted comments from the artistic staff...that is, when they aren't getting yelled at for bad diction, wrong notes and poor musicality.  A delight for young and old.  Now that I am not really part of the company anymore, I have no compelling reason to show up, and will be using that night to catch up on my Netflix movies.

My night to sing Martha was Friday night and when I arrived at the theater, I had a check awaiting me.  Which I opened and promptly started wondering where the rest of my money had gone.  I even turned the open envelope upside down, hoping against hope that there was more inside.  Despite having to perform Martha five straight nights during tech, with a nasty case of bronchitis, and being forced to wear the world's ugliest costume, the payment for my performance was a pittance.  The small amount I originally had agreed to had been reduced by AGMA fees, AGMA medical fees, Social Security and the New York State income tax.  And by the time I finally got to the performance, I felt I deserved so much more for all the crap I had endured.  Hell, clowns probably make more for all the humiliation they endure, shouldn't I? 

Fortunately, the audience was a delight and laughed at all the appropriate places during my scene, so that helped to ease the sting a bit.  Unfortunately, I hadn't counted on the fact that an almost full auditorium would cause the temperature to rise in the theater, and I kept having to towel myself off after every scene.  Oddly enough, a polyester head cover isn't exactly "breathable" and caused a large amount of discomfort and copious sweating.  By the end of the show, almost all of my old-age makeup had run down to my chin and I was starting to look like a young woman with a makeup beard.  Come and get me hotties of Binghamton!  Luckily the costume ladies are friends of mine and they made sure that I stood in front of a fan after I got off stage.  And you really haven't lived until you have stuck a fan under your skirt in front of a bunch of chorus members, supers and small children.

The after parties were the best part of the evening and I even managed to convince the company's Development Director to buy all my drinks.  Hey, they were only $5 and the man was lucky we aren't in Boston, where one Cosmo can run up to $12.  I will miss the cheap liquor when I leave, because it sometimes makes this "artistic" life so much more bearable.  AGMA medical fees?  Noooo problem, pass me another shot!  On second thought, it is better I leave soon, as I could develop a "problem" any day now.  

So, in edition to packing (for both the move and my trip to Michigan on Thursday) I now need to start learning my music for this summer.  And, as we all know, I LOVE the process of learning new music.